Standing over Major's lifeless body, Fletcher seethed with anger as he kicked and cursed at the fallen foe. "You stupid ****! How dare you ruin my clothes like this" he spat, his voice dripping with venom.

Scanning the area, Fletcher's eyes fell upon Major's coat lying nearby. With a snarl of satisfaction, he snatched it up and draped it over his shoulders, knowing it would have to suffice for now. His attention quickly turned to the task at hand, he needed to catch the fleeing brats.

Despite his formidable strength, Fletcher knew he was just one man, he couldn't risk them bringing back more trouble than he could handle, with enough men and weaponry he could be killed easily, so with that in mind, Fletcher quickened his pace and followed the tracks of team 3.

***

Hours later, as Team 3 hastily made their way toward the 12th base, disaster struck. Without warning, Emily, positioned at the rear of the group, unleashed a deafening sonic scream that reverberated through the air, causing excruciating pain to all within earshot.

"AHHH!" The sound wave rippled outward, forcing everyone to their knees in agony. With shock and horror, the other teammates turned to see Emily standing behind them, bloodied and trembling, as Fletcher loomed menacingly with his axe at her throat.

Fletcher planned to use Emily as leverage, forcing her comrades to surrender. But he had to silence her quickly before she attracted unwanted attention.

Emily’s lifeless body dropped to the ground, blood poured out of her gashed throat forming a small crimson puddle.

"No, Emily!" Binna cried out, her voice filled with desperation and fear.

Dylan, consumed by rage, seethed with fury at the sight before him. "You m**f**, I will kill you!" he roared, his anger boiling over.

Makoa’s huge frame stood in between his friends, as he received the brunt of Fletcher’s attack, he turned towards his last two remaining teammates and shouted “Run! Both of you, I will hold him back”

Fletcher swung his axe, but to his surprise, it was stopped by a blue membrane of energy.

“Interesting” Fletcher smirked. His arm arched back with veins and muscle increasing in size, hinting at the power amassed in this strike.

“FWUSSHH” With a swift and powerful swing, the axe successfully penetrated through the shield of energy, lodged deeply in Makoa’s ribs shattering them.

Makoa spat a mouthful of blood, but he held on not backing a step.

Emily and Dylan shouted spontaneously after witnessing their friend being wounded severely.

“MAKOA!!!”

“MAKOA!!!”

“Don’t worry about me, I will hold him back here” Makoa said with a steely gaze.

“You need to survive! Get stronger, and kill this bastard” Makoa added, his eyes showing his undying resolve.

Dylan, fueled by grief conceded, he swallowed his anger and resolved not to let his friend's sacrifice be in vain, he grabbed Binna’s hand and dragged her away, disappearing in the foliage nearby, they had better chances of running under the cover of trees.

Fletcher put his axes away and said “This is too slow” Turning his attention to Makoa, Fletcher's arms transformed into a metallic form, delivering a relentless onslaught of blows that reduced the Makoa’s body to mere rubble. Despite his absorption ability, it proved futile against Fletcher's overwhelming might, and he soon met his doom.

***

Binna's heart raced as she stumbled through the dense underbrush, her breaths ragged and shallow. The echoes of Emily's deafening scream still reverberated in her ears, sending shivers down her spine with each haunting resonance. She glanced over her shoulder, half-expecting to see Fletcher's menacing form looming behind her, his axe poised to strike.

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"Dylan, are you okay?" she called out, her voice trembling with fear and desperation.

Dylan's response was a guttural growl of frustration, his footsteps heavy and labored as he trudged through the tangled foliage. "Damn it, Binna, just keep moving!" he snapped, his anger barely contained beneath the surface.

Binna flinched at his harsh tone, her gaze darting nervously from side to side as she scanned their surroundings for any sign of danger. The forest seemed to close in around them, suffocating and oppressive, every shadow concealing unseen threats.

"We can't keep running forever," she muttered, her voice barely audible above the rustle of leaves and the pounding of her heart.

Dylan shot her a withering glare, his eyes ablaze with fury. "Then what do you suggest we do, huh? Stand and fight like sitting ducks?" he spat, his frustration boiling over.

Binna swallowed hard, the bitter taste of fear lingering on her tongue. She knew Dylan was right, knew that their only chance of survival lay in outmaneuvering their relentless pursuer. But with each passing moment, the weight of their hopelessness bore down upon her, threatening to crush her spirit beneath its crushing weight.

Suddenly, a twig snapped beneath Dylan's foot, the sound echoing through the stillness like a thunderclap. Binna's breath caught in her throat, her pulse quickening with dread as she spun around to face the source of the noise.

And there he was, Fletcher, his form emerging from the shadows like a specter of death. His eyes gleamed with malevolent intent, his axe gripped tightly in his hand as he advanced with predatory grace.

Binna's heart hammered in her chest as she backed away, her mind racing with frantic thoughts of escape. But there was nowhere left to run, nowhere left to hide.

Before Dylan could activate his ability, his head flew off his body in the blink of an eye.

Fletcher used his blink ability to end the battle, his patience had worn thin, and he was close to the 12th base, and didn’t want to linger any longer than needed.

Binna stood frozen in terror as she witnessed the complete annihilation of her comrades. The realization that she was now the sole survivor washed over her, filling her with a paralyzing fear. In the past, she had imagined herself as brave and resolute in the face of death, but now she found herself trembling uncontrollably, her knees buckling beneath her.

Desperation clawed at her throat as she met Fletcher's cold gaze, her voice trembling with resignation. "Please... don't kill me," she whispered, her words a desperate plea for mercy in the face of certain doom.

With measured steps, Fletcher closed the distance between himself and Binna, his gaze cold and calculating. With a flick of his wrist, he unleashed a surge of electricity, enveloping Binna in a crackling aura that sent her spiraling into unconsciousness.

With his adversaries incapacitated, Fletcher wasted no time in collecting their ability cores, each one pulsing with untapped power. With a satisfied grin, he hoisted Binna over his shoulder and made his way back to his camp, his spoils secured and his dominance reaffirmed.

***

Within the heart of the 12th base's Military Command Center, a thin, bespectacled man diligently monitored the array of screens lining the walls. Each screen displayed feeds from concealed cameras stationed throughout the base's perimeter, their watchful gaze ever vigilant for signs of movement.

As his keen eyes scanned the footage, the man's attention was drawn to a particularly intriguing scene unfolding before him. With a swift motion, he extracted the recording onto a USB stick, his fingers trembling with excitement. Without hesitation, he hurriedly departed from his station, his footsteps echoing down the corridors as he raced toward the chambers of his superior.

Admiral Mathias was the highest-ranking officer at the 12th base, he was tasked with governing the entire base.

Despite not being a politician, he had to assume the position of both a military and a civil leader, since these extraordinary times call for difficult decisions that regular politicians aren't capable of making.

The majority of his time was spent on making sure that the defensive lines were reinforced enough, the zombies and the monsters seemed to be attracted to places with a high concentration of people, and Mathias suspected that someone or something was controlling these hordes of zombies behind the scenes.

Mathias was fiddling with a USB stick in his hands nervously, he had received an exciting piece of information, an awakened who displayed multiple abilities, something that all scientists claimed to be impossible because humans can only awaken one ability, and the stats are capped based on the rank of their ability.

This news is groundbreaking, it meant that this individual could enhance his attributes to unprecedented heights, bringing him to his side is paramount, so the admiral picked up the phone and made a few urgent calls.

***

Unbeknownst to Fletcher, the tumultuous encounter with Team 3 had been captured by the base's surveillance system and had set off a big commotion.

With a triumphant grin, Fletcher surveyed the spoils of his latest conquest. Five precious ability cores lay before him, obtained with surprising ease and efficiency. The rapid pace of his development was nothing short of astonishing, hinting at the boundless potential that lay within him.

As he contemplated the implications of his newfound power, a sense of anticipation surged within Fletcher. With each passing moment, he edged closer to the brink of invincibility. If he continued to enhance his abilities, there was no telling what heights he could reach in the world of awakened beings.