Jackob crouched in the dark beneath the giant shirt, listening to her voice echo across the room. His pulse slammed against his ribs. Sweat dripped down his spine. He knew this hiding spot wouldn't hold. Sooner or later, she'd check here. If he stayed, it was only a matter of time until he'd be caught—and likely killed. He peeked through a small fold in the fabric, eyes scanning. And then he saw it: the vent.
He couldn't believe he was still alive.
He also couldn't believe he just told a war goddess he had lived inside her bra.
And that she… laughed.
Was she playing with him?
Testing him?
Trying to make him comfortable before squashing him like a bug?
He didn't know.
But one thing was certain: he had to hide better.
He clenched his jaw and whispered to himself.
"Time to cheat."
Jackob concentrated, and in a blink, his thick yellow bug limbs twisted inward. The exoskeleton folded. His extra arms vanished.
With a faint purple shimmer, he returned to his true self: human. Small. Lithe. Faster.
Much, much faster.
He took a deep breath—and immediately noticed something was off.
His stomach.
It didn't feel full anymore.
He'd gorged himself minutes ago. Nearly exploded from how much he ate. But now…
He felt light.
No, more than light.
Energized.
He clenched his fist. The air around it almost shimmered. His muscles didn't feel tired—they felt loaded.
As if he could leap over furniture.
No.
As if he could throw one of her chairs across the room.
"What the hell…?" he whispered.
The transformation hadn't just changed his body. It had converted the food into something else. Some kind of pure, physical energy. Like his soul burned it directly for power.
He didn't have time to test it.
Because outside, the goddess was still hunting.
"Hmm… I'm getting bored, little one," Liz called. "You better not disappoint me."
Her tone was playful.
Which made it worse.
Jackob had been thinking hard from the moment she left. He knew — as clever as his hiding spot was — it wouldn't last. He peeked through a small fold in the fabric, and there it was: the vent. His only chance. If she checked this drawer, he was done. So Jackob bolted.
He shot out from under the shirt and sprinted along the inner edge of the drawer. Every muscle in his body obeyed like clockwork. His feet barely touched the fabric as he vaulted over buttons the size of stones.
He was fast.
Faster than he'd ever been before.
Every nerve, every joint, every cell surged like a machine.
But his thoughts were still human.
And they screamed: You're not hiding from a bug. You're hiding from a GOD.
He reached the edge of the drawer and peeked out.
Liz was at the far end of the room. Kneeling.
Her robe hung off one shoulder as she searched beneath the bed. Her wet red hair clung to her back. One of her massive hands moved a pillow aside like it weighed nothing.
That was his window.
He leapt down.
The fall would've broken his ankles a week ago. Now he just landed in a roll, bounced to his feet, and kept running.
The air tasted electric. His legs burned in the best way. He had maybe thirty seconds.
Then he saw it.
A vent. Built into the wall near the ground.
It was big enough to fit him. Maybe even big enough to walk through.
Jackob sprinted.
Ten seconds.
He reached it.
Pulled on the edge.
Loose.
Thank you, ancient giant engineering, he thought. Probably never meant for prisoners—but maybe someone, somewhere, had a soft spot. A way for insects to crawl away from demons. Especially the beautiful, demonic one currently hunting him.
He slipped inside just as a giant shadow passed behind him.
"Hmm…" Liz murmured. "Where are you, little bra-thief?"
Jackob didn't answer.
He was already crawling through the dark.
And for the first time in his life…
He felt unstoppable.
Chapter 30: Caged and Seen
Jackob shapeshifted into the Red Bug form before entering the vent. The change was swift — chitin sliding into place, limbs bulking, senses sharpening. He needed the speed and power. If he was going to crawl through a giant's ship and survive, he needed every advantage.
"Daaaamn, I'm so f*cked," he muttered to himself. "This is either the dumbest or most badass thing I've done... probably both."
The vent was massive — easily big enough for him to stand if he weren't crawling like a thief. It pulsed faintly with light, warm from the inner systems of the ship. The whole structure was too refined, too smooth. Giant engineering.
Every few seconds, he paused to listen. Nothing but the steady hum of distant machinery. No footsteps. No alarms.
He smirked, whispering, "To hell with it... I've got nothing to lose. I'm already dead anyway."
Then a click echoed beneath him.
"Wait, wha—"
The floor vanished.
He plunged down a smooth, metallic shaft. No time to brace. No time to scream. He landed with a heavy thud on a glowing platform, pain lancing through his shoulders and ribs.
Before he could stand, a wall of glowing vertical bars surged to life in front of him. The ceiling sealed overhead.
He was trapped.
A perfectly engineered containment cell — sleek, cold, and designed with terrifying precision.
"You've got to be kidding me... it was a trap?" Jackob groaned. He scanned the room, and realization sank in. "This wasn't a broken vent. This was bait."
The heavy thump of footsteps grew louder.
Then she appeared.
Liz.
She didn't storm in. She didn't yell.
She simply approached, hands behind her back, gaze fixed on him like a cat watching a cornered mouse.
Her eyes narrowed.
"You weren't red before," she said, voice neutral.
Jackob pushed himself up onto all fours, trying to regain his composure. "Yeah, about that... I'm a hybrid."
Her brow lifted.
"Hybrid?"
"Rare mutation. Gifted. Genetic fluke. Y'know — one in a billion."
She stepped closer to the bars. Her face was unreadable, but her eyes sparkled with a hint of amusement.
"Strange. You don't move like a Red. You don't think like one either."
"I'm special," Jackob said flatly. "Congratulations, you caught a prize."
Liz tilted her head, watching him.
"I could open these bars and study you."
"I bite."
She smirked.
Then, without warning, she turned and began to walk away.
"You're not a Red," she called back.
Jackob froze.
She paused at the door, glancing over her shoulder.
"But you're not just a hybrid either."
The door slid shut behind her, sealing with a hiss.
Jackob exhaled slowly and leaned against the cell wall.
"Yeah," he whispered. "I'm human."
He didn't smile.
Not this time.
He just waited.
Knowing the real questions were still coming.