CHAPTER 4
THUD—!
BAM—!
DUM—!
The sound of the enormous feet landing on the ground was not only heard but felt as well.
It felt like an earthquake had erupted beneath their feet.
The very moment the massive soles crashed into the earth, a violent shockwave blasted outward.
At the same time, countless shards from the shattered dome rained down from above like deadly hail.
Reacting purely on instinct, Ray lunged forward and grabbed Van.
He yanked his friend close, turning his body sideways and shielding him completely as the glass fragments tore through his clothes.
Sharp shards sliced into his skin, ripping fabric and flesh alike as thin streams of blood trickled down his arms and back.
Ray did not scream.
He did not cry out.
He only gritted his teeth hard, enduring the pain in silence, unwilling to allow his friend to suffer even a single cut.
Realising what Ray had done, Van immediately shoved him away once the shards finished crashing onto the ground.
"What did you just do?!" Van shouted, his voice shaking.
"…Protecting my dear one," Ray replied calmly, though his breath came out strained.
Van opened his mouth, about to scold him fiercely, but his words died in his throat as the thick dust cloud stirred by the shockwave finally began to settle.
What stood revealed froze his blood solid.
The moment the figure fully emerged from the haze, Van felt as though his heart was about to burst straight out of his chest.
Ray, along with several others who had been thrown off their feet earlier, slowly turned around.
The fear that gripped them mirrored the terror etched across Van's face.
Because right in the middle of Wall Rose stood a colossal Abberant.
It was far taller than the creatures they had heard stories about.
A towering monstrosity reaching twenty five metres into the sky.
As tall as an eight storey building.
That was the nightmare the residents of Wall Rose were now staring at in stunned silence.
"A… an… Abberant attac…"
The man's words were cut short instantly as something streaked down from the sky, punching straight through his skull.
His body collapsed lifelessly to the ground before anyone could even react.
Ray froze completely.
His trembling gaze slowly lifted toward the sky.
Hovering above them was a gargantuan mothership, its massive frame sliding into view as it began orbiting ominously.
Without warning, beams of searing light poured down like rain.
Laser fire rained from the heavens, blasting the streets apart and plunging the people below into absolute chaos.
Screams echoed everywhere.
Ray still could not move. It was not that he refused to.
His body simply would not respond.
Fear had wrapped its claws around him too tightly.
His eyes drifted back to the gigantic Abberant, which suddenly turned away from the humans.
The laser barrage stopped abruptly.
Then the creature spoke, its voice booming as it glanced over its shoulder.
"Humans. You are all too weak. Therefore, you must be eradicated. This is merely a brief show. Enjoy."
With that, it leaped.
The ground exploded beneath its feet as dust scattered violently in all directions, leaving behind a massive hollow where it had launched itself from.
The Abberant soared over the outer wall, which stood two hundred metres tall, and landed outside with terrifying ease.
Twisting its hips, it swung its foot with brutal force, slamming it into the fifty metre thick wall.
The structure trembled violently as long cracks spiderwebbed across its surface.
Another savage kick followed, deepening the fractures even further.
Snarling in rage, the creature took several steps back.
Its yellow eyes narrowed into thin slits as it leaned forward, shoulders squared, legs driving hard.
Like a living battering ram, it charged.
The impact was deafening.
The wall shattered as enormous slabs of earth and stone were blasted into the air, flying in every direction.
Its speed did not stop there.
The Aberrant ploughed straight through, accidentally colliding with Wall Rose itself, crumbling large portions of it as massive chunks of the city were sent crashing down in all directions.
Right in front of Ray, a massive slab of earth whooshed past his face, the violent gust blowing his hair wildly over his eyes as it collided with a man standing directly beside him.
The man's face twisted unnaturally as blood sprayed outward.
His entire body was launched into the distance along with the enormous chunk of earth, leaving Ray frozen in place.
Slowly, stiffly, he twisted his head to look behind him.
The man was completely crushed beneath the rock, his body no longer visible.
Before Ray could even process the sight, more chaos followed.
From the mothership above, Abberants came crashing down into the interior of the wall.
Hordes of them descended violently, their landings creating massive craters upon impact as humans were thrown in every direction like discarded dolls.
Dust billowed thickly into the air, stinging the eyes as screams filled the streets from every side.
The moment the creatures landed, they unfurled their limbs and immediately plunged the entire area into pandemonium.
Humans were trampled mercilessly, crushed beneath massive feet as if they were nothing more than insects.
Claws lashed out with brutal ease, slicing through flesh and bone alike.
With casual movements of their legs, houses collapsed like fragile cards, structures crumbling in seconds.
Shrill cries tore through Ray's ears as he remained rooted to the spot, unmoving, with Van standing directly behind him.
Both stared as the colossal Abberant that initiated the attack began retreating, its role seemingly complete.
Nearly a hundred Abberants rained down from the mothership, slaughtering humans one after another while beams of light occasionally poured down like blazing pellets from the sky.
"Come on, Ray. Let's escape," Van urged desperately as people bolted past them, fleeing from the creatures.
Ray did not move an inch.
His gaze remained fixed ahead, watching in numb horror as the wall he had lived behind for years crumbled beneath the assault.
"…Ray! We have to go now. Everyone is heading for the train. It leads to Wall Steel. We need to leave before it fills up!" Van shouted frantically.
"My… my… my family," Ray croaked after a long moment of silence.
Van paused, staring at him in confusion.
"Huh?"
"Mum… Amy. Our house is in the direction of the lasers and some of the Abberants," Ray suddenly shouted, his voice breaking as he stepped forward.
"I need to go to them!"
Van reacted instantly, grabbing Ray and yanking him back.
"Are you insane? That's where everyone is trying to escape from. Do you want to die? We need to leave now!"
Ray spun around, glaring at him. His eyes glistened with tears that stubbornly refused to fall as his teeth clenched painfully.
"And abandon my family? Why do you think I do everything I do? It's for them!"
"But…"
"F*cking let me go!" Ray roared, fury and fear intertwining as he violently tore his arm from Van's grip.
Without hesitation, he turned and sprinted in the direction everyone else was fleeing from, his heart pounding violently with each step.
"Ray, stop!" Van shouted, reaching out in panic.
He tried to follow, but the rushing crowd slammed into him.
Bodies collided from all sides as a stampede formed, knocking him down as escaping humans trampled over him in their desperate flight.