Rex growled lowly, slowly pulling its lips back.
Dmitri returned his attention to the river.
The dog was not staring directly at the bodies. His head was angled farther upstream, toward the eastern section of the embankment where the river disappeared behind several utility compounds.
"What is it?" Dmitri muttered.
Rex did not move.
The second Attack Dog had also become alert. Its ears stood upright while its nose repeatedly sniffed the air that entered through the broken window.
Dmitri raised one fist. The Scouts followed and held their positions.
"One-Two, stay here. Keep watching that bank."
"Understood."
"Squad, on me."
Dmitri approached Rex and crouched beside him. He placed one hand near the dog’s neck, but did not force the dog’s head away.
Rex’s growl stopped, but his body remained tense.
Don’t know what the dog found, Dmitri worried. Let’s hope it’s not something big.
He stood and glanced toward Echo One-Two.
"Alert us if anything moves near our position."
"Roger that."
Dmitri turned toward the stairwell.
Echo One-One moved first. Dmitri and Rex followed behind him, while Echo One-Three and the second Attack Dog covered the rear.
They descended the same route they had taken earlier.
The building was as silent as it was when they entered.
Area is too quiet, Dmitri noticed.
Rotten matter could be seen on the corners and the sides. Dried blood painted a few of the walls and the floors.
It pointed to presence of infected, yet for some reason, no infected could be found.
Were they drawn to the river?
That was a possibility he did not want to think about. If that was the case, what or who killed the infected that were now on the river?
Some monster fish?
Upon reaching the ground floor, Echo One-One stopped beside the entrance and checked outside.
"Clear."
The team exited.
They crossed the road and moved closer to the river.
The distance had made the bodies appear almost harmless. Up close, that impression quickly disappeared.
The smell assaulted their nose.
Rotting flesh mixed with mud, chemicals, and something metallic. Dmitri raised his mask higher and slowed his pace.
"Do not touch the water."
The Scouts acknowledged. They had no plans to do so anyway.
Their suppressed MP7s remained pointed toward the bodies.
Most of them were caught against the concrete embankment. Some were partly submerged, their clothes and limbs moving whenever the current pushed against them.
Dmitri stopped several meters away.
One body had grown thin beyond what a normal human could survive. Its ribs had torn through the skin, while blackened growths covered one arm.
Another possessed swollen muscles around its shoulders and neck.
"Squad leader," Echo One-One spoke. "Looks infected."
"Confirmed," Dmitri nodded.
At this distance, he could now inspect the bodies from a clearer angle. Several small wounds marked the nearest infected’s chest. The holes looked almost evenly spaced.
"What do you think happened to them?" Echo One-Three asked.
"Don’t know," Dmitri replied. "We’re here to find that out."
He shifted toward another body.
Half of its shoulder was missing. The wound was too clean for claws, teeth, or natural decay.
The third corpse had been cut below the waist.
"This does not look good," Dmitri frowned.
Can’t be a stalker, he scanned. Those things have sharp claws. Would have torn this thing countless times.
He crouched, then let out a short breath.
"Squad leader," Echo One-One interrupted. "This is not an ordinary cut. Looks man-made to me."
A clean cut meant something sharp had passed through the infected with considerable force. A weapon was possible. Industrial machinery was another.
"That’s not out of the equation," Dmitri switched to his communicator. "One-Two, any movement on your side?"
"Looks clear from here. You want me to watch out for something?"
"Place could be crawling with survivors," Dmitri paused. "Or something else. Get down here, One-Two. We’ll cover your approach."
"Understood. On my way."
The communication ended.
Dmitri remained crouched near the embankment.
"One-One, watch the road. One-Three, cover the building."
The two Scouts moved without another word.
Dmitri inspected the bodies again while waiting.
The cuts remained the strangest among the wounds. A survivor could have used a large blade, but striking an infected cleanly through the waist required strength and a quality weapon to boot.
However, the nearby industrial corridor had enough equipment capable of tearing a human body apart. Loading machines. Hydraulic cutters. Heavy gates.
But it did not make sense to throw them into the river afterward. It also did not explain why so many corpses had gathered along this exact section of the embankment.
Another problem were these holes.
Size is small, perfect for a small caliber. But if you have a cutting weapon, why even use bullets at all?
Dmitri was confused.
These infected died under different methods. Whoever did this was either a sadistic bunch, or a group wielding various weapons.
Rex stepped closer to the concrete edge but Dmitri grabbed the dog by the collar.
"Don’t move closer. Stay here."
Rex let out a low whine but obeyed, although his attention remained upstream.
Several minutes later, Echo One-Two emerged from the building. He crossed the road in a low posture. His MP7 remained secured against his chest.
Echo One-One watched the road until he reached them.
"Anything changed?" Dmitri asked.
"No movement from the station," Echo One-Two replied. His eyes shifted toward the bodies. "Damn. These were harder to identify from upstairs."
"They’re infected," Dmitri said. "Different... executions."
Echo One-Two approached carefully but remained several meters from the water.
"I can see that. What do we do now?"
"Follow the dogs."
Dmitri stood and released Rex’s collar.
The dog did not move closer to the river this time. It turned its head upstream once more.
Echo One-Two’s eyes widened in surprise.
"Rex found something?"
"Possibly."
Dmitri followed the dog’s gaze.
The concrete embankment continued east before disappearing behind a fenced utility compound. Several small buildings stood beyond it, mixed with pipes and elevated metal structures.
From the office building, that section had been partly hidden. The bodies could have come from somewhere beyond the curve.
"Regroup," Dmitri ordered.
Echo One followed the embankment eastward, moving against the river’s current.
The bodies remained behind them, but the discoloration grew stronger the farther they advanced.
Several minutes later, the main river still flowed downstream—to the west beneath them—while a narrower concrete channel branched north behind the utility fence.
Rex stopped in front of it.
The Scouts exchanged looks.
"Squad leader," Echo One-One said. "Stream up ahead."
"Stay frosty," Dmitri warned as his gaze landed on the alerted Attack Dogs. "Dogs are feeling chilly around here. Watch your sectors."
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