A Bare Survive (10)

"Damn, this thing's chasing me, but I'm not one to run away ," Tamim muttered, perched on the roof of a four-story building.

The monster growled below, its eyes locked onto him. Without hesitation, it leaped toward Tamim's position with shocking speed.

Tamim gritted his teeth as he jumped off the building, landing hard on the empty morning streets.

"Good, no witnesses. I can't let anyone see this," he thought, scanning the deserted area.

Before Tamim could make his next move, the monster slammed into him, sending him flying across the street and crashing into the side of an empty bus.

The impact left him dazed, gasping for air as the bus's metal crumpled around him. The monster advanced, eager to finish the job.

"I don't have time to play around," Tamim muttered, teleporting away just as the monster's claws sliced through the space where his head had been.

He reappeared a few meters away, his body shaking from the adrenaline. "I've got about thirty minutes before the monster's powers fade.

If I escape for this time people will be in danger and if I fight then I'm dead," Tamim clenched his fists, preparing for the next strike.

"Let's see what you're made of, beast."

Meanwhile, at Butterfly Lake, Faria was locked in combat with two transformed monsters.

"They're stronger than the last group," she thought, analyzing their movements. One monster's skin began to blister and glow, suddenly erupting in flames.

The second one, human once again, submerged itself into the water, leaving a dark, bubbling trail behind.

"Fire? That's new," Faria mused, dodging a wave of flames that licked the edges of her clothes.

"The drug's evolving them faster than expected. Looks like they're starting to control their own transformations." She darted to the side, avoiding another burst of fire as she tried to come up with a plan.

Back in the city, Tamim had led his monstrous pursuer to a football field, hoping for some breathing room.

"Time to turn the tables. I may not have fighting skills, but I've got instincts," he muttered. The monster snarled, closing the distance between them in seconds.

"You think you can stop me?" the monster rasped, surprising Tamim.

"They can talk now? Last time, that thing was a mindless monster ," Tamim thought, eyes widening. "Which means it's controlling itself—this thing's evolved."

The monster's fists came down like hammers, relentlessly pummeling Tamim. With each blow, Tamim's bones creaked and cracked under the pressure.

Gritting his teeth, he closed his eyes and focused on gathering his energy for a counterattack.

When he finally struck out, his punch missed by a hair.

"How the hell did I miss?" he gasped, right before the monster's fist smashed into his chest, sending him flying into a tree.

The impact left him breathless, and blood trickled from his mouth.

"I'm running out of options," Tamim realized, struggling to rise. His vision blurred. "Wait—I can move objects... Maybe I can use that." Summoning his telekinetic powers, Tamim lifted the massive tree he'd collided with and hurled it toward the monster.

The trunk slammed into the creature, but it barely flinched, snarling as it advanced again.

"I have to keep hitting it where it hurts." Tamim charged forward, his fists glowing with power as he unleashed a barrage of blows aimed at the creature's chest.

Blood sprayed from the wounds, and the monster howled in agony. "That's it—it can't heal itself but i can, that's my advantage "

But Tamim's moment of triumph was short-lived.

The monster, roaring in fury, rushed at him with renewed vigor. Its massive fist connected with his face, sending him sprawling. "Enough playing around. Die!" the creature bellowed, smashing its fists into Tamim's body over and over again.

With a sickening *crack*, both of Tamim's arms broke, the bones splintering under the relentless assault. "Aghh!" Tamim screamed, collapsing to the ground. The pain was unbearable, his left arm hanging uselessly, twisted at a grotesque angle. The monster showed no mercy, pummeling his face until his eye swelled shut, leaving him half-blind.

"I can't... even teleport," Tamim thought, choking on blood as he struggled to stay conscious.

"Is this the end? What happens after I die? No one will care. I'm no hero like my dad, or a good person like my sister who died to save others , or pure-hearted like my mom. I'm just... me." Tamim's mind spiraled into darkness as the monster continued its brutal onslaught, each punch hammering away what little life remained in his battered body.

On the other side, in the lake, Faria continued to fight for her life.

The fire-spewing monster advanced, its flames growing more intense. "My electrical attacks are useless—this damn thing's absorbing all the electricity with that device on its arm. I've got to take it down, but I can't risk getting caught in the fire."

The monster hurled another torrent of flames toward her. She rolled to the side, narrowly avoiding the inferno. "I need a new plan," Faria thought, her mind racing. "It's guarding that device on its arm too well. Physical attacks are my only option, but its fire is too dangerous."

As the monster moved in for the kill, Faria gritted her teeth. "Screw it. I'm done playing it safe." She surged forward, charging headlong into the flames, her body twisting and turning as she avoided the searing heat by mere inches.

She drove her fist into the monster's arm, aiming directly for the device. With a sickening crunch, the device shattered, sending sparks flying.

The monster screamed, its fire extinguishing as it writhed in pain. "Time to end this," Faria muttered, readying her next move.

But her moment was short-lived. The second monster, which had submerged earlier, erupted from the lake, slamming into her from behind. Its claws tore through her clothes and skin, blood splattering onto the ground.

Faria screamed as the monster's claws dug deeper, pinning her to the ground.

"I need to do something." she gasped, summoning all her strength to release a surge of electricity from her body.

The blast sent the creature flying backward, but not before it had left deep, jagged wounds across her back.

Panting, Faria struggled to her feet, knowing the battle was far from over.

.

.

.

Meanwhile, Tamim lay broken and bloodied, barely clinging to life.The monster raised its fist for the final blow.

"Is this the end? " Tamim thought, darkness closing in around him..

The air was thick with tension as a bystander wandered too close to the chaos, eyes wide in disbelief at the devastation unfolding.

"What the hell's happening here?" the newcomer stammered, barely processing the scene before them.

The monster's head whipped around, and in an instant, it lunged at the bystander, its claws outstretched.

Tamim, battered and broken, forced himself to act. With a surge of adrenaline, he delivered a powerful kick to the creature's midsection, knocking it off course and saving the bystander by mere inches.

"Despite my broken arms, I'm not finished yet," Tamim declared resolutely.

His vision was blurred from the damage, his left eye almost swollen shut, but through the pain, a strange clarity washed over him.

"X-ray vision."

He hadn't even noticed it fully before, but now it was his only advantage.

Though his arms were shattered and useless, his legs still functioned, and his mind was as sharp as ever.

"I can still see... even through this mess but it looks different " he muttered, his voice ragged.

With his legs alone, he launched a vicious assault on the monster, targeting its weakest points—its spine, knees, joints. His kicks, powered by a blend of fury and desperation, struck with deadly precision.

But the monster wasn't done yet. It swiped furiously at Tamim, faster and more aggressive.

One wild attack caught Tamim's leg, locking around it like a vice. With a sickening crunch, the monster twisted, and Tamim felt his bone snap under the pressure.

Agonizing pain tore through his body, and he collapsed to the ground, crippled.

"Helpless now, aren't you?" the monster taunted, looming over him like a predator ready to feast.

Suddenly, the world spun, and Tamim found himself atop a school building beside the field, the sounds of the street battle replaced by a calm breeze.

Realizing Tamim said " What the hell? How did I come here?"

He found himself on a roof and Faria stood next to him, eyes sharp but concerned.

"Don't move. If you do, the healing won't work as fast," she said, her voice steady, though her expression betrayed worry.

"How… How did I get here?" Tamim gasped, still reeling from the pain.

"I created a portal right before that thing could finish you. As soon as you landed, I turned its final blow into an electric shock. That monster's knocked now turning into human " Faria explained, glancing back at the battlefield then a portal opened under transformed monsters human body and went somewhere

"And the other two monsters you were fighting?" Tamim asked, barely able to focus.

"They're defeated . I took care of them. This fight's over," she replied, her words carrying the weight of her victory.

Tamim stared at her in disbelief. 'She's far stronger than I thought." He collapsed back against the rooftop, letting out a long, exhausted breath.

"You've fractured your bones pretty badly," Faria noted, crouching beside him. "But it looks like your healing ability is kicking in. You'll be back on your feet soon enough."

In the distance, the blare of sirens filled the air. Police cars screeched to a halt at the scene, their lights flashing ominously.

"We need to go," Faria said quickly, conjuring another portal before the authorities could get a glimpse of them.

In a blink, Tamim found himself on a ground surface from the portal Faria created.

He looked around and saw trees around and it felt like a jungle.

" What is this place? " Tamim asked Faria.

" It's beside my countryside village." Faria Said.

" Why am I here?" Tamim asked.

" No reason, I mean you are badly injured. Worse than the last time so I took you here." Said Faria.

" Worse than last time? What?" Said Tamim.

" Last time means in the park. There some of your bones were badly injured but now your bones got displased so healing will be tougher." Replied Faria.

" Understood but my pain is gone." Said Tamim.

" Wait a second" Faria said and the palm of her hand and blood came from that.

She held Tamim's body and it started to heal faster and his bones started to get back to its place faster.

" Wow, so you took me here to do this?" Said Tamim.

" Exactly.. I will send you once you are fully healed. I am sorry for today's incident" Said Faria.

" Can I ask you a question?" Asked Tamim to Faria

" Yas.." Replied Faria

" If i am not wrong based on now what u are doing, you seems to have healing power and it feels like its more powerful then mine. So why are you doing this? If they finds your blood the same thing will happend, if they finds my blood right?" Asked Tamim

" Yas, I knew the thereat so i know how to be protected from that, but you ware not aware of that so i decided to tell you that day." Replied Faria.

"Well, it seems fishy, so first tell me, how did you know they knew I have healing powers? Like when you warned me before the sniper attack incident?" asked Tamim.

"It's because the monster I defeated that day, who was beating you, had a lens camera on their eyes connected to the internet, so that's how I warned" Replied Faria

Faria stood up and said " You are healed completely, now you can go" and created a portal under Tamim and Tamim was sent to the buildings roof beside the park.

Seeing this he said " Oh..she teliported me back"

As he stood up gingerly, his bones still hurting from recovary of knitting bons back together, he recognized the place.

The park. The same park where he had fought just a few days ago.

"This is where it all started " he muttered, bitter memories flooding back. "If only I'd stayed out of that fight, maybe I wouldn't be in this mess."

To be continued….