Kai stepped out of the morgue into pure chaos.
The street was full of broken cars and screaming people. Purple cracks still floated in the sky. Strange black monsters with long arms ran after anyone who moved.
One monster jumped at a woman carrying a child.
Kai's new fast reflexes kicked in. He moved without thinking. He grabbed a metal pipe from the ground and swung hard.
The pipe hit the monster's head with a loud crack. The creature fell and turned into black smoke.
The woman looked at him with wide eyes. "Thank you!"
"No problem," Kai said. But the words came out wrong. "It was nothing, my dear. A gentleman must always help those in need."
He clapped a hand over his mouth again.
The woman blinked. "Uh… okay?"
Kai shook his head fast. "Sorry. New power. Still learning."
He looked at the blue screen in his mind.
Active Echoes: 1/10
Reginald Ashford III influence: 35%
Tip: Try not to sound like a rich boy when fighting monsters.
Kai laughed quietly. "This is going to be annoying."
He started walking down the street. His body felt light and quick. Every time a small monster came near, he dodged easily and hit it with the pipe. Each kill gave him a little bit of energy.
But the snob voice kept coming back.
When he helped an old man stand up, he said, "Allow me, good sir. This city has truly fallen into poor taste."
The old man stared at him like he was crazy.
Kai groaned. "Ignore that. Please."
A loud voice suddenly shouted from the other side of the street.
"Hey! You there! The guy talking funny!"
Kai turned. Two men in black jackets walked toward him. They looked like fighters. One had glowing red eyes. The other carried a big knife.
The man with red eyes pointed at Kai. "We saw you kill those shadow beasts. Nice moves. You just awakened?"
"Something like that," Kai said carefully.
The second man smiled. "Good. We are Echo Hunters. We collect power from the dying. Join us. We pay well."
Kai felt the radar in his head ping. There were more dying people nearby. But these two felt dangerous.
Before he could answer, a girl's voice rang out.
"Don't listen to them!"
A short girl with bright pink hair and crazy eyes ran over. She wore a jacket covered in small patches that looked like trading cards. She stopped next to Kai and grinned wide.
"Hi! I'm Mira! You just took an Echo, right? I can smell it! That rich guy smell is strong. Can I see? Can I collect something too?"
Kai stepped back. "What?"
The two hunters laughed.
One said, "Stay out of this, crazy collector girl. This newbie is ours."
Mira stuck out her tongue. "No way! He looks fun. His Echoes will be shiny!"
Kai's head spun. What is happening?
Then he felt another pull. Stronger this time.
A big shadow beast had just killed a young fighter behind a crashed bus. The fighter was dying fast.
New Echo detected. Good quality.
Kai moved without thinking. He ran past the hunters and reached the dying man.
The man looked up at him. "Please… take it… don't let them have it…"
Kai put his hand on the man's shoulder. "Okay."
[New Echo Found!]
Name: Jax the Street Fighter
Skills: Strong punches, street fighting moves, tough body
Personality: Loud, brave, loves fighting
Will you take it? (Y/N)
Kai chose Y.
Power rushed into him again. His muscles grew a little bigger. He felt like he could punch through a wall.
The dying man smiled once and closed his eyes.
[Echo Taken!]
Active Echoes: 2/10
New Skill: Street Punch – Your hits are now much stronger.
Side Effect: High chance of shouting like a fighter.
Kai stood up. He felt great.
Then he opened his mouth and roared, "Come on! Who wants some?!"
The two hunters jumped back in surprise.
Mira clapped her hands and laughed. "Yes! Two different voices in one minute! I like you!"
The hunter with the knife got angry. "Enough games. Hand over the Echoes or we take them from your dead body."
Kai grinned. The fighter personality was strong now.
He cracked his knuckles. "Try it."
The fight started fast.
The red-eyed hunter charged. Kai dodged with Reginald's reflexes and punched with Jax's power. His fist hit the man's chest and sent him flying into a car.
The second hunter swung his big knife.
Kai shouted, "Too slow, fool!" in a mix of rich and fighter voice.
He grabbed the man's arm, twisted it, and punched him hard in the face.
Both hunters fell. They were not dead, but they were not getting up soon.
Mira jumped up and down. "Wow! Combo Echo! So cool!"
Kai breathed hard. The two personalities were fighting in his head. One wanted to say something smart. The other wanted to roar again.
A calm girl's voice suddenly spoke from behind them.
"You should not stay here. More monsters are coming."
Kai turned. A tall girl with long black hair and serious eyes stood there. She wore simple dark clothes. She looked at Kai like she was reading his future.
"I am Lira," she said. "I saw threads of fate. You will cause a lot of trouble."
Mira pointed at Lira. "She's a Veil Breaker! Boring but strong."
Kai tried to speak normally. "Nice to meet you both. I'm Kai. And right now I have two voices in my head fighting over what to say next."
Lira's lips twitched like she wanted to smile but stopped herself. "Your power is dangerous. It can break you."
Before Kai could answer, the sky cracked louder. A bigger monster appeared at the end of the street. It was taller than a truck and had many eyes.
Strong Echo detected. Very dangerous.
Kai felt excited and scared at the same time.
He looked at Mira and Lira.
"Want to team up for this one?"
Mira grinned. "Yes! I want its Echo!"
Lira sighed. "Fine. But try not to talk like a rich man while fighting."
Kai laughed. "No promises."
The big monster roared and charged.
Kai ran forward with his new speed and strength.
His first real team fight was about to start.
And he already had two Echoes fighting inside him.
This was going to be fun.