The wet ground trembled as the gargantuan, laboratory-modified giant leeches advanced through the thick muck, their massive bodies blocking the only viable exit path out of the wetlands. Zeven scrambled backward, his heavy combat boots skidding across the slippery silt as he sought immediate refuge beneath a massive, fallen old tree. The trunk of the ancient pine formed a natural, low-lying arch over the edge of the muddy swamp, offering a temporary shield against the thrashing monstrosities. The suffocating, choking stench of sulfur from the nearby vents grew even more intense, mixing horribly with the foul, synthetic chemical odour radiating from the glistening mucus of the translucent predators. Above him, the dense grey mist hung heavily under the canopy, trapping the sounds of wet, sl
