A day had passed, and the sun was setting as it painted the world orange. The busker and the robot weren’t far from Bulan, but they would have to travel through the night if they wanted to arrive within that day.

“Maybe we should start looking for a place to camp for the night,” James suggested.

Chorong was about to say I agree when her auditory sensors detected footsteps. They were close. Chorong estimated it was 200 meters away. Chorong analyzed the pattern and realized it resembled a four-legged creature.

Chorong put her index finger on James’s lips vertically, indicating to him to stay quiet. His eyes rotated around, scanning the area. He slowly put down his guitar case and backpack. Then, he grabbed the rifle.

“I thought this wasn’t Alpha territory yet,” Chorong whispered.

“Me too,” the busker said.

“Front,” Chorong said.

Between the trees in front of them, a wolf creature revealed itself. Its eyes were locked onto the duo, and they glowed red. It was the exact symptom of getting infected with the Alpha virus, which Chorong remembered from a book she had read.

The wolf growled. It was huge: Chorong estimated its head to butt would span at least two meters. Fortunately, it wasn’t too close yet. It was around 150 meters away.

“I don’t detect anything else. It’s just that one,” Chorong said to her employee.

The wolf started approaching the duo slowly.

James thought for a moment. Could he run? No. The wolf was too close, and it was faster and bigger than both him and Chorong. James raised his gun and aimed his shot, lining the muzzle with the wolf’s head. Then he cocked the gun with its bolt, loading a bullet into its chamber with a metallic noise.

As if that noise was the starting signal in a race, the wolf started charging at the duo at full speed, dancing through trees and over tree roots.

James couldn’t help but flinch. He felt his heart starting to beat faster. Adrenaline pumped through his body. He tried to steady himself but struggled. This was his first encounter with an Alpha.

Then Chorong stood slightly in front of James and took a boxing stance. “150 meters away,” she said.

James found her presence reassuring.

The busker let out a long, deep breath. He cleared his head and focused solely on his arms and hands, just like when he played the guitar. He pulled the rifle against his shoulder to steady it.

He fired a shot. It hit a tree next to the wolf.

“I can do it, I can do it,” he muttered.

He fired another shot. This time, a splat of blood splashed from the wolf’s side, and it seemed to lose its footing for a moment from the impact. However, it regained balance and continued charging, showing no signs of pain.

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“Don’t worry, I got my aim down,” James said. Chorong wasn’t sure if he was talking to her or himself.

James steadied his breath and adjusted the gun’s angle with as much detail as possible. He breathed out one last time, and his gut told him that the crosshair aligned with the wolf’s head. He pressed the trigger.

He heard no gunshot. Instead, there was a clicking noise.

He pressed the trigger again. And again. And again. The rifle didn’t fire.

“What the...” he muttered as panic slowly crept into his consciousness. He suddenly remembered what the adventurer who gave him the gun said back at Mi-Ray: Hey, pass me one of the backup guns.

Why was it one of the backup guns?

“Shoot, it’s a faulty gun!” James shouted in epiphany.

“100 meters!” Chorong notified.

James grabbed the lever on the side of the rifle and desperately yanked it, hoping the jammed bullet would pop out. However, the lever did not move. Something had gone terribly wrong inside the gun’s loading mechanism.

Chorong let out a calm breath as she folded her hands into fists in front of her head, like a boxer. She advanced forward to put more distance between herself and James, who was still trying to get the gun to work again.

50 meters.

25.

10.

The beast lunged, looking to bite off Chorong’s head.

Chorong took a small step forward to gain a bit of momentum and then launched an uppercut aimed at the wolf’s chin.

It would’ve landed and shattered the beast’s skull…if Chorong didn’t hesitate.

An image appeared in her mind. It was back in Mi-Ray, just after she protected William from the assaulter. She vividly remembered how William had looked at her.

Utter horror.

Then she realized she was in the middle of a combat.

Recalling memories slowed her, and she realized the wolf’s attack would reach faster than hers. Instead of continuing with the uppercut, she jumped sideways and raised her left arm to guard her head. The beast’s teeth dug deep into the arm.

The beast swung her body around, its teeth still stuck in her arm. She tried to plant herself to the ground, but she was too light.

Then she heard metal crunching from her left arm. Just a moment later, she felt herself flying in the air backwards. Her back then crashed into a tree trunk hard enough to shatter its bark. She then fell to the ground. She tried to push herself back up with her hands, but she couldn’t.

She realized her left forearm was missing, just under the elbow. Electrical wires and broken circuits flung around at the edge of the cut.

The wolf spit out Chorong’s left forearm.

James felt like his mind was going blank. Only desperation remained. He repeatedly yanked on the bolt, still trying to get the gun working. He glanced at Chorong; she was shaking but wasn’t standing back up, as if she had a concussion.

The wolf turned and looked at him. Instinctively, he lowered his body, ready to spring.

The wolf jumped, aiming for his head. Using all of his might, he lunged out of its way. He landed on a side of his body. He stumbled back up onto his feet, still holding the rifle.

The situation really wasn’t good; the distance between himself and the wolf was small. He slowly stepped back, but the wolf also approached at the same speed, taking its time to hunt its prey.

Then, something caught his eye: his guitar case. It lay right in front of the wolf.

The wolf put a paw on top to step over it. James heard its frame straining under the weight.

“NO!” James shouted without realizing.

Surprised by James’s sudden shout, the wolf retreated, removing its paw from the guitar case.

The busker’s shout surprised himself, and it helped him wake up. He could think again. He breathed, trying to hold onto the string of his consciousness.

I got this, I got this, I got this, he told himself. He glanced at Chorong. She was straining to get back up.

We got this, the busker thought.

He put his eyes back onto the enemy. The wolf seemed to have realized James still didn’t have any good weapon against it. It bared its teeth and advanced. It lowered its legs as if it was ready to spring.

I don’t got this, the busker realized. The beast was too close for him to dodge the next attack.

Then, he saw a glimpse. A glimpse of hope.

A glimpse of a saviour.

A glimpse of Chorong running at the wolf.