Leo stopped suddenly, his hand raised as a sudden pressure settled on his shoulder. There was no explanation for it. They hadn't even entered London's outskirts yet, and the night was still a good few hours away.
"Do you feel it?" He asked, trying to expand his meager senses to find the source of his troubles.
Nyx nodded. 'Indeed. It's weaker from what comes during the night, but...'
"It's still disconcerting," he finished for her. "Yeah... My thoughts exactly. And I think we both have and idea where it's coming from. Naz'Tor warned us after all. Shit, it's worse than I expected, and we're not even there yet."
'Don't lose faith, Leo. Remember what you've promised.'
He sighed. "I know. I know. Sorry, old habits die hard." Shaking his head, he turned away from the road and looked right at the forest to the north. "We go through there. If I'm not wrong, it should let us get to Dartford in a few minutes."
Nyx shot him a look. 'What? Why? We're almost there. Why change the path now?'
"The Thames River," Leo answered right away. "I want to see what happened to it before we go any deeper. It runs through the entire London, after all."
'You think...'
He shrugged. "Maybe, maybe not, but I'm not gonna ignore his warning. Besides, it wouldn't hurt to find out if there are any water-type Voidlings in the river that we should be aware of. You can never have too much information."
Finally, the feline nodded. 'So be it. Lead the way then. I know nothing of these parts of the world.'
Leo snorted, jumping off the road and diving into the forest. Trust me, I'm not much better off. I'm running on what I remember from the internet maps, my trips to London, and the few remaining signs we saw on the way.
Nyx joined in the laughter. 'Why am I not surprised?'
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Wait for me here. Leo ordered, jumping onto the tallest tree in the area and climbing to the top with a series of well-placed leaps. Void had already made it much higher than it probably was two weeks ago, so he had no problem gazing down onto a vast part of Dartford's neighborhood.
Not good. He grimaced, observing the countless Voidlings prowling the streets. Many he recognized, while others were unfamiliar.
Cursed Runners, normies, Screamers, Crawlers, and even Reapers—all were present. However, amidst them, he had already identified two new types.
A Sprinter, seemingly an evolution of the Runner. And Cursed Walkers, which, alongside the Reapers, made up a significant portion of the Voidlings in the area. Quite a surprise indeed.
What the hell are you? Leo furrowed his brow, scanning the fully mutated human who still seemed similar to a normie. The only new thing was the third arm that came out of their back and hovered above their head.
Race: Voidling | Subspecies: Cursed Walker
Expected Potential: F+ to E+
Weapon of choice: Essence, Claws
Known weaknesses: Head, Third Arm
An advanced version of the base Cursed variant. Along with Cursed Reapers, it's the most popular evolution in the early stages of an Outbreak. The body of a Walker is now fully adapted to the power of the Void, and thus, they are much stronger than their predecessors. Additionally, their third arm is capable of controlling bursts of Essence, making Walkers some of the most unpredictable Voidlings out there. Approach with caution.
Did you see that, Nyx? Leo called out after shutting the Bestiary. At least now we know Naz'Tor definitely didn't lie. Probably more than half of the Voidlings here have already evolved. And here I thought we had it hard back in Wolford...
'Indeed,' the feline quietly agreed, her warmth seeping into their link. 'I'm sure survivors here adapted anyway. Humans are a hardy bunch. Have faith.'
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
I didn't say anything. Why do you have to be like this? He grumbled. These were just my observations.
'If you say so,' Nyx sniggered. 'Now tell me, what are the average levels?'
Rolling his eyes, Leo returned his focus to the streets in the distance. Around sixteen and seventeen, so it could have been worse. Though technically, this is still not London. Voidlings might be stronger there.
'What about the Thames? Can you see it from here?'
Instinctively, he shook his head. No. Not high enough.
'Does it mean we're finally going in?' Nyx beamed, her excitment obvious.
Yes, we are.
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Unlike the Voidlings in Wolford or on the road to London, here, they didn't have an issue with attacking Leo and Nyx. Well, for the most part, at least. Some monsters still preferred to stay away, but rarely could any evolved beast resist the chance to prove itself against a Prime and an Apex.
Though, it never ended well for the Voidlings.
Like a wave of shadows, Leo swept through the streets, taking out anyone who dared to stand in his path. Nyx wasn't that far behind, her claws and tails also becoming a whirlwind of death supported by an army of dark projectiles that flew faster than a normal eye could follow.
The advantage was still on their side. Not even the Cursed Walkers' Essence shields or small laser beams could harm them. Everything that came at them was just too slow, too weak.
Yet, the longer they fought and the more bodies they left behind, the truth of Naz'Tor's words became obvious. They couldn't do this forever, not here.
There are too many of them! Leo shouted over the link as his shadow eruption exploded across the street. Time to retreat! That's enough testing for now.
'Understood! After you.'
With a nod, he pushed past a fresh group of monsters that already replaced the ones he had killed. He jumped at the nearest wall and cleared the remaining distance to the roof with another leap. From there, he burst into a sprint, dancing through the Vetilim jungle, even bigger than the one in Wolford.
Screams and screeches of Voidlings echoed behind him, but he paid them no mind and just sped up. The Thames River should be visible soon, and he would like to lose their tail before that.
Might be an issue with that. Leo scowled, glancing at the group of Spitfires and Harpies above him. Annoying.
With a single thought, True Stealth and shadows wrapped tighter around his body. With another, a dozen or so spears burst towards the small army following him.
And now!
Reaching the end of the roof, he didn't jump high to reach the next one. No, instead, he used the ledge to propel himself towards the large building on the other side, his arms raised high.
Just as he was to come into contact with the wall, Leo swung as hard as he could, cutting right through the Vetilim and the bricks behind it. The barrier stood no chance, and he barreled right into the building, rolling across the dirty floor.
Shit... That hurt a bit. He winced, standing up just as Nyx bolted into the room through the hole he made. They shared a nod and dove deeper into the building, destroying more walls as they went.
Some Voidlings still screeched outside, but the farther they went, the quieter the noises became. Of course, it alerted all the monsters inside the building. Not that they ever became an issue. A well-placed strike to the head finished their lives before they could even open their mouths.
We should be fine. Leo noted, taking a peek through the window. Follow me, and this time, no fighting.
He didn't need their link to know that Nyx was disappointed, but at least she didn't argue. They both knew that even with Devour and Consume, they couldn't fight forever. Unlike in Wolford, there were just too many Voidlings here. Where one died, five more moved to replace it.
And this isn't even London yet. He shook his head with a sigh as they bounded across the street, using every cover to avoid detection. Sometimes, a random Voidling managed to spot them, but it always died faster than it could blink.
Come on. Leo called out, climbing the tall wall next to them. We should be close enough to see it from above.
With Nyx right next to him, they scaled the building in a matter of seconds. And just as he had said, the Thames River finally came into sight. Only it was nothing like he had remembered it.
"My dear god..." Leo muttered, his mouth falling open.
The wide river full of murky water was nowhere to be seen. Only the deep and empty channel remained, its dry surface filled with chunks of Vetilim and ships that fell on their side. Hell, even normal Voidlings didn't go down there.
"How?" He gulped, still searching for any signs of the missing water.
'Leo?' Nyx nudged him, sounding somewhat hesitant. 'We might have a bigger problem.'
Still half in shock, he turned and looked to the left, right where the feline was pointing.
"Shit..."