NOVEL WEB Chapter 18
Chapter 18
While exploring the unfamiliar section of the city, Jake encountered massive crevices that crisscrossed the streets, significantly impeding his progress. While some of them were narrow enough for him to step over, others required him to leap to clear them. He had to be real careful not to fall into them. And some crevices were so massive he didn’t leap over them for fear that he might not be able to make it to the other side. Finding a crack too wide to jump over, he cautiously followed it until he discovered a narrower point where he could cross safely.
At some moment, he approached the edge of one of the exceptionally wide crevices to peer down into it. The deep crevice revealed the dark, labyrinthine network of the sewers below. While peering into another deep crevice, Jake spotted a strange creature lurking below. Before he could get a better look, the creature vanished into the depths of the sewers. Later, as he leaned over another crack, Jake spotted a similar creature in a sewer tunnel below. The creature had its long snout buried in a pile of repulsive waste, likely scavenging for food.
He wanted to take a moment to study the creature, but something suddenly spooked it—or maybe it had sensed him somehow—and the creature ran away. Or more accurately, bounded away because the creature kind of moved like a kangaroo, hopping on its powerful hind legs and using its long tail for balance. The creature leaned forward and swung its front limbs, helping itself maintain balance and direction. The movement was jumpy and bouncy, allowing the creature to cover long distances with each hop. It moved really fast, vanishing from view before Jake could discern any additional details about it.
He continued to traverse the streets crisscrossed by massive crevices. While walking along the edge of one crevice, he noticed a group of creatures in the sewer tunnel below. They looked like the one he’d spotted earlier. The creatures were completely focused on devouring something. The lack of sunlight filtering in through the narrow crack left the sewer tunnel cloaked in semi-darkness. It took Jake a moment to discern what they were feasting on—the dead body of another creature that looked exactly like them. They tore huge chunks of flesh from the corpse with their sharp teeth and swallowed them whole. The repulsive creatures were so absorbed in their meal that they remained oblivious to Jake, who was leaning over the crevice a few meters above them.
As he studied them, he realized each of those creatures was a strange mix of a rat and a kangaroo, similar in size to the latter. It meant that not only human beings had been turned into mutants after the Collapse, but animals had also undergone the same fate. Jake was about to take out his PDA and scan the rat-like creatures to learn more about them when a roar echoed through the tunnel down below. The rat-like creatures immediately lifted their heads to look in the direction the sound had come from. Jake was prompted to follow their gaze, but he didn’t see anything at first. A moment later, another creature emerged from the darker parts of the tunnel.
This newcomer differed very much from the rat-like creatures. It resembled an alligator with the torso of a bear, matching the size of the latter. Without a doubt, this creature was a predator, emanating a menacing aura. The rat-like creatures scurried away, bounding on their hind legs and emitting terrified shrill cries, while the bear-alligator relentlessly pursued its prey. They all vanished from Jake’s sight into one of the other tunnels.
The sewers were a terrifying place, that was for damn sure. Jake had no desire to descend into them for any reason. He wondered what level the bear-alligator was. That creature had appeared strong enough to withstand a blast from his shotgun at point-blank range. He wished he could have scanned the creature with his PDA to assess its strength.
He continued his trek through the crevice-ridden streets. When he jumped over another large crack, he was barely able to make it to the other side. He landed just on the edge of the crevice and for a moment, balanced there, the soles of his boots extending an inch over the chasm. He swung his arms violently, trying not to fall into the abyss behind him. Luckily, he was able to maintain his balance. After regaining control of his body, he took a wide step forward, his heart pounding and his breath coming in heavy gasps.
“Shit,” he panted. “Fuck. It was close.”
After calming down a bit, he glanced over his shoulder to look into the crevice he’d almost fallen into. In the dark sewer tunnel down below stood several mutated rat-like creatures, looking up, their evil red eyes bearing into him. Jake couldn’t help but shudder at the thought of falling beneath the fractured surface where those scary creatures resided. The very thought of being surrounded by those huge mutated rat-like creatures sent a shiver down his spine.
After the incident, Jake decided not to take any more unnecessary chances and from then on, started navigating around wider cracks instead of leaping over them as he previously had. After some time, he finally left the streets marred by deep crevices behind him. With the need to constantly watch his steps lifted, Jake felt a sense of relief and was able to relax, even if just a little.
He pressed on with his journey through the ravaged post-apocalyptic city. Occasionally, he would explore deserted buildings in search of loot. Some buildings contained canned food and ammunition, conveniently placed there by the system for survivors like him to find.
Upon entering the lobby of another skyscraper, Jake surveyed the scene of devastation. Debris littered the area, making it impossible to access the upper levels—the elevators were out of order, and the staircases lay in ruins. The wide expanse of the first floor justified taking a few minutes to search for valuable items, though.
Jake sidestepped a mound of rubble and was about to continue walking across the room when something caught his attention, causing him to pause. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted something in the middle of the lobby, and he turned his head that way to see what it was.
His brow furrowed as he muttered to himself, “What the hell is that?”
His mind struggled to make sense of the mysterious sight before him.