Hans moved beneath the broken smoke of the street.
The Hellhammers continued their pounding, not stopping until he was close enough.
The old hardware store could no longer be seen as a building. Half of its roof had collapsed inward, while the rear section had split open. Dust poured from the exposed gap, mixing with the black smoke rising from the drainage line below.
The hive continued screaming underneath it all.
Not in pain alone, but also in anger.
Hans felt the sound push against his mind, scratching at the edges of his thoughts. They felt like pins biting into his skin.
And just as the sensation came, the System washed it away.
Hans did not slow down.
Around him, five DASF units moved in a loose diamond formation.
It was Callum together with Matilda and her group.
