The hallway was dark. The emergency lights buzzed overhead. They flickered on and off, making the shadows jump.
Ren walked in front. He held the boning knife tight. His knuckles were white.
Chloe walked behind him. She was trying to be quiet. She was failing. Her shoes squeaked on the linoleum floor. She was breathing too loud. It sounded like a whistle in the silence.
"Quiet," Ren whispered. He didn't look back.
"Sorry," she whispered back. Her voice was shaking.
They passed the science classrooms. The doors were smashed open. Glass was everywhere. It crunched under their feet.
Ren stopped.
He heard a sound.
Hiss.
It wasn't small. It didn't sound like a cat or a leak. It sounded like a semi-truck letting out its air brakes.
Something was moving in the ceiling.
Ren looked up. He used his Night Vision. The ceiling tiles were gone. He saw the metal pipes and the thick bundles of wires.
And he saw the tail.
It was green. It was thick, like a tree trunk. It slid over the pipes without making a sound. It was heavy. The metal supports groaned under the weight.
"Run," Ren said.
"What?" Chloe asked. She looked confused.
"Run!"
Ren pushed her hard. Chloe stumbled back. She fell onto the glass.
The ceiling exploded.
Debris and dust fell everywhere. A giant head smashed into the floor right where they had been standing. The concrete cracked.
It was a snake. A python. But it was wrong. It was huge. It had to be ten meters long. Its scales were hard and shiny like armor plates. Its eyes were bright yellow and had vertical slits.
[Mutated Python (Lvl 4)]
It roared. Snakes shouldn't roar. This one did. It sounded like a lion screaming underwater.
It looked at Ren. It opened its mouth. Its fangs were the size of kitchen knives. Purple liquid dripped from them. It hit the floor and sizzled.
Poison.
"Go!" Ren yelled at Chloe. "Get to the stairs! Move!"
Chloe didn't argue this time. She scrambled up. Her hands were bleeding from the glass. She ran. She dropped the keys.
"Damn it," Ren cursed.
The snake lunged. It was fast. Too fast for something that big.
Ren didn't have time to think. He used his skill.
[Dash Activated]
[Stamina: -5]
He shot to the left. The world blurred for a second.
The snake bit the empty air. Its head smashed into a row of metal lockers. The metal crunched like paper.
Ren rolled. He stood up. He was panting. That skill took a lot out of him.
He was behind the snake now.
He saw a weak spot. The scales on its neck looked thinner. They were stretched out.
He jumped. He landed on the snake's back. It felt cold and slimy. It was like standing on a moving train.
The snake thrashed. It tried to shake him off. Ren grabbed a scale to hold on. It cut his hand.
He raised the knife.
"Die," he grunted.
He stabbed the knife down with both hands.
Clang.
Sparks flew.
The knife bounced off the scales. It didn't even scratch it. The blade bent.
"You have to be kidding me," Ren said. He stared at the bent knife.
The snake whipped its tail.
It hit Ren in the chest.
It felt like getting hit by a car.
Ren flew across the hall. He smashed into the wall. The air left his lungs instantly. He fell to the floor, gasping. He couldn't breathe.
[Warning: Health -25%]
[Ribs Cracked.]
Pain shot through his chest. It was hot and sharp. Every breath hurt.
Ren tried to stand up. His legs felt like jelly. He coughed. Blood came out.
The snake turned around slowly. It hissed. It knew he was hurt. It liked it.
It coiled its body. It was getting ready to strike again.
Ren looked at his knife. It was bent. It was useless against that armor.
He looked at Chloe. She was hiding by the stairs. She was crying. She looked at him like he was already dead.
Ren looked back at the snake.
He was going to die. He couldn't penetrate the skin. He wasn't strong enough.
The snake opened its mouth. It wanted to swallow him whole.
Ren looked at the pink flesh inside the mouth. It was soft. Wet.
A crazy idea hit him.
The hunger roared in his stomach. It drowned out the pain in his ribs.
If I can't cut it from the outside, Ren thought. I'll eat it from the inside.
"Fine," Ren spit blood on the floor. He stood up. He swayed a little. "Come and get it."
The snake lunged.
Ren didn't dodge. He stood his ground.
Chloe screamed. "Ren!"
When the mouth opened to bite him, Ren didn't run away. He dove forward.
He dove right into the open mouth.
He grabbed the fangs. They were slippery with poison. His hands burned.
He pulled himself in.
The snake clamped its jaws shut.
Darkness.
Ren was inside the mouth. It was tight. It was hot. It smelled terrible. Acid and rotten meat. The muscles were squeezing him. pushing him down the throat.
Ren couldn't breathe. The air was toxic.
"Now," he thought.
He didn't use the knife. He opened his own mouth.
He bit the inside of the snake's cheek.
He tore a chunk of flesh out.
It tasted vile. Like battery acid and sulfur.
He swallowed.
Gulp.
[Gluttony Activated.]
[Consumed: Mutated Python Flesh.]
Heat exploded in his stomach. It wasn't just warm. It was boiling.
[Poison Resistance +1.]
[Vitality +2.]
The snake screamed. It thrashed its head. It smashed into the walls. Ren was thrown around inside like a ragdoll.
But he didn't let go. He bit again.
And again.
He was eating the snake alive.
The snake opened its mouth. It tried to vomit him out.
Ren fell out. He landed on the wet floor. He was covered in slime and purple blood.
The snake was freaking out. It was bleeding from the inside. It rolled on the floor, crushing the lockers.
Ren stood up. The heat from the meat was working. His ribs snapped back into place. The pain vanished.
He felt stronger. Angrier.
He looked around. He saw a broken piece of pipe on the floor. It was sharp at one end.
The snake was distracted. It was shaking its head, trying to get the pain to stop.
Ren ran. He jumped.
He drove the pipe into the snake's eye.
Squelch.
Yellow goo sprayed everywhere. It covered Ren's face.
The snake went stiff. It twitched once. Then it collapsed. The heavy body shook the floor.
[Target Neutralized: Mutated Python (Lvl 4)]
[Experience Gained: 50]
[Level Up!]
[You are now Level 3.]
Ren panted. He wiped the slime off his face.
He walked over to the dead snake.
He was still hungry. The few bites inside weren't enough.
He cut a piece of the heart out with the bent knife. It was huge. The size of a football.
He ate it.
Ding.
[Rare Gene Extracted.]
[New Skill: Heat Sensing (Passive).]
[Description: You can see body heat signatures.]
Ren closed his eyes. He took a deep breath. He opened them again.
The world changed.
He could still see the grey lines of the hallway. But now he saw colors too.
He saw the cooling blue body of the snake.
And down the hall, near the stairs, he saw a bright red shape.
It was Chloe. She was hiding behind a door. She was warm. Alive. Her heart was beating fast. He could see the pulse in her neck.
Ren picked up the keys from the floor. He walked over to her.
Chloe peeked out. Her face was pale. She looked at the dead giant snake. Then she looked at Ren.
He was covered in yellow goo and purple blood. He looked like a demon.
"Did you..." she stuttered. "Did you just bite that thing?"
Ren shrugged. "It bit me first."
He handed her the keys. His hand was steady. "Let's go to the roof."
They walked up the stairs. It was quiet.
Ren felt good. He was strong. He had poison resistance now. He could see heat. He wasn't the prey anymore.
They reached the top floor. Chloe unlocked the heavy metal door. Her hands were shaking so bad it took three tries.
Ren pushed it open.
The wind hit them. It was cold. It smelled like smoke.
Ren walked to the edge of the roof. He looked out at the city.
He froze.
The city was burning.
Fires were everywhere. Tall buildings were toppled over like dominoes. The sky was black with smoke. The sun was blocked out.
And in the streets below, thousands of things were moving.
They weren't people. They were monsters. Some were small like the rats. Some were big like the snake. They were fighting each other. Eating each other.
And in the center of the city, wrapped around the tallest tower, was something else.
It was huge. It had wings that spanned two city blocks. It was breathing fire.
A dragon.
Ren smiled.
Chloe was crying next to him. She fell to her knees. She was terrified.
"It's over," she sobbed. "The world is gone."
But Ren wasn't scared. He looked at the dragon. He looked at the chaos. He felt the hunger grow in his stomach. It was excited.
"No," Ren said.
His stomach growled. It was a deep, low sound.
"It's just a buffet."