Steins' eyes gazed out into the stormy void, his mind slipping into the past like a ghost drifting through forgotten walls.
Twenty years ago...
A younger Steins stood on Berlin's windswept streets, the Cold War's chill settling over the city like a shroud. Neon lights reflected off wet pavement, casting a gaudy glow on the desperate faces rushing by.
His father's words echoed in his mind, a mantra forged in fire and steel.
"Survival is not just about strength, son. It's about adaptability. The strong adapt, the weak perish."
Steins' thoughts drifted to his mother, her smile a fleeting memory etched on his heart like a tombstone.
Ruth Steins.
Lost to the East Germany secret police. A dissident.
A martyr.
The sound of gunfire cracked through the night, shattering the fragile calm. Steins' heart quickened, adrenaline coursing through his veins like liquid fire.
A figure emerged from the shadows.
His father's eyes locked onto his.
"Run, Troffer, run" he urged, voice low and urgent.
Steins' world shattered.
The night that changed everything. The night that forged him. Into the man he became.
The storm outside seemed to fade, replaced by the turmoil within. Memories long buried rose like spectres, haunting him.
Steins' grip on the rope tightened, his knuckles white as bone.
A flash of Erebus's snarling face.
The past collided with the present.
Steins' scream was lost in the tempest.
But it was too late. The darkness closed in. Forever.
And then, nothing.
The stormy darkness seemed to close in around Thompson like a suffocating shroud, its oppressive weight crushing his soul. The helicopter's cockpit, once a sanctuary, now felt like a trap.
Thompson's gaze locked onto the spot where Captain Steins vanished, his mind replaying the horror in excruciating detail. Steins' scream, the wolf's snarl, the rope's snap – every sound echoed through his mind like a haunting mantra.
"NOOOO!" Thompson's anguished roar shattered the din of the tempest, his voice cracking with raw emotion. The sound wave reverberated through the cockpit, making the instruments tremble.
His eyes blazed with fury, burning like hot coals in the dimly lit cockpit. The storm's faint light highlighted the sharp angles of his face, accentuating his anguish.
Veins bulged on his forehead like twisting rivers.
Fists clenched, knuckles white.
Every muscle tensed, his body coiled like a spring.
Rodriguez's face contorted in grief, his features twisted in a silent scream.
Tears streamed down his cheeks like autumn rain, carving rivulets through his dust-coated skin.
His eyes swelled, puffed, and reddened.
Lids fluttered closed, then snapped open, revealing wells of despair.
Sobs racked his body, convulsive shudders that threatened to shake her apart.
"Steins...no...no..." his whispered, his voice barely audible over the storm's cacophony.
His hands trembled on the controls, fingers stuttering across the instruments.
The helicopter shuddered, protesting the wolf's relentless pull.
Metal creaked, groaned, and screamed.
Altitude plummeted.
The altimeter spun wildly, its needle racing downward.
8,000 feet...7,000...6,000...
The behemoth wolf continued to pull, his strength inexorable.
The rope creaked, fibres snapping like brittle twigs.
Strands unravelled, whipping through the air like flayed tendrils.
The helicopter's metal groaned, stress fractures spreading like spider webs.
Catastrophic failure imminent.
Patel's eyes widened in horror, his pupils dilating to saucer-like proportions as he stared at the spot where Captain Steins vanished into the abyss. The image seared itself into his retina, an indelible mark of terror.
"NO!" he screamed silently, his voice trapped in his throat like a wild animal struggling to break free. His vocal cords vibrated with the unspoken cry.
His mind reeled, memories flashing like lightning bolts illuminating a stormy night. Steins' reassuring words echoed through his thoughts.
"We'll get out of here alive, Patel."
Spoken with conviction, with confidence, with a calm that now seemed cruelly ironic.
Now, a haunting reminder.
Of failed promises.
Of shattered hope.
Patel's breath caught, his chest constricting as if an invisible vice gripped his lungs. His heart racing, pounding against his ribcage like a jackhammer.
Panic set in, clawing at his sanity with razor-sharp talons. Rational thought fled, replaced by primal fear.
The helicopter shuddered, metal groaning in protest. Altitude plummeting, the ground rushing up with merciless speed.
Erebus's roar, deafening, primal, shook the air. The wolf's grip, unyielding, dragged them down.
Patel's gaze fixed on the rope.
Being pulled, taut, straining. Snap.
The sound echoed in his mind like a deadly crack. As the wolf's strength overpowered the helicopter.
Patel's thoughts spiraled downward Into chaos. Fear clawed at his chest, tearing through his shirt. Sweat dripped from his brow.
Cold, Clammy.
His hands trembled uncontrollably.
Eyes darted to Rodriguez, and then To Thompson.
Desperate For reassurance, For salvation.
But their faces etched with fear, Reflected his own.
Patel's voice cracked.
Whispered.
"Oh God..."
The helicopter's rotors shrieked, with a 1,400 horsepower straining against the tempest's fury. Turbulence buffeted the aircraft, threatening to shatter its fragile balance.
The Lift-off force of about 12,000 pounds and a Rotor speed of 400 RPM.
The aircraft shuddered, protesting the behemoth wolf's unnatural strength.
The wolf's jaws gripped the rope, teeth sinking deep into the nylon fibres. His eyes blazed with feral intensity.
With a bite force of around 800-1,000 pounds he crushed the rope's core, as a 3,000-4,000 pounds of force rippled through his neck and shoulder muscles.
Tendons bulged like steel cables.
Veins popped like firehoses.
The behemoth wolf's pull. Equivalent to 6-8 tons of force.
Unyielding and Unrelenting, The rope creaked.
"Pull up! Pull up!" Rodriguez screamed.
Thompson stared out.
The helicopter shuddered violently, its metal frame convulsing like a living creature in its death throes, writhing in agony.
Metal groaned, protesting the wolf's unnatural strength, as if the very fabric of reality was tearing apart.
Rotor blades snapped, their splintered remains flailing wildly like severed limbs.
Glass shattered, shards scattering like deadly rain, ripping through the air with lethal precision.
The storm raged on, unrelenting, its fury intensified by the wolf's primal power.
The behemoth wolf's roar echoed through the tempest, deafening, a sound wave that shook the helicopter's crumbling frame.
The wolf's grip remained unyielding, pulling them down, inexorable, into the abyss.
The helicopter careened wildly, out of control, its trajectory unpredictable.
Altitude plummeting, the ground rushed up with merciless speed, an unforgiving concrete slab.
Impact imminent, inevitable.
Patel's scream was cut short, his voice lost in the cacophony.
Rodriguez's cry echoed through the cockpit, a haunting refrain.
Thompson's despairing shout faded into silence, swallowed by the abyss.
Echoes of terror resonated through the wreckage.
As the helicopter crashed.
Into the darkness.
The sound of crunching metal shook the air, a bone-chilling crunch.
Shattering glass echoed through the storm, a deadly melody.
The helicopter's hull crumpled.
Twisted metal.
Bent rotor blades.
Shards of glass. Scattered everywhere.
The storm raged on.
Unrelenting.
As the darkness consumed them.
Forever.
Erebus stood victorious.
The helicopter's wreckage crumpled around Patel, metal twisted and tangled. He struggled to free himself, still strapped to the ruined seat.
"Help..." he whispered, voice shaking, desperation creeping in.
Rodriguez stirred beside him, groaning, his face etched with pain.
"Patel...we have to get out..." he whispered, urgency in his voice.
Thompson's voice echoed from the pilot's seat, laced with grief.
"Captain Steins...gone..."
Rodriguez's eyes flashed with anger, fiery determination burning within.
"That monster..." he spat.
Patel's gaze fell upon the wolf, its eyes fixed on them, piercing and unyielding.
"Rodriguez, no...don't..." Patel warned, sensing his intent.
But he ignored him, fury consuming him.
"I'll fight it," he snarled, voice low and deadly.
"For Captain Steins..."
Thompson's voice cracked, pleading.
"Rodriguez, please...think..."
But he refused to listen, anger fuelling his resolve.
he hissed.
"I won't back down."
Patel pleaded, desperation in his voice.
But he shook his head, resolute.
The behemoth wolf charged towards them, its roar deafening, shaking the ground.
Rodriguez grasped his rifle, barrel glinting in the fading light.
"I'll avenge Steins...."
Thompson grasped his arm, holding tight.
"Rodriguez, don't!"
But he shook him off, determination unwavering.
"Let me go."
The behemoth wolf charged towards Rodriguez, its roar deafening, shaking the ground.
Rodriguez stood tall, rifle at the ready, as the wolf charged towards him. The wolf's eyes blazed with fury, its massive paws pounding the ground.
"Take this, you monster!" Rodriguez yelled, firing his rifle.
Bullets ripped through the air, striking the wolf's thick hide, but the wolf barely flinched.
The wolf retaliated, swiping its massive paw towards Rodriguez's head.
Rodriguez tried to dodge, but the wolf's speed proved too much.
The wolf's paw swiped through the air, aiming for Rodriguez's head.
Time slowed as the paw connected.
Rodriguez's head flew off his shoulders.
It soared through the air, Landing with a sickening thud.
Beside the crashed helicopter.
The impact sent shockwaves through the ground.
Rodriguez's body crumpled Lifeless.
Thompson screamed.
"NOOO! RODRIGUEZ!"
Patel's eyes widened.
Frozen in terror.
The wolf stood victorious.
Its eyes gleaming with triumph.
The wolf's hot breath wafted towards them.
The stench of death and blood filled the air.
Thompson gazed at Rodriguez's lifeless body, despair washing over him.
"It's over," he whispered, defeated.
Patel stumbled towards the helicopter, radiation poisoning consuming him.
"Thompson...help me..." he gasped.
Thompson's eyes filled with tears.
"I'm sorry, Patel. We've lost."
Patel collapsed beside the helicopter, coughing blood.
Thompson stood tall, eyes locked on the behemoth wolf. The wolf's gaze burned with fury, its jaws open wide.
"You killed Rodriguez," Thompson spat. "You'll pay."
The wolf charged, its massive paws pounding the earth.
Thompson dodged left, avoiding the wolf's initial strike.
He swung his fist, connecting with Erebus's jaw.
The wolf's head jerked back, its balance wavering.
Thompson seized the moment.
He struck again, this time aiming for Erebus's nose.
The wolf yelped, its eyes watering.
Thompson pressed his advantage.
A flurry of punches rained down on Erebus.
The wolf stumbled, its footing unsure.
Thompson's adrenaline surged and blood began to trickle down his nose
"Blood?"
Thompson touched his nose as he stared at his fingers in disbelief.
Seeing Thompson stunned and distracted for a second The behemoth wolf gained his footing and struck again.
Thompson's head jerked back.
His vision blurred.
The wolf's jaws closed.
Around Thompson's head.
A fatal crush.
Thompson's body crumpled.
Lifeless.
Patel, with fading strength, reached for the comms.
"Mayday..... Whosoever can hear me ....the world is in danger....."
Static filled the comms.
Patel's vision darkened.
Radiation poisoning consumed him.
The transmission ended.
Silence.
The Antarctic grew quiet.
Rodriguez and Thompson lay lifeless.
Patel's radiation-suited body slumped.
The helicopter's wreckage smouldered.
The wolf vanished into the shadows.