Outside, the others saw the giant flower quiver, its petals twitching—and then, with a blinding burst of green-white energy, it exploded from the inside out. And in the smoking crater at the center I stood—breathing hard, eyes glowing, and something new coursing through my veins.
Everyone looking had the unexplainable expression on and their mouth was wide agape.
"What the ¥π¢€ just happened?" Reece suddenly ask.
That's a question I can't give an answer to either. Whatever that happened while I was inside the mutation flowers was beyond what I can comprehend myself.
"I don't know," I said because I was as confused as they were.
"You just burst that thing open like a balloon. How is it possible?" I heard Ember ask and I shrugged.
"Wow, it's incredible," Hala said.
"It might be this place. Steven never showed any sign of possessing mystical power until now." Reecer uttered.
"Can he control it?" Pashina inquired.
"No, I don't think I can control it. I have no idea how this power works to be frank. It just erupted like a volcano," I responded. There was a moment of silence after I said that. Maybe they were afraid that I would lose control of such power.
I've seen enough movies about a character not being in the total control of their powers, endangering the people around time.
"You will figure it out in time. But now we need to continue with our journey," Aqueon suddenly says. "He will figure out whatever this thing is in time. As Reecer mentioned earlier, maybe this place dug some special part of Steven, unlocking his gift."
And so we continued, we came in contact with other obstacles such as swarms of insects. If you got covered by them there would be nothing left of you but bones. Pashina named them Flesh Swarm. We lost one of the elemental siblings - Galeon the air.
When we finally arrived at the last location, In the distance, we saw the escape portal pulsed with blue-white energy—an open door back to safety. But we know getting there we have to go through some deadly force because it won't be so easy.
Behind the entrance to the place there was a status - a humanoid scorpion to be precise, a grotesque guardian it might be.
This would be a great threat as we watched the status crack, shattering and the real deal raised from the dust.
The humanoid scorpion hybrid was nearly ten feet tall. Its torso resembled a grotesque human, all sinew and exoskeletal plating, with glowing orange eyes that radiated hate. Its lower body was a monstrous arachnid—thick legs, curved pincers, and a barbed tail that oozed venom. It hissed, flexing its claws as it positioned itself in front of the portal.
I stepped forward, sweat trickling down my temple. "We don't have time to go around it."
"Then we go through it." Reecer said.
"I was hoping you'd say that." Pashina cracked his knuckles.
"You guys think we can really take that thing down?" Ember questioned the decision.
"Yeah... it's pretty big and looks dangerous, not a joke," I heard Reece's input.
I turned to look at the hybrid that still stood still looking at us as well.
"We can't give up now. We have lost so much more than to surrender now. We will get through this... together!"
"Together!" It was a chorus.
"And the evil is approaching," Aqueon announced and we shifted our glance to see it coming.
"Let's burn it to ash," Ember growled, her eyes glowing like fire embers as flames ignited across her arms. But the hybrid didn't not strike as we thought it would but spoke.
"Your Death Is Inevitable. Your Fate Tangled And Unchanged. Shared Fate, Shared Death!" It said, its voice crack. And so it attacked.
"Go!" I shouted.
The team exploded into motion.
Reecer lunged at the front, slashing at the creature's torso with precise strikes. The hybrid hissed and swung a claw—he ducked and rolled, drawing its attention.
Pashina dashed to the side, dancing through debris, his blades striking at the jointed legs with lightning-fast movements. The hybrid roared and lashed out with its tail, venom spraying—but Aqueon stepped in, throwing a wall of ice that locked the tail mid-swing.
"Nice saving," Aqueon complimented himself.
Ember leapt into the air, landing on the beast's back. Flames erupted from her palms, crawling along its legs, scorching the chitin as the monster shrieked in pain. Its claws flailed, trying to dislodge her, I dive in with a scavenged iced spear driving it into the creature's exposed side. The hybrid screamed—a horrible sound that shook the ground before it knocked me away with ease.
With a roar of fury, it slammed Reecer back, cracked the ice on its tail, and swung toward Reece fast before sweeping him with its tail.
All of us moved back, focused and vigilant without moving our sight away from it.
The beast reeled in pain but it didn't look exhausted like us that were using force to fight it. Also, it stood before the exit portal still where we hadn't managed to get to.
I locked eyes with Hala, "We need to overwhelm him. Can you do that?" I asked and she nodded.
Good!
Hala began pumping out her clones like pulling feathers from chicken.
"I Warned You, Death Is Inevitable. You Can Stop Me Because It Is Here You Will Perish!"
"I will rather die trying," Reece muttered with so much determination while a sinister grin escaped the hybrid's face and before we could act quick, it struck with its tail, stretching the poisonous tail beyond what we can imagine. But it all happened so fast when Reecer traded her brother's fate with hers.
Reece's voice shattered into a scream behind her. "REECER!"
Next thing we saw was blood gushing out of her mouth as the hybrid tail retrieved from Reecer's gut, splashing blood on the floor.
What just happened?!
I couldn't move an inch from where I was with my eyes wide in shock and terrified of the unexpected turn of events. Reece rushed to his sister, catching her before she could fall completely on the floor.
This is unbreathable. Catastrophic!
"No—no!" Reece screamed tears streaming down his face, life bursted pipe, holding her body so close like a cuddling baby. "Stay with me. Please Reecer stay with me!" He cried out loud with great sadness. Reecer weakly wiped the tears away from his face while wearing a weak smile on her face.
"It's okay. It will... be okay," she choked on her words as her voice faded like wind.
While we mourn, the hybrid blab.
"Death Is Inevitable. I will be kind enough to make it quick just like hers."
But we have had enough of its trash talk as we give it no reason to talk much before we stroke again. This time for revenge!
"I am sorry I caused this. I am sorry," he held on to her hand firmly. "I promise you your sacrifice won't be in vain. I will make fucker pay with its life!" He swore as he raised his head looking at the hybrid with a deadly glance.
The hybrid flung us around like a play thing.
We are getting nowhere and it's only a matter of time before the hybrid goes for killing.
"Over here, you freak!" he shouted, stepping forward. The aura around Reece was thick and deadly. The mischief and silliness in him seemed to have vanished without trace.
The hybrid growl like a wild creature it was, "I Can See Your Anger, Thirsty For Retribution. Come Have It!" It dared him. Reece doesn't make a move nor the creature, they kept glancing at each other like they would laser each other's head off.
"I seek retribution from you monster! And you will pay with your damn life. An eye for an eye... life in place of life," he said and the hybrid charged at him at full speed like always, but what it encountered was unexpected for him and us that were watching.
FLASHBACK…
"Can't you do anything aside from mind reading?"
"I can do more than that. I can brain blast but I don't know how. It just happened and anytime I brain blast, I don't get myself for sometime."
_________________________________________________
Reece roared like a rageful lion, emitted a fusion of light and energy beams from his forehead —blistering, blinding—and blasted the hybrid square in the chest. It howled and staggered, collapsing to its knees.
Ember and Aqueon took the opportunity to deliver a devastating attack to it through its open chest. The hybrid screeched in agony before I ran, jumped, and landed a brutal uppercut with the spear to the scorpion's throat.
With a final screech, the hybrid fell—its body twitching—before it stilled completely.
After the defect of the hybrid, we grieved and buried Reecer's body in that place. Reece couldn't stop blaming himself for the death of his sister.
The portal's hum grew louder, pulsing brighter.
"It's time!" Pashina called, grabbing Reece's hand.
One by one, we leapt into the light— I was the last to look back, panting, bloodied, but alive. The monster's corpse lay smoldering behind me. I turned—and disappeared into the portal.
I felt the light wash over me and I met myself with others back at the usual place, but this time there seemed to be a commotion among the players.
What's going on? I thought only to find Gabriel being assaulted by some alien freak. The rage built inside me like an erupting volcano.
"I am not the one on the brink of death. You see something... no one can help you because if they do they will end up just like you... a punching bag!" I heard the freak say as I held my fist tight.
"You sure about that because the boy has people that will mop the floor with you!" I responded in a murdering tone, making the freak turn around to see who said that when he spotted a bloodlust looking at me. I then charged at him and delivered a deadly energy emitting jew breaking blow at him, sending him flying away leaving everyone surprised at the sudden increase in human strength.
MEANWHILE...
Habib increased his own pace and gave a chance at the figure. The runner seemed quite fast, but not compared to Habib's speed. He managed to catch up with it and stretch out his hand to pull the hood that was covering the figure's, exposing her identity. Seeing who it turned out to be, Habib gasped in surprise.
"It's you?!" He exclaimed in shock after he uncovered the hooded figure turning out to be Susan. "Aren't you the girl with Gabriel the last time? What are you doing... Of course you're his friend."
"Whatever you have on your mind we can discuss it somewhere else," she said.
"Burger Mania?" He suggested.
"That would do."