Six hours.
Jax hadn't slept a wink.
The little girl stood right there the whole time. Doll in her arms. Not a sound.
The green liquid in the glass tank was drained. The woman lay on a makeshift table. Chest panel open. Wires and gears exposed.
[Ding! Repair Progress: 47%... 52%... 61%...]
The system kept ticking.
Jax's hands didn't shake.
Soldering iron. Tweezers. Solder. Wires. Everything moved like it had a life of its own. Landing exactly where it needed to.
The girl asked sometimes:
"Uncle. Will Mommy wake up?"
Jax didn't answer.
But his hands got a little more careful every time she asked.
Red lights outside the window got closer.
Metal feet clanking on iron plates. He could hear them now.
[Ding! Repair Progress: 78%... 83%... 91%...]
Last twenty minutes.
Jax put the soldering iron down. Picked up the Type-7 core. The one he fixed.
It hummed in his hand. Blue light seeping through the cracks.
He lined it up with the empty socket in the woman's chest.
"Xiao Qi."
The girl looked up.
Jax kept his eyes on the socket.
"Whatever happens next. You stay behind me."
She blinked. Nodded hard.
"Okay."
Jax pushed the core in.
Click.
Soft sound.
The woman's body jerked.
Circuits lit up on her chest. Blue light spread like veins. Covered her torso. Her arms. Her legs. Her head.
Her eyelids twitched.
[Ding! Repair complete. Rewards: New Coins +500, Mechanical Repair EXP +300.]
[Ding! Special reward obtained: Gratitude of Test Subject M5-0047 ×1.]
The girl ran to the table. Eyes wide.
"Mommy! Mommy!"
The woman's eyes opened slow.
Blue eyes. Different from the dead ones on those mechanical corpses. These had light.
Her gaze moved slow. Found the girl.
Lips moved.
"Xiao... Qi..."
The girl burst into tears. Threw herself into the woman's arms.
The woman's mechanical arm lifted. Stiff. But gentle. Held her.
Jax stood there. Quiet.
Looked out the window.
Red lights stopped at the warehouse entrance.
[Ding! Warning: Demon Heavy Industries Retrieval Team has arrived. Count: 12 Hunter-type mechanical units.]
Jax pulled his revolver. Walked to the door.
"Xiao Qi."
The girl looked up from her mom's arms. Eyes red.
Jax didn't turn.
"Take her. Back door."
She blinked.
"Uncle. What about you?"
Jax didn't answer.
Pushed the door open. Stepped into the fog.
Outside.
Twelve Hunters fanned out. Human-shaped. Black armor. Blades for arms. Eyes glowing red. All pointed at the door.
Jax stood in front of them.
One man.
One revolver.
[Ding! Quest triggered: Cover Their Escape. Objective: Delay retrieval team. Give the girl time. Rewards: New Coins +200, Basic EXP +200.]
[Failure Penalty: Death.]
Jax raised the revolver.
Aimed at the lead Hunter's eye.
BANG—
Bullet hit the socket. Sparks flew.
The Hunter's head snapped back. Then straightened.
Red glow got brighter.
"Target confirmed. Unauthorized repair of Demon Heavy Industries property. Executing disposal protocol."
Twelve Hunters raised their arms at once.
Blades gleamed in the fog.
Jax stepped back.
Back to the door.
His left hand went into his pocket. Pulled something out—
EMP grenade. Old Joe left it for him.
"That old man finally did something right."
He bit the pin. Tossed it into the crowd.
HUMMMM—
Blue light exploded.
EMP wave swept through. Twelve Hunters froze. Red lights flickered. Died.
Jax moved.
Turned. Ran back inside.
"GO!"
One arm scooped up the girl. The other grabbed the woman. Just woke up.
Kicked the back door open.
Narrow alley outside. Piled with trash and scrap.
Jax didn't stop.
Girl in one arm. Woman stumbling behind. He ran.
Behind them, machinery hummed back to life.
Metal feet hit the ground.
They were coming.
Alley ended at a main road.
"Main road" was generous. Just wider than the alley. Shacks on both sides. The poorest in The Underbelly.
Jax dove into the crowd. Weaved. Turned.
The girl clung to his neck. Silent.
The woman limped behind. Her mechanical leg wasn't right. But she didn't make a sound. Just kept running.
Footsteps behind them. Getting closer.
Jax turned into a narrower alley.
Dead end at the back.
Wall.
He stopped.
The girl looked up at him.
"Uncle..."
Jax didn't answer.
Turned around. Set her down. Stood in front of her and the woman.
At the other end of the alley, twelve Hunters appeared.
Red eyes.
Sharp blades.
[Ding! Warning: Escape route blocked.]
[Ding! Emergency quest triggered: Last Stand. Rewards: New Coins +500, Basic EXP +500, Special Achievement ×1.]
Jax gripped his revolver.
Six bullets.
Twelve Hunters.
He did the math.
Not enough.
But it'd have to do.
Finger on the trigger—
BOOM—
The wall behind him exploded.
Bricks flew. Dust everywhere.
A giant... tongue?
Came through the wall.
Five or six meters long. Black. Covered in mechanical patterns. Split mouth at the tip. Another tongue inside that mouth.
It wrapped around the lead Hunter.
CRUNCH.
Chewed it to pieces.
The other eleven stopped cold. Red lights blinking hard.
"Warning... Unknown biological entity detected... Threat level... Unable to assess..."
The tongue didn't stop.
Swept through the alley like a snake.
Crunch. Crunch. Crunch.
One by one. Grabbed. Chewed. Spit out.
Ten seconds. Tops.
Eleven Hunters. Gone.
The tongue pulled back through the wall.
Dust settled.
Through the hole, Jax saw a familiar figure.
Bone-saw Old Joe.
And behind him, that huge wriggling thing. The tongue.
Old Joe grinned. Yellow teeth.
"Kid. You been busy."
Jax said nothing.
The girl peeked out from behind him. Stared at the tongue.
The tongue stared back.
The split mouth opened. Spit out a smaller tongue.
SLLLUUUURP——
Licked her face. Covered it in slobber.
The girl blinked.
Then laughed.
Jax stood there. Revolver slowly lowering.
[Ding! Quest "Escape Pursuit" complete. Rewards: New Coins +1000, Mechanical Repair EXP +500, Special Achievement ×1 distributed.]
[Ding! Achievement unlocked: Old Joe's Approval. Basic EXP +200.]
[Ding! Special Achievement: Rust-Stained Guardian — You protected what shouldn't be protected. You protected who shouldn't be protected. Permanent bonus: All Attributes +2, Mechanical Affinity +5.]
Old Joe walked over. Slapped Jax's shoulder.
"Not bad, kid. Two years with me. You finally look human."
Jax glanced at him.
"That corpse in the sack. You wanted me to find it."
Old Joe chuckled.
"What'd you think? Demon Heavy's experimental subjects grow on trees?"
Jax stayed quiet.
Old Joe looked at the woman.
"M5-0047. Nurturing type. Ran from the lab three years ago."
The woman lowered her head. Said nothing.
Old Joe looked at the girl.
"And this one. The infant they assigned her. Right?"
The woman's head snapped up. Shielded the girl.
Old Joe waved a hand.
"Relax. I don't do that kind of business."
He turned. Started walking back.
"Let's go. Back to the shop. Demon Heavy wants her back, they gotta go through me now."
A few steps. Looked back at Jax.
"You. What you standing there for? The girl sleeps in your room tonight."
Jax stared at him.
The girl peeked out from behind the woman. Eyes shining.
"Uncle. Can I sleep in your room?"
Jax was quiet for three seconds.
Fine.
Whatever.
[Chapter Six · End]
[Ding! Achievement unlocked: Old Joe's Approval. Basic EXP +200.]