Oliver felt only fear the moment he pressed his back against the door. His heart raced; a million thoughts surged through his mind. And for a brief second, all he could see was the darkness. Somehow wide awake, his mind was desperate to catch a glimpse of anything in that blackness. The air was thick with dust, tangy and ancient, filling his inflamed nostrils, forcing him to cough. Gradually images took shape in his mind. He had stumbled into some janitor's closet, small, stuffy, and messy with mops standing against walls and bottles of cleaning chemicals piled on rusty shelves. Torn rags festered across the floor like a fallen tissue. In here though, he was safe-for now.Heavy footsteps echoed from the far end of the hallway, the regular clang of boots against the unforgiving floor sending chills up his spine. They sound slow but deliberate. These footsteps have all the time in the world as if they're sure he'll be found."Sector B, corridor clear. Proceeding to next area."The voic

Oliver felt his heart galloping in his chest like a blacksmith's hammer, his very ribs aching with each possible thud. His body was still trembling before he could catch a breath with his lungs burning from the intake of cold air. The shed was murky and smelled of rust and rotten wood. His throat felt raw from his attempt at swallowing; blood could even be tasted on his tongue.He slumped against the rough wooden wall, hand pressed to splintered plywood on the way to balancing himself. His other hand gripped an old iron tube that he had jammed across the door handles as a makeshift barricade. It wasn't much-barely strong enough to hold against a real force-but it was the only thing standing between them and whatever was hunting them.Rachel sat opposite the wall, back against it. Breathing had become shallow and painful, her head bent low. The dark hair hung down the forehead drenched in sweat. The trembling hands had looked like his. All this made her tiny and fragile like an old lad

The monster’s chest glowed with a bright, blinding white light, growing stronger with every second. It looked like a sun trapped inside its metal body, and the light was so bright that Oliver couldn’t look away. His heart pounded loud in his ears, drowning out everything else. He was frozen, unable to move or think—just standing there, waiting for death to reach him.Suddenly, a scream cut through the air.“Oliver!” Rachel’s voice was shrill and full of terror.Her cry snapped him out of his daze, and he forced his body to move. With a burst of adrenaline, he threw himself sideways just as a beam of white-hot energy shot from the monster’s chest. It tore through the air, burning everything in its path. The ground where Oliver had just been standing was scorched black, and the shed wall behind him exploded into burning splinters and ash. The whole structure groaned, creaking like it was about to collapse.Oliver hit the ground hard, his shoulder screaming with pain. He coughed, choking

All of Oliver's body was screaming in pain. Every muscle burned; every breath was sharp, painful, searing through every nerve. But he could not stop. He would not stop. The towering giant in front of him left no possible hesitation, no moment of indecision.It was a monster unlike anything he had ever faced-a giant of fire and metal, its body made of grinding gears and sharp blades, constantly shifting like a living machine of destruction. The ground trembled as it stepped, and the air grew hotter with every move it made.Oliver had faced more than his fair share of enemies before, but this one was astoundingly different. It was power-how can one put it-absolute and unstoppable. The way it moved, how it adapted is not only a beast. It is far worse. A destructive force given a form. The titan raised one massive arm, the metal shifting and reforming into a heavy, thick blade. And without a second notice, it lowered."Move!" screamed his instincts to Oliver.His body obeyed before his m

Oliver was already on the move the instant the titan began to stir.Then came the deep sound and rumble of a great disturbance on the battlefield as both rushed towards each other. The titan was an absolute giant—nearly twice his height—and the twin blades were suffused with an unnatural raw energy that crackled violently in the air. In a blinding split second, they descended upon him faster than lightning, slicing the air.CLANG!Fire exploded on his arms, bright like the sun, as he rode to intercept. Sparks flew in all directions on impact—metal against fire. Shockwaves coursed through the battlefield with the violence of their deadly kiss as Oliver was hurled backward. His boots dug trenches in the cracked and charred ground, but he did not fall.As soon as he stopped sliding, he darted forward.Now in a full sprint, the titan in his sights and molten fire lining his limbs, Oliver planted a flaming fist against the titan's chest.BOOM!Out in the air ran a wave in the impact zone a