There was a fetid stench that permeated through the air. Janus wrinkled his nose, every muscle in his aching body tensed up after inhaling what smelled like charred meat. He shook his head, his short and straight black hair sticking to his forehead from sweat. The moisture of the air combined with the oven-like heat made every pore in his skin perspire. After blinking twice and quick shake of his head, he managed to keep his eyes open. He straightened his posture, arcing his back backwards and took in a deep breath. This time through his mouth.

He looked behind him. From what he could tell, the coast was clear. Whatever it was that was chasing him wasn’t there anymore. Janus propped his body against one of the metal buildings and let out a sigh. Fanning himself with his hand, he took a moment to take in his location.

Janus knew nothing about where he was. The street he was on was dark; the lamps that lit up the road were nothing like ones he had seen before. The light that was emitted from the bulbous beacons was bright, vivid and precise. Vibrant white columns broke up the pitch black of the night. From those columns he could make out some of the features of the adjacent buildings.

Wires. Vents. Antennas. The local infrastructure had an industrial look to it. The weathered and rusting material that made up the buildings showed that they had been in use for quite a while. Janus’ gaze traveled up the side of the structure directly across from him. There were no windows. Only long open pipes that dumped a never-ending cascade of black mist.

Janus shook his head, still feeling dizzy from his previous sprint. He took in one more deep breath, coughing when he realized that he inhaled some the dark gas that a nearby vent was spewing. The taste of charcoal lingered on his tongue as he continued to wheeze.

What is this place? He thought to himself as he moved forward along the crumbling sidewalk. The heat continued to permeate through the air, making his exhaustion more prevalent. Another look behind himself revealed that he was still alone.

Need to keep moving. Janus continued to trudge along, keeping one hand dragging on the walls of the buildings beside him to keep his balance. The long and droning sound of machines humming became numb to him. He could hear a faint cackling in the distance coming from behind.

Are they back? Janus stopped his breath. He focused in on the sound, his heart racing upon noticing that the hyena-like laughter was getting louder. His legs made him sprint as he dashed across the sidewalk, passing through a pillar of light every few seconds.

Can’t… keep on like this… Janus’ run ended abruptly as he stopped himself by the entrance of an alley between two buildings. He leaned over, hands on his legs as he wheezed. Tears started to form in his eyes as the scent and taste of the dense air became too much to bear.

Then the cackling became clear. Even through the dark, he could see some kind of mass make its way closer to him. Janus stood himself up straight and wiped away a bead of sweat from his brow. He made sure to position himself directly in the light so that he would be able to see exactly what had been chasing him for so long.

“Fine!” He exclaimed as loud as the limited air in his lungs would allow. “I’m right here! Come and get me!” Janus pounded on his chest with two fists as his eyes fervently darted around him. The glowing outline of a huddled creature became apparent. Through the shadow he could make out a sort of elongated limb. A pair of large, round and yellow blips floated in the dark in front of him, staring back as if they were a pair eyes. Janus backed himself against the wall, trembling as he put two fists in front of his face in a defensive posture.

A long and dark appendage stretched along the ground. It entered the light, showing the stringy purple veins that enwrapped the limb. Three curved fingers rose towards him, spreading apart as the rest of the shadow became visible. The creature was hunched over as it heaved the rest of its body into the light. Janus tried to retreat, pressing further up against the wall as he watched the monster draw closer. It had a round dark head with two glowing amber eyes that stared at him. Despite the hunched posture, it still had a humanoid shape to it, one that became more apparent as it stood on its lanky and wiry hind legs.

It angled its head sideways and took a step forward, splitting its mouth wide open as it narrowed in on Janus’ face. The creature laughed at the terrified man, the air from its breath fogging up his yellow-tinted glasses. The creature’s arms shot forward, its finger-like appendages digging into his shoulders before flinging him onto the pavement with one great heave.

Janus landed with a crash, his glasses flying off his face during the impact. On the ground looking up, he saw more of the creatures enter the light, all staring at him while making a loud and synchronized hissing noise. He rose to his feet, ignoring the glasses that were sent flying across the ground.

He began with a stagger, looking behind him as he watched the blurry monsters pass through the illuminance of the streetlamps then vanishing in the shadows before reappearing again in the lights. Janus turned forward, focusing on staying on the sidewalk until he noticed that series of beacons that lit up the pavement was shortening. It wasn’t long until darkness consumed the area immediately in front of him. In the distance he could make out the faint outline of a wide cityscape; tall buildings glowed in the distance, just beyond a long expanse of flat, empty dirt. He picked up speed, leaning his entire body forward to increase the space between him and his pursuers. Janus passed the last building. He put his energy into one final sprint, hoping to make it into the field.

Until he hit a wall.

As he struggled up to his feet, he put one hand forward, coming in contact with the invisible wall again. It turned red as his palm brushed against it before fading away after removing his hand. Panting, Janus slowly turned around once more. The monsters had huddled together, three total, and crept forward as they let out their sinister hissing.