Jaxon pushed himself upright, the M16 appearing seamlessly in his hands. Moving toward the jagged hole punched through the side of the building, he scanned his surroundings.
One Variant had been thrown onto the street below. Its skin was charred black, limbs twisted and crushed, but it twitched intermittently. Jaxon didn't hesitate, he raised his gun and fired. The headshot was clean, and the notification confirmed the kill.
He scanned the area again and noticed a gaping hole in a nearby building. 'It must have been thrown there by the blast,' he thought, calculating its trajectory.
He readied himself to finish off the other Variant when a faint thumping echoed from the street below.
Jaxon's gaze sharpened, something was moving down there. He focused on the street below, watching shadows shift unnaturally. Thump… thump… thump… The sound grew louder, echoing off the nearby buildings, reverberating in his chest.
