He hadn’t even gained his bearings by the time the creature was on him again. He felt the beast’s fist clamp onto him like a vise, its talons slowly digging into the meat of his shoulder.
It lifted him from the ground and pulled him close to its fang-filled mouth. It roared with satisfaction. He could smell the rank stench of death on its breath as it stretched its jaws wide and moved in for the kill.
But then, he recognized the all-too-familiar blast of a .50 caliber rifle and felt himself falling as he watched the beast’s head jerk to the side in a spay of blood. He rolled as he hit the ground and stumbled forward, trying to put as much distance as possible between himself and the creature’s bloodlust.
His legs felt heavy, and the world spun. He fell to his knees and looked up to see Beck fire another blast from the XM500 rifle. Then, Donahue and one of his men were at his side, lifting him from the floor. He shook them off and grabbed his FS2000 from the table.
Donahue said, “Retreat! Fall back into the mall!”
They scrambled through the docks toward the customer section of the mall. Donahue kicked through a doublewide loading door, and Knight and Beck followed on the man’s heels. The remaining SAS soldiers were close behind. Knight could hear the sound of suppressing fire coupled with screams as the spec ops team fell one by one.
Calming grays and whites complemented the side of the mall that would one day be seen by the world. Three open stories stretched above their heads, and there were spots reserved for fountains and fancy displays. But the fountain was empty, and the displays were non-existent. A warren of stairs and escalators stretched to the sky. The stores were hollow white shells of glass and drywall. Knight was amazed at the wastefulness of the whole city. What kind of a government would build empty cities to falsely bolster an economy built upon the backs of the poor?
Donahue urged the group forward. Knight heard roaring behind them and turned see the front of a store burst inward as the creature threw one of the SAS soldiers through the plate glass. He grabbed the XM500 from Beck and blasted a round into the creature’s skull. It crashed backward, destroying the front of another empty store.
They ran forward as fast their legs would carry them, curving around bends and forks in the path and heading toward the front of the mall. But the place was huge, and it seemed like they’d already run for miles. He had conditioned his body into a finely tuned machine, but even Knight could feel the fire in his legs and the burning of lungs that begged for air. They couldn’t keep this up much longer.
Then the front entrance loomed ahead, and they were pushing their way into the open air. He didn’t dare glance over his shoulder. He could almost feel the creature’s hot breath on his neck, and he prayed that it was only his imagination.
Ahead, Beck called them toward a manhole cover in the street. “Help me!” she screamed.
Knight, Donahue and the last of the SAS soldiers grabbed hold of the cover and willed their remaining strength into pulling the heavy metal free from the ground. The others started to climb down, and Knight turned back to the front of the mall.
The mall’s face was two stories of shimmering glass surrounded by shrubbery and brick. Before Knight’s eyes, the glass burst outward. The upper panels cracked and fell from their supports. The pieces of shrapnel erupted everywhere, and he shielded his eyes.
The beast stood where the glass had been. It threw its arms out to the side and bellowed at its fleeing prey.
Then, it charged.
Donahue and his man were already on their way down the ladder, but Knight knew that he and Beck would never make it if they took the time to climb down. Time for the express elevator, he thought. Knight wrapped his arms around Beck and jumped into the hole as the beast skidded over the opening.
The pair landed upon the two SAS commandos, and they all fell together in a heap on the sewer floor. Knight gained his feet and pulled them back, just as a clawed fist swiped down through the opening above. The creature slashed back and forth and stretched out after them. It jammed its head and arm down, but it couldn’t fit its enormous, muscular torso through the opening. It shrieked at them in rage. Then, the creature pulled its bulk back from the opening and disappeared.
The four of them stood there a moment, leaning against the sewer walls and trying to catch their breath. Donahue leaned over with his head in his hands. “If I would’ve listened to you sooner…” His voice trailed off.
Knight shook his head. “It wouldn’t have made any difference. There’s nothing we could have done.”
Donahue looked to the sky. “Maybe. Maybe not.”
“Come on,” Knight said. “Let’s get out of here before it finds a way down.”
They set off through the sewers in the direction of the downed Osprey with Knight taking point and Donahue watching the rear. As they passed under the next manhole cover, a beam of light burst down on them.