Capítulo 27: August
John stomped the marble floor and the tiles cracked in spiderwebs. He cast his Shockwave skill and rocketed towards the Clawback. His muscles pulsed with Energy, Stephanie's Muscle Strengthening propelling him even faster. His surroundings blurred and the world stilled for a painful second.
He gripped his Venomlash, the hilt digging into his palm. He drew the blade back with violence and it tore through the air with searing precision before blasting on the Clawback. Blood spurted and a chilling shriek followed. As the dagger plunged deep into the beast, it scrambled away, claws swinging.
"JULIA!" The raw power in John's voice caught Julia's attention and she knew what to do, help Dalia.
John kept the Clawback's focus, driving it back with furious strikes. Octavia flanked it, her own blades seeking vital points with lethal grace. Step by step they pushed their enemy away from Dalia's crumbled form.
It was in retreat now, wailing pathetically from their onslaught. But John's spirit burned hotter than ever.
The Clawback scrambled back, dark blood oozing from countless wounds. But John stalked after it relentlessly, dagger ready to deliver the killing strike.
He feinted left then sliced right, carving a deep gash along its flank. It gnashed futilely at where he'd been seconds before. John's muscles coiled and he launched skyward, propelling off its snout with a Shockwave.
At the apex of his leap, time slowed. John rotated in the air above the creature, surveying its scaly figure. That's when he saw a fissure in the armour plating at the base of its skull.
He angled his dagger as gravity and Shockwave wrenched him downward. The Clawback's enraged jaws snapped shut mere inches from John's feet as he landed in a crouch on its back.
It bucked and writhed, but John clung on. He gripped his blade with both hands, pumping power into his arms.
"Die!" he roared, driving the Venomlash to the hilt through the chink in the monster's armour. It pierced flesh and bone with a sickening crack.
A guttural death rattle erupted from the Clawback's throat. Its legs buckled and its bulk crashed to the blood-slicked tiles. John wrenched his blade free and leaped clear of the twitching carcass.
It was over. John's chest heaved from exertion as the adrenaline faded and a notification chimed.
[Clawback Killed]
[2 Vitality Obtained]
John dismissed the notification, his gaze drawn to Julia's blood-slicked hands desperately trying to stem Dalia's terrible wound. Crimson seeped between her trembling fingers no matter how hard she applied pressure. The alarm in her eyes conveyed the dire gravity of the situation.
"John..." she pleaded, terror and helplessness etched on her features. Though experienced in nursing, Julia was out of her depth with catastrophic injuries of this scale. Her rapid breathing and quivering hands lay bare her lack of qualification to treat such trauma.
Julia kept her gaze locked on John's whilst Martin looked down with stoic pity at Dalia's waning life force. Octavia and August simply observed. They were strangers in the group and they did not wish to intervene.
John's mind raced, evaluating options as he tried to tune out Dalia's weakening moans. A health potion - but did he have enough points? And could he make it to the store in time? Each passing second brought Dalia closer to death's door.
His habits kicked in and the overthinking stopped. There was no time to think, only to act.
"Wait here. I'll be back," John commanded, turning on his heel towards the nearest store. Gasps erupted from the group. Were they being abandoned in their hour of need? John blocked out the reactions. If anyone could save Dalia, it was him. He had to try, whatever the cost.
With John gone, an uneasy silence blanketed the group in the dimly lit store. The flickering emergency lights cast eerie shadows across the worn marble floor. Dust motes hung suspended in the stagnant air. Martin shook his head dismissively, his face etched with frustration, while Octavia's vivid green eyes flashed with intensity.
"He's abandoned us," Martin declared, his voice echoing through the empty aisles. "I knew we couldn't rely on him."
Octavia's eye flashed. "Why would you say that? He wants to save her."
"You don't even know him," Martin spat back. "This is his real self—selfish, running when it gets tough."
Julia, her eyes wide with confusion and fear, opened her mouth to defend John, but Martin silenced her with a glare. She shrank back, hating her dependence on John in mere minutes.
Sensing Julia's distress, Octavia knelt beside her on the scuffed tile floor. "Hey, are you related to John or...?" She extended a comforting hand, her fingertips brushing against Julia's trembling wrist.
Julia shook her head, bewildered by her own spiraling emotions.
"He'll be back," Octavia stated confidently, her voice strong, before rising to scout the store. "We should fortify this place while we can."
August, with a warm smile on his face and a mess of sandy hair, gave Julia's shoulder a reassuring squeeze. "John seems like a stand-up guy. Have faith in him!" His cheerful optimism was contagious, easing her doubts.
Octavia, now barking orders at Martin, moved swiftly to block the entrance with stacks of furniture. She exhibited audacity that brooked no argument. Yet internally, she hoped John would return soon. The store's cool, musty scent lingered in the air. Something about John had sparked her instincts. She wanted him as an ally...or rival. Only time would tell which path he'd choose.
As the others fortified the store, August hummed quietly to himself while organizing supplies. The cheerful tune sounded strangely off-key, as if not quite mimicking what he thought a human song should be.
When speaking, his cadence seemed ever so slightly abnormal. The lilting patterns were plausible enough, yet masked an inherent unfamiliarity with the rhythms of human speech.
His expressions were a beat too slow or fast. Surprise registered a blink after expected; laughter came rapid and effortful as if following a mental script of "laugh now."
Octavia had noticed something wrong with he dear brother, but she had dismissed it as trauma from the apocalypse, but as time passed, she began to think it could be something serious. It was time to get to the bottom of it.
She turned on her heels and her eyes widened as she saw another Clawback lunging at August. 'Too late,' she thought. Her body moved on instinct, but she knew she wouldn't make it.
But none of that mattered after what she had just seen. Her usually frail brother, swinging his arm at the speed of light and splitting the Clawback in half. She stood motionless as a wave of blood splashed her face.
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Capítulo 28: Just in Time
"August!" Octavia shouted, her legs quivering as she staggered over blood-slicked tiles toward her brother's side. Crimson bathed him, yet he remained oddly serene amidst the gore.
"I'm fine, Octavia!" August said as he turned around and met Octavia's gaze with a warm smile. Yes, it was his usual warm, genuine smile, but in this situation it just did not fit. It was like an innocent, brand new doll standing in the centre of a gothic, abandoned mansion.
"H-how...?" She asked, her voice cracking.
"Oh, that?" He gestured casually at the mutilated Clawback beast. The group's gazes were drawn to the macabre scene - limbs torn, entrails strewn like party streamers.
Martin smirked. With John gone and this little brat here, they would be fine. August seemed like someone he could control after all, but John? No, he was a feral beast, there was no controlling him.
Martin grabbed a brand-new towel from the stalls and said, "Here," passing the towel to August.
"Thank you!" August said, his demeanour still too genuine for what had just happened.
"August!" Octavia called, frustration seeping into her tone. "I asked you a question!"
"It's just a Skill from the System, Octavia. Don't worry about it," he said, dismissing her.
Rage burned within Octavia, her features distorting. She was not used to her little brother's dismissive attitude, but before she could say anything, Dalia began to scream in panic and panic struck Julia's face who was still beside her.
Unable to do anything, Octavia could only stare as Dalia spasmed. Darting her gaze across the room, scanning everyone's faces and no matter how much she pondered about it, she couldn't help but think something was seriously wrong with August.
Amidst this nightmare, her brother's cheerful nonchalance chilled Octavia to the bone. How could anyone remain so detached? At worst, his expression might be grave, but this? His eerie delight was wholly unnatural.
Octavia's thoughts broke as crashing sounds erupted from the store's entrance. John hurtled in, shoving debris aside heedlessly. A glint of pink liquid sloshed in a glass bottle gripped tightly in his hand.
"Get out of my way!" he bellowed, barreling towards Dalia's fading form. The group scrambled to clear a path, shaken from their stupors by John's explosive reappearance.
Julia's face lit up seeing John, then tightened with alarm. He resembled a walking ruby, so drenched in scarlet he seemed a bloodied bed of roses after a storm. Cuts and gashes adorned his body.
Further away from the group, Martin clicked his tongue. His plan was foiled, he would have to put up with John for a little longer, but this small event didn't escape Octavia's perception. She began to understand a little bit more about this group they had just met.
John rushed to Dalia's side, droplets of crimson trailing behind. He knelt and cradled her head softly. "Dalia," he urged, desperate to rouse her.
Her eyelids fluttered yet remained sealed. "Drink this," John insisted, tilting the glimmering potion to her pale lips. Sensing fading embers of life, he pried open her mouth and administered the Health Potion carefully.
Octavia observed with interest. Where had he gone and why had he returned looking like he'd been shredded through a meat grinder? She'd lost all concept of time during the chaos. Ten minutes since he left? Thirty? The attack had rattled her usually unflappable poise.
Yet here John was, materialising potions out of thin air with an aura of assurance. Octavia found her fascination growing. Just what other tricks did this intense man have up his sleeve? He seemed to eclipse even August's bizarre powers.
As the liquid entered Dalia's system, the group observed silently. As she drank the last drops, John materialised another bottle out of thin air. Octavia's eyebrows raised further and she had almost forgotten about August. John seemed even more intriguing with every second.
"Julia, remove the cloth and lift her shirt," he directed. Julia could guess what he was about to do and did as she was told. She was growing accustomed to believing in John's confidence.
Julia lifted Dalia's blood-soaked shirt with trembling hands. Dalia whimpered as the fabric peeled off her torn flesh.
John carefully angled the bottle, allowing the mysterious liquid to coat the wounds. It sizzled on contact, eliciting cries from Dalia as it bubbled over shredded skin and muscle.
Observing intently, John noted gradual regeneration occurring before his eyes. The process seemed agonizingly slow, but steady visible progress marked each passing minute.
"What now?" Julia asked as Dalia's wails quieted to whimpers.
"Now we wait," John replied, settling down cross-legged, ready to stand vigil by Dalia's side.
As he relaxed his guard briefly, the mangled corpse of a second Clawback entered his view. With a start, he noticed August and Octavia drenched in blood.
"What happened here?" John demanded, gaze darting between the gore-spattered siblings. An uneasy silence greeted his query. No one seemed willing to explain the violent scene that had unfolded in his absence.
Seeing as no one was answering, John surveyed the room once more. He noticed two things. August's entire body was covered in blood and there was a much smaller amount of blood on Octavia's face.
He had cooked up a narrative already, but it seemed implausible. He did not think August was strong. If he was, he would've helped with the first Clawback. The strong one was Octavia, but the evidence said she was away from the beast at the moment it died.
"August, right?" John stared him down.
"Yup, that's me!" August replied with a disconcerting cheer.
"You killed this beast?" John questioned, eyebrow raised sceptically.
"Ahh...yeah, I did!" August admitted, tone oddly hesitant.
He was right after all, but how? As he observed Octavia's expression, he surmised that this was a shock to her as well.
John's suspicion grew. A timid boy spontaneously manifesting hidden strength? And intentionally concealing it even from his own sister? This reeked of a familiar archetype, though John couldn't recall where he'd encountered it before. Regardless, he didn't like the implications.
Before he could probe further, a raspy groan silenced the room. Dalia shifted, vision blurred, taking in the shadowy forms around her. Relief washed over her spotting John whole.
"What...happened?" Dalia croaked.
As John drew closer, he knelt down, resting his hand on he shoulder with a gentle squeeze.
"How are you feeling?" He asked. Dalia smiled, his concern transmitted a warmth through her. Despite her lingering disorientation, his sincerity brought a faint smile to Dalia's face. She clasped his hand in gratitude, only to be interrupted by the sharp thud of approaching footsteps.
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