The road had curved away from the highway hours ago, dipping into what used to be a small rail yard. Twisted tracks snaked through tall grass and broken gravel, leading to a long line of rusted train cars that looked like a giant metal snake someone had chopped into pieces. One engine lay on its side, half-buried in dirt, its front smashed open like a cracked egg. The cars behind it tilted at strange angles, windows gone, roofs peeled back by time and weather. Vines crawled over everything, thick and dark green, turning the whole wreck into a green-and-rust jungle under the moonlight.
Tony walked slower here, eyes wide, taking it all in. The air smelled wet and sour, like old metal mixed with rotting leaves. Crickets chirped in the grass, but not many—too quiet for a place this overgrown. Lila stayed close on his left, water skin already uncapped, a thin stream ready to whip out if needed. Elias walked on the right, breeze always moving around him, listening to things the rest of them couldn't hear.
They were almost past the first car when Elias stopped dead. His hand shot up. "Wait."
Tony froze. Lila's water coiled tighter. Then they heard it—wet tearing sounds, low growls, the crunch of bone. Coming from behind the tipped engine.
They edged forward, staying low. When they rounded the wreck, the sight hit like a punch.
A pack of mutants—six of them—were crouched over something on the ground. The creatures used to be wolves, maybe, but not anymore. Their bodies had stretched too long, ribs showing under patchy gray fur that grew in clumps like mold. Spikes of bone stuck out along their backs, sharp and yellow. Their heads were wrong—jaws too wide, extra teeth growing sideways, eyes glowing dull yellow in the dark. One had a second mouth on its neck, smaller but just as hungry. Another had no fur at all, skin shiny and black like wet tar, veins pulsing green under the surface.
They were feasting. The thing on the ground used to be a person—maybe a scavenger who got unlucky. Now it was mostly red and white. Arms torn open, stomach ripped wide, ribs cracked apart like a book left in the rain. Blood pooled dark and thick under the body, soaking into the dirt. One mutant had its muzzle buried in the chest cavity, pulling at something soft. Another chewed on a leg, bone snapping loud enough to echo off the train cars. The air stank of copper and rot, so strong Tony had to breathe through his mouth.
Lila made a small, sick sound. Tony felt his stomach turn, but he couldn't look away.
Elias didn't hesitate. He swept both hands forward in a quick, sharp motion. The breeze around him exploded into a roaring gust. Wind hit the mutants like a wall, lifting all six off the ground at once. They flew backward, tumbling through the air, crashing into the side of a train car with wet thuds and angry yelps. One hit so hard its spikes snapped off. Another rolled across the gravel, legs kicking, before scrambling up with a snarl.
The pack turned toward them, yellow eyes glowing, mouths dripping red.
But the body on the ground—the one they'd been eating—twitched.
Tony saw it first. A finger curled. Then the whole arm jerked. The torn-open chest rose and fell in a ragged breath. Skin rippled like water over stones. Bones cracked and shifted under flesh. The head lifted, neck bending at a wrong angle. What used to be a face stretched, jaw unhinging, teeth pushing out longer and sharper. Green veins spread across the skin like cracks in ice. The body stood—slow, jerky—now taller, shoulders broader, fingers ending in claws. The second mouth opened on its throat and hissed.
It wasn't human anymore.
It was one of them.
The new mutant turned glowing eyes toward Tony, Lila, and Elias. The pack behind it howled, joining the chorus.
Lila raised her hands, water surging up in a spinning wall. Elias stepped forward, wind sharpening into visible blades. Tony felt the familiar spark in his chest—fear, yes, but also that clear, bright note waiting to be sung.
The mutants charged.
Tony took a breath, ready.