Silence permeated the group as some of them got back onto their feet, after experiencing the two humanoids. Everyone was shaken from the experience. All of the other Modified Humans were either destroyed or had left, following the two who appeared to have some kind of leadership role.
"Are we going to talk about what just happened?" Steve shakily asked everyone.
Chuckling dryly, Jackie asked, "Does anyone else feel like we were thrown into the deep end?" She held her hands, which looked to be shaking.
"Jade, we need to report what just happened," Kimberly advised. It was impressive that Kimberly was able to prioritize the mission over her own trauma. Even though Kimberly was standing, it appeared like she was going to collapse at any moment and it was only through sheer strength of will that Kimberly attempted to fulfill her duties.
Many of them looked at Jade, wondering what was going to happen now that they were in the clear. Instead of responding to Kimberly's words, Jade seemed to be lost in thought as she looked around.
Han noticed Ruby and Lexi walking over to where they were grouped together. Looking at Ruby, he was impressed that she had been able to recover enough to walk over to them. Everyone had seemed to be still feeling some of the effects, so it was a good indicator of Ruby's strength to shake off such an experience.
Both his mother and Jennifer were trying to get back up. His mother had arrived near the tail-end of the fight along with Ivy and Hina. Jae-Hwa and Amanda must have felt that they were able to fight alongside them, even though they could stay off to the side and allowed themselves to be protected by the three.
Seeing his mother and sister struggling, likely dealing with physical and emotional trauma, Han sent strings of energy to them. When they were connected, feelings of strength and courage were sent through to help them in their recovery. It also allowed Han to casually check on how they were and was pleasantly surprised by how they had improved in their abilities. It must have been with the help of the training simulations, going down into the dungeons and battling against monsters.
If his mother had been as strong as she was currently, there would have been no chance of her being physically abused by her husband. At this moment, she was stronger than a man who actively strength trained. Jennifer was in a similar position, though she was stronger than their mother. He couldn't help but shake his head at how much of a battle maniac she was. With her battle instinct, Han wondered whether professional soldiers would be a match against Jennifer.
Looking to Ruby, who was now standing next to Ivy, Grace, and Harmony, she was attempting to help Grace comfort Harmony who hadn't handled the overwhelming pressure and brush with death they had experienced.
Feeling a little responsible, Han thought about performing a similar act he had done for his family to the four. Walking over to where Harmony was sitting on the floor, he could hear her crying.
"I couldn't do anything," Harmony struck the ground with her fists. "It was so scary," she whimpered. Her voice trembled as she recalled the recent events.
Grace hugged Harmony, trying to support her friend and former coworker. "It's okay. We're safe now." She tried to say in a brave voice. The quivering in her voice only revealed her own feelings, failing to hide them from her friend.
Harmony rested her helmet on Grace's chest, bawling and wrapping both of her arms around the woman.
Standing over the two were Ivy and Ruby, who looked lost about how to proceed. Ivy looked and saw Han heading their way. "You okay, Han?" Ivy asked.
Nodding his head, Han answered, "I'm surprised that they just walked away and didn't attack us, considering how powerful they were."
Ivy shivered at being reminded of the two.
"It was as if they didn't care about whether we were there or not. When they pushed us to the ground, it felt like they just wanted to let us know that we were a waste of their time." Ruby said as she placed an arm around Ivy's shoulder, trying to help her friend.
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Neither of them was able to see a thin golden string that attached to their legs, phasing through the armor. Glittering lights traveled through the golden tube and entered their bodies.
As if from the effects of the lights, Ivy appeared to calm down. No longer was she looking traumatized or feeling the impact of the events that recently occurred.
Ruby was standing with more confidence, her back straightening and her breathing steadying. "I feel like we should take this experience as a teachable moment. There are stronger beings out there, which is why we need to constantly train in case we meet others like those two." Ruby calmly spoke. There was a feeling of power radiating from her, though only a slight amount.
Responding to Ruby, Harmony let go of Grace and stood up. "Yes. I agree. I can't just cry and rely on everyone else to fight against those things. When we go back, I'm going to do more dungeon crawling and get stronger." Determination filled her words, a stark contrast to her earlier self.
"I'll train with you," Grace nudged Harmony with her shoulder. Seeing her friend overcoming such an incident had likely relieved some of the burdens on her mind.
Jennifer and his mother approached them. "I feel like we got a glimpse into what's happening in the world. The Modified Humans are changing faster than we thought." Jennifer spoke out.
"I agree. Compared to what we had seen in the forest, those two seemed like they were fully in control with their thinking. Aside from their appearance looking a little different from us, I would have sworn they were regular humans." His mother added in.
Han listened to them discuss their opinions and thoughts about the two beings. He also felt a little curious about how they gained such an appearance and awareness. Their powers were also quite impressive and hinted at how they were on the lower end of the totem pole. How powerful would a Modified Human have to be to direct those two to accept a mission they didn't care for.
Looking at where Jade and the others were, they were reacting to the surprise of Ji-Min and two others being safe. Curious about it, he listened in on their conversation. Ji-Min was frantic about them getting out of the cavern and back to the facility.
"No! You don't understand! We can't go against those things!" Ji-Min cried out, shoving away Kimberly who was trying to comfort her.
"Ji-Min, it's going to be okay. We have the ability to fight against those things we were struggling against before." Kimberly tried to explain as she balanced herself.
"Is that before or after those two crushed you into the ground?!" Ji-Min snapped, throwing Kimberly's words back at her. "I watched your group barely able to keep yourself off of the ground. The only reason why we're still talking about it is that those things don't even consider us worth the effort!" She began to laugh. "All of us are going to be eaten by those things even if we're inside of the facility! We might as well be cattle to them, waiting until they're hungry enough to tear apart the Facility as easy as a person tears apart the skin of an orange!"
"We'll talk to the Captain about what we've seen," Jade finally spoke to Ji-Min. "There is new information about what's been happening out here and inside of the rooms made for us that may shed light on a solution." She stepped towards Ji-Min and placed a hand on her arm.
Swiping away the comforting hand, she spat, "Don't try and patronize me! I'm not a child and understand more than you how screwed we are! Whatever plans you think you can come up with, it won't mean crap in front of those things!" She moved away from Jade and the others and stood in front of the two girls as if protecting them from Jade and the others.
Han could clearly see that her mind had been shattered by what had happened. Though it was against his policy to do such actions, he took a peek into her mind.