Simon recognized his fallen friend instantly, and flung his arms around him. “Jesus, man, I am so beyond glad to see you!”, he cried. Howard shoved Simon away roughly. “You don’t want to get too close.”, he breathed, then shuddered and fell to one knee. “I… I’m unstable.”, he gasped at length. Sherry stepped forward, head tilted slightly as she examined him. “How so?” 

Howard got to his feet slowly, then flung the heavy cloak aside, revealing what had been done to him in order to save his life. His entire body was a sickly patchwork. Mottled human flesh stood in some places, clearly dead at one point and dragged kicking and screaming back into livable conditions. It was discolored and blotchy, with blood and pus oozing from a few choice spots. Metal...

Please subscribe to keep reading.