Chapter Twenty-One: Beast (Part One)

"Bloodstains, but they look like they've been here for a while."

Ling Ying crouched to examine the faint streak of crimson on the road. A moment later, she stood and glanced back at the shack, whose door had been closed again.

"About as old as the bodies."

"How could this happen..."

Orianna covered her mouth in disbelief.

"What could have happened to them?"

"You'll have to ask her."

Ling Ying turned to look at Bertha, whose face had gone deathly pale. The little girl said nothing, following close behind Orianna like she'd lost her soul, her steps unsteady. Suddenly, she shuddered as if struck by lightning, cried out, and ran toward the other side of the street.

"Pike!"

Hearing Bertha call that name, Ling Ying quickly set off after her. They crossed a chaotic alley and stopped in front of a single-story shack pieced together from metal sheets. A clear trail of blood leading to the doorway came into view.

"Pike!"

Bertha let out a hoarse scream, then her legs gave way and she started to fall. Ling Ying was quick enough to catch her. She glanced at Viktor, who had hurried over behind them. He immediately understood and stepped forward, took a deep breath, and pushed open the door.

"Creak!"

The rusty iron door groaned with a grating scrape. The headlamp on Viktor's armor easily illuminated every corner of the cramped, damp shack. A quick glance around revealed a little girl curled up in the corner, her head buried in her knees and her shoulders trembling from time to time. She was clearly still alive. Viktor dimmed his headlamp, then gave those outside a signal that it was safe. Little Bertha rushed in first, followed by Orianna and Jayce. Ling Ying stayed outside, keeping watch over the silent street.

"Pike?"

Bertha stared at the crying girl, froze for a moment, then rushed over and hugged her. The girl was even thinner and more frail than Bertha.

"Thank goodness! Pike, you're all right! Thank goodness..."

"Sister?"

The little girl slowly raised her head, feeling someone hold her. A glimmer of light finally appeared in her red, swollen eyes.

"Sister, you came back..."

"Of course I came back. And I brought some amazing people with me. Don't cry. I'll protect you, Pike..."

Little Bertha patted her sister's back, then looked up in confusion.

"Where... did everyone go? Why are you the only one here?"

"Everyone..."

Little Bertha seemed to have brought something to mind. Fear returned to Pike's eyes.

"No! Don't eat me... Don't..."

"No one's going to eat you, Pike. I'm here, sis is here. Don't be afraid..."

Though Bertha was completely bewildered by what her sister was saying, she immediately tried to comfort her.

"Everyone died..."

Pike sobbed against her sister's shoulder.

"Everyone went crazy... They... bit each other... They all died..."

Jayce and Viktor exchanged a glance at Pike's words, their brows drawing together. Just as they were about to ask more, a piercing crash suddenly came from outside.

"Clang!"

Bright sparks flew everywhere. Ling Ying glanced at the distinct claw marks on her blade, then looked toward the enormous beast roaring at her. If she wasn't mistaken, it was a giant wolf. But apart from its vicious wolf's head, it had little in common with wolves found in nature. Its hulking body stood several people tall, its muscles bulging beneath its hide. Dark green fur stood on end like steel needles, and its paws were visibly broader than a bear's. The metallic sheen of the syringe on its back and the colorful Alchemical Potions gave the giant wolf a distinctly cyberpunk look.

"Warwick..."

If she was right, the giant wolf in front of her was called Warwick. What puzzled her was why the Zaun Beast had appeared here at this hour. As the Blood Hunter of Zaun, he should...

"It's blood..."

Ling Ying furrowed her brows, then suddenly realized.

She glanced at the blood on the street. The thick stench of blood left by everyone on the block must have drawn Warwick in. As for the other reason...

"Criminal!"

A hoarse, harsh growl rumbled from Warwick's throat. He crouched, then launched himself into the air with a powerful kick of his hind legs, bringing his massive claws crashing down. Ling Ying summoned black mist and vanished into it. The next moment, she appeared behind Warwick, her Doran's Blade flashing as she swung at his unguarded back.

But his apparent lack of defense was only in Ling Ying's imagination. Warwick seemed to have eyes in the back of his head. His huge body spun around, and his thick, bushy tail whipped through the air with tremendous speed. Caught off guard, Ling Ying took the full force of the blow. It felt like being struck by a metal hammer. She landed awkwardly, off balance, and staggered several meters backward.

"Cecilia!"

Orianna darted out of the building. Ling Ying's heart tightened. Sure enough, Warwick, who had been facing her, was instantly drawn by the noise Orianna made. He turned and pounced at her.

Faced with the sudden appearance of the giant wolf, Orianna was clearly frightened and froze in place. Warwick's gaping maw, lined with razor-sharp teeth, was about to reach her when a steel figure charged in from the side and blocked his path.

Without hesitation, Viktor used the steel bracer on his armor to block Warwick's jaws. The armor didn't knock out a single tooth; instead, sparks flew as Warwick bit into it. The alloy plating on the bracer looked ready to be pierced. Viktor was startled and tried desperately to break free, but the force unleashed by his opponent's massive body was almost too much for even his crystal-powered armor.

"Hey, big guy!"

Just as Viktor was starting to buckle, Jayce's voice rang out from the side. A blue projectile crackling with electrical energy followed, shooting straight toward Warwick's head with a whistle. Only then did Viktor remember that Jayce had brought his gear with him to Zaun. If he remembered correctly, that thing was called the Shocking Fist.

"Aw!"

Warwick howled after taking a hit from the Kinetic Charge Electromagnetic Round. His jaws, which had been clamped tight, loosened, and Viktor took the chance to break free, accelerating several paces away. The Energy Array on his back suddenly blazed bright. The power servos in his armored arms whined as they spun up. A burst of pure white steam blasted from the vents, and Viktor surged forward, smashing a heavy punch into Warwick's jaw. With a series of sharp cracks, the several-meter-tall Zaun Beast was sent flying straight up by a Rising Dragon Fist. Before it could hit the ground, Viktor clenched both fists and raised his Steel Gauntlets high, then brought them crashing down onto Warwick's skull after the Transmission Device had accelerated them to full force.

"Bang!"

A thunderous crash rang out. Warwick slammed into the ground, his long-jawed, sharp-toothed head gouging a deep crater into the street. His enormous body twitched a few times, then went still. Viktor's armored punch was clearly no ordinary blow. At the same time, a dull crystal sprang from the slot in the Energy Array on Viktor's back. It was a Drained Crystal, its energy completely spent—an inevitable result of the armor's brief overclocked burst.

"What the hell is that thing?"

Seeing that Warwick had stopped moving, Jayce edged toward Ling Ying, still shaken. His eyes were full of amazement. A monster like that appearing in a civilized world was astonishing enough. Ling Ying was about to lower her sword and explain, but then her expression suddenly changed. She shouted at Jayce.

"Don't come any closer!"

Almost as soon as she spoke, the Metal Syringe on Warwick's back began to move, pumping a vial of gray Alchemical Potion into his body. The prone giant wolf suddenly opened its scarlet eyes and swiped its sharp claws at Jayce without hesitation.

A swirl of black mist swept between them. The Shadow Guardian Ling Ying had summoned, wielding a long scythe, appeared from within it. But perhaps because it had formed too hastily, the shadowy guardian had only just taken shape from the waist up when it barely managed to block Warwick's attack before shattering and vanishing. The silver-gray claw still came crashing toward Jayce with brutal force.

"Bang!"

Viktor clearly meant to stop Warwick with his armor as he had before, but Warwick, strengthened by the Alchemical Potion, was more than the T-60 could handle without an Energy Array crystal. He was sent flying, and his several-ton suit crashed into a shack, demolishing and crushing the entire building.

"Damn it!"

Furious, Ling Ying could no longer afford to hold back. Void Flames burst around her, spiraling and swelling along her blade. A mighty Flame Storm began to rise, but just as it was about to unleash, Ling Ying stopped it herself.

They were too close. If she unleashed that Flame Storm, she might send Orianna and the others flying along with Warwick. But an attack that wasn't powerful enough might not drive him back. In an instant, Ling Ying was caught in a dilemma. Warwick wouldn't wait, though. Jayce, caught off guard, was about to become a corpse beneath his claws.

"Ha, this is when you need me to step in!!"

"?"

A somewhat familiar voice suddenly flashed through her mind. Before Ling Ying could react, her whole body seemed to shut down.

Her head drooped. A moment later, she suddenly lifted it, then swung her right hand forward with all her strength. Doran's Blade spun like a discus, flying several meters in the blink of an eye. A flash of Cold Light sliced across Warwick's front. The next moment, a sharp wolf claw shot into the air, and gray-red blood with a foul stench gushed out. Warwick's huge body suddenly lost its balance. He howled and toppled to one side.

"Tch. Beast."

Ling Ying licked her lips and took a few steps toward the fallen Warwick. Strange shadows flickered in her eyes. A ring of jagged teeth spread around her original slit pupils. As if in response, purple fissures spread across her skin. Then, at her arms, her flesh suddenly twisted and unfurled in a grisly, chilling display. Before long, a pair of fearsome, scaled Demon Claws emerged, their tips wreathed in bright purple Void energy. Ling Ying slammed the claws together, then gave Warwick a taunting grin.

"I finally got to come out after all this time, so don't let me beat you too quickly!!"