Chap #15: Fight and Aftermath

The monster shrieked from the deepest part of its throat and lunged forward. Its elongated, sharp fingers swiped at Keneric while its single yellow eye tracked his every movement. Keneric moved with superhuman speed, pivoting on one foot to dodge the charge. The creature passed beside him—and the fleshy axe came down in a vicious arc.

Next, the belligerent axe bit deep down into the creature's shoulder and, surprisingly, cut through like butter.

Losing one of its arms, the monster stumbled back, glancing at the wound now pouring buckets of green blood onto the wet floor. Just like the first giant, this one bled green too. Noted, Keneric thought.

Joy, hiding in her corner, watched in stunned silence.

Keneric didn't wait. The monster hesitated, stuck between fighting and fleeing—but then it made a choice. Watching Keneric advance again, it mimicked him, moving sideways. But before it could even lift its monstrous arm, the axe slashed across its chest in another clean hit.

Green blood splashed out like water again and the creature gave up fighting.

It stammered and retreated, realizing Keneric was a foe it couldn't handle today. It wasn't that the monster lacked pain or emotions like rage—it simply preferred to fight on instinct. And its instinct now screamed to run.

But would Keneric let it go?

Obviously not.

As soon as the suited monster turned its back, Keneric chased it down effortlessly—breaking any record for movement or speed while doing so. The axe swerved again, this time targeting the neck and in one fluid move, Keneric decapitated it.

The head collapsed, twitching and gurgling, as green fluid pooled beneath the lifeless body—only to be quickly absorbed by the swamp-like ground. The suit, however, remained, soaked by the terrain.

Joy gasped when Keneric didn't move away but instead knelt beside the corpse and extended his hand. From her angle, she couldn't see the creature's body shrink like its essence was being drained—quickly and thoroughly.

She blinked and approached, breathing heavily. When she reached him, she finally saw what remained of the once-tall creature. Not much to be honest. Its body had turned pale, then white, then withered into ash.

Keneric stood up, his back to her.

"Ken?" she whispered, her voice shaky.

He turned halfway—and for a split second, Joy saw his eyes flash emerald green before returning to their usual deep black.

Did I imagine that? she wondered.

But no. She was sure this time.

"Ken?" she asked again, more firmly.

"Yes?" he replied, finally meeting her gaze. A faint, satisfied smile crossed his face. "Are you okay?"

Joy blinked. "Are you?" she asked, worried and a little afraid.

"Yeah? What could happen to me?" He glanced down at himself. "No cuts, no scratches."

As if to prove it, he spun in a slow circle. But Joy didn't look convinced.

"Ken, what was that? The way you moved… That wasn't human. I haven't even seen Olympic athletes move that fast."

"Adrenaline makes you do crazy things," Keneric shrugged. "Also, Olympic athletes don't have human-sized green monsters attacking them."

"Adrenaline doesn't do that," Joy replied softly. "Trust me. I'd know."

She paused. "And that axe…? Where did it come from? Where did it go?"

Now that she noticed, the green, flesh-like weapon had vanished. Both his hands were empty. But she had seen it—how could she not? That thing had appeared out of nowhere, alive and pulsating. It wasn't an object that could be ignored. It was something else. Something cruel. Something scary.

Now she was sure. Last night did happen. The green veins, the infection, Ken dying…

"What weapon?" Keneric said, snapping her out of her thoughts.

Joy clenched her jaw. "Nothing," she lied. "Must've been my imagination."

Keneric turned and walked toward the cafeteria. Just before they entered, Joy whispered, "You're Keneric, right?"

She immediately clapped her hands over her mouth, shocked at her own question.

She expected him to dismiss her like before—to laugh or call her insane. But this time, he didn't.

As they stepped inside, he hummed. "Maybe," he said, then added, "I'll tell you when I know myself."

Then he walked into the shadows.

That was enough for Joy.

For the first time since waking up, she felt a strange sense of relief. Even if he hadn't told her everything, that little bit of honesty comforted her. She caught up to him, no longer dragging behind.

They scanned the cafeteria, searching for supplies.

"Well, that's unfortunate," Keneric muttered, surveying the wreckage. The monster had destroyed anything edible. Without electricity, they had little hope of finding anything fresh in the large freezer.

But before she could speak, Keneric snickered. "Come out, whoever you are," he said, turning toward the kitchen.

The fleshy, veined axe materialized in his hand—no longer hidden from Joy.

She blinked, curiosity flaring inside her mind, but quickly ducked behind him, heart pounding. Was there another monster in the kitchen?