Cruz opened his mouth to scream at Knox, to call him a coward, but the words froze right in his throat. CREAK... SLAM! Both of 'em turned around real fast, their eyes darting toward the elevated wooden platform on the east wall. The floodlight above the tower flickered once, twice, and then went completely pitch black. In the dim, smoky glare of the yard lights, all they could see was a massive, pitch-black shadowy silhouette perched at the top of the tower stairs. Broad chest, low shoulders, muscles like iron under thick fur. A creature straight out of a fuckin' nightmare. WOOF! Before the two guards up on the tower platform could even swivel the heavy .50-cal machine gun around, Beast launched off the top step like a black missile! Eighty pounds of pure, unadulterated muscle soared through the dark air, slamming full-force straight into the primary gunner! The guard screamed as Beast brought him crashing down onto the wooden floorboards, locking his massive jaws right around the fool's throat and thrashing him like a ragdoll! CRUNCH! The second gunner reached for his sidearm, but Beast was already on him—spinning with terrifying speed, sinking his deep teeth straight through the guy's shoulder plate, ripping him down into the shadows! Blood splattered across the dark plexiglass window of the tower, and then... silence. Cruz and Knox stood frozen at the bottom of the stairs, staring up with wide, horrified eyes as that huge black shadow leaped down off the back of the watchtower, melting back into the pitch-black perimeter like a ghost. Seconds later, from the far edge of the motor pool, you could hear the chaotic sounds of panic—muffled gurgles, heavy bodies hitting the gravel, and the sudden CRACK of bones breaking in the dark. THUD. THUD. gurgle... THUD. Knox stepped back, his hands shaking violently, his face completely drained of color as the dark screams echoed through the yard. "Oh fuck..." Knox gasped, his voice cracking with pure, helpless terror. "He's already here, dog! God damn... I don't know how the fuck I'm getting out of here, but I'm fuckin' out!" "Hey! Knox! You cocksucker!" Cruz screamed, turning around, veins bulging out of his neck. "You can't just fucking leave! You're on my payroll! Stand your fuckin' ground!" By the time Cruz finished yelling, he was talking to the empty air, bro. Knox was already long gone—sprinting full-speed into the shadows behind the generator shed, abandoning his armor, his gun, and his boss to save his own skin. Cruz stood alone on the metal stairs, clutching his pistol, the cold sweat dripping off his chin as the distant lights around the quarry began to pop out one by one. In the pitch-black darkness beyond the gates, heavy boots were crunching on the gravel, taking slow, steady steps right toward him. What's the play for Chapter 11, homie? Time for you, Paco, and Beast to corner Cruz in his office?

The Shadow and the Teeth