Aberrant, the horrors and abominations of the eternal night. When they first appeared during the fall of the sun. The aberrants brought chaos to humanity and caused society to collapse under the pressure of isolation and plague. They were considered to be harbingers of the end.
With ulcerated skins and mutated genes, those infected by the stygian virus, or the aberrants, become terrifying and bloodthirsty monsters in mere hours. The way those freaks destroyed civilization over a week was atrocious. The bastards weren't simply zombies or the undead.
They were inconsistent with what others had expected from monsters of the typical virus outbreak.
The aberrants knew how to utilize the eternal night as if it were a part of their instinct. They typically hide in darker places and attack those who dare to luster their light. The bastards also typically stalked their prey from a distance, aiming to find a bigger group.
The monsters weren't mindless beasts.
Unfortunately, it didn't even end there. The aberrants had a peculiar and dangerous ability. It was the capability to release an unknown frequency, which alerts other aberrants to their location. The range varies between each aberrant, but the average was a kilometer.
Because of this, survivors in city centers barely survived, and some that had left were deeply scarred for life. To be discovered by one aberrant was to expect hundreds more to follow afterward. And as usual, humans were at a disadvantage under the night.
While others employed the idea of using light as a blinding source. It wouldn't work against the aberrants. Those bastards were well adapted to various habitats or climates. It was as if they were genetically tailored to mutate into a form that could be versatile in all aspects.
And finally, the most problematic thing about aberrants was their way of hunting their prey. They charged and sprinted toward people like rabid animals who hadn't eaten for months. Those freaks weren't slow at all.
It wasn't surprising for the aberrants to dominate during the Dark Cataclysmic Era, especially when the world seemed to tip in their favor. Humanity had lost its edge and had become divided from one another.
When there was no unity, only collapse would happen.
There was also the existence of higher beings of aberrants, mutants, and mutated beasts. But no one wanted to think of it. After all, a tide of monsters was charging towards the center of the devastated and fiery settlement known as New Torrington.
At the center of it all was a young man with jet-black hair and sapphire-like eyes. There was a solemn expression on his face as he swiftly prepared for the worst. He wore his final clothing, which was a pair of gloves. Following it were equipment ranging from utilities to explosives.
The unexpected appearance of an aberrant startled him, but it was already too late. It had already noticed him and called upon its bastard brothers and sisters to eat him from flesh to bone. Just when he was confident in surviving, reality slapped him without hesitation.
"Luckily, I had almost finished preparation when it noticed me," Duke muttered and sighed in relief. If he didn't swiftly prepare himself. Then he wouldn't have time to organize himself in this defensive.
Just the thought of it made him instinctively shiver. No one wanted to die being eaten and ripped apart by freaks known as aberrants. Most would preferably use their final bullets for themselves since most didn't want to be one of the monsters. But that was a hard choice for everyone to make.
Nonetheless, he took out most of the ammunition and dragged the food supply crate and the three strange syringes atop it. He was tugging them to the second floor and wanted to use the stairs as a corner. Otherwise, the ground floor with many entry points would be detrimental to him.
Duke glanced at the stairs and quietly created a barricade with whatever was left. This will be a long-lasting fight that might take hours. And such a battle against the aberrants would be the fate slowly determining his existence in the apocalyptic world.
Whether he survives or not was something he didn't consider as a question. After all, he intended to not die with all his might.
Duke took some deep breaths as he stood silently on the second floor. There was a small wooden barricade separating the staircase and the second floor. It might not be enough, but it was better than nothing.
'This battle will be heavy.' He thought to himself with silence reverberating within his mind. There was nothing more but the whisper of the breeze of cold wind. But amongst its murmurs were the echoing growls and roars of monsters.
Duke understood that they were getting closer and closer to the leader's house. He closed his eyelids for a short period of time and held his fingers tightly to the Dobermann. He listened carefully to the sound.
And when the cracks were heard from the windows and doors, he opened his eyes. They have finally arrived. Wearing a monocle in his left eye, the night vision feature of the equipment made it easier to see in the dark.
When the first aberrant emerged from the corner of the staircase. He didn't hesitate to pull the trigger and started shooting at them.
*Bang!*
*Bang!*
*Bang!*
Flashes of lustrous light gleamed over Duke's sharp face. He coldly looked at the charging monsters and kept shooting at them. There was only one path to the second floor. And that was the staircase. It was the best corner he could use to ensure survival.
So, no matter what, he must defend this place with his life. Otherwise, by the moment the staircase falls, he would be trapped on the second floor like a lamb in a cage waiting to be slaughtered. He must avoid this fate.
After the magazine was emptied. Duke swiftly loaded a new one into the Dobermann and continued shooting. The gunfire continued to flash in his face, and the loud roar of the firearm created a deafening echo on the second floor.
*Bang!*
*Bang!*
*Bang!*
*Bang!*
Bodies began to pile up in the corner of the staircase, which was good news. If the staircase's entrance gets blocked. Then Duke wouldn't have to worry about these bastards trying to eat him anymore. But, the reality was always different from expectations.
While shooting at the aberrants in the staircase, he heard a snapping sound that seemed to come from outside the window. However, this was the second floor. How could there be squeaking emanating from it? Unless those freaks actually climbed from the outside.
After a sizeable amount of corpses blocked the staircase, Duke walked towards the window and saw an aberrant staring at him with a lifeless gaze. F*cking bastard freaked him out, and he immediately pointed the Dobermann at the guy.
Not even uttering a single word, Duke pulled the trigger.
*Bang!*
The aberrant fell to the ground, and Duke gazes through the window to see much more charging towards the house. He felt helpless when met with such a sight, but it ignited his determination to live. His will to not die was becoming fierce.
Duke noticed a couple of aberrants trying to climb, and he quickly ended their lives, if they had one, with a trigger. His actions made those charging towards the house even more vigorous. He glances at their ulcerated skins and mutated bodies while shaking his head.
Becoming one of them was terrifying.
*Pang!*
The mutated corpses of aberrants blocking the corner of the staircase collapsed. He rushed towards the sound and saw multiple aberrants charging at him. He swiftly pulled out the Dobermann and rapidly fired at the incoming aberrants.
*Bang!*
*Bang!*
*Bang!*
With each suppressive fire, the aberrants fell down from the staircase one after another. The Dobermann packed a lot of power, and there was no need to directly aim at the head. Wherever he shoots, the pistol practically deletes that spot.
After half an hour since the beginning of the aberrant tide, Duke felt the cold sweat dripping from his forehead. His arms became numb from the recoil, and he saw that his ammunition was down to 3/4 of the original number.
He also felt exhausted after fighting against the bastards for quite a while. A small hill of corpses lay upon the corner of the staircase. Because of this, the pressure of the aberrants was beginning to lower. However, there was one problem.
*Crack!*
The window glasses broke apart into pieces. Without reacting much to the loud noise, Duke immediately pointed the Dobermann towards the bastard that climbed to the second floor. He pulled the trigger, and what followed was a flash of light.
*Bang!*
"*Tsk!* These bastards keep climbing like monkeys." He clicked his tongue in annoyance and walked towards the area where the window was broken. Looking down, he saw a hill of aberrants climbing to the second floor. The monsters were better than he thought.
No wonder the human settlement fell. When facing thousands of these abominations, any encampment would collapse. They were too sly and silent for their own good. The fact that they used the blindspot of darkness was also problematic.
Luckily, he had a monocle with night vision. Meaning such tactics were useless against him. But to other survivors, such a strategy was disastrous. In settlements, light bulbs were barely maintained by generators. Most used torches instead.
"I have killed almost a hundred of them. And even the recovered body of mine is reaching its limit. I must finish this."
Duke mumbled and took out a grenade from his belt. As he stared at the explosive with his fingers, he realized the grenade looked different from the usual in the Imperium Military. It appeared to be larger than ordinary grenades and was cold.
It also glowed with a strange crimson hue, signifying the technology that it came from. He didn't know what the notifications gave him, but after using them, there was one thing he understood the most. The weapons and equipment weren't available anywhere.
The firearms were a bit more advanced than the current ones. The equipment also seemed to be bulletproof, according to some random notifications. It was a black technology that didn't belong to this era.
Duke promptly threw the grenade from the second floor and onto the small hill of aberrants. He left the window and continued to guard the second floor while the crimson hue of the grenade got stronger. It glowed with a radiant crimson light, and then.
What followed was a flash of light that blinded almost everything around the leader's house. He squinted his eyes in instinct and heard a thunderous roar that echoed throughout his ear.
*BOOM!*
The explosion caused the house to tremble for a couple of seconds. Duke never thought that the grenade would have so much power. Even the fragmentation pierced through concrete and almost hit him. Because of this, he felt his back tremble.
'That was foolish but awesome.' He thought that it wasn't a good idea to throw the grenade so near to the house. But nevertheless, the explosion was stunning. It practically deleted the small aberrant hill, and there was no need to worry about some bastards climbing to the second floor.
Time continued on. An hour has passed since the beginning of the siege. Countless corpses of mutated abominations lay throughout the leader's house. It was a strange scene that was engulfed by silence and calm.
The leader's house also wasn't in good condition. The walls had dozens of cracks, and it looked like it would sooner or later collapse into rubble. At any rate, on the second floor was Duke. He was leaning on the wall with exhaustion all over his body.
He took one deep breath after another. His body was drenched in cold sweat, but it didn't bother him. Instead, he glances at his trembling and numb arm. Luckily, he wasn't seriously injured.
*Tap!*
*Tap!*
*Tap!*
*Tap!*
Out of nowhere, an aberrant charged from the staircase, but Duke already had the Dobermann pointed in its direction. He wearily shook his head and pulled the trigger.
*Bang!*