The climb grows more perilous with each step. The sterile, cold steel of the facility walls has turned more hostile. I can sense it—the thick, heavy anticipation hanging in the air like a trap waiting to be sprung. My body, honed through endless fights, tingles with readiness, every muscle coiled tight. I'm near the top, and I know it.
The hallway in front of me stretches out, a narrow corridor bathed in the dim red glow of warning lights. But something's different here. The scent is sharper—more human. The soft hum of machinery has grown louder, more deliberate. I take a step forward, my bare feet silent against the steel floor, but even with my heightened senses, the ambush comes faster than expected.
A low hiss escapes from hidden vents in the walls, and suddenly, a hail of gunfire erupts, lighting up the corridor like a thunderstorm. Energy shields flicker to life in front of me, shimmering blue fields of plasma that block my path. I've faced these humans before, but never like this.
These are no ordinary guards. Their armor gleams with sleek, futuristic technology, and the weapons they wield aren't the makeshift rifles and sidearms of the lower floors. These soldiers are prepared—trained, disciplined, and armed with energy weapons that hum with lethal power. I can see the automatic turrets stationed along the ceiling, tracking my every move.
The first volley of bullets and energy blasts are already on me, cutting through the air with deadly precision. I dive to the side, rolling out of the line of fire, but I can't stay hidden for long. These soldiers are fast. Calculated. They shift their positions, closing in, using advanced tactics to try and corner me.
They think they have me.
They're wrong.
I leap forward, faster than their human eyes can track, my claws outstretched. The nearest soldier barely has time to react before I'm on him, my claws tearing through the energy shield as if it were paper. I grab the front of his armor and rip it apart with brute force, exposing the soft, vulnerable flesh beneath. The man's eyes widen in fear as my claws dig into his chest, and with a quick, savage motion, I end him.
Blood splatters across my face, but I don't stop. Another soldier opens fire, energy blasts scorching the air around me, but my reflexes, now sharpened to near perfection, allow me to move before the bolts even reach me. I lunge to the left, then to the right, closing the distance between us in a blur of motion.
He swings his rifle toward me, but it's too late. I grab the barrel and twist it, using the weapon's own momentum to smash the soldier into the wall. I hear the sickening crack of bones breaking, but I don't waste time confirming the kill. My eyes are already locked onto the next target.
The automated turrets swivel toward me, their barrels spitting out a torrent of bullets and energy blasts. For a moment, the entire hallway is lit up with the relentless barrage, the air thick with the acrid scent of burning metal and flesh.
But I'm not just avoiding the gunfire. I'm using it.
I dart from side to side, luring the turrets to focus on me. Then, with a burst of speed, I leap upward, my claws sinking into the metal of the ceiling. I twist my body mid-air and land on top of one of the turrets, ripping it apart with savage efficiency. Sparks fly as the machine collapses in a heap of metal and wires.
I leap to the next turret, grabbing the barrel and turning it toward the soldiers. It sputters, firing off a few rounds before I force it to lock onto its former masters. The automatic fire cuts through their ranks, the energy blasts tearing through their armor as they scramble for cover.
A few soldiers remain, their weapons raised, but I can see the fear in their eyes. They thought they were prepared for me. They weren't.
I dart forward again, this time using one of their own shields as cover. I tear a blade from one of the fallen soldiers, a long, sleek combat knife that hums with energy. It's primitive compared to my claws, but the weight of it feels good in my hand. I swing it in a brutal arc, cutting through one soldier's throat before spinning to drive it into another's chest.
Blood stains the ground beneath me, pooling in dark red streams. The smell of iron fills the air, mixing with the smoke of burnt machinery. My body moves on instinct now, faster and deadlier than anything they can throw at me.
But even as I cut them down, I can feel the strain in my muscles. I've fought through countless enemies to reach this point, and while I've grown stronger with every kill, I'm not invincible.
I pause for a moment, chest heaving as I assess the room. The last of the soldiers have fallen, their bodies crumpled in pools of blood and shattered armor. But the battle has taken its toll on me. My chest burns where an energy blast scorched the skin, leaving deep, smoldering wounds. Blood drips from a bullet wound in my shoulder, and every breath feels like knives stabbing into my ribs.
I stagger for a moment, leaning against the wall to steady myself. My vision blurs, just for a second, as the exhaustion hits me like a sledgehammer. My healing factor is struggling to keep up. My body can close wounds quickly, but the damage I've taken from the relentless fighting is starting to wear me down.
I glance at the fallen soldiers, at the wreckage of the battlefield, and for a moment, I feel the weight of everything pressing down on me. The blood on my hands, the lives I've taken… there's no turning back now. I've become something else—something stronger, something savage. But I've lost so much in the process.
A blast of pain shoots through my chest, and I grit my teeth, forcing myself to push past it. I've come too far to stop now. I'm close—so close to the final floor, to the end of this nightmare.
But the humans here… they're not done yet. They know I'm coming, and they'll be waiting. Each step I take forward will be met with more resistance, more bloodshed. And I'll have to face it, battered and broken as I am.
I wipe the blood from my mouth and take a step forward, my claws flexing at my sides.
This isn't over.