The sirens stopped all at once.
That silence told Xin everything.
He stepped out of the tunnel slowly, boots scraping gravel, blood still drying on his sleeve from earlier. The road ahead was lit by floodlights now. Dive jeeps blocked both ends. Soldiers spread out in practiced formation, rifles already raised.
Xin exhaled through his nose.
"Well," he said quietly, rolling his neck once, "looks like I can put my rage onto you."
A Dive commander lifted his hand.
Before he could give the order, the ground behind the soldiers began to shake.
Heavy. Violent. Fast.
The soldiers did not turn fast enough.
Three shapes burst out of the darkness.
Not dogs.
Things that used to be dogs.
Over six feet tall at the shoulder, bodies swollen with Spinat-enhanced muscle, bones thickened until they looked like armor beneath the skin. Their heads split open vertically, revealing octopus-like maws ringed with layered teeth and whipping tendrils. Their legs hit the ground like hammers.
Each one was heavier than a truck.
Stronger than an elephant.
They ran on all fours and closed distance faster than bullets.
Xin's eyes widened for half a second.
Then he smiled.
"Good," he muttered. "I didn't want this to be boring."
Scene: First Impact
The soldiers opened fire.
Spinat-enhanced rounds tore through the air, ten times denser than normal bullets, moving so fast they cracked the sound barrier. The ground around Xin exploded as shots hit.
Xin moved.
He did not run.
He slipped.
Bullets grazed his shoulder, ripped through his thigh, tore flesh and burned deep. He twisted between shots, reflexes screaming, body bending at impossible angles.
One bullet slammed straight into his chest.
Into his heart.
Xin staggered.
For one terrifying moment, his legs buckled.
Then his body locked.
Muscle tightened around the wound. Blood surged. His heart stuttered, then forced itself back into rhythm.
Xin roared and stayed standing.
The soldiers froze.
"What the hell is he," one of them shouted.
Scene: Xin vs the Dogs
The first Spinat dog reached him.
Its maw opened wide, tendrils snapping forward like whips.
Xin jumped.
He landed on its skull with both feet.
The impact shattered bone.
The creature collapsed instantly, its body skidding across the road in a broken heap.
The second dog lunged from the side.
Xin caught it.
Both hands locked around its upper jaw.
The beast thrashed, muscles bulging, strong enough to flip armored vehicles.
Xin planted his feet and pulled.
The jaw tore clean off.
He slammed his fist into the creature's skull and crushed it inward. The body dropped.
The third dog did not slow down.
It tackled Xin full force.
They rolled through debris, smashing into a jeep and flipping it over. Xin took a claw to the back, flesh tearing open.
He grabbed the creature's throat and drove his knee upward.
Once.
Twice.
The third strike caved its chest in.
The dog went limp.
Xin stood up, breathing hard, blood pouring from half a dozen wounds.
Scene: Soldiers Break
The soldiers fired again.
Xin charged straight at them.
Bullets hit him in the shoulder, the ribs, the stomach. His body absorbed the impacts, skin tearing, muscles bruising, but he did not slow.
He grabbed the first soldier and used him as a shield. Bullets tore through the man instead.
Xin threw the body into another group and leapt after it.
Phenom Force surged.
He punched the ground.
The shockwave launched soldiers into the air like toys. Armor cracked. Bones snapped. Bodies hit the ground hard and did not get back up.
Xin moved through them like a storm.
A soldier tried to stab him from behind.
Xin caught the blade barehanded, crushed it, and drove his elbow into the man's helmet hard enough to split it open.
Another raised a rifle point blank.
Xin dodged the shot, grabbed the barrel, and slammed the rifle into the soldier's face until he dropped.
Blood ran down Xin's arms. His vision blurred at the edges.
He kept going.
Scene: End of the Fight
The last soldier turned and ran.
Xin picked up a broken piece of concrete and threw it.
It hit like a missile.
Silence returned to the road.
Xin stood alone among broken bodies and wrecked vehicles, chest rising and falling hard. Bullets lay flattened against his skin where they had failed to penetrate fully. Blood soaked into the dirt beneath his boots.
His heart beat strong.
Too strong.
Xin wiped his face and looked up at the dark sky.
"Send more," he said quietly. "I'm not done."
Far away, deep underground, Andy felt the echo of the violence.
Somewhere even farther, Zane smiled.