Chapter 12: Chapter 12: Christmas in Hell - Part 2

Chapter 12

Christmas in Hell – Part 2

Alex still hadn’t fully processed it.

Kairin—was she really an alien?

Why did she look so human, then?

Aren’t aliens supposed to be much, much scarier?

On one hand there were these giant, scary, fiery demons. And on the other… basically humans with icy white skin?

Why did Clark never mention that there were humans on other planets too?

Wait. She may look human, but she might still be a scary Xenomorph underneath. Maybe her human form is just a disguise!

Alex’s head began to squirm inside his skull. There was so much… just so much he didn’t know yet.

So much that he would love to ask Clark about.

The vast galaxy was finally making contact!

“So,” said Kairin, still in her battle stance. “What are you going to do, master?”

Alex slowly got his mind back to the scene playing out in front of him.

The tall figure in the center dropped his hood and revealed a bald, tattooed head and face.

Except that they weren’t tattoos.

They looked like war paint the likes of which Alex had never seen before. Or maybe they were tribal markings, or scars from a ritual gone wrong…

“Come home, Kairin,” said the middle-aged bald man in a sympathetic growl. “You’ve been away long enough.”

“I cannot, not yet,” said Kairin. “This is important to me.”

“Your duty lies with your people.”

“My duty lies where I decide it lies!”

“Oh, come on!” shouted the figure on the left, also dropping his hood. “And they chose you for the ice witch trials. It’s preposterous!”

“You’re here, too?” asked Kairin, bemused, but in a condescending way.

“Quiet, Jovar!” said the tattooed man. “You will speak to the princess with respect or I will have your tongue!”

“My apologies, father,” said the man named Jovar. He should be roughly their age.

“Apologize to the princess, not to me,” said the man.

“There’s no need,” said Kairin. “It’s not like he’s acting out of character.” Kairin turned to the third hooded man. “You! Might as well show me your face.”

The third man dropped his hood. Kairin immediately recognized him. “Malti! They sent you too?”

“Hi Kairin!” The man waved awkwardly. He looked fairly younger than both Alex and Kairin. He must be a little older than Aiden. “Long time, huh?”

“Malti, what are you doing here? There’s a full-scale demon invasion at play. They brought their once beautiful town to ruin!” Kairin sounded very concerned about this young man. “You shouldn’t be here.”

“I’m ready, Kairin!” said the young man excitedly. “I cleared Grade 1. I can do this!”

“It’s called Grade 1 for a reason Malti! There’s plenty more!”

Malti shrugged. “Don’t worry. Jovar thinks I’ll have a rank soon.”

“Have you been poisoning his mind?” Kairin turned to the man called Jovar.

Jovar opened his mouth but immediately snapped it shut following a stern look from his father.

“Kairin,” said the tattooed man. “You know we can’t interfere.”

“You cannot,” said Kairin. “I can do whatever I want!”

“It’s your father’s orders,” said the man. “To bring you in by force, when it becomes necessary.”

“Oh yeah?” said Kairin. “And when will it become necessary?”

“When you’re in danger.”

“Am I in danger right now, master? From you?”

“I swore to protect you.” The man was pleading. “I will never put you in danger.”

“Perfect, then,” said Kairin. “I think that settles it. Now get out of my way!”

“He misses you, Kairin. There are reasons why your father thinks what he thinks, and does what he does,” said the tattooed man. “I hope you too see it one day.”

Kairin remained silent.

“You’re putting your own people in danger,” said Jovar. “By sympathizing with these kaltoks!”

“Jovar, I will have your tongue!” said Kairin.

Jovar scoffed in frustration, knowing he couldn’t utter another word.

“Call for help,” said the tattooed man. “If you need us.”

The corner of Kairin’s lips twitched a little. She wanted to smile, but stopped herself. “Don’t worry, master. I will never compel you to break your oaths; or the All-father forbid, the law.” She said the last word with a hint of scorn.

The tattooed man and his son, Jovar, began to retreat into the shadows.

“Master Korne!” Kairin called out. “Let father know that I’m alive and well. And that I can take care of myself.”

The tattooed man nodded and disappeared into the foggy darkness with his son. The third man stuck around for a second longer.

“Goodbye, Kairin,” he said sincerely, waving awkwardly. “You take care!”

“Be careful, Malti,” said Kairin. “Keep your eyes peeled at every corner. You understand?”

Malti nodded and followed the others into the darkness.

The dark fog lifted. Alex noticed it only after it was gone.

Kairin turned awkwardly to a heaving Alex. “Okay,” she said. “You may have questions.”

“You think?” asked Alex.

“Let me start by assuring you I mean you and your people no harm,” said Kairin.

“Yeah, well,” said Alex. “You made your stance pretty clear just now… to your master?”

“He’s been one of my teachers ever since I was a child,” said Kairin. “I have great respect for Master Korne.”

“What did he teach you?” Alex couldn’t resist.

“Come now,” said Kairin. “It won’t be fun if I reveal everything all at once!”

“Don’t be like that,” said Alex. “You’re strong, aren’t you?”

“Let’s just say we can take all the demon-infested shortcuts now, you know, the ones you were trying to avoid.”

Alex smirked. She was so cocky!

“Unless we run into a C-rank or something,” said Kairin. “I don’t think I can take a C-ranker by myself, yet.”

“Won’t your friends help?” asked Alex.

“They’ve sworn not to,” said Kairin. “They can’t interfere.”

“What kind of a stupid oath is that?”

“I’ll tell you all about the inner-workings of my father’s politics some other time. But regardless, the chances of there being a C or even a D-rank anywhere around here are almost zero.”

“Almost, huh?” Alex wondered whether she knew about The Chancellor.

If she did—which is a big IF—then did that make someone like The Chancellor a non-threat for her people?

Were they really that strong?

“Don’t worry,” said Kairin. “Let’s go find your friend.”

Alex and Kairin made their way through the wide streets with densely-packed with tents. It was a grim view of people barely getting by.

And there was nothing Alex could do for any of them.

Just where was the government? What moron thought of keeping the military out at a time like this?

With The Chancellor gone, these lesser demons should drop like flies in the face of heavy artillery.

It shouldn’t be too hard! Especially considering how much Dan and his small crew of vacationing soldiers had managed to achieve by themselves!

If only Clark was intact, he would’ve cleaned this place up in less than a day.

He looked at Kairin curiously. She had a home somewhere else in the stars; and yet she was here, on some personal mission, apparently. Her origins may not be as mysterious as Clark’s, but she seemed like yet another strong ally.

They were lucky after all.

Kairin was back to being her bubbly, carefree self. Almost everything she set her eyes on fascinated her.

It only made sense now. Earth is an alien world to her after all.

Alex’s stomach growled. “We better find something to eat,” he said to Kairin.

“Oo yes!” She clapped excitedly. Her bubbly persona in the midst of such a grim atmosphere only drew unnecessary attention from disgusted onlookers.

“What’re you clapping about, lady?” spat a disheveled bum.

Kairin was about to respond with something surely distasteful, but Alex pulled her away.

“What’s his problem?” she muttered angrily. “Oh wait,” she said, having finally realized it. “I guess I know.”

“Having gone without food for days while living under the constant threat of a demon attack can make someone a tad bit grumpy, huh?” said Alex, pointing out what she had presumably just figured out.

“Yeah, well,” she said. “I guess I should go back and apologize.”

“No!” said Alex. “Not necessary. Just keep moving.”

“Why?” She protested. “It’s the right thing to do!”

“He might just be a bum who’d loot your iPad-thingy from you and dump your body somewhere!”

“I’d love to see him try,” said Kairin. “What’s iPad-thingy?”

“The device you were scribbling on,” said Alex. “Looks like a miniature iPad.”

“It’s a notebook,” said Kairin. “I keep it to take notes!” she added sarcastically.

Alex’s stomach growled again.

“Might need some minchkin for that,” said Kairin. “Oh! Or do you have frostberries? Please say yes.”

“I don’t know what either of those things are,” said Alex. “But we may find some fruits near the north side. But that’s a back track.”

“I’m hungry!” said Kairin.

Alex felt it too. “Okay,” he said, annoyed that it didn’t strike him earlier to gather fruits on his way in. “Let’s quickly go find some.”

They walked toward the northern jungle for a while in silence. Alex hacked the robot dogs once again (“They were so scary, but that was so cool!” said Kairin), and they were able to gather some low-hanging fruits.

“Might grab a few more,” she told him. “We could share it with the others.”

“I only have one backpack,” said Alex. “But sure. I’ll carry a little extra.”

They quickly doubled back to the west side and were now on track for the first hospital, Apex Central.

“Say,” said Alex. “What did your friend call us before?”

“Who, Jovar? He’s not my friend. And you don’t wanna know.”

“Wasn’t it kaltovak or something?”

“Shut up!” said Kairin. “Don’t just drop slurs like that casually.”

“I don’t even know what it means!”

“He called you low-lifes,” said Kairin. “More like low forms of life. Happy?”

“Wow,” said Alex. “We’re that primitive compared to you, huh?”

Kairin nodded. “You sure are primitive,” she began but got confused halfway through her thoughts. “But you are not that primitive. Certainly not primitive enough to be hidden from the archive…”

“The archive?”

“The Galactic Archive,” Kairin explained. “It contains a ton of information about almost everything. You can find whatever you want about all the known planets and star systems in the galaxy.”

“And Earth wasn’t in it?”

Kairin shook her head. “Earth—what a funny name,” she said giggling. “It’s like calling your world dirt or concrete.”

“Yeah, well.” Alex had never thought of it that way. “I don’t know who named it so. No one does.”

They walked in silence a bit more. And then, it struck Alex. “Wait, why can I understand you? How are you speaking English?”

Come to think of it, he could even understand The Chancellor.

Kairin looked at him weird. “What do you mean?”

“Are you using some high-tech real-time audio translator or something like that?”

“I’m speaking the Galactic Standard,” said Kairin. “This is not English.”

Alex tried to wrap his head around it. Of course they wouldn’t call it English; the British wouldn’t have gotten to them, obviously.

Or maybe they had. You never know.

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

“There are many other Standard Tongues,” Kairin went on to explain. “It’s just that this one’s been the standard for a few thousand years now.”

“But how do we speak it?”

“Your language and culture were subtly influenced, groomed over millennia,” said Kairin. “Like most newer worlds. After all, no one escapes the Empire…” She was lost in thought for a second. “Which makes it even more suspicious as to why you weren’t in the archives.”

Alex gulped. It was like everything he ever knew was about to change.

They had reached Apex Central Hospital. The first thing they noticed was smoke emerging from behind the hospital building.

At first, Alex thought the building was on fire. But then came the unbearable stench.

“They’re burning bodies,” said Alex, choking and coughing. “Probably piled up in the grounds behind the building.”

“Right,” she said, grimly eyeing the rising smoke. The smell didn’t bother her one bit. “Oh shoot, sorry,” she said after noticing Alex choke. She made a quick combination of hand signs in the air.

A small amount of frosty, smokey ice gathered around her fingers and shot off to Alex’s nose. He could feel soft icicles growing inside his nostrils, which tickled. His nose felt cold and numb, and the smell was gone.

“Should’ve done it earlier,” she said.

“So you are an ice witch!” said Alex.

Kairin smiled dismissively. “Come on.”

The scene inside the hospital was horrific. Doctors and nurses ran around in panic. Patients with all kinds of injuries were stuck in a line in the lobby, waiting to be tended to.

Alex couldn’t bear the sight. He asked at the reception, but they had no record of anyone named Kenny Serkin.

“Let’s get out of here,” said Alex pointing Kairin to an exit behind the reception.

Once out from this exit, Alex and Kairin had a proper view of the open space behind the hospital, which was much larger than what Alex remembered, presumably because the building next to it had crumbled to the ground.

They saw a fresh set of bodies being dumped into the already massive fire.

The electric incinerators inside the hospital were obviously out of order. And besides, there were just too many bodies to store indoors.

Alex wondered how were they functioning without any electricity. So many people who could have been saved must have lost their lives, simply due to lack of power.

He felt a deep, unbearable sadness within him. But he didn’t have the time to confront it.

Not now. Not when Kenny was battling for his life in a place like this, all alone.

He turned to leave, but spotted Kairin glued in place as she stared at the heap of bodies, breathing heavily. She had tears in her eyes.

“Hey,” said Alex. “We should keep mo—”

He stopped talking, thinking that he’d probably say something insensitive.

Kairin sniffled. Steaming hot tears flowed down her cheeks, misting up against her icy cold skin.

“This is why I do what I do,” she said, her voice beaming with emotion. “Just look at the death and destruction they leave in their wake. They have no regard for any life other than their own!”

Kairin closed her eyes and clenched her fists. “I will stop them. I will wipe them off the face of the galaxy, if that’s what it takes!”

She was shaking with fury.

Alex couldn’t think of the right thing to say. He barely knew her. He had no idea what motivated her.

“Come on,” she said, having finally gathered herself. “Let’s go.”

They walked toward the next hospital in silence once again.

“It’s getting darker,” said Kairin. “Does it always get so dark so early?”

“No,” said Alex. “Something’s up with the weather. It’s about 3 pm now and it looks like it’s almost dusk.”

“How far is the second one?”

“Not far,” said Alex. “We should be there in about half an hour.”

“And what about the third one?”

“The third one’s a little farther than that,” said Alex. “Closer to the east side.” A faint shiver ran down Alex’s spine as he recalled what’s on that side of the city.

“Do you have a second dwelling where we can halt at or are we walking all the way back?”

“How rich do you think I am?”

“So that’s a no?”

“That’s a no. Why are you asking all this?”

“We can’t do the third one today,” she said. “We’ve got to get back home before dark.”

“Relax,” said Alex. “It’s not like the demons are any more likely to attack at night. If so, they would’ve done that already.”

“The parademons,” Kairin corrected him, “almost always hunt at night.”

“Then why aren’t they?”

“Didn’t you also tell me that they’re concentrated toward one part of the city?”

“Yes, on the east and south side. There’s like an invisible line etched through the center of the city that no one’s crossing.”

“That is very strange,” said Kairin. “Very strange indeed. It can only mean one thing: Someone, or something, is holding them back.”

“There’s another hero?”

“Could be.” Kairin was lost in thought. “Or it could be a villain, breeding them. Hoarding them for one big, all-out attack.”

Alex gulped. “Is that more likely?”

“I’ve seen it done before,” said Kairin. “Or… um… read about it.”

Alex found that odd. “How much experience do you actually have fighting demons?”

That seemed to have struck a nerve. “Enough,” she said hastily, and dismissively.

“Trust me, Alex,” she said after a pause. “We need to get back inside before dark.”

“Okay,” said Alex. “I trust you.”

***

They only had the time to check the second hospital. But again, there was no record of Kenny.

Even though Lucy had told him that the demons—nay, the parademons, an important distinction that Kairin made him aware of—were not particularly more active at night, he trusted Kairin’s reservations more. Since she was clearly more experienced.

Parademons, Kairin explained, were similar to their demon counterparts in some ways, and much, much different in others. They were spawned of demon magic and were meant to be braindead pawns and servants.

Alex finally understood the difference between the reptile demon and someone like The Chancellor.

They doubled back to Alex’s apartment by a little before six in the evening. By then, it was already pitch dark. Kairin said they should run home if that’s what it took to make it in time.

Once inside, Alex offered her a fresh set of clothes; which she refused. She knew a spell that could clean clothes in an instant.

They finally sat down to rest in Alex’s balcony, filling their bellies with fruits and canned food.

On the streets below, a kid ran up to a group of adults holding a cardboard box full of glowing yellow stars. They each picked one out and placed it over nearby bushes and even their tents.

The street lit up with faint, battery-powered light.

“Wow,” Kairin breathed. “What is that?”

Alex had completely forgotten. “It’s Christmas Eve,” he told her. “It’s like a festival to celebrate the birth of a—” he thought about how to explain it to her “—a very important historical figure. And to celebrate the spirit of holidays and family.”

“Oh,” she nodded. “So it’s like Faennah.”

“Yes,” said Alex. “Whatever that is. I’m guessing it’s your version of Christmas.”

She chuckled and nodded. “Yes, something like that.”

Alex stared up at the starry sky. Kairin’s home must be orbiting one of those.

And yet, she was here. All alone. While her father, presumably the King of her planet, had sent elite knights looking for her.

He couldn’t believe he was spending Christmas Eve with a runaway alien ice witch.

“Why are you here, Kairin?” Alex asked her. “Your people don’t sound very happy about that.”

Kairin scoffed. “They can shove it.”

Alex choked on fruit. “You didn’t answer my question.”

She looked like she was about to respond with a generic lie, but she changed her mind halfway through. “I’m here to document the demons’ scourge. The horror that they put lesser worlds like yours through.”

“So you weren’t lying when you said you were a journalist?”

“No,” said Kairin, appalled. “Well, kind of. I run a popular, galactic news-stream. I update it with all the details, including pictures in the hopes that governments across the galaxy would wake up and do something about this.”

“So it’s like a blog?”

“Yeah,” said Kairin. “Yeah, you’d call it a blog. It’s much more advanced though.”

“Do a lot of people read it?”

“Yes, Alex,” she said smiling. “A lot of people read it. I’m kind of like a big deal.”

“So you’re like some… galactic influencer?”

Kairin laughed. “Something like that. Except that I don’t try to influence. I lay the facts in front of them and urge them to make up their own minds. Although I don’t see how anyone could come to any conclusion other than mine.”

Alex wondered whether that mindset biased her reporting in any way, but he made sure he wondered in silence.

“Don’t take this the wrong way,” said Alex. “But your hatred for the demons is quite intense. Did they hurt someone close to you?”

“Does it have to be personal? Do I have to wait until they kill someone close to me before I act?”

“No, of course not,” said Alex, wondering whether he offended her. “But is it?”

“No,” she said plainly.

“Will you be in trouble?” asked Alex. “If you don’t return?”

Kairin looked up at the stars. “I’m breaking my oaths to my home world just by being here. And I intend to break a dozen interplanetary laws by helping out in case there’s another attack. I’m not someone who’d just stand by and watch!

“Considering all that, I’m at least facing exile.”

“Why do it then?” asked Alex. “Why risk everything for low lifes like us?”

She looked down at the boy dancing in the light of the dim yellow stars. A bunch of other kids had joined him, along with a few adults.

“Because it is the right thing to do,” said Kairin. “And I will always do the right thing. Damn the consequences.”

“Even when the cost is so high?”

“Even so.”

Admirable, thought Alex. But perhaps she’d never paid a price high enough.

“What if it costs you everything?” Alex asked. “Would you still do it?”

Kairin hesitated. It looked like she wanted to say yes, but couldn’t. Maybe she was thinking of someone too important to risk losing.

“I’m sorry,” said Alex sincerely. “I wish you never have to choose.”

Alex got up to clear the trash. He was almost back inside through the sliding glass door, when—

“Alex,” said Kairin. Her tone was careful, but her voice quivered with emotion. “It sounds like you’ve faced that choice already.”

Alex stared at her blankly for a second, then slightly nodded. “And it cost me everything.”

***

Alex let Kairin have the bedroom while he crashed on the couch.

There was so much that occupied his mind. His whole world was changing, it was opening up to possibilities he’d never imagined before, except in comic books and video games.

There were people like us on other planets. They had a civilization; an Empire, even.

They’d been influencing civilization on Earth, apparently since forever.

What happened then? Why did Earth vanish from their databases? From the… Galactic Archive?

He wondered what Clark would have to say about that. He wondered if Lucy and Aiden were doing all right. He wondered about the robot blob even. That little monster must be having the time of his life. He seemed… attached to them already.

Had it become attached to Alex too?

If his body wasn’t so tired, Alex was sure his mind would’ve kept him up all night.

The next day, they woke up to music blasting through the air. It was like a concert had broken out of thin air.

“What is going on?!” Kairin came out screaming.

“I don’t know!” said Alex.

Outside, there were flashing lights and mountains of confetti falling from the sky.

A small crowd had begun to cheer.

Was this it? Had the military finally arrived?

“We need to go check this out,” said Alex. “But be careful. And stick close to me!”

Kairin nodded. She once again cast the cleaning spell on their clothes that instantly made them feel fresh again.

They got to the street running. A crowd was following a massive helium airship with a giant screen strapped to its side.

On the screen it flashed: “Earth’s Paragons wish you a Merry Christmas!”

It was this airship that was blasting cheerful music through its speakers while also spreading confetti everywhere.

Alex and Kairin followed it with the crowd. It soon came to a halt at a wide intersection, but it never ceased blasting music.

Alex cringed at the sight. He knew who these guys were and what they were trying to do. It was all so… tone-deaf!

“What is going on?” Kairin asked. “What is that?” she said pointing at the airship.

Before Alex could answer, a human voice blasted through the speakers over the music. “Welcome, welcome, citizens of Sol City! The Earth’s Paragons have come to your rescue!”

Alex scoffed and shook his head. Just how tasteless and tone-deaf could they actually be?

“Who are these clowns?” Kairin asked. She seemed to have caught on pretty quick.

“It’s a charitable organization,” Alex told her. “Run by a billionaire who thinks he’s been chosen by God to be the force for good in the world.”

“That doesn’t sound too bad,” said Kairin.

“Except that it’s all just a front, an act!” said Alex. “You’ll see.”

A hatch opened atop the airship and a small figure emerged. A showman with a microphone in hand. It was as though he was addressing an audience at a music concert.

Again, just how tone-deaf could they be?

“They have no idea what’s actually going on here,” said Alex.

“Your government won’t act, but we will!” said the announcer.

Was it actually Matt Stevens?

Holy shit it was.

The billionaire owner of Earth’s Paragons.

His face covered the giant screen on the airship now.

“They told us we can’t do it,” Matt continued over his megaphone. “They told us that Sol City was in a state of complete lockdown. And I said to them: to hell with all that!”

He was expecting a huge cheer. But only a couple people clapped.

“I said to them: Enough is enough, God dammit! My people are hungry! My people are starving! I can’t just sit in my cozy ten-bedroom penthouse and watch!”

Alex slapped his face. This cannot get worse.

“So we’ve come to you with food, medicine, tents, and blankets,” said Matt Stevens. “It’s Christmas after all!”

The speakers blasted an audio clip of a crowd cheering. It swayed some of the people gathered below the airship and they began cheering too.

Or maybe they were genuinely happy to know that food and medicine were being airdropped to them.

Alex sighed. At least that part he couldn’t complain about.

“Come, gather around in an orderly fashion!” echoed Matt Stevens’s voice. “There’s plenty for everyone!”

More confetti erupted from the airship.

“Come on,” he tugged at Kairin. “Let’s get out of he—”

He stopped mid-sentence. As he looked up, he spotted a lone figure hovering in the sky, a couple hundred meters away from the airship, but at the same height.

What was that? It looked like a human being. Was he part of the act?

The figure was seated cross-legged in the air. Then, he got up and stood—on air—glaring at the airship.

It can’t be, thought Alex. He cannot be part of the act!

Something was wrong.

“Kairin!” He grabbed her attention. “Look there. What is that?”

As Kairin spotted the mysterious floating figure, so did the others. Gradually but quickly, a concerned murmur spread through the crowd as everyone began pointing at him.

The figure waved his hands in a rhythmic motion. A spell?

The last words that Matt Stevens spoke over the microphone were, “What the hell?”

Then, his mic was turned off.

A new voice blasted through the speakers now.

“Citizens of Earth!” came the sinister, hissing growl. “Release the conduit! I know you have him locked somewhere, and my patience runs thinner every day.”

The hairs at the back of Alex’s neck stood up.

Whoever this guy was, he was trouble.

“I have waited too long, but I’m willing to wait just a little longer,” the sinister, demonic voice continued. “You have nine days to return him to me. Every day that you fail to do so, I will release onto you one of my fiends. How they love the carnage!

“And if you fail to produce him on the ninth day, I shall devour this city whole.

“Your time starts now!” The figure made another rhythmic gesture. A barely visible collection of red sparks shot through his fingers and hit a man standing almost directly below the gas airship.

“Let the carnage begin!” came the hissing growl, and the figure in the air vanished.

Alex and Kairin, along with several others, looked at the man struck with the red sparks.

His body began to bloat uncontrollably. At first it seemed like he was about to puke, but the rapidly-expanding mass of flesh quickly buried his face.

The flesh heap bubbled and boiled. It expanded both in height and width, stopping at about nine feet in height, and covering almost all of the intersection.

The crowd screamed in terror. The people ran away from the revolting heap of flesh in all directions as panic broke out in Sol City once again.

However, a few dozen people who were closest to the airship weren’t so lucky.

Black tendrils shot out of the flesh heap in all directions, piercing the bodies of about twenty people. The thick tendrils raised their bodies a few inches into the air, as the terrified people helplessly wriggled their legs.

The tendrils seemed to be draining all blood from the people. Their very life force was being sucked out from their bodies and transferred to the growing mountain of flesh.

“Kairin!” Alex yelled. “We have to go!”

“No!” she screamed back. “I will not run! This is my fight too!”

The flesh heap rapidly drained the bodies dry. Then, the tendrils retracted back into the disgruntled mass of flesh and blood, carrying the bodies attached to each of them along.

The bodies were slapped into the flesh heap and slowly absorbed through completely.

This triggered another rapid transformation. The flesh heap gurgled and growled, twisted and spun around.

Then, a discernable form emerged.

The form of a terrifying ten-foot ape.

The demon ape let out a deafening roar and pounded its chest. The crowd screamed and ran in all directions as fast as they could.

Kairin still held her position. But something about her was off.

The demon ape extended its massive hands in the air and clapped at the airship. It rose up in time, barely escaping its grasp, but then—

The demon ape jumped!

It grabbed the airship in one hand and punctured the balloon amidst a plethora of explosions. He then slammed the airship’s massive husk onto the ground and jumped on it like a monkey, squashing it under both its giant feet.

It then let out another growl and once again pounded its massive chest.

“Kairin…” said Alex faintly. “Kairin are you sure you’re fighting that?”

Kairin breathed heavily. She looked like she wanted to scream in frustration as her body shook with rage.

Or… fear?

“It’s a damn C-rank!” she finally cried out. “We have to run!”

Alex didn’t need to be told twice.

She grabbed Kairin’s hand and dragged her away from the demon monkey. As they ran with their backs toward the monster, a huge bolder crashed ahead of them, missing their heads by a few inches.

Alex and Kairin climb over to the other side of the boulder and took cover to avoid another barrage of shattered rock and concrete flying at them.

Shit! They must carefully choose when to run and when to hide!

Alex waited for the demon ape to load another round of concrete bullets before jumping out of cover, when he noticed an unusual group of people who had just gotten out of what looked like a futuristic battle tank.

Alex knew this car-tank. He’d seen it parked at the garage of a mysterious alien superhero robot.

He carefully observed the small group that emerged out of it.

A tall woman accompanied a much shorter kid, each holding futuristic guns. Several alien gadgets were strapped to their arms and legs.

A miniature futuristic fighter jet hovered above them, ready to engage.