Crash!
A powerful rocky boom echoed through the narrow streets.
The cars parked along both sides of the paved road shook violently, swaying from side to side and screeching under the force of a monster that had carved its way onto the street.
The windows scattered across the beautiful brick walls of the buildings—covered in plants and flowers—shattered at the presence of strange roots that stretched up from the ground like whips and struck the glass with crushing force.
Many of the civilians present, who stared at the monster with terrified expressions, looked nothing like ordinary human beings.
Desperate, they moved chaotically in every possible direction.
Some used their wings to take flight. Others ran on all fours while leaping across walls and rooftops. Those without any special traits ran or hid.
The cars lined up along the road were shoved aside by black roots bursting from the ground, clearing the entire street.
The monster causing all this devastation crawled across the pavement with unnatural calm, scanning its surroundings with terrifyingly dark eyes.
It studied the city, curiosity gleaming in its gaze. It was as if it were beholding the great metropolis for the very first time.
In response to that curiosity, something could be heard:
Click. Click.
Repeated snapping sounds, coming from the monster.
Click. Click.
It had an androgynous humanoid figure, with six arms extending from its shoulders and back. It stood two meters tall, its skin the color of oak wood, cracked like tree bark.
It had no mouth, nose, or ears—but its sinister black eyes were expressive enough, appreciating the destruction its roots caused.
Its head was covered in leaves that mimicked hair, and its lower limbs were six roots that functioned like tentacles.
For every meter the monster advanced with its tentacles, new roots burst from the ground, splitting the concrete and pushing cars out of its way.
Now that nothing blocked its path of destruction, it stopped and looked up at the sky.
"Help me!" shouted a man lying injured beneath a car.
"Mommy!" cried a little girl who had been left alone amid the fleeing crowd.
The Aberration heard the crying and the screams. It stared at the girl carefully and slowly approached her.
The roots followed the monster, burrowing like snakes beneath the concrete. However, by that moment, someone was already running from the other end of the street.
His brown leather military boots clicked against the ground with every hurried step. His fluffy, well-groomed canine tail swayed sharply with the frantic movements of his body.
He lifted his canine ears to listen closely and sharpened his eyes to spot the girl who was about to be reached by the monster.
He smiled defiantly, his small fangs peeking out from his mouth. His greasy brown hair danced with his frantic motion as he ran on all fours like a wild animal.
Behind him, a beautiful girl with similar features approached. Like her companion, she ran on all fours, her feline tail whipping from side to side.
Her sharp, perceptive blue eyes glowed faintly orange, locking onto the girl completely. An aura of the same color surrounded her, cloaking her body like a newborn flame.
Her Spectrum's ability was activated. Her eyes could see beyond what anyone else could: the near future.
In that future, the girl was crushed beneath the Aberration's hands and roots. However, neither the feline girl nor the canine boy were going to allow that to happen.
The red-haired feline girl glanced up at the rooftop of one of the buildings and shouted:
"Rober!"
Rober—the canine boy—understood what she meant. He leaped high onto one of the cars. At the same time, a tall blonde girl appeared, jumping down from the rooftop of one of the buildings.
Her heavy, gleaming silver armor creaked beneath the massive shield and sword strapped to her back. With abyssal strength, launching herself powerfully into the scene, she grabbed her great shield with one hand and hurled it toward Rober as she said:
"Do it!"
Then she landed, shattering the ground beneath her.
Rober grinned and nodded. Pushing off with both legs against the shield, he shot forward toward the girl. He reached her before she could be killed, wrapping her in his arms and rolling across the ground to soften the impact.
Crash!
He slammed into one of the cars and groaned. Then he stood up with the girl, though he struggled to remain upright.
"Don't cry, shrimp. The cavalry's here," he muttered, exhausted from having to get back up again.
His back was killing him now.
The frightened girl looked into Rober's black eyes, unsure of what to do.
"Don't worry, shrimp. Seriously."
Another root smashed into the cars and made the ground tremble. Rober glanced at the root that crushed one of the vehicles, exasperated. Then he looked at the girl again.
"Okay. Go over there," he said, pointing toward one of the alleys where a woman and other civilians were hiding. "You'll be safer on that side."
The girl nodded and ran toward the alley. Making sure she reached it safely, Rober flashed a defiant grin and glared at the monster.
"Looks like today we're gonna have to kick a tree's ass."
He slammed his fist into his palm, and a pair of small flames burst to life. A soft glow briefly lit his dark eyes with a blood-red hue.
The feline girl entered the fray, throwing herself at the monster. Rober followed to back her up, leaping between the cars. The flames around his fists intensified, and a fierce—yet exhilarated—look ignited the scene with the promise of imminent battle.
Without saying a word, the feline girl jumped back when she saw Rober approach and remained on the sidelines for a second as the monster stared at her.
Under such an unpleasant gaze, she frowned angrily.
"What are you looking at, ugly thing? First time you've seen a girl this cute?"
Dissonant snapping echoed. In the next instant, a root burst from the ground and tried to strike her.
"Woah!"
She flipped backward and slid across the pavement, her large boots screeching against the concrete—but the murderous roots did not stop.
Three massive roots, as thick as young trees, erupted and crushed everything in their path with vicious lashes that shattered the concrete. She, of course, dodged nimbly, leaping like a professional gymnast.
Click… Click…
The monster raised two of its hands this time, controlling the roots that slithered across the ground like an endless swarm of snakes.
The sidewalk split into small fragments. The monster snapped stubbornly inside its wooden head.
Though its hollow black eyes did not reveal its true intentions, everyone knew Aberrations existed only to harm humans.
That was something Rober—who dodged the roots by springing swiftly from side to side—took advantage of.
He leaped between the cars shoved along the curb in a straight line, weaving left and right across each roof to avoid the roots that kept bursting upward.
When he was close enough, he jumped high and came crashing down from above with tremendous impact. His fists ignited with even fiercer flames, as brilliant as they were terrifying.
"Eat this, you stupid tree!"
The monster turned its gaze toward him without concern and summoned a root that surged from the ground like a torrent.
Rober's eyes widened for an instant before the root smashed into his face. The next second, he was sent flying into a candy shop, shattering the glass and landing sprawled across a broken table.
The feline girl watched him fly with a pained expression. Exasperated, she shouted:
"Rober! You idiot! Only you would throw yourself at an Aberration like that!"
The monster wasn't going to stop.