After a new day started to wake, a foggy veil had fell upon the rocky hills and shrouded the land in its gray walls. It had Hope creatively challenge his thoughts in comparing it to the sky having fallen.
And in a way it did.
No more were the clouds tied to the ceiling but now laid out in front of him.
Stab!
Sqlssh...
Hope pulled out a soul shard from another monster's carcass and broke it instantly between his trembled fingers.
During dawn hour, Hope waited for another half an hour before he commanded his body to move and begin journeying again. The soreness had died down considerably. Although, with certain movements did the pain return. His injuries haven't fully healed yet, but he was satisfied with the progress.
He wasn't too far from leveled ground when he checked his surroundings that morning. He had climbed down from the small cave he rested by that night, recalled which was East, and begun heading to the opposite horizon.
It took some time to find the trackway again, but many times did he stop by monster's carcasses to harvest more soul shards.
At this point, Hope had counted that he collected 70 soul shards in the past two days.
Was that a lot?
He wasn't sure.
He almost had all the time in the world with no disturbances to wander around to harvest them. Almost.
It seemed that the government had sincerely lacked their duty in harvesting soul shards in this region.
Hope touched his chest and tried to feel his soul core to weigh its saturation. 70 soul shards sounded a lot, but even now it felt like it was barely even a quarter full.
So, it was 70 out of...what?
Hope felt like he probably shouldn't figure that number out. Like many other Awakened, they'd become fixated on some imaginary number and obsess in saturating their core. Hope had no interest in challenging himself in that aspect. But he wasn't going to entirely miss out on the opportunity for free soul shards.
By now it was late noon. The longer he traveled West the more he realized there were less and less monsters around. Dead and alive.
It wasn't hard avoiding the other monsters. Most of the time they were off in the distance. So, he had to either hide behind the hills or go around them like he did the first time. Why fight one at all when one could avoid it?
Hope shook the blood off his shield but slightly stumbled back in the process.
Not a sleepy spell, but a dizzy one that reared his mind.
He caught himself and straightened himself as best as he could. But his body hunched over with evident fatigue.
He raised his free hand up in front of his eyes-
It was trembling.
'Hungry...' Hope thought.
'So hungry...'
His eyes lazily looked back at the carcass at his feet where he tore the soul shard from.
"..."
Should he eat it...?
"Sigh..."
It was tempting. In its own way. But Hope knew his stomach probably couldn't handle a raw rotten monster's flesh.
Who knew what kind of diseases or sickness could befell upon him if he-
'Wait...'
Hope frowned at that thought.
"..."
Hope didn't need to see it. But from his silent tangent thought, runes instantly appeared in front of him. The damn attribute showed itself, almost tauntingly.
[Tears of Sorrow] Attribute Description: "...The Heart God's endless overseeing of the mortals...she pitied their short lives...Shortly after, she gifted them the Water of Life, a remedy to their aging and maladies..."
Hope skimmed through the description anyway and blinked at the line 'remedy to their aging and maladies.'
Remedy.
Maladies.
Wasn't 'maladies' tied to the words illness and sickness? Wouldn't that mean that the damn cursed attribute still had its original healing property? Its still a damn curse sure. But the healing aspect of it must be still in effect.
'Not a healing property for physical injuries though...' Hope thought as he subconsciously touched the side of his ribs.
'Does that mean that I...could...'
His eyes fell again upon the monster's torn flesh.
"..."
He felt stuffy at that moment. Well, he already felt that way in the confined walls of the gray fog. Even the idea crossed his mind of maybe raining would have done him some good instead to wash the blood from himself. Of course, the cons weighed itself out. He wouldn't want to walk around in soaked clothes. Soaked blood and dirt was enough.
But the thought of eating a clump of flesh...
Hope weakly knelt down to one knee in front of it.
When was the last time he ate?
It was the day before yesterday. The morning of the night of the convoy attack. Although maybe he could hardly call it a meal. It was colorless and had the consistency of mud that came out of a tube. He had around ten of those that day. He was never one much of having a big appetite, but he should have eaten more when he got the chance.
Not that he knew he would be separated from everyone else and had to walk miles just to get to safety.
Hope leaned forward and used his shield to slice a good handful of meat from the carcass. The sound of it ripping met his ears as pulled it close to his mouth.
"..."
He paused.
He did say before that if it came down to it that he would eat from one of the monsters by the trackway. He was lacking strength, and he didn't want to risk in what would happen if he failed to hide from an Awakened Beast.
Or if he had to fight one.
"Sigh..."
Such a rotten smell of spoil and death. The blood was sticky and grimly dark, even the flesh felt a bit tough.
Who would have thought that he would be in such a predicament to have desperately reached this point?
Hope closed his eyes, the voices clustering in his mind serving as a convenient distraction more than ever...
...and bit into it.
***
Step. Step. Step...
The gray walls around him were thickening. They were blurry fuzzy mists, but they seemed to lose their reflection now. Was the sun setting already?
Step. Step. Step...
His lips and chin were cracked and tight from the flesh he had eaten earlier. The rancid taste still left in his mouth.
How revolting.
Step. Step. Step...
He was close.
He had to be close to the city by now.
Hope's eyes were fixated ahead as he walked in a straight line. A few times he had realized that he had almost lost himself from the trackway completely. He continued on ignoring the carcasses he passed by and instead focused on moving forward.
But eventually they disappeared as well. That meant he was close right?
The gray foggy wall in front of him was especially becoming darker. That meant that there must be another hill...and maybe another one after that. And after that. And after that-
Hope abruptly stopped.
Then he shuffled his feet back and gazed high above.
No. It was a wall. A real one.
Hope felt his heart quicken as he inspected the familiar wall, his eyes following a deliberate crease that shot up from the bottom to the top.
It was the gate.
Hope was panting as he strode forwards and reached to touch the thick metal gate. Definitely real.
The gate was flanked by two gray walls that also towered towards the sky, their bodies stretching themselves to the sides until it disappeared into the fog.
People. Where are the people?
Hope was about to call out but felt his throat scratched and scorched from the effort.
He gritted his teeth.
Even if he made no sound, there should have been someone greeting him by now.
No guards? No alarm? How could there be no guards?
He turned his head to the right and saw a shadowed boulder-sized silhouette crouched meters away. Hope's feet had already moved their way towards it, his feet slightly shuffling against the rocky soil as two white spots started to form itself on the figure.
He paused in front of it.
It was the Awakened cohort's vehicle...
'The fucking hell...'
Hope narrowed his eyes as he summoned his shield and opened the carrier's door.
Empty.
That didn't matter. Not too much anyways. What he needed was a weapon. A real one.
Hope immediately looked through the drawers and shelves. Even looked through the crevices of their seats and...a lounge area?
'How luxurious of them...'
Hope tossed an empty canteen of water to the side, the sound releasing a clattering noise against the metal floor. He was just about to leave until he found a flashlight hiding at the far back end of a shelf. He reached and grabbed onto it.
Not a weapon. But still useful.
Awakened's main weapons were their Memories anyways. But could they leave Memories behind? Was that even possible?
Hope sighed as he reached behind his back pocket and pulled out a long black shard that looked a lot like it belonged to some clawed animal. And it did. Hope thought he might as well tear something off from a creature to use as a weapon. But it wasn't as effective as an actual Memory.
With a sigh, Hope stepped out of the carrier and looked up at the familiar towering wall. The Mirror City's border. Its name was proven behind those walls but...
No guards...
No Awakened...
Did they climb over then?
Hope frowned. 'With what such urgency...'
Hope wasn't exactly confident in his skills in climbing over the wall himself. Maybe some adrenaline might help. But that didn't exactly come on command, did it?
So, if not over it. Or through it. Then...
Under it?
"..."
'Why do the odds keep getting lower-'
Hope narrowed his eyes. He quickly glanced up at the sky then away.
'Forget I said that...'
There was no time in feeling so bitter about it. Hope turned and started to walk down the wall. He realized the fog around him was losing more of its reflection and draining itself from light rather quickly. There were no hints of warm hues in the sky this time. Only the approach of night's cold bite.
But as Hope continued down the wall, he kept an eye out for some entry. Of course, not a gate. But a tunnel or a sewage line. Each city had them. Although, the main problem was that he didn't have the knowledge about these tunnels. It was still the best chance he had.
After what seemed to be about ten minutes, Hope finally saw a trench. At the bottom of it and against the wall was a bordered circle with a rusty cage 2 meters tall and wide at its center. It was slightly bent and torn, with claws ineptly scarred around it, but nothing that could fit a well-sized Awakened Beast.
Hope slid carefully down the trench, the dirt and gravel crumbling after him, and stood in front of the cage.
The darkness behind it did not seem at all like the pitch darkness back in his First Nightmare-
Hope gritted his teeth and immediately shook his head from the memories.
No. Nope. This was different.
Normal, but still deadly.
Hope quickly dismissed his shield and put the flashlight in his other backpocket. He grabbed onto the rusty gate, the metal chapped and cold against his bare hands, as he climbed and fit himself stiffly in between where the bars were torn just wide enough for himself.
He grunted as the pain slightly resurfaced in his back and chest.
"Phew..." Hope let out a sigh as he finally reached the other side.
He paused, then summoned back his shield and turned on the flashlight with his right. He would save the black shard, or claw knife he supposed, as something of a last resort.
'In the darkness we go...'
"..."
Step...
Step. Step. Step...
Hope walked on ahead and let himself be swallowed by the shadows leaving the open wasteland behind him.
As he continued forwards, with the company of his whispering memories, the thought resurfaced on what happened back at the gate. Maybe the disappearance of the Awakened did affect him in some way. And with the absence of the guards...
Hope frowned. He had only hoped to come, stop, and go through this city. But what was preventing him from doing all of those things?
Surely his other damn [Black Sheep] Attribute couldn't be the cause of all of this.
Step. Step. Step...
His steps cruelly announced himself in the dark. The flashlight he held onto only defined the darkness, not dispelling it as he shone it around. The smell of wet, metal, and rot filled his nose, almost tickling his senses. Almost. But at this point they didn't affect him as much as compared to eating raw spoiled meat or being hugged by a wall of skinned flesh for hours.
The light bounced off tiny puddles that were displayed sporadically at his feet, and above his head were droplets falling at random.
Was there a possibility he could get lost and die in these tunnels?
Yes. But that truth didn't seem to frighten Hope. Not that it encouraged him either.
Step. Step. Step...
Should he make a run for it...?
Hope paused in his tracks.
He didn't see the harm in doing so. It would make things a lot faster actually.
The soreness was already halfway gone from his body. He did still feel slightly dizzy.
A light jog would be a better option.
"Sigh..."
Hope took in a breath then started to jog forwards.
His steps were even more stark against the silence. Maybe they would unwittingly lure monsters out from the depths of these tunnels. But staying in one place for too long that he didn't know of was dangerous enough. He felt the urge to leave.
After several minutes, Hope finally reached a point where two tunnels diverged. Huh. That reminded him back in the catacombs when he was acting as a guide for the-
'Shit-'
Hope stumbled.
He lost his balance and slammed against the nearest wall as a stream of memories erupted.
He gritted his teeth as he tried to push them back.
'Present. The present. Think about the present.'
But there wasn't much he could describe around him. Except that darkness lengthened endlessly in all directions with a few shiny puddles here and there. But nothing of detailed resemblance to call upon.
Hope pushed himself off the wall and chose the left passage.
He had to try to keep the voices at bay, but moreso in keeping the films and images from playing.
How else should he describe it then...
He supposed it was like walking into the maw of black death itself. The darkness rushing forwards and backwards no matter where he looked. No other sound but his steps alone, the loud thumping of his heart, and the accompanied whispers. He had almost expected to meet some monster by now. Huh. Maybe he really could die down here.
Left. Right. Right. Left. Straight. Straight. Left.
This was too damn long-
Hope paused in his tracks.
He heard something. Or was that from his memories?
He squeezed his eyes shut as he forced his ears to single out the noise. Definitely real. The sound of a...man. Make that men. As if they were...hollering?
'Noise. People. Exit. Somewhere.'
Hope immediately picked up the pace. His muscles tensed from the action, but he only felt the rush pulsing through his body as he chased the noise.
Left. Left. Straight. Left-
Light.
His flashlight shined a ladder in front of him screwed into a wall. Above was a broken ceiling partially covered by a wooden plank with the night's blue light faintly spilling through. Was the moon visible enough that it was able to shine through the fog?
It was rare to even see the moon at all. But its presence was always made known in one way or the other.
Hope put his flashlight away, still keeping his shield though, and climbed up the rustic ladder. He paused at the top and listened out for the men. It sounded to be a decent sized group alright. And they seem to be on a...hunt? A chase?
Carefully pushing aside the wooden plank, Hope peeked his head through.
He found himself in some sort of narrow alley. He slightly caught a smell of smoke as well. But the walls...no buildings loomed overhead disappearing into the tall fog. Wrist thick vines entangled themselves through their windows and their frames like some possessive nature.
Ah. That was another weird thing about the Mirror City-
Phoooweeet-
A whistle called out, followed by a clustering of steps and snickering.
Hope silently climbed out and closed back the wooden plank over the hole before hiding behind a building's column.
He peeked to the side, overlooked the front of the building's courtyard and saw two men armed with rifle guns.
Not guards though.
Three other men came into view; two had a crowbar and one at the head had a pistol. In front of all of them, where they had their prey cornered, was a man and a boy. A father and a son most likely.
"Don't you know what happens if you break the fucking sector's rules?" The man with the pistol said.
The father was sweating profusely as he pulled his young son further behind him. That kid seemed to be about twelve years old. Or maybe thirteen.
"P-please...we're just hungry."
"Pah! Hungry?!"
The man let out a hollow laugh as he loosely held the pistol on his finger.
"What?" He continued. "You think we'd just give it to you for free just because of some fucking kid?"
"..."
'Maybe I'll find some other people that could help me.'
Hope thought as he looked away and stared off absentmindedly.
But where could the others be? This city...was different from the others. Just as he thought before, the government didn't seem inclined to get personally involved in this city's business. As long as the main road was available, then this lawless city runs itself. At least, that was what always seemed to be the case.
Hope never personally met with the settlements himself. But it was evident that they were ruled by 'survival of the fittest.'
"W-we don't mean any harm..."
"Kahahaha! You hear that, boys? It was all a fucking honest mistake!"
"Yup. I'm sold kekeke."
"Too bad you came across us then." The man's eyes curved like a sly predator. "Maybe those other settlements could carry you jackasses. But not everyone has the luxury to live that way."
The father gulped and anxiously reached over his shoulder.
"T-take it!"
He threw his backpack at their feet.
The man's eyebrows furrowed, and a disgusting expression formed on his face.
"That's not what we want." He spat. "What we want is fucking compensation."
He brought up his pistol and aimed at the father's head.
The boy instantly gripped onto the hem of his father's shirt; eyes wide in horror.
"Dad-"
Hope heard the familiar click of a gun. He turned just in time and narrowed his eyes as he saw the man's finger pull the trigger.
BANG!
"Dad!"
His father's head knocked back. A red mist sprayed from the blow.
Soon, his body followed. His weight crashed onto the floor and life in the next moment vanished from his face. Blood spurted out of his right eye, seeping out beneath him into a puddle of red.
Adam gulped. He stood in shock with the torn hem of his dad's shirt in his hands.
Dead. He was dead.
His dad was-
Krooaaar!
All of them froze in an instant. The man with the pistol gritted his teeth and whipped around to his men.
"I thought there weren't any in this area!?" He hissed.
"They said they-"
Adam immediately shoved past them. He ran down the courtyard and started to head towards the farthest building.
"Hey! Get that kid!"
"Wait- Stop! Don't shoot, you fucking idiot, or else the-"
The distant monster's noise roared again in the night.
"Huff! Huff! Huff!"
They were right though. There shouldn't be any monsters this close by. Not this far into the zone.
Adam breathed heavily as he picked his way up clumsily over the broken concrete and vines sprawled on the street. As he bursted through the fog, his mind and chest became a whirlwind of emotions. He wanted to scream and cry but all his forced rational thought was put into the need of escape.
Away.
Away from these people.
Away from the monsters.
Adam could feel tears emerging. The temptation to just curl and cry in his arms pulled on his mind. And yet he felt possessed to race on forward. Their footsteps echoed after him as he skidded to a stop and began sprinting left behind the corner of a building.
But just as he was turning the corner–a column of some sorts that stood in his way–time suddenly started to slow.
Because what was before him gave a new wash of cold terror.
Something...something was outlined in the mist.
The figure appeared to be a man. Tall in comparison to himself. Its smell reeked of hot rot and death that betrayed the coldness in the figure's eyes.
Those eyes...Maybe they could have served as beautiful stones he'd used to collect and perch next to his bed. Stones he would ask his father about what kind they were and hear a whole history behind them.
But what sort of precious item belonged on a creature's face?
Unable to pull away, unable to do anything else but to react, Adam's mouth gaped open, and a scream began to build in his throat. But before he could let it out, the shadowed hands lurched forward and grabbed him.
"Mmph!"
Cracked and dried skin covered his mouth. He tried to reach behind him for a pocketknife but then found himself completely restrained at the mercy of the creature.
The next moment, he was pulled away into one of the broken crumbled walls of the side of a building. He felt like he was hovering, the floor gone beneath him. It was as if darkness had lifted him off his feet and dragged him into its den of shadows.
Adam wiggled desperately against the creature's grasp. He didn't want to die. Not like this!
"Shhh."
Adam froze at the shushed tone. He slowly turned his head to look up behind him.
A set of blue eyes met his. Cold. Chilling. The contact strangely made his whole-body tremble over.
"Quiet."
Human.
The voice sounded human.
Adam gulped. He fought off the revolting smell he was hugged by and remained silent.
"Over here!"
"What about the tunn-"
"Pfft! That kid wouldn't be brave enough for five minutes even if he tried."
He didn't know what tunnels they were talking about, but he knew he definitely would have soiled his pants if it meant being completely on his own for too long.
Both Adam and this unknown person holding onto him were hiding behind some knocked down round table in the dark. He squinted his eyes to view around the room, wondering of what sort of building they were in. He registered the other fallen tables, the number of chairs, a long counter with mechanic machinery built in the walls; a filter, and a sink...
'A cafe...?'
Adam had scavenged a couple of those with his dad before along with another group. He remembered a conversation was usually brought up about how people served others, laid orders, but most of all, brought out a nice, delicious cup of drink with a sugary bread along with it. What did those taste like? Did ever a time like that truly exist? His dad-
"..."
His dad...was still outside.
Lifeless.
With a bullet in his head.
Gulp.
His dad died. His dad was really dead.
Adam didn't have to see the mysterious man's face, but he could feel his chilling blue eyes turn towards him at that moment. Adam's body trembled even more over as tears poured themselves out, his face crumpling into whimper. He choked back his sobs against the dirtied hand over his mouth. At least he was 'held' by somebody so he wouldn't be left to grieve uncontrollably. Not when there was danger nearby. He didn't want to make another mistake at the cost of someone's life. Not again.
'Oh why...why...'
He squeezed his eyes shut. The clustered steps from the group resounded closer outside.
"Hey."
Adam shuddered.
The voice spoke close in his ear. Like a dark whisper.
"These men...do you think they know where the next settlement is?"
"..."
'Huh...?'
Adam opened his eyes slightly and forced himself to meet the person's gaze. His face...It was definitely human. Same shape nose. Same shape chin. Same shape cheeks. Although the blood around his mouth made him doubt otherwise...
And the smell-
"These men." The man pointed with his other hand. "Do they know?"
The man paused.
"Or do you know?"
Adam felt his mouth go dry. The question sounded threatening. Almost as if daring him if he even should be honest with his answer.
He knew the way. Sort of. His dad definitely knew. But these other men?
Adam looked unsurely back at the group that was approaching the broken entrance.
They had too as well. They patrolled at least near the border to know of it.
He nodded.
A flicker of calculation, and resolve crossed the man's eyes in a matter of seconds. Almost in comparison to someone planning a hunt. Adam didn't know if he should feel relieved in that or not.
The man casually stretched out his left hand again. Light glistened before them and started to form into a circular shape. Round. A dome. Silver or iron it seemed like.
A shield!
"..."
A...small shield?
Quite small...
But-
'Is he an Awakened...?'
Adam turned and was about to try and ask, but something forced his body to be paralyzed in that moment. It was already dark around them, but he could see another set of darkness creeping into his vision. His eyes felt heavy too for some reason.
"See you when you wake up, kid."
Then his mind went blank.
***
"Shit. You think that monster is going to pass through here?"
"Probably. That good-for-nothing father will buy us sometime though."
Hope slowly laid the boy's head onto the floor, careful to not make any noise. He then felt through his pockets and pulled out a small pocketknife. Huh. So that was what the boy was reaching for before.
Hope's fingers lightly caressed the blade and recognized it as a spear point blade.
He decided he will return it later.
The entire time he was preparing himself, his eyes remained locked on the men's visible entry. Their bodies, as they appeared, silhouetted against the gray fog like shadowed predators. One by one they entered with wafts of mist clinging to their clothes. Sounds of their carried guns clicked, and their scratchy steps against the rubble floor followed carelessly after them.
Five men; two rifles, one pistol, two crowbars.
'Mm. These odds are a bit-'
"..."
A bitterness filled his mouth again.
'Nevermind...'
Hope internally sighed.
Right. No time to be bitter about it. For one thing, he wasn't actually sure which part of the city he was in. The main road through the city could be tens of blocks away, maybe even the next street over. But he would have to wait till morning to properly scout the area.
Or.
He could also get some answers from one of these men.
'But...'
Hope eyed the guns they were holding.
This was not how he wanted to start his first day in the city.
"Forget about the damn kid. He probably won't make it through the night anyway."
"He stole my knife though!"
'Ah.'
Hope nonchalantly spun the knife in his right hand.
It was a decent knife.
"We still got the rest of our stuff back." The other lifted the bag that the father had thrown at their feet.
The man with the pistol let out an annoying grunt as he picked up a fallen chair and sat on it.
"Well, too bad. You just wanted to get him for his pretty face."
They all laughed in unison.
Hope eyed the man who sat down. He must be the leader of the group.
A leader with knowledge.
'The main target.'
Hope's body itched at that moment; legs tensed as they prepared themselves to spring.
Even the voices in his head began to come in waves. They rose and fell, but all related to the lessons his commanding officer had drilled into him on how to approach a beast.
But before him instead were people.
But that was still the same thing, wasn't it?
They continued their chatter as Hope repositioned himself into a proper crouch. A natural calm filled his mind as he silently circled around the edge of the room where the shadows were thickest. His steps cautiously finding empty gaps between the spewed vines and wreckage on the tiled floor.
Five men were a lot. He would have been more hesitant before like in his First Nightmare.
But they seemed to be human. Just ordinary humans.
And Hope finally had some weapons to serve him.
Hope finally reached an angle that seemed best for attack. Fourteen paces away just like the small cave he rested at the night before. He could make it in half if he exerted a little more energy. But instead of raising the blade, he laid the knife gently out in front of him.
He was going to approach a little differently.
One of the men picked their nose.
"You think it's just one beast or a pack this time?"
"It better be fucking one. Greg, go check on the-"
Swish!
"What the!?"
One of the men's voices raised.
Suddenly, a light spun and split through the darkness. They reacted too late. In fact, they couldn't properly figure out what just happened as the thing flew at them.
Puok!
Before they knew it, a flashlight hit square onto their leader's face. His body hit the floor as the light bounced and slid across, casting wild shadows and drawing eyes away from one area that truly mattered: himself.
"Who the hell-"
Hwiiik!
Hope finally let the blade fly.
It found itself right in one of the gunmen's head.
Without wasting another moment, Hope's body pulled itself towards the second man with the rifle. He took out the black shard from behind and slid it right into his throat. The man's eyes had widened in that instance with a sheen of horror across his face. The sound of his choked gurgles followed.
[You have slain a dormant human...]
[You have slain a dormant human...]
A part of Hope's mind was almost pulled away by the Spell's uncanny voice.
But instinct hurriedly enveloped his senses as he felt the others' presence.
Hope turned and met eyes with the two men who remained still in shock some distance away, standing with their rustic crowbars. He then saw a slight movement from one of them-
Hope wrenched the shard from the throat, hearing the body drop behind him as he faced towards the flying crowbar.
Shiiik!
Parried just in time with his shield.
"Who the fuck are you!?"
Hope dismissed the man's words as his eyes narrowed at the sight of their leader reaching out for his pistol. He must have dropped it from Hope's previous blow. Hope could see a runny bloody nose as well.
Two dead.
Three left.
Although, there didn't seem to be any harm in keeping three alive instead of just one.
With that thought, a shine of metal shined at the corner of Hope's eye.
Hope side-stepped, having the crowbar pass in front of him. At the same time, he pulled his right arm back and threw the black shard past them.
"Aaaaaacckk!"
The leader hugged his hand. A spill of blood could be seen from where the shard had impaled.
"H-hit him dammit!"
Shiiik!
Hope blocked another swing. His foot stepped forward and then he pummeled his fist squarely between the man's ribs. A forced gasp escaped his lips as he collapsed and started to hoarsely breathe for air.
"Y-you! Grraaaaaah!"
The last man standing yelled and swung with blind fury.
Shiiik! Shiiik! Shiiik!
Metal clashed and pitched in the air.
As Hope blocked the man's trajectories, he could faintly see their behemoth shadows from the flashlight mimicking along the walls and floor. Even the mist that seeped through the entrance dragged along their movements like a clingy ghost.
The visible wrath started to make the man lose more control of his swings. After the fourth swing, Hope dodged with a simple extra step back. Just as the man's weight carried himself through the attack, Hope pounded his shield right into the man's face.
Slam!
His head knocked back, eyes rolled up, probably seeing stars as well, and collapsed onto the floor.
Kroooaaar!
The sudden roar from the monster from earlier cried out. But it came a lot closer. Too close.
A flurry of lights appeared on Hope's left arm then quickly disappeared along with his shield.
Hope dropped down to one knee and picked up one of the rifle guns.
He aimed it at the crumbled wall's entrance just as a shadowed figure started to emerge-
Bang! BANG! BANG!
A spew of flashes sparked through the fog followed by deafening shots.
In the next moment, a lizard-like creature that was making its way through the hole fell limp on top of the rubble. Deep holes blotched across its head from the bullets as rivulets of blood seeped out from them.
"..."
Hope froze and held his position.
One. Two. Three. Four...
"..."
Five. Six. Seven...
Ears attentive for further threatening noise.
But nothing else followed.
It seemed only one monster was nearby rather than a pack of them just as the men had hoped. It may have been by itself, but one was enough to be a threatening monster inside a slum city.
[You have slain a dormant beast-]
'Shut up.'
Hope stood up and stared down at the lying men around him with the rifle still in his hands.
He didn't exactly feel any sense of triumph. Only a calm poise.
"Cough! Uggh..."
The collected groans of alarm and confusion echoed from the two wounded. The flashlight was still on, its light emanating at their feet creating large shadows against the wall. Hope's shadow being the tallest of them.
Step. Step. Step.
Hope strode towards their leader. The man helplessly scrambled back as he cradled his injured hand.
"W-who are you-"
Instead of approaching face to face with the leader, Hope bent down and picked up the backpack that was dropped earlier during the battle.
"...?"
Hope nonchalantly looked inside then began to rummage through, feeling around on the items for something specific. Once his hands grabbed onto something cylinder, he quickly pulled it out.
He opened the bottle and greedily drank from it.
His dry throat soothed at the long-awaited moist. A desire and thirst finally able to be satisfied.
But after a few seconds he forced himself to pull away. He had to save some for later and not waste it all in one go. The lid was screwed back on silently as he ignored the confused expressions of the remaining two who were awake.
The third was alive but knocked out.
The other two dead.
And the last one was sleeping peacefully in the corner.
Hope slung the backpack over his shoulder then raised the rifle back on the leader. He felt his own eyes still glazed with a direct prowl nature. It didn't seem to be a bad thing, but the voices were surprisingly still hushed down to a murmur as his focus remained unnaturally undisturbed. He supposed he could blame it from his training days. Such things could not be erased so easily.
The man shuddered from the pointed barrel and shrank away.
"H-hey let's not get too h-hasty now..."
"..."
"W-what do you need? Food? Water? M-more weapons? W-we can get it for you! Isn't that right?"
The leader looked expectantly at his partner who still struggled to recover from the blow to his ribs. He forced a nod.
"..."
The man squirmed under Hope's gaze.
"Hahaha...well speak...you know how to speak right...?"
Hope blinked. Then an inaudible sigh passed his lips.
"Questions." Hope said calmly. "I have some questions for you. And it would be sufficient if you could have some answers ready for me. It is a matter of life or death after all."
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