Chương 9: A Chance

The bull-ape hybrid roared in fury, its eyes locked onto Eric with murderous intent as it charged at him. It trampled everything in its path, metal benches crumpling like paper and the tiled floor cracking under its weight. Laura's voice cut through the chaos, sharp and commanding.

"Dodge! Get to the side, now!"

Eric reacted instinctively, his body moving with a speed and agility he wasn't aware he possessed. He sprang to the side, twisting in mid-air and landing on his palms in a near-perfect backflip.

The maneuver felt almost too easy, and for a moment, he was stunned at his own performance. But Laura's urgent voice echoed in his mind again, snapping him back to reality just in time to see the creature pivoting to charge at him once more.

"Focus, Eric!" he muttered to himself, his heart pounding. As the creature barreled toward him, he dove forward, sliding beneath its hulking frame just as its horns sliced through the air where his head had been a moment before. Rolling back to his feet, he couldn't help but wonder, 'Why is it only after me?'

Scanning the area, he realized the truth. Laura was gone. She had vanished into the shadows, leaving him exposed as the beast's primary target. She must have been using him as bait.

'She wouldn't just leave me here,' he thought, eyes darting around for any sign of her. 'She's probably setting up an ambush.'

But a small part of him bristled at the idea that she was hiding while he was out in the open. He wasn't a coward, and he didn't intend to stand there waiting for her to make the first move. He had just reached level three, and he was eager to see how far he could push his newfound strength.

The creature snorted, scraping its hooves against the ground in preparation for another charge. This time, Eric was ready. He dodged to the side again, narrowly avoiding the sharp horns that grazed past him. As he sidestepped the bull-ape's momentum, an idea flashed in his mind. If it thought like a bull, then getting on its back would frustrate it into a frenzy.

With a burst of speed, he leapt onto the creature's back, grabbing onto one of its curved horns to steady himself. The beast roared in rage, thrashing its body in an attempt to shake him off.

Eric tightened his grip, his fingers digging into the coarse hair at the back of the creature's neck. It twisted and bucked violently, but he held on, his resolve hardening.

'Come on, you big brute. Let's see how stubborn you are.'

The beast spotted a thick support pillar in the distance and let out a guttural snarl, charging toward it in a desperate attempt to smash Eric off its back. As the pillar drew closer, Eric grinned. This was exactly what he was hoping for. Gripping the horns tightly, he yanked them to one side, steering the creature like a wild horse.

The beast veered off course, smashing into the pillar at an awkward angle. Its horns embedded themselves deep into the concrete with a dull crunch, momentarily trapping the creature.

Eric knew he had only a few seconds before it broke free. He scrambled up to a more stable position, his breath coming in ragged gasps, and pulled out the dagger Laura had given him. With all his strength, he drove the blade repeatedly into a small, vulnerable spot at the base of the creature's neck. It howled in agony, thrashing even harder as it struggled to free itself.

The creature's horns cracked and groaned under the strain, and with a final jerk, it tore them free from the pillar. But Eric wasn't finished. He shifted his weight and drove the dagger in again, this time with all his might. The blade found its mark, slicing through muscle and bone until it struck the spinal cord. There was a sickening crack, followed by a shudder that rippled through the beast's entire body.

Eric felt the tension release beneath him as the creature went limp, collapsing in a heap on the ground with a dull thud that reverberated through the station. He slid off its back, his limbs trembling with adrenaline. He was breathing hard, his chest rising and falling as he tried to comprehend what he had just accomplished.

A low whistle reached his ears, and he spun around to see Laura emerging from the shadows, her expression caught between amusement and surprise. "Not bad," she remarked, striding over to inspect the dead creature. "You handled that well… for a beginner."

Eric wiped the sweat from his brow and grinned, though there was a hint of nervousness in his voice. "I didn't think it would actually work," he admitted. "I just… did what I thought made sense."

Laura raised an eyebrow, her gaze shifting from him to the fallen beast. "Well, it worked, so I'd say you earned yourself some credit." She crouched down next to the corpse and pulled the dagger free, handing it back to him with a nod of approval. "But remember, you're not invincible. That was only one monster, and there are plenty more out there that will be a lot harder to kill."

Eric took the dagger, his hand still shaking slightly from the fight. "You left me out here on purpose, didn't you?" he asked, his tone accusatory but without malice. "You used me as bait."

Laura shrugged, a faint smirk playing at her lips. "I knew you could handle it," she replied casually. "Besides, you wanted to prove yourself, didn't you? I gave you the chance."

He wasn't sure whether to feel flattered or frustrated, but he couldn't deny the truth in her words. As much as the fight had terrified him, it had also awakened something inside him—a hunger for more, a desire to grow stronger and keep pushing his limits.

Before he could respond, another deep rumble shook the ground, and the air grew colder. Laura's expression darkened as she glanced up at the sky, where larger rifts like the one that released the creature Eric had just faced, had begun to open, swirling with a malevolent energy. "Looks like our time's up," she said, her voice now serious. "The second wave is fully here."

Eric's eyes widened as he followed her gaze. The rifts expanded, and from within emerged larger, more monstrous figures—creatures that made the first wave look like mere pests. One of the beasts that descended was a massive reptilian horror, covered in dark scales with glowing blue eyes and a mouth full of jagged teeth. It landed with a bone-rattling impact, letting out a thunderous roar that echoed through the station.

Laura's grip tightened on her knife as she glanced at Eric. "Stay close, and don't take any unnecessary risks. These ones are a lot like than what you just faced."

Eric nodded, his earlier confidence giving way to a more tempered determination. "Got it. I'm ready."

She gave him a brief, appraising look. "We'll see," she said, turning her attention to the approaching monsters.

bình luận bình luận của 1

Bình chọn

GỬI QUÀ TẶNG

Load failed, please RETRY