The city's steel and concrete canyons trembled as the collision of two giant buildings sent shockwaves rippling through the streets. The air was filled with the cacophony of crumbling glass, twisted metal, and the screams of the mutated beasts. Mike stood tall in the air, his mysterious silver-tipped black hair shimmering in the faint sunlight that pierced through the clouds. The wind whipped around him, carrying the acrid scent of smoke and ozone.
The mutated beasts, a twisted amalgamation of insects and reptiles, froze for a moment, their beady eyes fixed on Mike with a mixture of fear and awe. The sound of their chitinous exoskeletons scraping against the pavement, the rustling of their wings, and the guttural growls created an unsettling symphony.
"This is fun," Mike said in a low tone, his lips stretching into a cold grin. The words seemed to hang in the air, like a challenge to the very fabric of reality.
*Screachhhh!!!* The beasts erupted into a frenzy, their cacophonous screams echoing off the skyscrapers.
"Back for more, are we?" Mike's voice was laced with amusement. "Well, I've got a lot more where that came from."
He raised his hands, and said..."Phase 2—Kinetic Armor" just then a blue translucent armor materialized around him. The armor pulsed with a soft, blue light, like the gentle hum of a dynamo.
*Whoosh!* *Waam!* *Baam!* *Crack!!* Mike zoomed from one beast to the other, his fists and feet a blur as he tore through the horde. The sound of shattering chitin and the scent of ichor filled the air. Chloe watched in awe, her eyes fixed on Mike's fluid movements.
"Since when can telekinesis create armor?" Chloe's voice was laced with skepticism, her brow furrowed in concern. "And I thought your telekinesis could only control about 1 to 2 tons of matter!!"
Mike paused, a chuckle rumbling deep within his chest. "He he, Chloe... still as sharp as ever." He gazed at her, his eyes crinkling at the corners. "Actually, for my first attack, I couldn't possibly manipulate 2 buildings which weighed way more than 2 tons with just telekinesis. So, I decided to merge telekinesis with the 'Monarch of Space'... Honestly, I don't know what effect was applied to the telekinetic force which gave that result. But my stamina took a huge hit with that attack, so I guess I can't use it again until I raise my stamina..."
As Mike spoke, his gaze drifted to Mio, who hovered in the sky, her dazzling bluish-white hair dancing in the wind. Her blue eyes locked onto Mike, filled with a mixture of admiration and curiosity. The wind buffeted around her, creating a whirlwind of debris and dust.
"Keep watching, Mio. Show's not over yet," Mike said with a wink. Mio's cheeks flushed a deep shade of pink, her eyes sparkling with embarrassment.
"(I gotta admit, for my kinetic armor, I had to take a page out of Mio's book. Since she could compress wind into a lot of things, I decided to try it too... And the result is incredible. Since my capacity is 2 tons, each punch or kick I throw while in this armor is equivalent to 2 tons. These bugs don't stand a chance.)"
Mike turned towards the remaining enemies with a cold grin on his face.
"(...let's finish this with a new move, shall we )"
With a simple gesture, Mike raised over 50 mutated creatures into the air, their squirming bodies suspended in mid-air. Each beast weighed around 10-20 kg, a mere trifle for Mike's telekinetic abilities.
"Phase 3—Kinetic Prison," Mike declared, his voice carrying across the city. The beasts were pulled into a translucent blue sphere, their frantic struggles muffled by the armor's energy.
Mike turned slightly towards the girls, his eyes glinting with a mixture of amusement and warning. "Ladies... you might wanna close your eyes for this one." Chloe and Mio exchanged a nervous glance, their faces set in determination.
With a slow, deliberate motion, Mike closed his arms into fists. "CRUSH." The kinetic prison collapsed in on itself, the beasts' screams cut short as they were squashed into a gruesome pulp. The sound of splattering ichor and the scent of death filled the air.
Chloe gulped, her face pale. For the first time in her life, she was too terrified to speak. Mio's eyes were fixed on Mike, a mixture of awe and concern etched on her face.
After that gruesome and one sided battle, the lot made their way to the convenience store. The entire journey was filled with utter silence, the only sound, was the whipping of the wind as Mike and Mio zoomed through the skies and the stomping and crashing sound made by Chloe's feet as she leaped from building to building trying to keep up with the others.
"M-Mikey..." Mio finally broke the awkward silence.
Mike's lips stretched into a smile, he'd been expecting this. Though he had thought that Chloe would be the one to ask questions, his eyes lit up in intrigue as he turned to reply... "yes Mio?"
"W-What are your...current stats?" she inquired, her blue eyes gleaming with curiosity.
"How about you take a guess" Mike replied, his grin growing by the minute.
"Mikey!!!" Mio yelled out of impatience.
"O-Okay okay!, jeez"
Mike quickly pulled up his status window and announced...
[ status Window ]
[ Name- Mike Morgan ]
[ Race- ?????? ]
[ Age- 18 ]
[ Strength- 1.5^=1.9^=3 ]
[ Agility- 2^=3^=4.5 ]
[ Intelect- 2^=2.5 ]
[ Stamina- 2.5^=3^=4.7 ]
[ Constitution- 1.5^=2 ]
[Physical skills- Slightly Athletic ]
[ Mental skills- Quick thinking ]
[ Tip- Training or killing monsters can increase stat points ]
With her eyes widened and Jaws dropped, Mio couldn't fathom his monstrous growth, it didn't make any sense.
"how did your stats increase so much in just five days Mikey?!" Mio asked
"Well...I guess I'm just a genius" *he he* Mike replied with a prideful attitude.
"Genius my ass, you planned this from the start didn't you?!" Chloe, as intuitive as ever retorted.
"Mikey what is she talking about?!" Mio asked her voice laced with confusion.
"...I guess you're dumb as well, aren't you Mio?" Mio shot a scorching glare at Chloe on hearing that. "what are you talking about bitch!" Mio snapped.
"it's simple really, don't you remember the 'tip' at the end of the status window screen?!" Chloe replied nonchalantly.
"Of course I do, that's why we've been training all these while to in—" just then it dawned on Mio as the tip from the system flashed in her memory.
~[ Tip- Training or killing monsters can increase stat points ]~
"Bingo!, I guess you can use your brain sometimes huh?" Chloe remarked with a mocking smirk.
"However, the way you used your abilities was...absolutely unthinkable!" Chloe added, her voice growing louder by the minute as she continued. "I mean, you just slaughtered a horde of beasts like it was nothing, and with just an A-Rank ability no less. I think your the real monster here."
"...umm, I don't know whether that was a compliment or not but...thanks anyways I guess?" Mike replied.
"I'm not done, I still have a question...why is the 'Race' part of you and Mio's status windows unknown?" Chloe's question hung on the air, lingering like a dark cloud.
Both Mike and Mio where silent, they glanced at each other and then back at the ever inquisitive Chloe, as they didn't have a suitable reply.
"...w-we don't...know either " Mike came to the rescue and severed the silence, his words broken with stutters.
*sigh* Chloe let out a sigh as she had expected that answer "I thought as much, I mean are you guys even human?!"
There was no response to that either, Chloe stared at the lot, her fingers rapped around her chin as she contemplated...
"(...there's a chance there might be other races in this world, there's also a possibility that they could be monsters sent here to destroy the world. Although from the little I know about Mio, though she might be annoying but I don't think she's evil or anything, and Mike, there's no way that guy is some kind of villain, I mean he's like a novel protagonist through and through, plus his kind, caring, smart, composed and...really handsome, he's totally my type....WHAT THE HELL AM I THINKING!!!. Chloe, you shouldn't get swayed by your emotions.)" As Chloe's thoughts escalated, her cheeks went from flushed pink to burning red.
"(...besides Mio clearly has a thing for him and I think he feels the same way too, so why do I feel this way...)" Chloe clasped her chest as if throbing in pain as her thoughts continued to unravel. "(...am I always fated to destroy other people's happiness, just like I did with Maya and...)" Chloe's eyes sparkled with tears as the long buried memories of a dreadful past had resurfaced.
"...Umm..Chloe" A firm but gentle hands had grabbed Chloe's shoulders. She quickly raised her head towards the owner of those hands and...Of course it was Mike.
His hands where warm and comforting, they gave the feeling of security. Chloe finally met his gaze and before she knew it she was drowning in the sea of warmth and comfort.
"Chloe, I know there might be things that don't add up about us, and you have absolutely no reason to trust us but, rest assured I consider you as both a comrade and a friend. So believe me, you are more than precious to me, and as such I won't let any harm come to you as long as I draw breath, so can we continue our quest for survival in this dying world together?" Mike concluded, extending his hands for Chloe to grab them in agreement. His eyes glowing with extreme resolve, hair rustling in the wind, and his ever growing masculinity gleaming in the tiny rays of the sun that pierced through the dark clouds.
"(...jeez Mike, your not giving me a choice here, how can a girl not fall for you, if you say those words while looking so handsome and determined, I can't say 'no' even if I wanted to )" Chloe wiped her premature tears, a smile spread across her face as she grabbed his hands and said...
"Of course I will, even if you guys become villains I'll just kick your ass with my SSR-Rank ability,...and besides if I'm not here who would put Mio in her place when she acts up?!"
"hmph!!" yeah your right, the owner of the pout is none other than Mio.
Mike's lips stretched into a smile as he slowly let go of Chloe's hand.
"then let's get back to it, shall we?" he said as he levetated into the sky and called out... "Accelerate" and zoom he went.
Mio glared at Chloe intently, but the glare slowly became softer as she smiled at Chloe and said... "try to keep up bitch!" with that she zoomed after Mike.
"right behind you bitch!" those words were said with a smile instead of animosity by Chloe.
Chloe gazed at the lot as their sillueht grew smaller with distance. With a last fleeting thought as she leapt after them...
"(...I've always shrugged off the feeling, but now I know for a fact that I'm in love with Mike...)"
.
.
.
.
The lot finally arrived at the convenience store, but what was waiting for them was a horde of mutated beasts, and at the site of them, the beasts charged at them with only one goal to "devour."