Click. Click. Click.
The sound rattled through Pace's head as he turned back ever so slightly. Grip tightening around the chain.
But the moment he saw what was behind him. His eyes blew wide, pulse hammering like a war drum.
Another shadowy figure stood there—this one too was different from the others. It had a smaller, more human like frame, its head was more or less a huge oval attached to a human jaw, and it also had sharp metallic claws for hands, just like the previous one—
'Wait!' Pace suddenly jolted with a glimmer of insight, his vision swaying to the ground where the creature from before should have laid. Dead. But all that was left, was a single crack in the wooden floor.
Turning his gaze back to the monster, his heart dropped as he noticed its eyes—or where they should have been. Instead there were two holes with white balls of light peering out like a crude imitation of human eyes.
'Don't tell me this is the same bastard from before? Did it transform? Just how many hits can it tak—'
Before Pace could even finish the thought, the freak leapt high into the night. It's razor sharp claws glinting under the moonlight. The next second it was propelling down like a hawk hunting for its prey.
Still unsteady, Pace stumbled sideways at the last moment, rolling on the wooden floor as he barely avoided the heavy blow.
Dust and rubble rained down as he hit the floor, pelting his back. He quickly pushed up through the grit, barely upright, getting back into gear for round two. Only this time his body was as exhausted as it could be.
He shifted, trying to back off—but the shackle connecting him to Bushy's corpse snapped taut. He was at the limit.
"Shit this is bad." Pace muttered peering back at the beast, who simply stood there surrounded by the cloud of dust, its white eyes glowing through the brown smoke like a predators.
Suddenly, the dust cloud split open and through it launched out the monster at a speed faster than anything humanly possible, running straight toward Pace.
Thinking on his feet, Pace raised the makeshift morningstar into the air, spinning it to build momentum, waiting till his opponent got in range and swung it with all his force.
The creature seemed to notice it too, as just inches away from the cuffs, it shifted its weight to its back foot and leaned backward trying to avoid the hit but was a step too late and got nailed in the jaw.
Stumbling back, the entity lost its balance falling to the ground. Black goo escaped from its jaw as it silently stood back up unfazed.
Using his chance. Pace quickly escaped past the abomination nearing Bushy's corpse letting the chain slack and allowing himself the much needed room to move.
'That thing just tried to dodge didn't it? Is it intelligent? Ugh—'
Sucking in a deep breath, he calmly analyzed his surroundings. He stood a few feet away from the altar, ahead of him the war was entering its final stages as most officers had run out of the church either using their own allies as meat shields or by simply by luck.
The sound of gunshots had completely died out and in its place were wails and painful screams with red blood spraying across the walls and floor. By now the number of officers had thinned quite a bit meanwhile the shadowy entities looked as if they had somehow multiplied.
Shifting his attention, Pace tapped the ground with his foot making sure it was steady and looked back at the abomination.
It stood there for a moment, back hunched, making that treacherous clinking noise as it slowly twisted its head.
The moment Pace's eyes met with the tiny white balls of light, the creature pounced.
Charging at Pace like a bolt of lightning, its speed even faster than before.
Pace tightened his muscles preparing to dodge, but be it his instincts he essentially knew that between the monsters speed and the exhaustion weighing down on him like a ten ton weight he would never be able to avoid a hit.
Hence he quickly changed his strategy, pulling back the morning star into the air. Hoping it would scare the thing into trying to evade and kill its momentum.
But reality is often disappointing…
Instead of dodging the bastard lunged forth, dashing through the space at an even higher speed.
Desperate, Pace swung the Morningstar towards the creature but it not only dodged mid air, but also charged shoulder first into Pace's torso.
Under the immense force, Pace could feel all the air escape his lungs as he was hurled across the room, only stopping when the ever persistent leash binding him to Bushy grew taut.
Crashing onto the floor, Pace coughed out a chunk of blood. His vision hazy, as every muscle near his chest roared in pain.
Groaning, Pace pushed himself back up on his unsteady feet. Unable to find his balance as he wobbled about like a drunkard, spewing more blood from his lips.
"I definitely broke something." Pace muttered grabbing the side of his small torso with his left hand. Only then did he realize how light his left hand felt.
Raising it to his face, his eye's widened as a chuckle escaped his blood smeared lips.
The make shift morningstar of his was gone. The chain had been cleanly cut off at the middle and dangled in front of his eyes.
'Ah shit—that's so not good. How did it even snap? That freak can cut through metal too?'
Shifting his focus to what lay behind the metal tether, his muscles contracted.
A blade stood mere inches from his face, a clicking noise echoed in his ears as everything seemed to move slow.
His mind scrambled to dodge but his body acted first, quickly pulling the chain that bound him and Bushy and put it between his neck and the blade, trying to parry off the attack.
Clank!
Sparks mixed with crimson danced through the night as Pace fell back onto the ground groaning in pain.
The metal binding him and Bushy—cleanly sliced off like it was made of velvet.
The bastard falling victim to its own momentum flew a couple feet away smashing into the church's back wall.
Pace wailed holding onto his shoulder as blood in large quantities dripped down from it.
Although he had managed to somehow avoid a fatal blow but he wasn't able to completely shift the attack and got a chunk of his right shoulder chopped off just like the chain.
Through the pain, he opened his eyes. Every thing looked hazy as he shifted his gaze toward where the freak had crashed.
It stood there, bathing under the moonlight like a bronze statue.
A few seconds passed as it suddenly took a calculated step forth, then another, and another. Slowly walking closer and closer to Pace, who on the other hand was already on his last legs.
He tried to get up, to run but his body was far too exhausted to support any movement. His thoughts blinded by the searing pain in his ribs and shoulder.
'To think my last loop would end so soon. Hehe… looks like I won't even get to see your face again after all. Cynthia.'
Tears fell down his smiling face mixed with crimson and sweat. He held onto his heart as it shattered into a million pieces, like a fragile piece of glass.
A single thought surged within Pace's blank mind.
'I don't want to die.'