Chapter 26: Chapter 26
"She made it!" Jimmy yelled, his voice a mixture of relief and awe, as he gripped Eric tightly.
His eyes locked onto Yelena, watching as she ran toward them with an almost unnatural, fluid grace, her feet barely touching the ground as she sprinted.
"That ice cold princess? She’s a right bloody handful, but believe me, kid, we’ve got bigger monsters ahead of us."
Eric said loudly, his expression a blend of relief and taut focus.
His fingers tightened around the charger, ready for the next incoming tower. He was already mentally preparing for the next wave of danger, no room for hesitation.
With no obstacles in her path, Yelena continued her run, her pace unyielding and determined.
The distance between them shrank rapidly, her legs pushing her forward with a precision that bordered on the mechanical side. Her breathing was steady, calculated, even as the chaos around them intensified.
"Power depleted by fifty percent. Strategic caution is advised," a cold, robotic voice chimed in her ear.
Her body twitched imperceptibly, as if to shake off the warning. She wasn’t one to be slowed down by anything, not even when her own systems were telling her to retreat.
But what she didn’t know, what none of them could have predicted, was that a Yagan was still onboard the train.
Its monstrous form had torn through the thick metal, a savage beast of muscle and bone. It crashed through the interior, its sheer size obliterating anything in its path, moving with brutal precision.
The terror it caused rippled through the train as it moved toward her, its pace matching hers with deadly intent.
"Threat detected," the voice inside Yelena’s ear warned again, but she didn’t need it. She could feel it. The cold, predatory presence of the Yagan was unmistakable.
Without a moment’s hesitation, Yelena’s instincts kicked in. She twisted her body mid run and launched herself backward, narrowly dodging a spear that shot from the ceiling, piercing the thick metal roof exactly where she had just been.
The spear punched through the steel like it was nothing, leaving a jagged hole behind. With an almost eerie calm, Yelena landed effortlessly on her feet, her eyes locked on the Yagan as it erupted from the hole.
The beast, enormous as usual, its sheer size dwarfing her. It stood in front of her, growling, its yellow eyes gleaming with a predatory hunger. For a moment, they stood frozen, the air thick with tension. Yelena could feel the weight of its gaze, the raw ferocity radiating from it.
"Tch," She hissed through gritted teeth, her fists clenched at her sides. She wasn’t afraid, not really, but there was a quiet frustration in her, this wasn’t the fight she wanted. Not now.
They stood there, the silence stretching. Then, in an unexpected turn of events, the Yagan shifted its gaze away from her, its massive body twisting with surprising speed.
Without warning, it shot forward, charging toward Eric and Jimmy. The ground beneath it buckled as it ran, the sound of its heavy steps echoing through the wreckage.
Yelena’s heart skipped a beat. No! She couldn’t let that happen. She wasn’t fast enough to stop it, but she had to try.
In a flash, she pushed herself into an even harder sprint, her legs pumping furiously, her entire body surging with energy. She could hear her own breath, ragged and urgent, as she tried to close the distance between them. But it was becoming too late.
The towers were closing in on them. The next one was coming in fast, far too fast. She wasn’t nearly close enough.
Desperation clawed at her, and she pushed herself harder, reaching for the weapon strapped to her side. In an instant, a thick beam of laser energy hummed to life in her hand, a glowing blue blade of pure destruction. She raised it, aiming for the Yagan, but before she could fire, a voice inside her ear cut through her focus.
"Action denied. Power below forty-five percent."
Yelena cursed, her eyes flashing in anger. She wrenched the weapon from her hand, tucking it back into its holster. She couldn’t afford to waste time. She had to get to them before it was too.
"Kid, the next one’s up! Prepare to jump!" Eric’s voice echoed through the chaos, his tone sharp and urgent. He was already bracing himself, eyes fixed on the oncoming tower.
Jimmy clung to Eric tightly, his eyes wide with fear as he scanned the towers, which were now just moments away from smashing into them.
"Four, five, six, jump!" Eric yelled, his voice cutting through the noise.
In perfect sync, both Eric and Jimmy leapt into the air. The wind hit them like a hammer, pushing them backward with a force that felt almost suffocating.
But in that split second, Yelena’s eyes widened in horror as she realized the dire situation unfolding in front of her. Eric and Jimmy were being flung backward, but the Yagan, driven by its brutal instincts, was charging forward, closing the gap between them at an alarming rate.
Everything seemed to happen in a heartbeat. In less than a second, the Yagan’s claws reached forward, catching Eric by the leg with terrifying force.
The sound of bone cracking filled the air, sharp and chilling. Eric was yanked forward with a bone breaking snap, slammed hard onto the metal roof. The force of the blow sent Jimmy tumbling, knocking him from Eric’s grasp. The air was thick with pain.
Eric coughed up blood as his back collided with the hard steel of the train. He grimaced, but his hand shot out, grabbing Jimmy by the arm, pulling him close, holding him tight to stop him from falling off the train.
The Yagan’s spear came down, its tip aimed directly at Eric’s head. The cold metal glinted in the sunlight, only inches from his skull.
The world seemed to slow. Time stretched. In that one split second, Yelena’s heart seemed to stop. But she didn’t hesitate. Her fingers finding the proximity shifter, and with a hard press, the device activated.
CLICK!
In a heartbeat, Eric and Jimmy vanished.
The Yagan froze, stunned by the sudden disappearance of its prey. It growled in frustration, its eyes flicking left and right, as if trying to make sense of what just happened.
The next tower was right on top of it. As the activation zone slammed into the Yagan, it was obliterated in an instant, turned to dust by the raw energy.
Yelena didn’t waste a second. Appearing in front of her, she grabbed both Eric and Jimmy, still holding onto the charger. Without thinking, she hurled them into the train through a hole she had prepared earlier.
The force of the throw made Eric lose his grip on the charger, leaving it at the hands of Yelana. Her teeth ground together as she felt the tension building in her chest. She turned, her eyes darting toward the approaching activation zone. It was so close, too close.
And then, it happened.
The zone collided with the charger first.
SHREEEEK
The sound was deafening, a shrill, spine chilling noise that echoed through the air. The charger vibrated violently, and then
BOOM!
An explosion of unimaginable force erupted from the charger. The shockwave slammed into Yelena with bone crushing intensity, sending her flying from the train.
Her body was thrown away, the explosion’s force ripping her from the wreckage. The shockwave rippled through the train, tearing through the reactor, causing the entire structure to groan under the weight of the explosion.
The train, now fully derailed, screamed as it careened toward the city, sections of it breaking free, flinging into the canyon below. The earth trembled beneath them as the chaos unfolded.
Inside the train, those who were still alive, including Eric, Jimmy, and the others, were tossed violently from one end of the train to the other as it hurtled toward the city, its fate sealed.