Hunger was a physical weight. It dragged at Adam's eyelids and filled his limbs with lead.
[ WARNING: Caloric Reserve Critical. ]
The red text pulsed in the center of his vision, obscuring the threat in front of him. Adam blinked hard, trying to clear the digital fog. Three figures stood twenty meters away, framed by the towering stacks of rusted cars. They were former yard workers. One of them, a man who used to drive the forklift, twitched violently. His skin had turned a mottled gray, like wet ash.
SCREEEE!
The forklift driver shrieked. It wasn't a human sound. It was the noise of metal grinding against metal. The three of them locked eyes with Adam. They didn't see a coworker. They saw meat.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
They charged. They weren't slow, shambling corpses. They ran with a terrifying, jerky speed, limbs flailing wildly. Adam's heart hammered against his ribs. He couldn't fight three at once. Not in this state. One hit, and he would pass out from exhaustion.
Move.
Adam forced his legs to work. He didn't run away; he ran to the side. To his left, two walls of crushed sedans formed a narrow alley. The gap was barely wide enough for one person. He threw himself into the shadows of the alley. The air here smelled of old oil and decay. He put his back against a crushed taxi, chest heaving. He raised the Crude Iron Spike. His hands trembled. The heavy metal weapon felt like it weighed a ton.
Come on...
The first mutant—the forklift driver—slammed into the gap. He was too wide. His shoulders scraped against the jagged metal walls of the car stacks. He roared, clawing at the air, trying to force his way through to reach Adam. Adam didn't hesitate. He lunged.
[ Effect: Sharpness +3 Active. ]
Physics seemed to glitch. The iron spike didn't just hit the mutant's skull; it vanished into it. There was no resistance. No crunch of bone. It was like stabbing a block of soft butter. The spike entered the mutant's left eye and exited the back of its skull. The creature went rigid.
[ Kill Confirmed. ] [ Energy Harvest: 0. ] [ Weapon Mastery (Spike): +2% ]
Adam yanked the weapon back. A fountain of black blood sprayed onto Adam's shirt. The body slumped forward, blocking the narrow path. "One." Adam gasped.
The second mutant was right behind the first. It didn't care about its fallen comrade. It scrambled over the twitching corpse, using it as a stepping stone. This one was smaller but faster. A woman from the accounting department. Her fingers had elongated into bony claws. She lunged before Adam could reset his stance.
"Get off!"
Adam tried to bring the spike up, but the narrow walls restricted his movement. The mutant crashed into him. They both hit the wall of scrap metal. The impact knocked the wind out of Adam. Sharp claws dug into his shoulders. Pain flared, hot and sharp.
[ WARNING: Physical Trauma Detected. ] [ Energy Levels: 2%. ]
The snapping jaws were inches from his throat. He couldn't push her off. He was too weak.
Leverage.
Adam dropped his center of gravity. He planted his boot against the corpse on the ground and pushed back against the scrap wall. He shortened his grip on the spike, holding it like a dagger. The mutant opened its mouth to bite. Adam jammed the spike upward, under her chin. He put every ounce of his remaining strength into the thrust.
SHLIK.
The tip pierced the soft underside of the jaw, punched through the palate, and severed the brain stem. The claws in his shoulders went limp instantly. Adam shoved her aside. She collapsed on top of the first body.
[ Kill Confirmed. ] [ Weapon Mastery (Spike): +2% ]
Adam slid down the wall, his legs giving out. Two dead. One left. He could hear the third one pacing outside the alley, growling. Adam waited for the rush. It didn't come. Instead, a screeching sound echoed from above. Metal claws scraping against painted steel.
Adam looked up. A shadow moved across the top of the stacked cars. The third mutant—a lanky man in a torn vest—was crawling on top of the crushed sedans like a spider. It crouched on the edge of the stack, twelve feet above Adam's head. It shrieked, saliva dripping from its unhinged jaw onto Adam's face. It was going to jump.
Adam was trapped. He couldn't dodge. If it lands on me, I'm dead.
His muscles screamed in protest, but his mind was cold. He didn't try to swing the heavy spike. He didn't have the strength. Instead, he jammed the blunt end of the iron spike against the hood of the crushed taxi behind him. He braced the shaft against his own shoulder, angling the sharp tip upward. A crude pike formation.
The mutant leaped. It was a blur of gray skin and flailing limbs, descending with the weight of a falling anvil. Adam grit his teeth and held the weapon steady.
THUD.
The impact was bone-jarring. The creature didn't land on Adam. It impaled itself. The Rank F spike caught the mutant mid-air, piercing the center of its chest. Gravity did the rest. The creature's own momentum drove the metal shaft through its ribcage and out its spine. The mutant thrashed wildly, then went limp.
[ Kill Confirmed. ] [ Weapon Mastery (Spike): +3% ] [ Combat Achievement: Tactical Genius (Bonus XP awarded). ]
Adam shoved the heavy corpse aside. He collapsed. The adrenaline vanished, leaving only the hunger.
[ ALERT: STARVATION CRITICAL. ] [ System Shutdown in 180 seconds... ]
The red text filled his entire field of view. He had to move. Now.
Adam stumbled out of the alley of corpses. The site office was fifty meters away. He dragged his feet across the gravel. Every step felt like lifting a cinder block. He reached the white porta-cabin. The door was locked. Adam raised the iron spike with trembling hands and smashed the lock mechanism. CLANG. He kicked the door open and fell inside.
The air was cool. Air conditioning. He ignored everything and crawled to the vending machine. It was glowing like the Holy Grail. "Fuck it." Adam swung the heavy metal handle into the glass front. CRASH.
He grabbed a Snickers bar. He didn't unwrap it; he tore the plastic with his teeth and shoved the entire thing into his mouth. Then a bag of chips. Then a can of cola. He ate with the desperation of a starving wolf.
Then, the magic happened. It didn't feel like digestion. It felt like an injection. A warm, electric heat exploded in his stomach. It rushed through his bloodstream, scorching away the fatigue.
[ Biomass Ingested. ] [ Initiating Conversion... ] [ Energy Reserves: 5%... 12%... 28%... 35%. ] [ Status: OPERATIONAL. ]
Adam took a deep breath. The air tasted sweet. He stood up straight. The weakness was gone, replaced by a buzzing vitality. He looked at the empty wrappers on the floor. "Fuel," he muttered.
He turned to the door. The broken lock hung loosely from the frame. Anyone could walk in. Adam looked at the heavy metal filing cabinet in the corner. He dragged it over to the door, blocking the entrance. But it wasn't enough. A strong mutant could push it aside.
He placed his hand on the filing cabinet, and his other hand on the metal door frame. Blue light flickered in his eyes.
[ Materials Detected: Steel Cabinet + Aluminum Door Frame. ] [ Energy Cost: 15%. ] [ Skill: Merge? ]
"Seal it," Adam whispered.
HUMMMM.
The metal groaned. Under his palms, the filing cabinet didn't just block the door; it liquefied at the edges. The steel flowed like wax, merging with the door frame and the walls. In seconds, there was no longer a door. There was just a solid, seamless wall of steel fused into the structure of the cabin.
Adam stepped back, admiring his work. No keys. No hinges. No way in, no way out. He was safe.
He walked to the reinforced window, sat in the supervisor's chair, and took a bite of a fresh chocolate bar. Outside, the city burned. In this new world, this piece of sugar was worth more than a gold bar. And he was the only one who knew how to turn it into a fortress.