Story 809: The Crimson Nightmare

The fire raged, but the Devourer did not die.

Evelyn’s breath hitched as she watched the monstrous figure stagger forward, its flesh blackened and peeling, but still very much alive. The thermite had done its damage—melting parts of its grotesque form—but something about it was… changing.

The Devourer adapted.

Its charred skin sloughed away in chunks, revealing something even more horrifying beneath. A thick, pulsating layer of muscle, glowing with a sickly crimson hue. Bone-like spikes jutted from its arms, razor-sharp and gleaming in the firelight. Its eyes, once black pits of endless hunger, now burned with an unnatural, golden fury.

Then it lunged.

Evelyn barely had time to react. She threw herself to the side as the creature’s massive claws sliced through the air, carving deep gashes into the metal wall behind her. Sparks flew as she scrambled for cover, heart pounding.

“Damn it,” she cursed under her breath. “This thing won’t die!”