APPLY PRESSURE TO THE WOUND!
It was the only thing Santiago could hear as he was dragged across the pavement. He was disoriented, feeling himself being pulled by the shoulders of his vest. His vision blurred, everything a whirlwind of lights and shadows, with bursts of fire escaping through the windows of the buildings.The ground vibrated with a menacing cadence. In the distance, screams and the rumbling of collapsing structures faded into distant echoes. He tried to lift his hands to cover his face, only then noticing the absence of his right arm. From the elbow down, nothing remained but a protruding bone, gushing blood in torrents. The horror of the sight kept him conscious for just a moment longer."W-what the hell...?""STAY WITH ME, SANTIAGO!"He forced his vision and managed to distinguish César, his comrade, dragging him into an alley. His uniform was torn, covered in a blackish substance and blood."F-friend… what's happening?"César propped him against a wall and, wasting no time, tore a piece of his uniform to improvise a tourniquet."DON'T TALK, HOLD ON! LANA IS RIGHT BEHIND US!"Pain shot through his body like an electric current. Thousands of burning needles sank into his flesh and climbed up to his skull. Feeling like he was about to pass out, he forced himself to take a deep breath.A moment later, Lana arrived running alongside Raz, Hugo, and Sergeant Gil, who carried an unconscious child over his shoulders."Santiago! How is he?" the sergeant inquired as he set the child down on the ground.Lana approached and examined the wound with a flashlight."It looks like a clean wound; he can make it to the command post."She opened a small black bag and held his face firmly."Santiago, look at me! You're going to hate me for this, but I have to do it.""WHAT!?"She didn't give him time to brace himself. The bag adhered to the wound, and instantly, a black foam began expanding over the exposed flesh, sealing the area with brutal pressure. Santiago arched in pain and let out a scream."If he keeps screaming like that, those things will find us," the sergeant muttered, never taking his eyes off his portable locator. "Raz, cover the rear. Hugo, find us a clear way out."The two soldiers took off running."He'll be fine," Lana assured. "Do you want me to check on the kid, sir?""Negative. We're already behind schedule," Gil replied, casting a quick glance at the unconscious boy. "César, report."César checked the D.P.A.M. device on his wrist."We're just a few blocks from command. Still within the bombing zone. Three minutes left, sir.""We can make it. César, take care of Santiago. Lana, with me."César tried to lift him, but Santiago pushed him away."I can walk," he growled, unsteady on his feet.The team exited the alley and stepped onto the avenue. The city was burning. Fire and shadows danced over the facades, the parks, and the houses reduced to rubble. Mortars fell in the distance, shaking the ground with eardrum-piercing blasts. Santiago took it all in with a lump in his throat. Once, Estermil had been called "the most beautiful city." Now, only ashes remained."Two more blocks!" César shouted over the noise of gunfire and explosions.But as they advanced, a group of soldiers emerged from a side street, firing their automatic rifles in sheer desperation. Something was chasing them."Can we go around them?" Gil asked.César checked his D.P.A.M."Negative, sir. We have to cross."The sergeant peeked out just as one of those things caught a soldier and dragged him into the street's darkness. The others threw incendiary grenades to contain it."Shit.""Two minutes, Sergeant." César's D.P.A.M. blinked red.The sergeant looked at his waiting team. Hesitant, he handed the child to Santiago."Can you handle this?"Santiago held the boy with his good arm and nodded."Hugo, Raz, and I will hold those things back," the sergeant announced. "The rest of you, move fast."The squad nodded and split up."Now! Now!" the sergeant ordered, joining the group of soldiers to hold the enemy back.As Santiago crossed the intersection, he saw them. Those amorphous horrors of glistening flesh, with protrusions resembling twisted limbs, using them to crawl and scale the walls.One of them had been the thing that took his arm.As he ran, he forced himself not to look back.But he did.He saw Raz and Hugo being torn apart while the sergeant hurled his last incendiary grenades at the beasts.He kept running, feeling the child's weight in his arm. César and Lana caught up to him and helped him move forward."There! The perimeter!" César shouted, pointing at a set of barricades illuminated by floodlights.The whistle of a projectile made them dive to the ground. An explosion shook the street, sending up a cloud of dust and fire. Santiago felt a ringing in his ears as he struggled to get up. The shadows of the creatures moved between the flames."Get up! They're watching us!" Lana roared, helping Santiago to his feet.César pushed them forward while firing his rifle.The barricades were just meters away.