Veiled Eyes

Chapter 2

Defenestration – noun: the action of throwing someone out of a window.

The sky was impossibly dark. Inky, impenetrable, it pressed down around us like a suffocating blanket. All of my prior assignments had been during daylight hours, as the beasts of the Barren were less likely to roam during the day. We weren’t supposed to be out this late; C had been very strict about all things, especially the curfew, which was meant to keep us safe from those who would harm us.

But he had gotten reports of a sighting of a pack of Stalkers that had gotten too close to Haven. So now here we were, trudging through the sand dunes. Our patrol had taken us deep into the skeletal remains of a nearby city. I think I'd read somewhere that the city was once called Miami, but much like everything else, that information had been scrubbed from our books.

My feet ached and my back was killing me. I could not wait to collapse onto my cot back at Haven. I had to get up early in the morning for daybreak patrols, and I knew I would be exhausted.

“One more sweep, then we head back,” I called out to my troop.

“Yes, Lieutenant,” the three soldiers under me replied in unison.

Just as we rounded the corner of a fractured glass and metal building, a sound pierced the eerie silence. It was a child’s desperate cry for help. I froze in my tracks, my pulse rifle raising into a ready position as I scanned the area. I tapped my temple, shifting my All C lenses to night mode. The dark shadows of the world transformed into various shades of green, the world coming into stark view.

I caught sight of what looked like drag marks in the sand leading around the nearest building. "Secure the area," I ordered. "If I am not back in 10 minutes, come find me." I rushed forward, my boots silent on the sands as I followed the drag marks. I was looking up at the various metal and glass structures around me, checking for ambushes, so I missed it when the ground abruptly ended.

The world tilted, the ground rushing up to meet me at an alarming speed as I tumbled. My stomach lurched, and a scream threatened to burst from my lips, but I held it in, knowing the sound would attract worse things than Stalkers. I landed face-first, dust and sand filling my mouth, the impact knocking the wind from me and sending an explosion of stars behind my eyes.

Gasping for air, I rolled onto my back, my vision swimming. My rifle, my pack, my helmet—all gone, swallowed by the dark void I had nearly plummeted into. My eyes burned, and I tapped my temple only to find my All C lenses were no longer working; the impact must have short-circuited the delicate glass. I pushed myself into a sitting position, my fingers fumbling blindly on my vest, frantically searching its pockets until I finally grasped the handle of the emergency flashlight.

Thank the Maker, I thought, my fingers closing around its cold, metallic surface. At least I wasn't completely helpless. It wasn’t ideal to have a light, knowing it attracts all sorts of beasts, but it was either that or complete blindness.

I flicked on the flashlight, the beam cutting through the darkness like a knife. It illuminated my immediate surroundings, a jumble of twisted metal and shattered concrete. This was a massive building, its frame of steel and glass resting on its side.

I realized with a shudder that this building had broken my fall; if I had landed five feet to the left, I would have plummeted to my death. The ground beneath the structure had been eroded away, causing the entire building to topple into the ravine, its collapse caught at an odd, precarious angle by the opposing wall.

I had to get my bearings. Swallowing my fear, I began to scale the building's slanted side, my boots crunching against the shattered glass as I carefully made my way up. The flashlight beam danced erratically, a frantic beacon in the darkness. I needed to find a way to climb back up to ground level, to get back to my squad, but the building was a treacherous maze of jagged metal and broken glass.

Suddenly, the glass below my feet gave way, plunging me into a dark void. I clung desperately to the edge of the sill, the remnants of shattered glass tearing at my hand. I angled my flashlight down, trying to gauge the depth of the chasm below me. The beam caught the glint of metal and the solid grey of concrete: a stairwell. Relief washed over me; the drop was only a couple of feet.

I let go, landing with a thud on the concrete steps, sending a cloud of dust flying into the air. I glanced around, bewildered. The building's interior, against all logic, seemed to have remained mostly intact, the floors only slightly sloped. I didn't have time to ponder the physics of it, because that same thin cry echoed down from above, the sound bouncing around the stairwell, coming from a few levels up.

My heart pounded, fear warring with my sense of duty. I had to find the source of that cry. Clutching the rusting railing, I hauled myself up the crooked stairs, each step sending a jolt of soreness through me, a testament to my fall. I tapped my temple desperately, hoping my All C lenses would flare to life, but they failed me again. I grunted in frustration as I forced my body up the steps.

Every shadow seemed to hold a hidden threat, each creak of the building had me moving faster. I was alone, cut off from the Haven, stripped of my most useful tool. My All C lenses could illuminate any darkness, reveal heat signatures, or zoom in on any minute detail I passed, but now all I had was a small, frantic beam of light to guide me.

I raced up the steps until I stumbled upon a thick smear of blood staining the dusty concrete floor. The blood was a vibrant, glistening red in the light of my flashlight, which was a good sign. The beasts that called the Barren home didn't bleed red; only humans did. While it was a small comfort to know a human was here, the sheer amount of blood was not. Whoever it was wouldn't be alive for long if I didn't act quickly.

I scanned the area for a weapon, my fingers itching for the familiar weight of my pulse rifle, but it was gone. My gaze fell upon a reddish metal container with a silver spray nozzle and a tangle of disintegrated black tubing dangling from its side. It was heavy, requiring both hands to lift. I clipped my flashlight to my shoulder strap, the beam cutting a path as I crept toward the doorway.

The blood trail led me through a labyrinth of shattered walls and collapsed ceilings. The air, thick with the metallic tang of blood and the stench of rot, grew heavier with every step. The trail ended at a room encased in glass, its once-transparent walls now clouded with grime and dust.

Inside, a large table lay overturned, casting a monstrous shadow from my light. And behind it, a small figure lay tragically motionless.

It was a girl—no older than ten—lying on her back, head tilted toward me, arms flung limply above her. At first, I thought the twist in her face was terror. But as I stepped closer, my chest tightened. Her eyes were vacant, glazed, staring through me. Not frozen in fear. Gone. I was too late.

Suddenly, her body convulsed. I lunged forward, adrenaline shoving aside my shock, and shoved the table out of the way. The sight beneath it nearly made me vomit. A swarm of wolf-like creatures—no bigger than foxes, their fur clotted with blood—were buried in the ruin of her lower body. Tiny jaws bristling with needle teeth snapped up at me, their muzzles slick and red. A chorus of low, feral growls rolled out as they abandoned their feast and fixed their eyes on me.

I stumbled back, my heel catching on the red metal container I’d dropped when I found the girl. I hit the ground hard, the impact jolting up my spine. The creatures yipped at the noise, startled. I snatched up the container, clutching it tight as I scrambled to my feet. Step by step, I backed away—until a low growl rumbled from behind me, rooting me to the spot.

I whipped my head toward the sound—and froze. A massive shape loomed in the darkness, its form swallowed by shadow. Only its eyes were visible: twin embers burning at my height, fixed on me. It stepped forward, hackles bristling, fangs bared in a gruesome snarl.

A Stalker. Well, at least I’d found their den.

Before I could move, it lunged—slamming into me with the force of a battering ram. Its jaws snapped for my arm but closed on the metal container instead. The bite punched through the steel, and a burst of white powder exploded between us, blinding us both.

It slashed wildly, hooked claws tearing through the air—one plunging deep into my thigh. Pain flared, white-hot and blinding, buckling my knees. I staggered back, the claw ripping free in a wet, burning drag. Biting back a scream, I forced myself upright and ran. The white powder still hung in the air, a ghostly veil buying me precious seconds before the Stalker gave chase.

I tore toward the stairwell, the beast’s growls swelling behind me, claws clicking like gunshots against the concrete. I didn’t dare look back. Warm blood streamed down my leg, soaking my pants, each step a lightning bolt of pain radiating from my thigh. My breath came in ragged bursts, my vision tunneling.

I hit the stairwell at full speed—forgetting the odd tilt of the steps. My foot slid out from under me. Time fractured. My body lurched forward, weightless for a heartbeat before my hip smashed into the cold metal railing. The impact sent a shockwave up my spine, knocking the air from my lungs. My fingers clawed at empty air, desperate for something to hold.

But there was nothing.

The railing vanished from beneath me, and I tipped over, the world flipping upside down. Darkness yawned below, swallowing the stairwell whole. I fell headfirst into it, the roar of the Stalker above fading into the rushing thump of my own heartbeat.

The last thing I felt was my skull slamming into the opposite railing—a sharp, sickening c***k that rattled through my teeth. White light burst behind my eyes, swallowing the stairwell, and then… nothing.