'Oh, hello, son. How was the dance? How did you spend your time there?'
'Oh, I don't know, it was alright, I guess. Though I spent most of my time chasing down a horrific monster in an underground facility beneath my school.'
"Hey, Jeremy! Why don't you take a look at this!"
Nicholas created a pair of armored boots, then sprinted forward, sliding across the ground with enough force to sweep one of "Jeremy's" legs out from under him.
The creature let out a distorted cry as it stumbled, one knee crashing into the floor—if that's what it could even be called.
Apparently done ignoring him, the monster turned its single, unblinking eye toward Nicholas.
Its gaze flared with light.
Nicholas quickly raised his arm to shield his face. "Whoa, now, don't start with the hypnotic move right away. At least give me a fighting chance."
The creature, realizing its prey wasn't affected by the hypnosis, lunged forward, aiming to impale him with its sharp, thumb-like claws.
Out of the corner of his eye, Nicholas saw them closing in fast. He briefly considered trying to catch them with his armored hands, or conjuring a shield to block them, but on second thought-
Swoosh!
The two clawed thumbs clashed against each other as Nicholas rolled backward, narrowly evading them.
He grimaced. His sword hadn't been able to pierce the creature's hide. Who was to say the creature couldn't do the same to his constructs?
Better safe than sorry.
…Odd. He'd been thinking that a lot lately.
Still, what could he actually do against this thing?
He couldn't cut it—its skin was far too durable for Darkium, which was a shock in and of itself. Its legs seemed unstable; durable, yes, but it didn't take much to make it stumble. Its fingers, though—those were incredibly powerful. A single flick had launched him into a wall hard enough to leave a crater.
Yet was that truly its most dangerous asset?
Then there was the eye.
From observing the boss earlier, right after Nicholas had dragged him out of the creature's range, he'd noticed how dazed the man looked, like he'd been lost in a trance. It had taken several shakes before he snapped out of it.
And even then, the man didn't seem to realize anything had happened.
Nicholas had no idea what the hypnosis did once it took hold. Did it induce hallucinations? Trigger chemicals in the brain?
What if he was already under its effect? What if he was dead, digested inside whatever passed for the creature's stomach?
Never mind that. Weaknesses.
His mind was already working overtime; he didn't need to feed it distractions.
Every monster he'd fought so far had some kind of weakness, something they instinctively tried to protect. Otherwise, they'd fall too easily.
Like the creature from earlier. He hadn't realized its top half was a weak point until later, but it made sense—the lower body was a gaping maw shielded by tentacles, its sides lined with humanoid hands, and the top completely exposed. Back in the cell, that top had been hidden beneath the ceiling, as if for protection.
Then there was the alleyway fight with Tod. That creature had hidden its neck the moment Nicholas's eyes lingered on it.
There was always something, some core weakness buried in their biology.
At least, that was his working theory. Though he wasn't sure how credible it was.
There'd been that one monster in the Mind's facility, the one that had almost begged for death. It hadn't cared for its own safety, crying out when its stomach was sliced open as though it wanted the pain to end.
And then, the Wendigo.
Nicholas shuddered.
That thing hadn't cared about its body at all. It had ignored every wound, pushing forward with great intellect just to kill him. The memory alone was enough to twist his gut.
…Could it still be alive?
He shook his head. He was drifting again.
Focus.
Jeremy's eye.
Earlier, the creature had shielded it with its fingers. That was it. That had to be the weak point.
"Shall I test my hypothesis, then?" he muttered with a dark chuckle, conjuring a blue flame in his hand.
The creature hesitated, seemingly wary of the fire. Three of its fingers curled protectively over its eye, leaving just enough space between them to keep Nicholas in view.
Nicholas hurled the ball of blue flame toward the eye, only for it to shield itself completely at the last moment.
Two seconds passed before it uncovered its gaze, and in that instant, something else flew through the air.
A wet squelch cut through the hall, followed by a distorted shriek that rattled the walls.
After throwing the fireball, Nicholas had waited just long enough to hurl a dagger straight for its eye, catching it completely off guard.
He didn't hit dead center, but the blade buried itself near the corner, close enough to make the creature recoil in pain.
Nicholas smirked. "Guess that worked. Wonder how many more times I can get away with that combo…" He'd used that trick, fire first, surprise follow-up, a lot more than he'd like to admit, it has yet to fail him.
He raised his hand like a gun and aimed. "Burn."
The dagger flared to life, igniting in a burst of blue fire.
Using the distraction, Nicholas retreated a few steps, widening the gap between them. He couldn't repeat the same trick twice otherwise they would expect it and be ready for it.
But even now, he doubted the attack had done enough damage to kill it—or that he could get close again while it was thrashing.
To kill…
The thought weighed heavily on him.
Even if the creature was no longer human, the fact that it used to be was enough to twist his conscience.
Then what about the other monsters he'd killed?
Were they once human, too?
No. He clenched his jaw. I can tell the difference.
His power 'Darkness' seemed to be tied to the monsters, somehow. He could feel them, and such a terrible feeling it was. Their presence echoed through him like a pulse in the dark.
But with these changed humans, that feeling was hollow. Not even faint. As if there was nothing there.
That was why he believed he hadn't killed a changed human. Not yet, anyway.
Changed humans…
Wouldn't a better name for them be… mutants?
…
It didn't take long for Nicholas to catch up to the other thugs. They were standing beneath a large vault door, a ladder beside them leading upward.
"What's the holdup?" Nicholas asked.
Three of them shrieked, startled by his sudden voice. Only the boss managed to keep his composure, though he did click his tongue in annoyance.
Nicholas resisted the urge to slap him, a moment of restraint he was quite proud of.
"Our device broke," the boss grumbled, holding out a strange tool.
It looked like a handheld drill, but bulkier, messier. The metal frame wrapped fully around the forearm, wires spilling out from its sides, and a dim yellow crystal pulsed faintly in the center. Switches were scattered all over the casing, none of which seemed labeled or functional.
Sloppy craftsmanship at its finest.
Nicholas carefully took the device from him, ignoring the nervous stares of the others. "The design is horrid… exposed wiring everywhere. Makes sense why it doesn't work. See here? These wires are really damaged."
"Yeah, thanks to you," the boss muttered bitterly.
Nicholas paused, realizing that might have been true. "Ah," was all he said.
"The drill would heat up and melt through anything," the boss explained.
"Heat, huh? How hot are we talking?"
"A… a lot," one of the thugs stammered. "I saw someone lose a finger once. Bone and all."
Nicholas nodded thoughtfully. "Yep, that's definitely 'a lot.'" He handed the drill back. Somehow, despite the grotesque things he'd seen tonight, his tone was disturbingly calm. Perhaps he'd just gotten desensitized to it.
"What about Jeremy? Where is he?" the boss asked.
The other thugs exchanged nervous glances. They knew Jeremy had gone back for the boss, but clearly hadn't been told what happened next.
"Hurt," Nicholas said simply. "But that won't slow him down much." He summoned a dark gauntlet over his hand. "I'd stand back if I were you."
The boss quickly gathered the group and explained the situation. The panic that followed was almost instant.
Nicholas focused, igniting a thin, sharp flame at his fingertips. He pressed it to the vault, trying to melt through, but the metal resisted stubbornly. He frowned and increased the heat. Still nothing. He sighed.
"Fine. Let's see how you like this."
He formed a sword of darkness, coating it in the same blue fire. The blade pierced the vault with ease.
"Burn."
The flames surged, coating the metal. Nicholas raised a shield with his free hand and, with one strong motion, cut a hole clean through the vault door, pushing it open with the shield's force.
He dropped down and shouted, "Now move it! Go, go, go!"
A screech echoed through the hall. Jeremy was close.
The thugs scrambled up the ladder, Nicholas following last to make sure everyone got out alive. The creature's massive hand reached out from below just as Nicholas pulled himself through the opening.
The five men found themselves in a pitch-black room.
"Secret door!" one of the thugs yelled, spotting a button on the wall. He pressed it, and the wall split open, revealing a hidden basement beyond.
"Just run!" the boss shouted, his voice breaking as Jeremy's monstrous form burst through the ground below them. The air was filled with rumbling and the sound of cracking metal.
The thugs sprinted ahead while Nicholas stayed behind to prevent the creature from ascending. But the creature didn't stop; it barreled upward, tearing through the ceiling. Dust and debris exploded around Nicholas as it vanished into the floor above.
"Dammit," he muttered and leapt up, vaulting through the gaping hole.
Screams filled the air. The people above had no idea what was happening until the creature's eye glared through the settling dust.
"Everyone out! Evacuate!" Nicholas shouted, waving them toward the exits. He created a blade, eyes locked on the monster.
Jeremy didn't even glance at Nicholas. It was fixated on the fleeing thugs. Its legs cracked the floor as it lunged forward, smashing through walls like paper. The entire building trembled.
Nicholas sprinted after it, shards of glass and concrete raining around him. The creature broke through one last wall, bursting into the night. Sirens wailed in the distance. The smell of burning dust and metal filled the air.
"Not done yet," Nicholas hissed, vaulting through the wreckage to chase it down.
…
Really, he should've expected this outcome.
The thugs were running straight toward his school—back where this awful night began.
They were right next to the gymnasium. One wrong move, and something terrible could happen.
The creature swiped at the boss, impaling him.
"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" The man's scream tore through the night as blood poured freely from his chest.
Just before the creature could consume him, Nicholas arrived—driving a devastating blow into its leg.
Jeremy stumbled and fell, giving Nicholas the chance to grab the boss and pull him away.
He pressed his dark mist into the wound, sealing it just enough to stop the bleeding.
That's when he noticed the strange, shoddily made device lying beside the boss, the crystal at its core glowing brighter than before.
He snatched it up quickly, eyes narrowing. He'd never seen anything like it. So, he pocketed it. A little compensation for saving the man's life.
The other three thugs didn't seem to notice.
"You three. Get him out of here," Nicholas ordered. They hesitated only for a second before obeying. And just like that, they were gone.
He didn't want to let them go. But he didn't want the man to die either.
Besides, the mist would stay with their boss
He could track them later.
A gurgling noise broke his thoughts.
Jeremy.
Nicholas turned, ready to defend, but the monster was faster. With a flick of its massive finger, Nicholas was launched through the gymnasium wall.
A shockwave followed him inside. Screams filled the air as he rolled to a stop, dazed, surrounded by frightened faces.
He rubbed his head, blinking at the dozens of students staring at him.
Seeing no one was hurt, he stood up and barked, "Evacuate now!"
A split second later, the monster crashed through the wall after him, shrieking like something torn from a nightmare.
The students panicked.
Tod froze. The sight of Jeremy's grotesque form dredged up memories of the monster in the alley. He fell to the ground, trembling, until his friends grabbed him and dragged him away.
Lillie and her friends were already evacuating.
Ethan, however, stayed rooted to the spot, eyes wide.
"It's him! It's him!" he shouted, practically vibrating with excitement.
He was promptly smacked by spiky hair. "Now's not the time! Go!"
While the students scattered, Nicholas focused on the monster before him.
What's my plan? He thought. The eye's its only weak point, but I can't hit it again by surprise. Do I keep fighting? Until a hero comes? And if they do... what happens to me?
Countless thoughts clawed at his mind, dragging him toward despair.
Then-
"H-help!"
A single voice cut through the noise, pulling him back.
Someone needed him.
He scanned the room and spotted Sera, her leg pinned under rubble. His face tightened.
...I have to save her?
Even if she was a nuisance, she didn't deserve to die like this.
At least, that's what he believed.
He hurled a fireball at Jeremy to buy time, then sprinted toward her.
When he reached them, he saw the blond Nicholas already there, desperately trying to lift the debris. Futilely, but trying nonetheless.
"Move," Unknown ordered.
The blond Nicholas froze, staring at the vigilante, but obeyed.
With a strained grunt, Unknown lifted the rubble just enough for the blond to pull her free.
"Can you walk?" he asked.
"I-I don't think so…" Sera stammered, glancing at her swollen leg.
Nicholas winced beneath his mask. It looked broken.
Without hesitation, he scooped her up.
"Eh?"
"Eh?"
She blinked, wide-eyed, as he carried her bridal-style.
"You. Get on," Unknown ordered the other Nicholas.
"I-I can walk—"
"Just do it." His tone left no room for argument.
Reluctantly, the other Nicholas climbed onto his back.
With a deep breath, Unknown jumped high and forward, forming a dark tentacle to latch onto the ceiling and swing toward the exit.
Both blondes clung to him for dear life. Jeremy lunged, fingers inches away from Nicholas's leg.
Nicholas dismissed the tentacle mid-air and conjured another fireball, hurling it straight at Jeremy's face. The explosion bought him a few precious seconds.
He landed hard, his legs aching, but he endured. "Carry her," Unknown said, setting Sera down.
The blond didn't hesitate this time. He picked her up and started running.
"Phew…" Nicholas exhaled, shaking his head.
Now, with no more distractions, he could focus.
Fury.
Destruction.
An Eye.
As he turned to face Jeremy, those were the only things that filled his mind.
The monster's eye loomed huge and consuming.
He tried to shield his gaze, but his body refused to obey.
And then, he was caught.
At least now, he thought grimly, he'd learn what that eye could really do.
If he survived, that is.