Hearing this, Flora was even more convinced she should run.
'They can swallow everything? Even light? But I'm not sure how exactly my light works, maybe it can counter him…'
Not that it mattered, though, since she was too weak to dream of landing an attack. Still, she had learned a few new things at the academy.
Flora ran out of the shadow cast by the building and into the sunlight, fueling her body and diffusing her fear. She channeled the energy into her legs and exploded it below her, creating two blinding beams of light.
As long as she was in sunlight, Flora could fly. Well, sort of.
It was extremely taxing to use her ability like this. She could maintain her flight for around 20 seconds at an average speed, but that would increase or decrease with the amount of power she used. Right now, Flora was flying as fast as she could. There was no way she would risk the assassin attacking her midair!
Because of the flight's intensity, Flora descended into the street after just 10 seconds.
When she looked back, Flora saw countless people fleeing the scene. Horns blared, children screamed, and everyone was in a panic. She had traveled around 300 meters in 10 seconds, giving her enough space to regenerate her ability. It seemed the assassin was busy with Ryan and August and wouldn't be coming after Flora anymore.
"Dodge!"
August shouted at Ryan, who was unaware of the bloodthirsty killer behind him. As a black orb came flying, he was just able to evade it by rolling to his right.
'I can only use my ability every 20 seconds if I want to maintain my calm mind. Any quicker, and the stress may cause me to think irrationally. Luckily, August is here…'
"August! We need backup from the government! Our abilities aren't suited for fighting this man."
It was true. Both of them relied on physical hand-to-hand combat, which put them in a dangerous situation.
"Let's keep him busy for now!" August replied. "I don't know what madman would attack us right next to headquarters, but someone will be out in no time to help."
Their best chance of winning was to attack at the same time, which both of them knew. The problem was that the assassin was already planning something troublesome.
He summoned the orbs in both hands, then brought them together in front of his chest. As a result, a growing sphere of darkness was created, expanding rapidly and eating at the ground below.
He pushed forward, sending the black hole charging towards Ryan.
"Dodge!"
Ryan didn't need to use his ability to find the best course of action, which was to jump out of the way and pray to live. So he did just that, and managed to tumble on the ground, somehow unscathed.
But this was exactly what the assassin wanted. When Ryan looked up, the man was already on top of him, with his right fist raised and an aura of darkness signaling death.
"HEY!"
August came rushing over, already preparing a punch to the assassin's ribs. However, he simply covered his side with his left hand, already encased with a black orb. If August hit this, his hand would disappear!
As August hesitated, the assassin brought his right hand down to engulf Ryan's face.
But right before it made contact, he suddenly lost his balance. Ryan had kicked the man's legs at the last minute, causing him to fall over and miss the attack! Because of this, he was also open to August!
"Kill him!"
August's ability had almost nothing to do with combat. Still, no one wants to fight him. His strength was just too formidable. So when his fist landed on the assassin's arm, it immediately broke, and sent him flying as a result.
Skitting across the pavement, the man's body finally stopped around 30 meters away.
The usually busy streets were empty now because of the "Abomination" attack. Although most people have accepted the idea that their lives are constantly in danger, it is still frightening when it actually happens.
Luckily, the government has grown to such a level of power that these attacks are no longer devastating. Citizens may die, but no Abominations have run rampant for long. This was why August and Ryan remained wary even after such a blow to their enemy.
If people saw the assassin flee and escape, the news of a rogue Abomination would spread across the city in days.
"Let's end this," Ryan mumbled. "If he tries to run away before someone else shows up, we'll be stuck in pursuit."
August smiled.
"I don't think we'll have that problem."
The assassin rose to his feet, his right arm dangling from his shoulder. Yet even in those conditions, he raised his left hand and summoned another orb.
"Well, what do we have here?"
A woman with short, black hair and small glasses emerged from headquarters, walking up to Ryan with a grin on her face.
'Oh great… It's her.'
"You two really can't handle this Abomination by yourself? The people inside are starting to get worked up."
She looked over at the assassin and studied him for a moment, her eyes narrowing.
"Oh? That's not an Abomination, is it?"
"Watch out, Corva," Ryan warned. "That black orb he has on his hand can erase anything it touches, including you and me. Try to shoot from a distance."
"You must not know me well enough…"
After responding, she cast her gaze onto August.
"I saw that last punch… did you get stronger?"
"Of course!" August exclaimed. "What else would I do? Just sit around and gamble like Ryan?"
"It's not gambling if I win every time."
Corva's ability allowed her to shoot bullets from her fingers, or nails, to be more specific. While her physical strength was certainly lacking, she made up for it with the speed and accuracy of her shots. Since she worked mainly with companies around the city, Corva often had to tone down the power of her bullets to a non-lethal shot when facing other humans. However, when going all out, they were truly devastating to most Abominations.
"Ryan and I can't get too close without risking contact with those orbs, but our abilities only allow for close combat. If you would, help us out?"
Without saying a word, Corva lifted her right hand and pointed her fingers at the assassin. Suddenly, a stream of bullets shot out of each finger, sending sharp cracks and metallic hisses through the air.
The assassin simply raised the orb and sucked all of the bullets into an endless void, even curving their trajectory.
"Damn…"
Corva fired for around two seconds and was already tired due to the intensity.
"I can fire more in a few seconds, but I don't think it'll be enough to kill him."
"Is anyone else coming to help?" August asked.
"I don't think so… not many soldiers were in HQ. Also, they assumed that the three of us would be enough."
While it made sense, August thought that the government would be more aware of the situation.
"I'll quickly send a message requesting more, but it will likely be a while. Corva, how accurate are you?"
While Corva was surprised at first, a grin slowly appeared on her face.
"I don't think I've ever missed my target."
"Ha!" he chuckled. "Good, then you should be able to keep pressure on him as Ryan and I fight up close. He already has a broken arm, but don't get too comfortable. We still don't know the extent of his powers."
Sighing, Ryan could only oblige as he entered a fighting stance with his stiletto.
"I think he's planning something big."
All this time, the assassin had slowly been enlarging the same orb that ate the bullets. Whether absorbing mass was required to expand or if he could do it willingly was unknown.
Instead of launching it at them, he kept it attached to his hand and approached them. By now, its diameter was around one meter.
He didn't run. That was the strange thing. The assassin simply strolled as he dragged the orb against the ground, creating a mark in his pathway.
Then, he blinked.
Suddenly, Ryan was behind him, and August was in front, each preparing an attack.
The pavement below ripped up as the assassin raised the orb in his hand, placing it right between himself and August. He already blocked one attack.
Behind him, seeing that the assassin had no arms left, Ryan thrust the stiletto into his back. At the same time, a bullet sped towards the assassin's head.
It was impossible to dodge all three attacks.
Ryan felt his blade enter the assassin and watched him jerk his head backwards, narrowly evading the bullet.
"DIE!"
Those were the first words that came out of the man's mouth.
Sensing danger, Ryan immediately backed up. The orb that the assassin summoned hadn't disappeared yet; in fact, it grew even bigger. He raised his arm above his head as concrete rose to be engulfed by the black hole.
'Damn— I even feel it pulling me. There aren't any openings for us to attack anymore…'
Even though Ryan could activate his ability, he didn't need it at the moment. It was evident that they should keep their distance.
"Don't get close!" August ordered. "He'll run out of gas eventually. Corva, can you keep shooting him?"
Corva raised her hand and fired a few bullets, but they all changed direction and flew right into the expanding black hole. By now, its radius was over 5 meters, and the ground around him had been destroyed.
The assassin then looked straight at Corva, sending a chill down her spine.
"Leave now! Run Corva!"
August frantically screamed at the puzzled Corva, who hadn't realized the assassin was aiming his attack straight at her. As he stretched his hand out, the black hole moved from above him down in front of him.
Ryan immediately activated his ability. He tried to stop the assassin with an attack in one, ran away in another, and stood still and watched in the third. However, they all had the same result.
THOOOM!
Instead of being launched, the black orb suddenly exploded. A loud boom echoed through the city as glass from nearby buildings shattered, except for the headquarters. A bright white light blocked the view of where the assassin was, temporarily blinding the three of them.
Ryan was knocked back a little, yet remained on his feet. Once he gained his senses, he looked back to where the assassin had been standing.
'He's gone! Is he preparing another attack? Shit… I just used my ability, and a sneak attack from him would easily kill one of us.'
Ryan suddenly entered a panic, then looked to see a figure approaching behind Corva.
'Oh.'
Noticing his gaze, the similarly confused August and Corva both turned around to see a different man approaching.