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Chapter 32 - Finale
They continued down the street. It was dark and quiet with only the distant noise of the battle taking place elsewhere could be heard. Lukas could hear his own breath as they traversed the road, paranoia slowly forming in his mind. He restrained his thoughts before it became a distraction until something urged him to stop.
He raised his fist upwards and glanced from left to right. The storefronts around them looked weird. Of all the stores, one in particular was not barricaded. He studied it and noticed swirling darkness beneath, as if a black smog or a murky water filled it from the inside. He took two steps towards it when the glass that kept it from the outside world shattered, along with the other storefronts around and behind them.Elongated shadows streaked from the stores. Lukas noticed the white porcelain faces on the top of the six entities. He raised his aim and fired at the face of the entity near him.Three bursts and the face shattered. The entity iRelated chapters
Beneath The Shadows Chapter 1
March 12, 2004From the dark corners of a recently visited cemetery, a movement could be heard. The stars of the night twinkled bright alongside the full moon that provided dimmed illumination for the silent recepients below. They made sure that no one was around to witness them, for they are not ready yet.Between the poorly maintained graves and the nearby large mounds of soil below large balete trees, they slowly revealed themselves. The appearances of some varied from one another, but most of them are complete reflection of the other--creatures birthed from the same family of monsters. Diverse as all of them could be, they possessed three things in nature.Sadism, hunger and malevolence.Like stringed marionettes manipulated by an inexperienced puppeteer, they walked forward. Each baby steps developing to a stable one as their physiology began to adapt in the new environment where they are born into.
Beneath The Shadows Chapter 2
Three days later...They came like lightning. The wind blew, the stalks swayed. In a flash, they had him and his squad surrounded. They were fast, agile and fearless despite the fact that they lacked the superior weaponry that soldiers like them possessed. He saw them with faces covered with a shemagh, advanced with a kriss raised in a threatening manner.He had to move, he had to act. One of his subordinates fell to the ground with a missing head. His instincts kicked in as he drew his handgun and fired at the killer of his young companion. But his own assailant was just a few steps in front of him.No time to act think, had to act. He was too close for him to raise his rifle. So he did what he could. The butt of his pistol assailed the air in a vertical swing directed at his attacker's skull. A right straight punch to the bridge of the rebel's nose sent the armed man to the grassy field. The sun was setting, the memory was very clear even if it had happened fo
Beneath The Shadows Chapter 3
His vision was illuminated in a bluish hue. The faces of his teammates were obscured behind polarized face visors connected to the brims of their helmets. His heart rate on the electrocardiogram bio monitor showed a quickened pulse, but Lukas thought that it was just the alcohol working magic in his system. All of them are tense, but Lukas managed to control himself in situations like these.However, he couldn't help but to wipe the barrel of his M4A1 with his gloved thumb involuntarily. Just like their weapons, his was blessed by the Outpost Chaplain before they march off to battle against the supernatural.He saw some of the rookies repeat actions, caused by pre-deployment anxieties. He could not blame them, operations like these made you worry about the future, whether you will survive or not, or what about the aspirations you wanted to pursue later in your life after your service. It made them fear for their lives, despite losing it once when they are ind
Beneath The Shadows Chapter 4
The psychologist asked him slightly cryptic questions that only him alone could understand. Lukas answered them without pausing. He was asked if he felt anything strange about himself lately, and he replied with the horrible nightmares he was having. As usual, the psychologist dismissed it as normal and he was free to go.Lukas was the last to leave the pscyhologist's room for the post-action psychological evaluation. Just like the medical examination earlier before this, he was cleared for the next operation. He was relieved to know that he could join the next ones because his bestfriend and the superior officer of the assault platoon failed the previous evaluation, prompting the Major to assign him with the 1st Lieutenant's duties and suspending the aforementioned officer for five weeks to rehabilitate.Another 666IB soldier approached their group, his tone was marred with urgency."The Major wanted to see all of you, Lieutenant." He said.
Beneath The Shadows Chapter 5
The truck sped across the muddy beaten path full of tire tracks from other vehicles. Lukas stared at the bright sky. Even if it was morning, the fact that the things they fight in the shadows existed made the world a dark one that no sunrise could ever illuminate. Back when he was living in ignorance, everything was colorful but when he was pulled into a battlezone where incarnated nightmares are the belligerents, everything just becomes black and white.And he thought that the Moro rebellion was dark enough. This conflict, simply known in the documents as the Shadow War, had made him see everything.He looked back down on the ground and waited as the truck shuddered and ground to a halt. They disembarked in a disciplined manner, with the first ones securing the perimeter for the other half, who were in the process of unloading.The truck then moved away to the designated extraction point so that it would not get caught in the crossfire in case the shooting star
Beneath The Shadows Chapter 6
The interrogation room was nondescript. The walls were reinforced with sound absorbent paddings, a steel table in the middle and a polarized observatory window to the right. The detained cultist sat at the end of the table, jacketed with an anti-thaumaturgic fabric that prevented him from opening his abdominal maw or exhibit any other anomalous properties that he might possess.His hands were bound in chains in front of him so that when the interrogators required him to write or draw something, they would not risk getting close to remove his restraints and in turn, give him chance to escape. He sat, rocking in his chair, giving the personnel behind the observatory window the evil eye.The door beyond swung open, revealing Lukas in uniform. In his left hand was folder containing documents about the cult's activities in the past three weeks. The soldier sat at the chair across him. The Lieutenant carelessly tossed the folder on the table and glared."A
Beneath The Shadows Chapter 7
He sat on the soft cushioned chair with Francis standing opposite him and the nurse, who constantly flash a friendly smile at the visiting personnel. It was rumored that some of the soldiers faked injuries just to see her. Most tried to court her, but all of them she turned down for some reason unknown. She treated everyone with respect and her caring voice alone was soothing to the core that every time the nurse speaks, it dulled the pain emanating from his bruised knuckle.The room was brighter than the corridor on the way to the clinic. The scent of antiseptics was stronger here, making Lukas think that the usual smell of the base originated from areas like these. If he recalls, there were a dozen clinic bays scattered across the installation. The corner beside Francis contained a marble counter where numerous medical equipment and medicine could be found. Above were cabinets also containing the same stuff. It was also noticeably colder here, maybe because the wall-typ
Beneath The Shadows Chapter 8
The corridor was dimly lit, but despite the scarce illumination, he could see clearly what had transpired. The white walls were splattered with red and the floors was streaked with blood as if some bastard dragged the dead across to some place unknown. Bullet holes could also be seen on the wall. Lukas walked ahead, passing by the emergency green light above. The next emergency light was deactivated in this part of the hallway probably because of defect or old age, bathing the surroundings in the dark. The next light could be seen ahead, illuminating that section in the same way as the previous one they just recently walked past.Lukas could feel something mushy beneath his boots but he dared not to imagine what it is. The nurse behind him clutched at his arm so tighty that his recently bandaged hand began to ache."Nurse, cut it out." Lukas whispered loudly. Sala realized that she was grabbing onto the soldier's arm for dear life and immediately retracted, apo
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