Tom and Lt. Higgins’ path to safety was slammed shut. Questions choked their brains, leaving their minds to force their mouths open to let out a visceral scream for help until those ethereal hands constricted their bodies; it wrapped itself on their limbs and to their torso until they reached their necks. They bit their teeth, but it only gave them a few seconds to rest until they were forced to turn their heads and meet a green ball of flame.

The warmth inside Tom’s chest begged him to move. It roared him to fight that he could hear the fearful beat of war rummaging through his skull, and with it, he whimpered and fished for the plastic gun at his side. He managed to touch his holster, which made his body jolt and alert the hands that covered his skin; it screeched and twisted his arm to its opposite side.

Lt.Higgins, faced with his partner’s helplessness, just sighed through his nose. He followed his lead, though he dealt it with this reckless slowness and precision, allowing his fingers to only make the slightest movement until he realized that he was too late. His wisdom-filled dark brown eyes kept its post as he reached for his weapon, and he watched his enemy unfold its limbs as though it was inside a womb and waiting to be born.

The flame took form and defined its searing flesh akin to that of a middle-aged warrior, which was complemented by the moment it manifested its armor. Its chest plate brought a shy clink that made the partners knit their brows, but their sense of danger grew larger when the entity puffed out its chest and manifested its burning skull. It smiled at them as the flames around its head crackled, materializing a war hammer at his side next and raising it in the air.

The creature flung its weapon forward wordlessly. Time seemed to grow longer. Lt. Higgins still tried to burrow his hand towards his weapon, keeping his eye contact, while Tom screamed internally as he ignored his twisting arm. Their minds synced as they both shivered, with their body tightening their muscles as they braced for impact, but the entity’s hammer bounced back with a snap. The weapon rang, rattling the hair on their skins that stood up and celebrated as a response.

The green warrior tilted its head and narrowed its gaze at Tom and Lt. Higgins, who responded by doing their best to try to wriggle out of their bondage like worms. It was left confused, but it ended up taking a step back to prepare for another swing as the partners in front of it struggled. It pumped out its chest again, and just then, the door behind Tom and Lt. Higgins crumbled to ash. It ushered a tall white-haired woman, who waltzed in and brandished a pencil caught between her black-gloved fingers.

Her long wavy hair brushed up like a wave to follow her rhythm, and as her tired baggy eyes sharpened, the pencil on her hand turned to ash as well. She summoned a wave of a bright-orange flame that dodged Lt. Higgins and Tom before eating the green warrior before her.

Tom and Lt. Higgins tasted a bit of freedom. They forced themselves free next, allowing the woman in a maroon skin-tight coat and slacks to take the stage with a smug smile. Both of them reached for their guns and placed their fingers on the trigger as the flames grew brighter. They waited for a mark as the entity continued to burn, but the next thing they saw was the woman’s severed arm flying in the air.

“I should’ve drunk that coffee.” The woman clicked her tongue. She pulled herself back, but the entity moved forward and bore a hole through her stomach with its bare hand.

Tom’s eyes widened as his knees weakened, but he collected himself and straightened his back. Lt. Higgins followed his lead, scoffing as he stepped to the side and raised his plastic gun.

The woman in front of them, on the other hand, coughed out a mouthful of blood. Slowly twisting her hand to tighten her grasp on the entity’s arm, she looked straight in its eyes and flashed it a bloody smile.