Leon’s grip tightened around The Judgment, his mind racing.

  A Tier-2 Berserker, a monster that took squads of fully armed soldiers to bring down in his past life. It was a brute, a tank of muscle and rage.

  Its thick, reinforced skin made regular bullets nearly useless.

  Its strength? Enough to tear through steel doors.

  And worst of all?

  It had a terrifying ability to adapt.

  If they fought head-on, they'd be dead in seconds.

  Eric stood frozen, his breath shaky as he stared at the hulking creature. “T-That’s...not normal.”

  The Berserker’s veins pulsed with blue energy, its body twitching as if adjusting to their presence.

  Then...

  BOOM!

  It slammed its massive fist into the wall, cracking concrete like paper.

  Leon grabbed Eric by the collar. "Move!"

  They sprinted down the hall, but the Berserker charged forward, shaking the ground with every step.

  Too fast!

  Leon’s mind worked at lightning speed. He couldn’t kill it, not yet. But he could outthink it.

  Leon’s eyes darted around, scanning the facility as he ran.

  The emergency staircase. The underground garage was their best escape route.

  But if they led the Berserker down there, they’d be trapped.

  They needed to stall it.

  Then, he saw it...

  A maintenance room to the left, marked with a high-voltage warning sign.

  His lips curled into a grin.

  “Eric, on my signal, aim for the sprinklers,” Leon ordered.

  Eric, still shaken, nodded. “W-What? Why?”

  Leon kicked open the maintenance door and dove inside. "Just do it!"

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  Eric followed, nearly tripping as he spun and raised his rifle.

  The Berserker roared and charged straight into the doorway...

  Exactly as Leon planned.

  BOOM!

  The creature smashed through, sending debris flying. But in doing so, it lodged itself between the reinforced door frame.

  For a split second—it was stuck.

  “Now!” Leon shouted.

  BANG!

  Eric fired. The bullet hit a sprinkler valve.

  Water rained down.

  Leon grabbed a loose electrical cable from the maintenance panel and ripped it out, sending a shower of sparks into the flooded floor.

  ZZZZZT!

  Electricity surged through the Berserker’s wet body.

  The monster twitched violently, its roar turning into a distorted, agonized scream as thousands of volts fried its nervous system.

  Leon didn’t waste time.

  He yanked Eric forward. “Run!”

  They sprinted down the hall toward the garage entrance.

  Eric was still breathing hard. “I—I shot the valve! I actually hit it!”

  Leon smirked. “Told you to trust me.”

  They reached the garage doors, but as Leon pushed the control panel.

  Error. Lockdown engaged.

  “Shit.”

  Footsteps echoed behind them.

  More infected.

  Shadows flickered in the dim lighting.

  Leon turned to Eric. “You ready?”

  Eric tightened his grip on his rifle. “I won’t freeze this time.”

  Leon nodded. “Good.”

  Then, as the first zombie lunged at them,

  BANG!

  Eric fired a perfect headshot, the zombie dropping instantly.

  Leon grinned. Maybe the kid had potential after all.

  ***

  Leon’s sharp eyes scanned the garage doors, then flicked to the control panel flashing red.

  LOCKDOWN ENGAGED.

  They weren’t getting through here anytime soon.

  Eric cursed under his breath. “So what now? We’re stuck?”

  Leon exhaled slowly. Think.

  This was a military research facility.

  Standard protocols meant multiple escape routes, for the researchers, not for intruders like them.

  If the main exits were sealed, that left only one possibility.

  A maintenance tunnel.

  Leon turned sharply and started jogging toward the far left corner of the garage, near a row of abandoned military jeeps.

  Eric followed. “Where are we going?”

  “Every underground military facility has at least one hidden exit in case of emergencies,” Leon explained. “Usually, it’s disguised as something unimportant.”

  His fingers traced the wall as he walked, searching for.

  Click.

  There.

  A barely noticeable panel along the concrete wall.

  Leon pressed his palm against it and pushed.

  With a soft hiss, the hidden door slid open, revealing a dimly lit tunnel that stretched deep into the earth.

  Eric’s jaw dropped. “That was way too easy.”

  Leon smirked. “Not really. Most people wouldn’t even know it exists.”

  Without another word, they stepped inside.

  The tunnel was narrow but well-maintained, lined with emergency lights that flickered faintly.

  It smelled of metal and dust, a stark contrast to the death and blood lingering in the facility above.

  For the first time since they broke in.

  There was no immediate danger.

  Eric exhaled, rubbing the sweat off his forehead. “I can’t believe we actually made it.”

  Leon walked ahead at a steady pace. “It’s not over yet. We need to get out before the security overrides the lockdown.”

  As they moved deeper, the tunnel began to slope upward, signaling that they were nearing the surface.

  Then...

  They reached a heavy steel door at the end.

  Leon pulled the manual release lever,

  CLUNK.

  With a deep mechanical groan, the door slid open, revealing.

  The forest.

  Cool night air rushed past them, replacing the sterile, artificial atmosphere of the facility.

  The moon hung high, casting a soft glow over the dense treeline.

  Eric stepped out, taking a deep breath. “We’re really out…”

  Leon gave a final glance at the tunnel. They had won this round.

  No alarms. No chase.

  Just a clean escape.

  Now, the real challenge began.

  They had six days left before the apocalypse.