Horrific Shorts: Zombie Edition

The subway tunnel stretched ahead of him like the throat of a great beast, dark and endless. The walls were coated in graffiti, remnants of a world long gone, and the tracks below his feet were slick with moisture, the echoes of dripping water reverberating through the underground labyrinth.

Jack pulled his hood tighter against the damp cold, his rifle slung over his shoulder, his senses on high alert.

He had been walking these tunnels for days. Above ground, the air was too toxic to breathe, the cities reduced to charred wastelands by the cataclysm that had wiped out nearly all of humanity. The only chance for survival was down here, beneath the ruins, where the last vestiges of human life scraped by in the darkness. But even in the depths, danger lurked.

His footsteps were silent, boots squishing against the wet ground as he navigated the abandoned subway cars that lay derailed and crumbling on the tracks. The dim green glow of his flashlight barely cut through the thick haze of dust and mold that filled the air. Every shadow seemed to move, and every distant noise felt like a threat.

He had been part of a group once—a small band of survivors who had found refuge in the old metro system. But that was before the creatures came. No one knew what they were, only that they came at night, silent and deadly, picking off stragglers one by one. Now, Jack was alone.

The last thing he remembered was the sound of screams echoing through the tunnels as his friends were torn apart, and he had fled into the deeper levels, where the creatures didn't venture. Or at least, that's what he had hoped.

A low growl interrupted his thoughts. Jack froze, his heart pounding in his chest. It was close. Too close. He slowly reached for his rifle, careful not to make a sound. The growling grew louder, accompanied by the soft padding of feet—several feet—closing in from all sides.

He ducked into a crumbling train car, sliding into the shadows, his breath shallow. His fingers tightened on the trigger as he peered through a crack in the wall. The darkness outside shifted, a silhouette moving past the door. One of them. Its skin was pale, almost translucent, stretched tight over a skeletal frame. Its eyes, lifeless and black, scanned the area, sniffing the air.

Jack held his breath, willing himself to be invisible. The creature's head jerked towards him, as if sensing his presence. It stepped closer, its claws scraping the metal of the train. He had one shot. One chance. His muscles tensed, waiting for the right moment.

Suddenly, a loud clatter echoed from deeper in the tunnel, and the creature's head snapped towards the noise. It let out a guttural hiss and sprinted in the opposite direction, disappearing into the shadows.

Jack exhaled, his body trembling. He couldn't stay here. He had to keep moving. Slinging his rifle back over his shoulder, he stepped out of the train and continued down the tunnel, deeper into the unknown.

Survival was all that mattered now.