The subway car rocked gently as it rumbled beneath the ruined city. Faint overhead lights flickered, giving the compartment an uneasy glow. Arlo sat against the window, the seat's vinyl cold and cracked beneath him. Link lay curled at his feet, ears twitching with every mechanical creak. Across from him, Kendo gently adjusted the blanket over Emma, who still slept soundly in her father's arms.
Something gnawed at Arlo.
He frowned, eyes narrowing slightly as he stared out into the blur of tunnel lights. His gut wasn't at ease. The kind of wrong that made your skin itch before anything even happened. It was too quiet. Too smooth. And if his long hours playing Resident Evil 3 Remake years ago taught him anything—it was that Nemesis didn't care for smooth rides or peaceful moments.
Arlo leaned forward. "Kendo," he said in a low voice.
The older man looked up, bleary-eyed. "Yeah?"
"You got any change on you? Like a coin?" Kendo blinked. "Uh… yeah, I think…" He fished into his jacket pocket and pulled out a battered quarter. "You playing heads or tails with death now?"
Arlo smirked, taking the coin. "Something like that." He held the coin in his palm, closing his eyes. Are their any danger nearby to us right now? he asked silently in his mind. He repeated the question seven times—ritualistic, focused. Then he flipped the coin.Heads.
Arlo's eyes tightened. He tried again. Heads. Again. Heads. Four out of five tosses: heads. That was enough.
"Link," Arlo muttered, eyes already scanning the walls of the subway car. The dog perked up instantly. "Stay close and be alert to any unusual things."
Before Kendo could ask what was happening, Arlo's danger intuition flared. A sudden spike—like an alarm being tripped inside his skull. He stood up sharply. "Everyone get down!"
BOOOM!
An explosion rocked the front of the subway car, fire bursting from the lead compartment. The shockwave sent the train skidding violently. Sparks burst from overhead cables. Link barked, and Arlo threw himself forward, shoving Kendo and Emma hard to the side as metal tore from the walls like tissue paper. And through the smoke and fire—It appeared.
The hulking, inhuman mass. Black coat scorched and fused to its frame. Muscles corded like steel cables. A grotesque snarl cut across its deformed jaw, one eye glowing red with rage.
"Nemesis…" Arlo whispered, watching the monster step into the chaos like a nightmare dragged from Hell."Stars…" the creature growled, voice guttural, broken.
Arlo drew his shotgun and narrowed his eyes. "Of course. Why now?" He didn't wait for the train to stop. Whatever plan Nemesis had—it would not involve mercy, especially the remaining survivors.
...
Arlo's instincts screamed louder than any alarm system. He didn't wait. The moment Nemesis stepped through the shredded bulkhead, Arlo activated his [Observe]. His HUD flashed in his vision .
---
Nemesis-T Type
Race: Undead (T-Virus)
Level: 23
HP: 200/200
MP: 0/0
Stats:
Strength: 25
Dexterity: 20
Intelligence: 9
Charisma: -10
Luck: 0
Endurance: 30
Wisdom: 5
Skills: T-Virus Mutation LV: 8/10, Mutated Abomination Physiology LV: 6/10, Infection LV: 8/10, Tendril Generation LV: 6/10, Regeneration LV: 7/10, Intimidation LV 6/10
Status: Hunt Any S.T.A.R. member
Remark: Nemesis-T Type a series of experimental Bio Organic Weapons created by Umbrella Europe's No. 6 Laboratory, and was the culmination of the Nemesis Project, involving the successful implantation of NE - α parasites within T-103 hosts, presenting Umbrella with a highly intelligent and powerful creature.
Weakness: Uncontrolled Mutation
Threat Level: High - Extreme
---
Seeing the status of nemesis made Arlo's stomach twist. "Shit, shit, SHIT!" he cursed under his breath. "That thing's built like a raid boss on steroids."
Arlo snapped up his shotgun—the Benelli M3S—and fired. The blast caught Nemesis square in the face. Smoke. Flesh splattered. But the creature barely flinched. Its head snapped to the side… then slowly righted. The red glow in its eye intensified like a targeting system locking on.
Arlo took a step back, trying to piece together his next move. Survivors were screaming. One unlucky man didn't make it—he'd been hit by flying shrapnel from the initial explosion. Another woman lay limp, unmoving. Arlo's fists clenched. He'd forgotten this part. The chaos. The cost of hesitation.
"Of course, because just once I'd like a boss fight that doesn't ignore the concept of damage!" Arlo muttered and stepped back.
Nemesis took a thunderous step forward. Every heavy impact made the subway floor jolt. Survivors screamed behind Arlo. Sparks flickered from the ceiling. Arlo glanced at Kendo—Emma still clutched tight in his arms, terrified—and saw the other survivors frozen in place.
"That thing's blocking the only way forward," Arlo muttered. His mind raced. "I have to buy time or everyone dies here."
He turned to Kendo. "When I say move—run to the next car. No hesitation. You hesitate, you die. Got it?"
Kendo stared at the monster, his knuckles white around Emma. "There's a giant fucking monster in front of us! We're not moving through that!"
Arlo didn't blink. "And I'll be the one keeping it busy. You just get your daughter out of here."
"Link!" Arlo snapped, and the rockruff immediately leapt to his side, growling low. "Double Team!"
Link split into Five perfect clones. The clones darted through the shadows of the car, confusing Nemesis. The beast roared in annoyance, lashing out with its grotesque tentacle. One clone burst into particles. That was Arlo's opening.
Arlo dashed forward, drawing his Threaded Cane mid-stride. Nemesis swung again—Arlo parried the limb with the cane's shaft, sparks flying. The impact rattled his arms, but he kept moving, sliding under Nemesis' legs like a blur. Threaded cane in hand, he dashed forward. "Let's see how you handle this, freak." He ducked low as the second tendril swiped at his head, rolled beneath it, and then switched the cane into its whip form. He swung it upward, the serrated tip tearing across Nemesis' back. Sparks flew, and a spurt of black blood followed. The beast snarled and twisted.
"Link, Rock Throw!" Arlo barked
Link obeyed. Stones around his neck glowed, then launched a barrage of glowing rock projectiles. Nemesis shrieked in pain as the barrage struck his exposed side.
Arlo gritted his teeth and ran a tight circle around the monster, whip lashing again—this time looping around Nemesis' limbs. Not enough to trap him, but enough to stagger.
Nemesis surged, breaking the coils easily—but Arlo was already moving. Then Arlo's danger intuition pick up the incoming attack of the monster's left punch and Arlo's to close to Nemesis, he have no choice but to activate his backup plan, the Seraphim Bracelet in his left arm.
A circular shield appeared that block Nemesis punch. Arlo gritted with all of his might to not be blown away after all it was his only chance to get close to Nemesis.
[Seraphim Shield Integrity: 85%]
The energy shield held enough that allowed Arlo to move closer to Nemesis. His fingers curled around a rectangular charm in his inventory. It glowed with faint glyphs.
"Crimson," Arlo whispered in Hermes language, slamming the charm into Nemesis face.
A dark light burst outward. Nemesis jerked, groaned… then his body locked up. The beast collapsed with a crash that made the floor vibrate. Sleeping. Temporarily.
Kendo stared. "What the hell did you just do?"
"No time! MOVE!" Arlo barked.The order snapped everyone out of their stupor. Kendo gathered Emma and pushed through to the next car, leading the other survivors. Arlo followed behind, scanning Nemesis—already twitching. The effect would wear off any second.
"Don't mention it," Arlo muttered to Kendo's thanks, then shoved him forward. "He's waking up. Go!"
Nemesis let out a low growl in his sleep. The red glow in his eye flickered once.
Arlo didn't wait around for round two. He turned, cane at the ready, and ran after the others.
...
Arlo looking over at Nemesis and saw the worst-case scenario coming to life—Nemesis, now fully awake, was moving again. Its eyes glowed dimly beneath the torn synthetic tissue of its face, locking straight onto him with unshakable intent. The effects of the Slumber Charm had worn off faster than expected, and Arlo cursed in his head. "Tch… That charm was supposed to buy me few minutes," Arlo muttered. "Barely gave me sixty seconds. Should've known it'd scale like crap against something this high-level."
It wasn't that the charm itself was weak. In theory, the charm's sleep effect was strong—if the target had average willpower and no viral enhancements. But Nemesis wasn't average. It was the embodiment of "min-maxed" biology, stacked with enhanced stamina, healing, and sheer brute force. Against something like that, debuffs had a half-life effect.
Arlo took a breath and scanned the cramped train corridor—seats smashed, luggage strewn about, metal groaning. He couldn't kite this thing forever in such tight quarters. He needed space, but space wasn't an option. Time to adapt.
"Link! Rock Throw! Aim at center! " Arlo barked.
Link didn't hesitate. The stones around his neck lit up as he summoned a glowing volley. Arlo leveled his shotgun at Nemesis and fired twice—Boom! Boom!—the recoil jarring through his shoulder.
Both attacks landed. The shotgun blasts pelted Nemesis in the chest, shredding fabric and meat. Link's rocks struck true, cracking ribs and staggering the beast. But the damage was superficial. The regeneration kicked in again, flesh crawling back into place like fast-forwarded claymation.
Nemesis responded with a roar. Its tentacles lashed out in twin arcs toward both attackers. Arlo ducked and rolled to the side, barely missing the tip of a spiked tendril. Link hopped back midair, spinning out of the way with instinctual finesse.Then, Nemesis did something worse—it charged.
"Shit—he's ignoring Link," Arlo muttered. "He's coming for me."
Arlo turned to run but immediately realized the car wasn't disconnected yet. The next cabin was still connected, and with the train still shaking and moving, there was no way he would allowed Nemesis to pass into the next cabin until Kendo and the other survivor are safe.
He clenched his jaw. "Fine. No choice."
Arlo decide to take the fight head on to buy enough time then Arlo attacked Nemesis with his Threaded Cane in sword form that would allow him slash and stab Nemesis but Nemesis retaliated with his own arm and tentacle even with Link's help it was barely enough to dodge and parry of Nemesis attack luckily his Seraphim bracelet took must of the damage but the integrity of the shield slowly decrease as the fight goes on.
[Seraphim Shield Integrity: 65%]
[Seraphim Shield Integrity: 54%]
[Seraphim Shield Integrity: 44%]
...
Arlo decide to take the risk after all he cannot fight this giant monster in this tight area. He kicked off the floor and launched himself into the air, grabbing onto an overhead handrail with his left arm. Channeling the clown's bodily control, he twisted his momentum, swinging himself over Nemesis like a gymnast on a horizontal bar. He bounced between the overhead supports and the side panels, wall-jumping with tight precision. The narrow corridor became his battlefield. With every flip and leap, he struck—slashes from his threaded cane landing fast and hard, whipping across Nemesis' face, back, arms. It was like fighting a boss inside a hallway in Dark Souls—claustrophobic, frantic, and high-stakes.
Nemesis swatted at him, tentacles whipping past, carving into the metal like butter. Arlo ducked and weaved, trying to keep the monster occupied long enough for the train systems to finish unlocking.But the clock was ticking.
Arlo landed hard at the back of the car, panting. "Link," he said between breaths, "buy me ten more seconds." The Rockruff barked in response, stepping forward, glowing with resolve.
...
Every second felt like it was being paid for with blood and effort. The train rocked violently as it sped through broken stretches of track, a metallic groan underscoring the chaos inside. Nemesis, unshaken by their resistance, roared like a dying engine coming back to life, turning toward Arlo with an unnatural glint of rage in his hollow eyes. Before Arlo could retreat or reposition, Nemesis lunged forward with terrifying speed and seized him by the neck. The force lifted Arlo clean off his feet, slamming him into the wall of the car with enough power to crack metal. His lungs locked up instantly.
Arlo's Vision is blurring, he instinctively tried to stab Nemesis with the pointed end of his threaded cane—but the creature barely flinched. Its dense hide absorbed the blow like rubber, and its grip only tightened.
Through a rapidly fading field of vision, Arlo's HUD blinked in red. His health bar dropped in chunks
[HP: 122/145]
[HP: 99/145]
[HP: 83/145]
...
Every second without air was draining him like a leaking pipe. Gritting his teeth and clawing at the hand choking him, Arlo choked out one word with the last shreds of his voice: "Link—Play Rough!"
Link, who had been knocked back just moments earlier, lifted his head at the command. The sight of his trainer in mortal danger sent a surge of fury through the loyal canine. His fur bristled. With a guttural growl, Link charged forward as his body glowed with a pinkish-violet aura—"Play Rough" activated at full intensity. But Nemesis wasn't done. He roared in frustration and retaliated with a sweeping backhand that sent Link flying like a ragdoll across the length of the train car. He slammed into the wall with a yelp and collapsed, stunned. Nemesis raised one massive tentacle, preparing to finish Link off.
Arlo, despite his pain, shouted with everything he had left: "Link! Use Protect!"
Link's body shimmered. A greenish dome of energy surged out from his body just as the tentacle struck. The tentacle collided with the barrier, snapping back with a loud clang.
Arlo, still wheezing, gritted his teeth and lunged at Nemesis from behind. He slashed at the tentacle with his threaded cane in whip form, scoring deep gashes. The monster recoiled but then turned on Arlo in a fury.
Even with Arlo's danger intuition screaming in his skull, he wasn't fast enough but Arlo was able to lunch his seraphim bracelet effect in a nick of time. Nemesis landed a brutal punch square into Arlo's energy shield but the force was too much for the energy shield after the relentless attack of Nemesis before then it shattered, sending him hurtling like a broken doll through the connecting door to the next train car. Arlo slammed into the floor and tumbled uncontrollably, finally rolling to a stop near a stunned Jill Valentine.
"Arlo!" Jill yelled, rushing forward. His vision swam. Her voice sounded like it came from underwater.
Link, limping and bloodied, dashed into the car after Arlo. The pup's eyes locked onto his trainer, tail down but burning with concern. Arlo saw in his HUD that his HP is very low
[HP: 24/145]
Arlo weakly extended a hand toward Link.Then everything flashed white. A deafening explosion rocked the entire train. Metal twisted, windows shattered, and fire bloomed from behind Nemesis like an erupting volcano. The shockwave hit Arlo, and everything went black.