Time turned to jelly.

Everything happened in slow-motion, with no time to do anything except watch as the truck headed inexorably towards the waiting monster, Anisa unable to activate her corps in time to do anything. The Butcher raised its arms as if in greeting.

Keri didn't see what happened next, but it must have flipped the truck. One second the cabin was rattling as it hurtled forward, the next she was being flung to the side, shoulder slamming against hard metal. The noise of the vehicle’s body grinding against the road was deafening, a hideous screeching that drowned out the yells of her companions. She felt herself smashed against the floor, against the door, against the ceiling. It was as if she had been locked in a pressure washer.

When the momentum of the crashing truck finally waned all that could be heard was the sound of tires spinning futilely in the air, turning this way and that, the on-board system desperately trying to understand something it had never been programmed to handle.

Soft groans mixed with curses came from the others, along with a rising sense of panic as they realised that whatever was happening wasn't over yet.

"We have to get out of here," said Andreas, from somewhere beneath her.

She felt herself pushed upwards as he struggled to stand. Above her she heard the sound of the door slamming open and the muffled grunts of someone trying to climb out.

"Go! Go on, we have to get out of here now!"

She pulled herself up and grabbed hold of what was now the top of the cab, heaving herself out and on to the overturned side of the truck. It was surprisingly bright, though whether this was truly the case or because of the blow to the head she had received whilst being thrown around during the crash she did not know. It was difficult to see anything.

Somebody grabbed her from behind, yanking her from the cab. She staggered when she hit the ground but managed to stay upright.

"Run!" came Anisa's voice, and Keri was pushed forward.

She began running, without thought, without sense of direction, without knowing what those noises were behind her. Someone was shouting, another was screaming, and the awful sound of heavy metal footsteps overlay everything.

Cassandra was waiting for her in a nearby alleyway, the shade of the narrow walls helping Keri’s eyes refocus. She looked back the way she had come.

The truck lay overturned in the middle of a wide, open highway. She hadn't even known they were on a highway. She could see Anisa sprinting in the opposite direction, Eu close behind her. She couldn't see Andreas, but it was obvious that they had split up, heading in different directions in the hope of confusing or delaying the Butcher.

It didn't seem to be working. The Butcher was in hot pursuit of Anisa and Eu. He ran far faster than any ordinary human could, and would be upon them in a few seconds.

"Hey, you metal bastard!"

Andreas's voice came from somewhere to her right, at a distance, followed swiftly by the loud report of a pistol. Sparks bounced from the Butcher as bullets ricocheted off his metal limbs.

This seemed to get his attention. He halted in his tracks, one moment sprinting faster than the eye could comfortably keep up with, the next at a dead stop.

It turned slowly, but with the inevitability of an iceberg.

Andreas sprinted in the opposite direction, hell at his heels.[1]

"Come on," said Cassandra, taking Keri by the shoulder and pulling her further into the alleyway. She was surprisingly strong.

Keri turned and followed her, both moving as fast as they could whilst trying to be quiet and to overcome the urge to hide at the first available opportunity. It had become deathly silent behind them.

"What the fuck was that?" said Cassandra as they pushed on. "I mean, I know what it looked like, but, shit... There's no way."

"It was a Butcher," said Keri.

Somehow, now the monster had made its appearance, she felt a sense of calm above the overwhelming dread. Oh, she was shaking, but her mind felt sharper than it had since all this began.

"Don't be stupid, there's no such thing as..."

"It was a Butcher. The same one that killed Jyme. I mean Jayme."

Cassandra stumbled, then turned so sharply that Keri almost ran into her.

"It what?" she demanded. "What did you just say?"

Something in Cassandra's eyes jolted Keri to her core.

"But... yesterday... I told you."

"No you bloody well didn't. Jayme's dead? And there's a goddam Butcher after you? I'd remember if you said anything like that."

Shock and fury seemed to have cleared Cassandra's mind of their current situation, but it certainly hadn't left Keri's.

"I... Anisa understood. At least, I thought she did. Look, we have to get out of here!"

Keri grabbed Cassandra by the shoulders, half-frantic, trying to turn her around and set her moving in the right direction again, but Cassandra shrugged her grip off without effort.

"What the fuck have you done, you damn greenhouse?" growled Cassandra. "You've brought a monster right to us."

As if to confirm her words, the sound of metallic footsteps grew in their ears. It wasn't yet close enough to see, but it was close.

They ran.

[1] Hell was still a below-ground concept. They were going to program that in, too.