Welter prepped his gear to map out an abandoned tunnel. He checked his pistol, slotted an ammo pack into his belt, and packed a survival kit into his rucksack. A pair of veteran soldiers and one fresh recruit stood waiting to accompany him.
The heavy checkpoint gate groaned open. The small squad filed out into the dark, and Welter watched the barrier slide shut behind them, sealing away the safety of the base.
"Okay, everyone. Lights on," Welter ordered.
They switched on their flashlights, cutting beams through the thick dust. They trekked down the pitch-black tunnel for a while before encountering anything.
"Pre-Dome ruins," one of the veteran soldiers whispered calmly, raising a hand to slow the pace. "Watch out for bandits and mutants."
The recruit gulped, his knuckles white against his weapon as he pushed forward with the group. Suddenly, the tunnel went dead quiet, save for the distant sound of erratic gunfire and echoing screams coming from the ruins ahead.
They crept forward, sneaking behind a cluster of rusted oil barrels. When they peered over the edge, the recruit's eyes widened in horror. A massive mutant was actively tearing a bandit's head from his shoulders.
"It's an A-class for sure," Welter breathed, his voice barely a whisper. "Looks like a mutated slice plate. I really hate anything with armor." Welter sighed, keeping his eyes locked on the beast. "A normal slice plate's only weakness is its spine. But this thing is mutated, meaning three random segments of its spine are left unplated."
Welter groaned softly. Next to him, the recruit went completely rigid with fear.
"Relax," Welter muttered, nudging the boy. "It can't hear anything through those heavy plates unless you scream right up against it, or shoot too close to it"
Ahead, the gunfire ceased, but the agonized screaming continued, cut short by the sickening wet sound of a man being ripped completely in half. Welter flashed a hand signal to the two veterans. They crept up behind the beast, using the shadows for cover. Welter scanned the creature's armored back until he spotted the raw, exposed flesh of the unplated spine.
He pointed directly at the weak spot. The two soldiers raised their rifles in perfect unison and fired. The bullets shredded the exposed vertebrae, and the massive mutant collapsed to the concrete, dead.
The squad let out a collective sigh of relief. A second later, the recruit doubled over, puking violently onto the floor.
"Sorry," the boy gasped, wiping his mouth.
Welter patted his shoulder gently. "You're fine. I puked the first time I saw a person get ripped in half, too. It's natural. And no—you never fully get over the screams." Welter gave him a reassuring nod, and the group continued onward.
As they explored deeper into the ruins, they discovered the area was an intact Pre-Dome warehouse, stacked high with crates of preserved food and military ammo.
Welter unclipped the radio from his belt. "Command, this is map crew 36, over."
Static crackled for a brief second before a voice replied, "Go ahead, 36, over."
"We found a Pre-Dome warehouse filled with ammo and food," Welter reported. "Requesting a retrieval team to come pick it up, over."
There was a brief pause on the other end. "Stand by... Roger that, 36. Sending a team to your coordinates. Continue mapping your sector, over."
"Affirmative. Out," Welter said, signaling his team to move.
He clipped the radio back onto his belt, and the group exited the warehouse to venture further down the main tunnel. The recruit, riding a wave of newfound confidence from the successful skirmish, stepped out to take the front of the line.
It was a grave mistake—one that many recruits had made before him.
Welter lunged forward, grabbing the boy's vest and yanking him back into the second position. "Stay behind the experienced soldier—"
Before Welter could finish the sentence, a gunshot echoed through the dark. A high-caliber bullet tore cleanly through the lead veteran soldier. His body hit the ground with a heavy thud.
Reacting instantly, the second soldier raised his rifle and fired a burst down the tunnel, hitting a hidden bandit squarely in the shoulder. The bandit dropped his gun, collapsing into the shadows while screaming in agony.
Welter dove into the dirt, grabbing the dead soldier's M70 rifle. He moved like lightning, stripping the ammo packs and emergency food from the corpse.
Suddenly, deep, hungry roars echoed from the deep recesses of the tunnel. The noise of the firefight had drawn the local fauna. Welter spotted a heavy metal door further down the corridor.
"Follow me!" Welter shouted, scrambling to his feet and sprinting toward it. The recruit and the remaining soldier took off right behind him.
Welter reached the threshold first, turning back to cover the others. But a fast, grotesque mutant dog leaped out of the dark, sinking its fangs deep into the veteran soldier's leg. The veteran didn't panic; he aimed his rifle downward and blew the creature's head off.
The recruit scrambled past the threshold into the room, but the wounded veteran looked at Welter, realizing he wouldn't make it. With a final grunt of effort, the soldier hurled his extra ammo pack through the doorway. The recruit caught it out of midair.
The veteran turned back toward the oncoming horde, firing his rifle until the magazine clicked empty. Limping heavily, he lunged straight into the pack of mutants. A beast immediately clamped its jaws onto his arm, ripping his hand completely off.
Driven by pure survival instinct, the soldier's mind stripped away the natural human limitations that stop the body from tearing itself apart. Flooded with a massive, final surge of adrenaline, his strength became monstrous. He crushed a mutant dog's skull with his remaining bare hand, slamming and breaking beast after beast.
When the overwhelming swarm finally piled over him, burying him beneath claws and teeth, he reached down and pulled the pin on his specialized grenade.
Welter watched the heroic sacrifice in absolute awe before slamming the heavy metal door shut.
BOOM!
A massive detonation shook the steel frame, vibrating right through Welter's boots. It wasn't enough to kill the entire pack, however; seconds later, the frantic scratching of mutant claws began scraping against the outside of the door.
Welter let out a shaky sigh of relief, turning back toward the recruit. "Darn it..."
CRACK.
Before the recruit could even reply, his head jerked violently. A sharp bone spike punched entirely through the back of the metal door, skewering the boy's skull. He went limp pinned to the door.
Welter spun around, tracing the trajectory of the projectile. Standing in the shadows of the room was a spike-throat mutant. The creature gurgled, its neck swelling as it prepared to spit another lethal bone projectile.
Welter bolted. As he ran, the spike-throat unleashed another shot. The jagged bone grazed the side of his stomach, tearing open a deep wound. Ignoring the blinding flash of pain, Welter closed the distance and punched the creature squarely in its swollen throat, crushing its vocal sacs and rendering it unable to fire.
Before it could recover, Welter drew his combat knife and drove the blade deep into its skull. The beast slumped to the floor.
"Not like this..." Welter groaned, collapsing against the wall. He clutched his side, but dark blood was already pouring profusely through his fingers.
As darkness crept into the edges of his vision and his consciousness began to fade, a cold, mechanical voice echoed directly inside his mind:
[System activated. Would you like to summon:]
• 1x Metro polis Combat Medic1x
• Metro polis Ranger
With the last ounce of his fading strength, Welter formed a single, desperate thought: Yes.
Then, everything went black.