"Valentine, wait for me, please!" Jack shouted, chasing her down a pitch-black tunnel.
"I can't wait for you. Walk faster or you'll be left behind," she called out, picking up the pace.
Damn it! Why is she moving so fast?
"With every step, I feel like I'm running out of air," he panted, trying to catch his breath. His body felt impossibly heavy.
"Valentine, stop for a second, please!" he yelled, but his legs collapsed under him. He hit the ground, completely paralyzed.
Damn it! I can't move!
"You finally broke down, Jack!" she stated, crouching beside him. She dropped her crutch, grabbed Jack by the throat with her right hand, and balanced effortlessly on one foot.
Her eyes were pitch black.
"You're not Valentine. Who are you?" Jack choked out, trying to pry her hand off his neck, but her grip was unbreakable.
What insane strength... I can't break free! Something tells me this isn't the entity inside her either.
"What does it matter who I am?" she raised her voice. In a flash, she drove her left hand straight into his chest, impaling his heart. She waited as blood trickled from Jack's mouth, then tasted a drop of it.
I can't regenerate...
Jack's vision began to fade.
"I wish I could do this to you in real life," she whispered in his ear as he slipped into death.
….
"DAMN IT! WHAT WAS THAT?!" Jack screamed, snapping his eyes open and clutching his chest, overwhelmed with relief.
"Jack, keep it down, please... I want to sleep a little longer," Valentine murmured, eyes closed, drifting right back off to sleep.
"Sorry, Valentine," he whispered, trying to process the nightmare.
Still uneasy, he went to the kitchen. In his human form, he grabbed a knife and made a small cut on his left wrist. It healed instantly.
Jack let out a quiet sigh of relief, but sleep was completely off the table now.
A damn nightmare. I'll take a shower and head out for a bit. I need to test out my Tai Chi. But I can't use Chrono-Tempo right now, or it'll kill me next time.
"Before the shower... what is RHX-32?" he whispered, his face filled with questions.
"If Axcel said it was in my possession, it has to be around here somewhere!" he murmured, searching the entire place.
Jack inhaled and exhaled deeply.
"Ahhh... nothing. I can't find a single thing like that. All I found was this old book describing each monster, titled File SAB-XM20, with their names."
Minion, Shocker, Runner, Gigan, and Arachne. Pages 6 and 7 torn out. Bunker.
"Six must be the Skull monster I fought." "Seven is a mystery."
He muttered, resting his chin on his hand as he sat at a desk lit by a candle, paper and pen before him.
Doesn't matter. Today is our birthday.
He took the pen and began to write:
"Valentine, you know I'm no good at writing, and I don't want you worrying about me. I'm doing great, but unfortunately, I can't sleep anymore.
I'm sorry, but I have to step out for a bit to prepare your surprise. I promise I'll come back, no matter who gets in my way.
Happy birthday, Valentine. We've survived a whole year in this hellhole. Also, I wanted to tell you that I found a lead on Claire, but I'm not entirely sure yet and need to look into it. I couldn't tell you earlier because of everything that happened this past month.
Please take care of Alicia. See you later."
…..
"Off to the biggest bakery in the world," Jack murmured, stepping out of the dilapidated building they called home.
The problem was that the building was located in "Zone A" on Jack's map—the most dangerous sector in the city, a hive crawling with monsters.
Jack knew going underground was risky, even for him, but it was a problem he wanted to avoid at all costs.
Alright, here goes.
Jack dropped down into a sewer manhole. Reaching the bottom of the ladder, he charged his legs with electricity, and five seconds later, he took off sprinting at top speed.
Five seconds?... Man, I'm slow.
Jack sprinted down the tunnels, projecting electricity outward from his body.
Right... empty sector. Left... several Minions and a Runner.
"Sorry, don't have time for you guys. Need to get there now."
With a cold stare, Jack charged straight toward them. As he closed in on the first Minion, he leaped, using vibration to launch himself forward just as the creature raised its claws.
"Catch yet later, trash!" he yelled, accelerating toward the next block. The Runner tried to leap at him, but missed completely.
Right... clear. Left... two Runners.
Both Runners pounced at him, jaws gaping. Jack dodged them with two quick steps, sending both beasts crashing hard into the wall behind him.
"Idiots," he muttered.
Left... a Gigan.
The Gigan slammed its massive hand and foot into the tunnel, trying to cave it in.
"Hey, big guy, take a chill pill!" Jack shouted, keeping his speed up as the tunnel collapsed behind him.
Right... open route.
"That bastard destroyed the whole path!" Jack growled, annoyed.
Left... clear. Right... a Chronius blocking the way.
"I knew you'd be here."
"Thanko."
…
Tempo.
…
"Panraka zu zuna."
…
Air Palm.
…
Jack came to a sudden halt, coughing up blood, his face twisted in rage.
The tunnel began to shake violently, the ground cracking open beneath his feet. His Tempo shattered, but Jack wasted no time—he was already right in front of the Chronius.
"It's a shame, but I don't have time to play with you... right now!" he barked, grabbing the Chronius by the skull and slamming it face-first into the concrete wall.
I know that won't be enough to put you down, but it buys me time.
Jack kept running toward his destination.
Left... more Minions.
"Panraka zu zuna Direct Than!"
…
Double Directed Air Palm.
…
Jack grabbed a Minion by the face and thrust it forward, using it as a living shield to absorb the blast.
"Thanks for the shield, garbage!" he yelled, effortlessly dodging the remaining attacks.
Left... another Gigan.
It slammed it´s arm down, caving in the tunnel again.
Do these bastards ever get tired?!
Right... total silence. Right... close to the target building. Time to find you, Claire.
Jack climbed up the ladder, keeping his electric aura extended.
Good, no nuisances nearby.
He emerged from the sewer, standing right in front of a massive building labeled Passion Pour le Sucré.
The moment he stepped inside, the front doors slammed shut and locked behind him. "Damn it... I'll have to blow them open later," he muttered, turning around.
Before him was a massive wall smeared with fresh blood and tissue, featuring a message written in crimson:
"Welcome to Passion pour le sucré." "My name is Jhon Decker."
"Great, a serial killer."
"That name sounds familiar from somewhere," he murmured, calmly making his way toward the stairs to the second floor.
Doesn't matter. I have to find Claire's trail.
The building had five floors. The first three were dining areas, the fourth was the pastry kitchen, and the top floor was a VIP lounge for high-rollers.
At least, that's what it used to be before fire consumed the place. Now, it was just a graveyard.
Reaching the second floor, the sickening stench of decaying flesh hit his nose.
"This smell is fresh. What happened here?" he muttered, tearing a strip from his jacket sleeve to cover his face.
He pushed open the door to the second floor, revealing a horrifying pile of corpses—some missing limbs, others decapitated, many with compound fractures, and most disturbingly, several with their eyes gouged out.
The floor and walls were caked in dried blood.
"When I find him, he's gonna wish he was dead," Jack growled, heading up to the third floor.
As he entered the third floor, his body felt heavier with every step.
Up ahead hung the body of a girl around his age, crucified against the ceiling. Her eyes were gone, her bones shattered, accompanied by a hideous message on the wall:
"Emma was beautiful, but so weak." "That's why I crucified her—to preserve her beauty."
"You bastard! You're going to pay for this!"
Jack pressed onward to the fourth floor, the kitchen, where he remembered finding the silhouette of an injured girl and a trail of blood.
Standing in the pastry kitchen, Jack walked over to the exact spot he had been searching for.
"This is where I found her... and where I lost her," he murmured wistfully.
Memory:
"Hey, I know you're hurt, but let me help you," Jack whispered, trying to approach a wounded girl in the dark.
The girl fired off sharp gusts of wind, but Jack blocked and dodged them.
"Stop right there! Or I'll bring this whole building down!" she yelled, sitting on the floor, bleeding out.
"In your condition? I don't think you can," he replied, taking another step closer. The building began to shake and crack as she lowered her head.
"Okay... okay! I won't come any closer!" he raised his hands placatingly.
"You know I could kill you, right? Why aren't you afraid of me?" she spat blood as she spoke.
Jack took two steps forward, and she unleashed an air blade that sliced right through the wall behind him.
"Hey..." Jack broke into a sweat, stopping instantly.
"DON'T COME ANY CLOSER!" she screamed.
"Alright, I won't," he said softly, sitting on the floor to face her. He opened his backpack.
"Stop! I swear I'll kill you!" she barked.
"Relax, I'm not gonna hurt you," he smiled, pulling out some bandages and tossing them to her.
It's too dark to see her face clearly, but I know she needs help.
"I know it's not much, but it'll help. By the way, I'm Jack. What's your name?" "You know you're way too nice and naive for your own good, right?"
"People tell me that a lot, but I don't care..." he chuckled softly. "I'm not changing who I am for anyone."
Suddenly, Jack felt overwhelmed by exhaustion and fainted on the spot.
"My name... is Helena," she whispered softly. She took the bandages, wrapped her wounds, and collapsed into unconsciousness beside him.
….
Wait... I fainted from blood loss back then.
"Next time I see that woman, I'm gonna kill her," she had muttered angrily, walking over to Jack's passed-out body. She crouched down, touched his shoulder, and enveloped him in a protective capsule of air.
"I'm sorry, but I have to go... before she comes back and kills you," she murmured sadly. "Thanks for reminding me of someone who was really kind. I hope we meet again..." she whispered in his ear before vanishing into the night.
…..
"This is where I found her... and where I lost her," Jack murmured, taking two steps forward.
Instantly, his body froze solid.
Ah, the bastard showed up. Judging by his power, he's a new variant.
Jack slowly floated into the air. His body was spun around to face a faceless silhouette hovering before him—a dark mass resembling a Chronius, but with skeletal hands and a featureless, blank face.
Jack went into shock, trying to process what he was looking at.
Is this a ghost?... That's impossible.
"Lenthato: Ratnitzu Aprioriz," the creature spoke.
Jack's right foot shattered with a sickening crunch, and part of his body felt crushed under immense pressure.
…
"Levitato: Crushing Gravity"
…
Blood poured from Jack's eyes and ears, but he remained frozen, his foot on the verge of exploding...