The Kapok street was once a neighborhood filled with house and other building but by the time, they built a new city it had become a place filled with the mutant. The asphalt was cracked and the electric pole had become part with nature, Charles steps on a fallen tree, above it grew a mushroom and other plants with several bugs flying around it, the walls were already unrecognizable and the black cable had spread around like a nest of a black snake.

Kapok tree had filled the zone, growing minimal one meter toward each other with one growing tall as ten stories building. They were in the different process of flowering, bare, blooming and full of fruit, the forest floor was littered with dead leave, the track of an animal, and Kapok silk. The silk was are white, thinner than spider silk, gathering at every part of the forest with rare occurrence they completely filled an area.

The black wood and the white silk made walking on Kapok street to be one of kind experience. Sometimes he feels like he just stepped on innocent and happy fairytale, the way the silk gathered feel like it was cloud, adding a grandness and touch of whimsical while the silk on the tree ook a cotton candy you could eat and one moment later it become hundred of worm that feasting above a body, hidden and tragic, the silk on the branch becomes a white hair belonging to a mad woman where sometimes see her haunted voice in the song of the birds.

Charles stop observing the forest and walk to a clump of silk, thank his experience he could see something different in the clump, kneeling down and taking a camera, he focuses it on a small sleeping snake. Its body long as his spread hand and thick as his finger, the snake was juvenile filed with a bloody wound and half grew scale, it tried to hide that irregular color in the clump of white but there was big different from scale to silk.

The snake injury probably contributed to the several baby snake inside his embrace, they were so small he knew both of sibling come from different egg group but what happens with the first group was the big snake the only one who survived or he was the only egg.

He took a picture of them and stand when he saw almost identical snake except it was long as his arm and had an average width for a snake, the snake also whites as silk, it white scale was special, giving an impression of soft and royal, it was flying in front of his face like mighty dragon.

Then he realized the snake probably floating and using its light body to take advantage the air current to fly some snake do that by jumping from a very high tree but he guess this one take it another step. He watched it fly but it feels the snake was swimming than flying.

It’s swimming seem to be chaotic and hypnotic whether because the air current or it was trying to distract him from her nest full of children. He offers his hand and snake traveling on his hand feel like water being wrapped around his hand.

It nods at Beatrice and giving him single glance like he wasn’t old enough to join the conversation, he wants to pop its head but his family had drill all kind ethic and manner lesson as soon he speaks and walks.

He forgives the snake because he was a naturally good person, not all mutant had to be killed sometime cooperation can be made especially if the power level were to close to each other, that the resulting battle would make them dying and it never worth because they would be easy picking for the even weaker hunter.

The snake hiss and point at his camera. He brings the camera up until he realized the snake probably didn’t want him to sell the picture of its children to human.

“I’m going to delete it once you pay something equal.”

The snake slithering on his hand giving him a good feeling around it and pointed at the center of the zone where the highest Kapok tree grow. It pointed at the tree and start to communicate with Beatrice, he focused his mind and for the first time try to sneak on Beatrice mind so he can hear the conversation.

It was jumbled but there is a strong image that keeps appearing.

Sky.

Eye.

King.

The apex in this forest was an owl who live on the biggest tree. That was awfully helpful in fact the price wasn’t fair since they would be discovered anyway if he and Beatrice saw an owl they would run and spend no time to wonder whether they are going to fight the King or not.

It was the apex they had no chance, no matter how strong Beatrice was, she is a mutant, not yet evolved into a King and beside attacking the apex just rude if he wants to steal and kill the house owner he is going to act like one start from the front door.

“It wasn’t equal, how about we help you made a new nest, this one was really unsafe.” The snake starts circling them a few time before it nests around his head apparently agreeing with them. Beatrice takes the proactive by jumping and start to search for a good place to be a nest

He kneels and take the white snake nest and watch as the oldest wake up and stare at him. He wonders what happen with the previous egg group, snake laid more than one egg, did they grow out of their nest or something more tragic. Anyway, this runt must have thought job protecting his sibling.

Speaking about that, he wonders how exactly this pretty snake defends itself, he was sure if his theory correct that the snake uses wind current to do the flying then it should have a specific sensory organ to the detect it and very light body.

His gut feeling telling him the tame snake was the unfortunate one, sometime mutation didn’t always helpful like the ferret useless wing but at least Icarus had his wind magic, he can defend himself and he also ferrets they were no pushover but what about them, they look to be more house pet than a wild animal.

The runt still staring at him then look to see his mother. He was looking with a suspicious eye and moving with a grace of a toddler, the young one had seen his mother but still looking at him with his beautiful squinty eye, he chuckled and pat the snake but he was bitten instead.

“You need to bite harder.” He takes his finger, sucked the blood and spit it. He had confidence that his immune system wouldn't lose to a baby but just to make sure he still spit the blood. The snake looking up, circling his younger sibling and hissing again.

It doesn’t hurt. His face says while he smirks and teasing the snake with his finger but keep pull it out once he tries to attack.

Finally, they arrived at a small dead tree, he couldn’t identify what tree is that since Beatrice had gone overboard with his suggestion, she decided to make the whole tree as the new nest for the white snake. It was like seeing drunken spider who just randomly splat web into the tree, he was sure it was a death trap for anyone who wants to sneak but to him and probably the snake it was just a mess.

He put them down in front of the tree, walk away from the tree and take out his machete. He starts swinging it down imitating what other men do when they cut an animal. He held it in his right hand, gripping the hilt, he slashes down cutting an imaginary chicken neck. He moves his hand again, cutting down and try to seep it into his muscle, he starts running and dodging fighting myriad creature he once fights, doing the downward slash committing to that one move only even if another move would be more effective.

Every time he was getting used to the imaginary enemy he switched from fighting a long arm monkey to a slippery eel, from a lost crocodile to bullet spitting and face eating sunflower. He keeps his breathing controlled and made sure he didn’t slip to root when he does tricky maneuver keep the downward slash again and again.

He keeps slashing, cornering the mutant he fights into a shrub and raises his hand in ease manner to split his head.

Ping.

His machete was stopped by a little bird, it was the size of his arm and probably male with how bright his fur, his eye was black and his machete was stopped by the yellow beak. They both stared at each other and at the same time Charles pull his machete and step back when the bird flies up looking down at him.

They were in a standoff and Charles had to grind his teeth, he already imagines the frustration hitting something so small and fast. The bird flies higher than dive flying straight to his heart, he already predicts those move way before the bird had flown.

Ping.

The bird had flown straight the machete he places in front of his heart but before he could strike back, it already fly out of his sight, the bird had used its advantage in fullest, using the tree or simply fly to his blind spot, Charles had no way to spot it instead he bend down and take a clump of silk on the ground and wait.

He heard the sound of an object that falling fast, he throws the silk at that direction and roll to the right, and smirk at the bird. The bird was chirping, flying while glaring at him.

“Weak,” he said, taunting the bird and wait the bird show it’s a trump card. The bird's screech, smiling at him as it turns invisible in front of his eye.

He slumped his should and stop smiling. His eye moves to the right and left searching for the enemy and shake his leg.

‘Boring.’ Invisibility had lost its charm after encountering so many them, either they use it the smart way to complement it with another skill or they were so arrogant they believe they are undefeatable because no one can see them.

Charles holds his machete and shields his body in the last moment, making the bird successfully wound his shoulder, he cursed and pretend he didn’t hear it’s a flapping wing. He moved the machete again preventing the bird attacks his joint, cutting a light wound on his left leg and pretend the air didn’t shimmer in front of him.

He moves the machete to protect him again but it was thrown near a tree making him lose his weapon. He moves back, tripping on a root and fall to the ground, he ‘desperately’ get back until his back touch a tree making him unable to move again.

He grabs as many silks as he could and when he saw the bird start its last attack, he throws the silk at the air, creating a white curtain and take his gun out. At the same time the curtain split, he aims the gun and pulls the trigger.

He stands up, finally, obnoxious wing flapping noise had gone, he looks down at the bird on the ground with a hole on its right wing, it was crawling trying to run away and chirping for help. It stopped once he kneels in front of it and holsters his gun. The bird suddenly jumped when he saw the weapon that hurt him had been put away, it chirped, relieved while he cut its neck.

‘You’re not a virgin anymore knife No. 3.” He said to his new dagger, he put it down, taking a paper corpse from his bag and wrap it around the corpse. Once he put the paper it wraps around it like a second skin, protecting and preserve the corpse while he places a tube under it and collects the blood.

The blood was his own use while the rest he was going to sell on his friend.

He then places them inside the bag in their respective place. Cleaning the dust from his body and he walks back toward the brand new nest, it looks something that came out of a nightmare and the only thing they need was thousand of tiny spider chilling on those webs. Beatrice had clearly gone overboard with mummy snake standing in front of her bowing her head again and again to express her gratitude then walk inside.

Charles waits, Beatrice walks to him, treat his injuries without asking anything then climbing to his hair sleeping like a house cat.

Charles wait, he stands on the front of web tree, his gut told him how ingeniously these webs was where if someone managed to sneak in they would be trapped with the thing they never expect.

Charles waits, he suspects Beatrice had spread her scent into the nest, in human language, it was the same as Head Honcho came into a house and said it was under his protection that means the white snake was really safe inside the nest especially because Beatrice come from Forbidden Zone.

Charles wait but no treasure was given.

He sighs and walks away from the white snake new nest. Guess they talk too much about those kinds of the book in their room.

“Why are you helping them so much.” He hoped he didn't sound bitter, it was disappointed he didn’t get a reward like the stories but his disappointment is like being given a wrapped candy and found it wasn’t your favorite flavor, nothing to cry.

At least he had new stories for Thomas, he and his cousin like to read fantasy book together in their room or the yard in the big house, giving treasure by helping stranger was something that keeps happening in their adventure book, Thomas like to talk how he was going to his adventure find treasure like the usual protagonist.

He hasn’t had his adventure because he never had the courage and still need to be guarded because he never pays attention to his surrounding.

“I like to make a story for him based on my near-death experience and you like helping ‘someone’. We all have our hobbies.” He said once he understands Beatrice trying to say while he remembers some of his favorite time with his cousin.

They then continue their journey until they are in an area where the Kapok tree had bear a fruit, there are two of them that were filled with kapok fruit, dancing and hardly move when a wind swipe at them, some of them still green, some them had turned to brown, some of the looks it had exploded with the silk coming out of the shell.

He and Beatrice were enjoying their walk in the zone where people goes missing and died. Then a Kapok fruit falls from the branch directly above his head, he already takes his machete again, moves back, the kapok keep falling like a normal fruit would until it split open revealing a camouflaged bat, it’s inside was leathery and pink but the outer part of it clearly a very hard shell, the bat flies straight to his stomach, he sidesteps and swings it down toward the bat.

Pak.

The sound was exactly like he was hitting a wood, the bat was tumbling but it survived and continue to fly again. It didn’t stop there though, he looks up and more Kapok fruit starts to fall like rain.

His heart was drumming inside his rib cage, it was beating so hard he felt the earth trembled under him, he smiled hitting a jackpot of nest full new mutant.

He waits and observes the falling bat waiting until it broke open but instead a bat fly toward one of the Kapok and destroy the fruit spreading Kapok silk into the air, he heard another bat flying and another Kapok fruit had been destroyed creating more chaos into the air.

“Tsked.” Look like ‘covering the air with silk’ strategy wasn’t that original.

He gripped his machete waiting what going to happen next and saw two bats from his front and back flying with much higher speed toward his leg, failing to prepared with the sudden speed Charles jumped into the air and realized he had fallen into a trap, he pulled his gun and start shooting whenever he saw something moving.

He rolled to the ground and start running run to the tree. He bit his lip and wipe the stupid tear in his eye. He had many scratches and bite but some bastard was making a huge wound in his back and Beatrice was making a temporary shelter with the tree behind them. He tosses her cream and let her bandage his wound.

While he let Beatrice treat his back, he takes a piece of wood that he thankfully found when he was running it wasn’t that good but it was the type of wood that can be carved to make a bow, once he realized he pisses a full colony he already made a plan to take care of them.

Inside the shelter, he had taken the wood and shave it with his machete and take out his knife to work on the finer part. Based on the wood size it would under the medium bow, he haven’t ready to tackle big bow so this a good size even though it was bit shorter he can work with it and voila he had working bow that can be finished with so little and time thanks to his love of weapon.

Tying Beatrice strong silk toward the end of the bow and tie it again, he pulls the string and now he only needs an arrow which he has, ten of them inside his bag.

Opening his bag, taking his takedown arrow, it looks like all the arrow had been broken half but it was n purpose because it can be put back and made carrying them very easy. He put all ten arrow on his arms reach, take one and start wrapping the silk around the arrowhead.

He grin, take a match and light the arrow.

“Fire.” He gets out the shelter, aim, and bullseye, it hit a ripe Kapok fruit and it exploded with burning silk and starting a beautiful fire on the tree. He gets inside again, taking his second fire arrow and shot the second tree. He didn’t hit kapok but the silk around certainly help him to burn the tree, he made three fire arrow so he still has another one.

He saw Beatrice already climb the tree, avoiding the pesky bat, while she suns her thread connecting both three and all the Kapok silk. He waited until Beatrice finish then pulling his arm, aims at that sweet spot where the tree had connected and he shoots the arrow and it burst like a waking of a dragon, traveling on Beatrice thread toward all the kapok turning the tree into living hell and turning the world into crimson of destruction. There were many noises, there was the heat that holstered into his face and was the sky was red or blue, he couldn’t guess anymore.

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While the mutant especially a bat had gone batshit, he takes his camera, put a timer and pose with Beatrice to immortalize their first ever mass destruction. They take a pose then notice several bats who started to fly at them.

“Catch me the loser.” He put his camera laughing while several bat chasing them, he put all the arrow in his mouth and start shooting several of them. He stopped, seeing a bat had been caught in silk and in that moment of weakness he pulls the arrow killing the bat, he runs again, hiding behind a tree and shot a bat that just past him. It didn’t die but still fall to the ground, he runs toward the bat, raises his machete and lunges into the bat.

The rest was an easy kill.

“You guys so tough.” He said, sitting on the ground, pressing the soft inner body the bat and wrap them with his corpse paper and putting them inside his bag. It probably because he burned their home or them just stupid.

He takes a breath and looks at his body, he had many more wound and his mom would scream if he goes he in this state. He had the face of someone who eats a lemon, ugggh, she would...

He sighed and pat Beatrice. “I could hide and go home after it healed.”

He takes a complete picture of the bat anatomy and starts remembering their battle.

“While their body may be soft but it was very easy for a Kapok bat to maneuver and exposed their shell toward an attack, they also clearly a social animal as they show good cooperation but I have high suspect there are stronger individual who controls them because they lost that strategy when the first fire start... or they just pissed he burn their home.” He said but stopped the recorder on his last sentence.

He plays with the bat, that he used as a model it was the one with one lethal wound, making an intact body. He stretches the batwing and flaps it like it was alive but from her stare, Beatrice didn’t appreciate him playing with a carcass.

He put the bat down and like playing with a puzzle he tried to turn it into Kapok camouflage then Ask Beatrice to close it off with her thread and he made a small hole above it, tied it with her silk and he has a new toy that could be played like a yoyo.

He spins his new toy and sees a potential of weapon but right now they are just good to propel the annoying bug.

The more he was in this forest the more he wants to distract himself, the forest was interesting but the jarringness and the change of mood at the flip of hand was tiresome, it gives him too much unnecessary thought. One moment you had a whimsical fantasy with an otherworldly creature as the mutation was stronger in these zones then you stumble upon what seems a broken house, full of sound from the past, memories of one who had lived here.

Stumbling upon the house, he remembers a story that stubbornly stuck in his head, told by a man who eats burned chicken in bonfire night.

“If you found the abandoned doll in a forest what you found was not a doll but a soul of a kid who lost in the forest, so to all of you brat, if you lost in there you will become a doll.” Charles scratched his head, he was sure the story was scarier but he still believe it, not in 100% but if he found an abandoned doll, which he found a lot, he likes to take it and give to Mr. Ymamanaka a crafter with hand that active as buzzing bee, he was a grandpa who lives alone and fixes their broken toy for free.

He didn’t really believe that they were real children but if it is then they wouldn't be lonely if he takes them. The doll he found was a girl, with curly orange hair and a pink dress, there was a small paper on the body, he will the dust and read it.

“2013, Made in China.”

“Is China still exist, Ms. Ying still alive, she wasn’t a China but she was Chinese but she wasn't born in China so what is she, is she a gardener or something more.” In answer to his dilemma, Beatrice tied a new thread to his hand and lead him away.

“I want a brawl.” He said to Beatrice, after many walks, he had had been in two fight but it mostly using his brain instead of brawn, he wanted something like the chestnut tree, it was troublesome but it was manly, there was blood, sweat, and oath of vengeance. Sure burning someone house is cool but he didn't get up close to blow some steam.

Awoooo.

He stops and catches his Bayo from Bat and Yoyo hence Bayo, the sound comes from the east toward the center, he tied his Bayo and walk toward the sound but Beatrice jump in front of him and start leading the way.

He walks beside her she stops and pointed at him and herself again.

‘Watch’ The message was clear. Charles decides to trust Beatrice abandoning his sense and watch all Beatrice move, how she walks, why she moved, how many times she stop or accelerate. It dawns that Beatrice tried to teach him how to navigate through the forest.

It was hard to translate what she was teaching, since she doesn't speak and their body was so different, if he was baby spider he would jump in joy that mummy spider had taught him her cool trick but since he didn’t have eight legs and walk like her, he could only learn so much, like how not to being the loudest and standout being in the forest.

Walking to an animal track would trick other about your identity, it’s common sense not to step on dry leave but here how to cover your track in case there is no other way or just jump and detour if you don’t want to make noise because you are following something, he keep watching her and found Beatrice more keen on identifying danger than him, for example.

Don’t breath near this red berry, If you were chased by a blind mutant jumping into the water might be a good idea since they probably detect you with heat, some mutant like blood and it’s a fair price to trade some of your blood to distract them and run away along with many other lessons.

Beatrice was teaching with only sign language and vague feeling, he was eating the lesson with ease, especially on a subject like this, she was also a good teacher, straight to the point and her explanation was easy enough to understand

She led him to a different part of the zone, so close to the center the highest Kapok tree didn’t allow any wooden plant to grown instead it was full with a weird leafless tree, that seems to want to play hard whether it was alive or dead, they are crooked, long and bendy some branch even touch the ground and he could see two-tailed monkeys swinging on the branch.

They walk above the branch passing many more mutants who seem offended when they pass. He knew they had arrived at their destination by the chilling wind on his cheek and the thick smell of blood, they climb higher on these gnarly trees and observe the monster bellow them.

The forest was always noisy but this the first time one noise drowned other, it was the sound of bone broken and chewed, sound of blood sucked along the sound of minced meat, blood dried n their black fur, they scuffle and growl, so eerily remind him of dinner time, where the sound fork clashed with the porcelain, gulping a juice and conversation with each other about their day.

The monster under him was having dinner, a carcass of a beast he couldn’t recognize, the ground around it had spattered with organ and meat, there two tongues from their mouth, pulling the bone from the flesh and sucking inside the bone. The leader was far from the bloodshed but he was the one with blood red fur compared to the brownish fur of his kin. Holding a head of beast feating on the brain and his second tongue happily sucking the spinal marrow.

The monster and mutant come from a different group of survivors, some group was lucky when they were meeting a creature like the white snake or the Kapok Bat but most call this new demon Monster, a sign of the end of their world. They weren't normal, they were a creature so broken they made you question your eye, a kind creature that had should be paced in a nightmare but suddenly barge into the cafe you always visit on Sunday, it made you question everything as it kills the nearest human with their blood splattered on your face.

Was this still the earth.

The creature was mutated from wolf but if he never learn canine anatomy it was impossible to tell, they were twice the size of normal wolf, their fur was brown and some of it had fall exposing squirming and bulging muscle under it, their tail was thin and malnourished like they were too eager to forget their heritage.

Their head become boxier with two slitted eye and new eyes have grown above it, bulging out the socket, an eye so red and manic because it didn’t have eyelid protecting it and their mouth had become so different it was like a thicker crocodile mouth when they opened it look like four petal flower.

Two sets of upper and bottom lip had the structure of hooked teeth to trapped the prey, armed with long and short hooked teeth while the left and right mouth had a bunch of teeth that come out from mincer meat. The thought of someone had been trapped inside that mouth would make people piss but Charles had thought far, just seeing their mouth he could already see what hunting method these monster had.

The fastest one would be hiding, waiting and watching the prey, he would then jump catching the beast in that mouth while the prey trashed pulling its body the mouth but by the time he could escape it was too late because the rest of the pack would jump and each take a bite on the prey body and at the same time, they would pull their mouth ripping the body in piece.

His body was shivering every time they move and growl, his cloth was sticking to his body thanks to the cold sweat, his breath was short and rapid, he was eye unblinking, moving around to collect all their move and behavior. His grin was stretched to the fullest as he stops pretending to be human.

He would break the new record if he fights this creature, his heart beating and his mouth salivating the next fight. He was animal, a defect just like he was a human defect. He didn’t hunt for food but taste and pleasure, do you know what if feel to fight with death in every step. It was exhilarating, it was a rebirth, every color is new, every taste is heavenly, your site was blessed catching every detail whether it was beauty or ugly that vision was magnificent when you are a breath away from death.

‘Watch.’

He turns back at her partner, he was growling, who want to stay back, they had found this beast together no one would eat alone.

She jumps to him and pats his head.

‘Watch.’

Charles blinks and grumble.

“I watch your back,” He said, wiping the drool in his mouth and stop gripping the branch so hard. His cheek reddened imagining how crazy he looks a second ago, but it doesn’t stop him to wait for the next battle.

He unsheathed his machete and insert a new magazine to his pistol. He jumps following Beatrice, she had chosen the closest while he choose one who was picking inside a bone and slide underneath it, he tenses his muscle and slashes its throat open, and insert the gun shoving the bullet twice inside exploding the head in gore, he swerves to the left roll and hack a claw that going slash his face.

It only got his right cheek, but he was fine, licking the blood he jumps forward evading the open mouth slide under two body twice and roll to his right staring at the glaring eye before he blows it with his gun, it roar and knock his with its tail.

He was thrown on the ground, quickly got his bearing by searching for Beatrice, he starts running toward her when two wolves had blocked his way. He spits some blood sheathed his gun and machete, running full speed to the blooming mouth, he could smell the fresh blood and rotten meat inside while their two tongues were swinging like a tempting hand that tells him to jump.

Charles did jump into the mouth grabbing the hooked teeth and propelled himself above the mouth, running and jumping between the two body, Beatrice had seen him and shot a thread across a branch for him, he jumps grabbing the thread and swinging toward Beatrice but he stopped near a wolf she fights using its surprise to slid under him and start spinning the thread n his neck.

Beatrice pulled her thread and before it could escape Charles held his Machete and use the force of his whole body he slashed it stomach, breaking the muscle spilling the blood and gut into the earth.

He jumps back, holding his chest as it feels his lung was on fire, his muscles were screaming and realized he never get proper rest after all this fighting and they start losing their ambush advantage. Beatrice had dispatch many of them, gone her day building a web and waiting for a fly to fall in, she had grown to be a ground hunter, using her speed, silk, and leg. She became an unrivaled assassin, binding, tripping and disabled her enemy while her leg would dodge and stab at their soft spot with her sharp leg.

They stood back to back, Beatrice was facing three wolf at the same time and he had one enemy, a wolf who had climb a tree and looking down at them, this was his enemy, he stands his ground committed with his machete. He was silent and the wolf was looking down at them, smirking with those mouths and jump toward him with utmost confidence, Charles had his plan, it close to suicidal but he had to do it, Beatrice was fighting with her utmost effort but she couldn't fight four at once, not if he wants to stay alive, he had to face the wolf and protect Beatrice back.

Fighting is hurting your enemy more than it hurt you. With that said, he holds both machete and a dagger, once again he jumps inside these monster mouth. He moves between those mouth until he reaches the base and plunge his machete and use his dagger to hold the upper mouth, finally holding the pain as his body had pressed into the teeth he pulls his gun and shot.

One, two, three. He shoots until the wolf stop moving, sweat, blood, and mucus surrounding his body, he keeps holding the dagger. He holds his right hand and withstands the weight of the mouth, as the wolf body went limp. He wants to escape but it was a wall of teeth, he didn’t know if he could survive without being crushed unless he had a third or fourth arm, he needs Beatrice to let him out.

There was a liquid in his hand, was that blood, fuck, there were so many teeth. He wishes Beatrice could help him, soon. The air was hot and stuffy, he still gripping the dagger, he can do this, no pressure, the air so pungent though and it was hard to see when his hand full and sweat and blood closed his eye.

‘Beatrice.’

There was light and he gets out, lied down on the ground. He opens his bag, takes out a syringe, and stab it in his neck, all the blood in his skin absorbed back inside his body, clotting the blood and closing his wound.

“Something I steal.” He said throwing the syringe and try not to saw his arm, his mum would forbid him to get out after this. He takes all the food to shove it and drink all his water. He would like to slow down if not for the nagging sense there are still dangerous.

‘Crack.’

He turned around, holding his stomach and saw another wolf still alive, it was the leader and just like him, he didn't want to be bothered while eating but now he had done eating. He was growling and howling to the sky, it wasn't normal howl, but a series of pitched sound that came each from the mouths, there was pressure in his body and illusion that the world had become bloody night.

The wolf was blooming, his mouth stretched so far he had seen all inside the body but it was not what he expected.

King. He trembled, a creature who defied nature, a creature who had gone beyond logic, it became a floating bulging mass of muscle with blue vein beating and he realized it was a heart, a beating heart without anything to support it. Several veins popped up with blood gushing out and they flow toward other wolves, whether they are still alive or not the vein dragged them into the heart.

Both of them start to run from the creature, they don’t want to know what exactly it tries to do. They were running at their highest speed and he was sure Beatrice seem had taught him a lesson about stealth but who cares, the girl had lost some of her legs and Charles held her like a baby and told her to focus on the road since he realized he didn’t know where the exit.

He keeps hearing horrifying noise from behind them, thankfully it wasn’t owllike but they know they have to run very fast.

Crash.

He moves faster again and Beatrice start choosing an easier route for two legs once she heard the crash, they were going to be eaten as the sound of running behind them getting closer and closer

He found the finally had become many again and saw two trees that grow close at each other like a gate, he passes it and hold Beatrice in his arm like an unique-looking gun and start shooting thread to connects the tree. The wolf had become more grotesque but he didn’t have time to observe it beside it crimson fur seems to be dripping with something.

He had a plan to made a web that works like a trampoline so long he fulfill the condition he would buy more time.

He finished and wishes it would work as the King still running and the trampoline had been stretched and when it seems they were ready to broken, it stumbled and throw crashing several trees.

He finally sees the end of the zone, he keeps running and drops to the street. He grins at the growling King, it’s eye looked at him but it didn’t dare to step out the zone, once again he was reminded how strong the mayor was. There are already people noticing his wounded body and his head feel so light and he tried t hold his consciousness but his stomach churn and throw all the food he just eats.

Charles bites his tongue, he’s not going to faint, he's not going to faint, he’s…