The creature landed with a wet slap, then immediately pivoted toward me with inhuman flexibility. Its broken jaw stretched into what might've been a smile.
"Running is... impolite..."
I scrambled to my feet, sneakers slipping on bloody marble. The hallway stretched ahead it's long and dark as I tried to run away.
Behind me, I heard claws scraping stones is getting closer.
I ran.
The creature's laughter followed me down the hall. It was playing with me. I knew it could've caught me already if it wanted.
It was savoring this moment.
The stairwell entrance appeared ahead with heavy security doors propped open by a fire extinguisher. I could see the steps beyond, leading up to the roof, where I can only send help.
Something slammed into my back.
I went down hard, chin cracking against the floor. Pain shot through me as claws raked across my shoulders, tearing through my blazer like paper. The smell of my own blood filled my nose.
"There~... much better..."
The thing's weight pressed down on me. I could feel its breath on my neck it's hot with wet and reeking of decay. Those impossible teeth grazed my skin. I knew I was going to die at this moment. Right here, in the hallway where I'd walked a thousand times.
I didn't even have a weapon.
Panic started creeping in, scratching at the edges of my brain... but then something else kicked in too.
It wasn't muscle memory.. God knows I'd never actually nailed this move ever.
But I'd seen it once. Half-assed my way through it during some self-defense workshop back in the dojo. A disarm technique. Something from jiu-jitsu or aikido, honestly, I'd been checking my phone half the time.
Still, it was all I had.
Do it now or you're dead.
I shifted, and holy hell, my ribs screamed. But I didn't try to fight the monster's momentum. I went with it. Let the thing push down on me, just a bit. Then I twisted hard to the left while whipping my body under its center.
The creature's weight went with me, totally thrown by the sudden shift. One claw scraped uselessly against the floor. Its whole body wobbled.
I kicked off the wall with everything I had and drove my elbow into its side, shoving the thing off me.
It stumbled back, all those limbs scrambling to catch itself.
That's all I needed.
I rolled toward the fire extinguisher, grabbed it, and swung like a club. The metal cylinder is connected with the creature's skull with a satisfying crunch. Black ichor sprayed across the walls.
The thing shrieked and staggered back. One eye had burst, leaking fluid down its ruined cheek.
I didn't wait to see if it'd recover. I threw myself through the stairwell doors and slammed them shut, engaging the electromagnetic lock. The mechanism hummed to life, sealing the creature outside.
But not for long. I could already hear it throwing itself against the reinforced steel, impacts echoing through the stairwell.
BANG. BANG. BANG.
The doors shuddered with each strike. Whatever that thing was, it was strong enough to bend metal.
I looked up at the flights of stairs above me. Three more floors to the rooftop.
The pounding behind me got worse. I heard stressed metal groaning. The locks wouldn't hold much longer.
I started climbing.
My legs burned. My lungs screamed for air. The claw marks on my shoulders sent waves of pain down my arms with every movement. But I climbed.
Behind me, the sound of twisting metal. A final, thunderous crash.
Then silence.
I reached the first landing and risked a glance back. The security doors hung open, locks shattered. In the darkness beyond, then I a saw movement.
"It's coming." Panic hit me. I hurried my steps.
I climbed faster, taking steps two at a time. The emergency lights got dimmer with each floor.
The roof access door appeared ahead, painted bright red with warnings in Japanese and English. AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY. ALARM WILL SOUND.
I grabbed the handle and pulled.
It's locked dang it.
Of course it was locked. Everything in this nightmare was either broken or trying to kill me.
Behind me sounds of claws on concrete. Getting closer.
I fumbled in my pocket for the emergency flare beacon, hands shaking so bad I nearly dropped it. There had to be another way. maintenance access, a service panel, something—
There. A smaller door marked 'MAINTENANCE' tucked in the corner of the landing. Electronic lock, but the solar flare had fried most of the building's systems.
I tried the handle and It turned.
The maintenance room was barely big enough for one person, filled with pipes and electrical conduits humming with leftover power.
I slipped inside and locked the door, then wedged a broken pipe against the handle for good measure.
Outside, I heard the creature reach the landing. Its claws scraped against the roof access door, testing it. Then the scraping stopped.
There's only silence outside.
I held my breath, counting my heartbeats. Ten. Twenty. Thirty.
Then there's a sudden soft tap on the maintenance door.
"President... I know you're in there..."
Another tap.
"Open the door... we need to talk..."
I pressed my back against the wall, trying to make myself as small as possible. The maintenance room felt like a coffin, pipes and cables pressing in from all sides.
"You can't hide forever... I can smell your blood..."
The tapping stopped. I waited, my muscles tensed, my breathing became rugged that's like I'm out of oxygen.
Minutes passed.
Finally, I heard the creature moving away, claws scraping concrete as it searched other parts of the building. But I knew it'd be back.
I looked up at the ceiling. Somewhere above was the roof.
But first, I had to survive long enough to reach it.
I checked my wounds. The claw marks were deep but not life-threatening. They'd stopped bleeding, at least. I tore strips from my blazer and bound them best I could.
Then I sat in the darkness, clutching the emergency flare beacon, and planned my next move.
The longest hall was behind me now. But the hardest part was still ahead.
I had to keep moving.