The Messenger of Death

"Let's move people." Alex urged them after they had stopped to watch how the creatures healed.

With 8 people watching the front and another 8 watching the back, they quickly moved from where they were.

"The zombie is coming again," Amelia announced. It was the same one that Sara had kicked, coming at her again.

-Bllee!!

"Try cutting its head off," Drake suggested.

-Slash!

Sara used her sword to decapitate the creature.

-Thud!

Its head dropped a few yards away from its body and it stopped moving. Sara and the group moved a few meters away from the headless creature.

"Is it finally dead?" Emma asked what was on everyone's mind.

"I think so," Adrian whispered.

"See, I told you guys that we had nothing to worry about, you all just overreacted for nothing. All we need to do is to behead them." Lenny grinned.

"Burn the head, Sara. Burn it now!"

Alex said after he saw the slimy blood of the creature, from its head and neck, moving closer to their selves.

Sara threw her torch at the head of the creature and it didn't take long for it to get engulfed by the flames. But that wasn't enough to stop it from healing. The blood of the creature dragged its head back to its neck and connected it back. The only difference now was that the creature's head was on fire, and that didn't stop or change its decision of attacking them.

-Blleeee!!!

This time its cry sounded like it was angry.

"I.. will eat…. You.." It said as it stared at Sara.

"Ahhh, noo!!" Amelia screamed.

"Shut your mouth, Amelia. You weren't even the one that it said it was going to eat but you are the one screaming." Alex got irritated by the attitude that she had been showing.

Surprisingly Amelia kept her mouth shut and tears were threatening to drop from her eyes.

"I have to admit, I was also irked by what it said." Sara swallowed her saliva.

"Stop freaking out, although we can't kill it, it can't hurt us either. It doesn't have the strength to." Lenny spoke up.

-Bllee!

It charged at Sara once more.

"It's different." Sara noticed that there was something different about the creature as it approached her. It was faster than it previously was.

She was about to charge at it when Alex stepped in front of her. "Let me try." He said.

-Fwoosh!!

His body was engulfed by flames. He shot flames at the creature.

-Blleee!!

It fell to the ground and rolled around, crying out in pain as it was being showered with fire. Alex continued till he started to feel tired…

Despite his efforts, his flames didn't do much but cause pain and put the creature on fire.

"It didn't burn." He too was shocked at the fact that the creature could withstand his flames.

"Me... ki.. ki… Kill you." It said to Alex in anger.

-Shoosh!

The creature disappeared from its position and arrived in front of Alex.

-Blleee!!

It screamed as it pitched a punch at Alex's stomach.

-Bam!

The blow hit him square on his stomach. Alex flew back several meters and crashed into the ground.

-Blech!

He vomited a mouth full of blood. 'How did it suddenly get that fast?' Alex with his shocked expression looked up at the creature that was a distance away from him, it was still on fire, staring at him.

Alex stood up and put the flames on his body off. Only after the moment that Alex did that did the flames on the Creature go out too…

Sara attacked it right after the flames on its body went out. She slashed her blade at its neck again.

-Chink!

The creature caught her blade in its hand and held it in place. It was at this moment she noticed the difference in the creature. Previously its skin was just like that of a dry and cracked skin, now the skin of the creature looked like the outer texture of a rock, with cracked lines on it.

"Be careful, it had a spike in strength," Alex warned as he approached the rest of the group.

"It's just one of them, we can still deal with it and run for the exit of the forest." Lenny was being optimistic.

But circumstances didn't seem to agree with Lenny. Prior to his statement, other creatures of the same species as the one they had been fighting with started to appear. They came down from trees like lizards, popping out of their hiding place one after the other.

-Blleeee!!!

They screamed in unison and attacked Alex and the rest. Sara had already begun a heated battle with the one that had a spike in strength. She and the creature were almost equal in strength now.

Not up to 30 seconds later, Alex and the rest had finished dealing with the reinforcements, 26 of them.

"Amelia, help Sara take care of that abnormal one and we will keep these on the ground till you can decapitate that one again… As soon as you do that, inform us. Everyone would make a break for the exit of this place." Alex ordered.

Amelia wanted to object but she felt that now wasn't the right time to do that. She dropped her pride and did as he said.

Alex ran towards one of the zombie-like creatures on the ground and used his spear to cut its legs as its previous injuries were already starting to heal. The rest followed Alex's actions and did the same to the creatures on the ground whose injuries had started to heal…

"It's done, let's move quickly!!" Sara informed them.

"Make a break for it everyone!" Alex shouted.

-Fwoosh!

Alex's body was engulfed by his flames, this time he felt different. He felt drained and his flames were a bit unstable, fluctuating. He made a ball of fire and threw it ahead of them, just to light the way for them. They all sprinted through the road that Alex lit for them. He continued to throw flames, to light the safe parts of the road within the foggy weather.

-Blleee!!!

2 minutes into their journey, the creatures had almost caught up with them. The weak ones also had a spike in strength, as they were now faster than they were before.

['How the hell are these things catching up, I thought there was only one abnormal one now there are several.'] Alex threw another ball of fire.

['I don't know, but I hope that they are not what I think they are.'] Xander said.

['What do you think that they are?'] Alex was curious now.

['Berserkers. The sudden spike in their strengths, just like the first one, hinted it. Think about it, the one that you set on fire wasn't as strong as you were before you did that. Then the reinforcements that you guys killed came back stronger. I think the criteria for their strength to increase is pain or death. Every time they get killed and they heal, they come back stronger than they previously were.'] Xander hypothesized.

"F*ck!!" Alex couldn't help but curse out. What Xander had said made so much sense, if only they had known they could have left the forest without having to deal with a tail.

"What happened Alex?" Camron asked. He was able to approach Alex because the flames weren't as hot and uncomfortable as they were before.

"These creatures might be berserkers. The more we cause pain or the more we kill them, the stronger they become." He answered.

"Berserkers?"

As they ran for the exit, they analyzed what Alex had said and everything in their memories seemed to connect the dots with what Alex had said.

"Wouldn't that mean that if they get out of this forest they'll be unstoppable?" Drake shivered as sweat oozed off his back and soaked his shirt.

"Maybe. I don't think that they can leave this forest. There should be some kind of ecological system here that bounds them to this forest. If there wasn't one then they would have already left the forest. We should be safe once we leave too."

-Ping!!

*System has found energy that may match the user's search. Would the user like a holographic GPS to the location?

"Yes! Something good." Alex said in excitement.

"What is good about our situation?" Drake questioned.

"You wouldn't understand even if I told you."

"System put that on standby, your new objective is to carry out a scan on the creatures behind us," Alex whispered.

*New objective recognized, to carry out the scan, the user is required to stop and face the subjects to be scanned…

"Sh*t"

Alex stopped running and faced the creatures as they quickly closed the distance between.

*Stand in the current position for 10 seconds.

The system required him to do so.

"Alex!! Why did you stop?" Camron also stopped in his tracks when he saw that Alex had stopped running.

"Go, don't worry, I'll catch up pretty soon. Leave now!"

Camron didn't know what his friend was planning but he knew that he was being protected by a strong individual in the shadows, or so he thought.

-Blleee!

The berserker that Alex had set on fire appeared at the front of the crowd of berserkers that were after them. Its speed was faster than that of the rest and it was closing in on Alex, fast.

"Come on system, be fast about this." He felt nervous as he looked at the virtual time count down in his mask.

*Scan count down: 7 of 10 seconds.

['Xander, we'll have to switch. You are faster than me.']

['I was about to suggest the same thing.'] Xander replied.

['Lucky bastard.'] Al was jealous.

-Switch.

Alex and Xander had switched, and Xander was now in control.

-Zzzz!!

Xander opened his eyes and streaks of lightning flashed out it.

*Scan complete, producing results.

-Blleee!!!

Just at that moment, the berserker arrived in front of Xander. It stretched its hand out, aiming to grab Xander's the neck.

-Zzzzz!!

-Whoosh!

Xander had disappeared from his position and left nothing but pink light for the berserker to grab.