Eve-1 Sixteenth Feat

Just then, he heard a low sound at his feet. He looked down to find that he was standing
on a manhole. He felt a faint vibration underneath, growing in intensity.
At first, he thought it was water flowing through the pipes. But the sound was too
unnatural for that. It was more like something moving in the sewers. A rat? No, bigger.
It was getting closer. The manhole cover began to clatter as the sound gained on him.
Anzai jumped back, startled. He listened closely. Something was rolling in the sewers. If not rolling, then creeping.
He could hear no footsteps, nor was the sound intermittent. Whether it was a living thing or a
machine was impossible to tell. Regardless, it was moving along with great speed. The
manhole cover was vibrating visibly. Anzai lifted his face. He was directly in its path. The
sound was coming right towards him. He looked back down to the manhole cover, then
swallowed and turned around to the service entrance door. The direction of the sound, the
manhole, the service entrance...all in a straight line.
What is this?
It's coming to the hospital?
He turned back towards the sound. He could see only darkness where the pale light
from the ward window did not reach. Not even the silhouettes of telephone poles.
A sound like the voice of the earth itself came from the manhole. A great rush of wind
blew out from around the rim. There was no denying now that something was coming. It was
big, possibly bigger than Anzai himself. He could hear its breathing. He figured, just from the
sound, that it knew exactly where it was going.
Anzai was shaking. He peered closely into the darkness in front of him and saw
vibrations rolling wavelike along the ground. Fifty feet away. The darkness erupted with
sound. Twenty-five feet. The asphalt quaked. Twenty feet. He stepped back. Followed the
sound with his eyes. It was coming for him. Fifteen feet. He wanted to scream, but his voice
refused to emerge. Ten feet. The manhole cover danced around madly. He heard a slimy
sound. It was coming. Any moment now.
He held his head to fend off the noise.
A deafening roar ran under his feet.
His entire body was enveloped in sound. He shut his eyes.
The ground buckled beneath his trembling knees. He did not open his eyes until the
sound was gone, but the feeling of its movement remained. His internal organs were shaken
and refused to settle
Part Three: Evolution. Chapter 11. Pages 193+194.