CRASH!
The window explodes into a thousand shards.
Already in their black-furred lycan forms, Lars and Ingrid leap at the two Monster Hunters in the room with John.
A deep bite to the jugular and a savage swipe across the chest are enough to kill them both in an instant.
John's confident gaze shifts between me and Lars.
"You two again, huh? Looks like you didn't learn your lesson. Last time, you were lucky I had other things to deal with, but now..."
CRUNCH!
John's heavy foot comes down on the head of the dying silver-furred lycan.
Chunks of brain and bone splatter everywhere.
"...now I've got all the time in the world for you!"
A white aura envelops John before he instantly lunges at Ingrid.
She barely manages to dodge his punch before it buries itself in the concrete wall.
Fuck, his strength is insane!
John barely has time to yank his fist free from the concrete before Ingrid is already on him.
Lars and I are right behind her.
A simultaneous attack from three different directions, launched by two alpha lycans and... well, me.
I'm no pushover either!
And yet, not one of us manages to land even a single hit on him.
John easily dodges my slash.
At the same time, he drives an elbow into Lars's chest and a knee into Ingrid's stomach.
The two lycans are hurled across the room with brutal force.
Fuck, now he's coming for me.
I barely manage to dodge his first punch, but I can't avoid the second.
Luckily, it only clips my shoulder.
Even so, it's enough to send me crashing to the floor beside Lars and Ingrid.
Shit, this is getting really bad!
Lars shoots me a nervous look.
"Why aren't you using that power?! That's why we brought you!"
"It's something I can only hold for a few seconds right now! I can't waste it this early!"
"Why the fuck didn't you tell me that before?!"
"Because you never asked!"
"You two, quit acting like children!" Ingrid snaps. "We'll still find a way to take that bastard down. Now get up and let's get to work!"
The moment we get back on our feet and prepare to attack again, the building's main door flies open.
Shit, more Monster Hunters...
"Boss, what's going on? Do you need help?"
John shoots them a furious glare.
"Who told you to leave your posts?! Get back out there and keep patrolling — more of them could show up at any moment! I'll handle these three myself!"
"Yes, Boss!"
Phew... good thing he's so cautious.
We're already in deep shit as it is.
If more Monster Hunters join in, there's no way we're making it out alive.
John gives us a mocking beckoning gesture.
"Come on, monsters. Bring it."
We don't need to be told twice.
All three of us charge him again in a desperate frontal assault.
Somehow, Ingrid manages to sink her teeth into his arm, but a brutal punch to the face sends her crashing back to the ground.
I seize the opening and drive my sword into his thigh.
Blood pours from the wound, yet his speed doesn't seem to drop in the slightest.
At the same time, Lars catches him across the back with a powerful swipe.
A hit like that would probably be enough to bring down a wall.
But not this guy.
He really does seem invincible.
A moment later, Lars and I are sent crashing to the ground again before we can even tell how he hit us.
All I know is that my chest hurts like hell.
Blood pours down Ingrid's face, which is twisted with rage, while Lars can barely stay on his feet.
I have to play my ace in the hole.
Now or never.
I glance at Ingrid.
"G-Get ready... I'm about to do it..."
She nods.
If this doesn't work either, I'm afraid this really is the end.
This time, I charge John alone.
"You've got guts, kid. As a reward, you'll be the first one to stop suffering!"
As his powerful fist comes crashing down on me, my phantom arms burst from my back.
One blocks his strike.
The other attacks.
Just like in Mott Haven.
And yet, this time, his speed isn't enough to dodge it.
John is sent flying into the wall hard enough to crack it.
A cry of pain bursts from his lips along with a spray of blood.
What the...?!
I stare at my extra arms in disbelief.
Lars and John do the same, looking just as stunned.
The last time I used them, they were just limbs made of red energy.
Now, though, they're glowing with a faint white light.
The same white light as the Monster Hunters.
And it's not just a visual change.
John couldn't dodge them because they're moving far faster than they did the last time.
What the hell is going on...?
Whatever this is, keeping them active somehow feels even more taxing now.
I need to finish this fast!
The arms stretch toward John.
They try to grab him, but at the last second he slips away with a quick sidestep.
The arms chase after him, but he manages to stay ahead of them by constantly changing direction.
Lars jumps in to try and slow him down.
It works, but not enough.
John knocks him down yet again and immediately goes back to running.
Shit... I'm almost at my limit!
It's only a matter of seconds before my power gives out.
Right at that moment, the main door flies open again.
And so do my eyes.
E-Emily...?!
What the fuck is she doing here?!
Well, now really isn't the time to wonder about that.
Without saying a word, she immediately charges John.
He throws a vicious flying kick to knock her out of the way. But somehow Emily manages to block it with her guard up.
A sharp look of pain flashes across her face.
That kick probably broke a few bones.
But it bought me the one second I desperately needed.
The massive phantom hands close around John, pinning his arms in place.
A moment later, Ingrid's deadly swipe slams into his face.
My extra arms vanish a moment later, and John crashes heavily to the ground.
At the same time, I drop to my knees, completely exhausted.
We did it!
Ingrid's hit must've seriously messed up John's vision.
At this point, she can finish him off on her own!
Ingrid gets ready to deliver the final blow, but Emily suddenly steps between them with her arms spread wide.
"What the hell are you doing, girl?! Move, or I'll kill you too!"
"Like I told Darko already, this has nothing to do with you. We need him alive, and I won't let you kill him."
"That bastard killed a lot of my comrades! I'm sending him out of this world with my own hands!"
"You're not the only one. He lost plenty of comrades to lycans and vampires too."
Emily's voice turns so serious that Ingrid hesitates.
"We've all lost someone."
She looks at me as she says it, then turns back to Ingrid.
"This is a war, and we humans sure as hell weren't the ones who started it. But you can bet we'll be the ones to end it. One way or another. Now let me do my job."
A vicious growl rumbles from Ingrid's throat.
"I don't take orders from you—"
"There are more than a hundred Department of Defense Monster Hunters outside. Take one step and all three of you are dead."
When Ingrid slowly lowers her paw, Emily lets out a faint sigh of relief.
"My duty says I should detain you as well. But as thanks for what you've done, I'm willing to look the other way and let you go. Don't ever think about causing trouble in our city again. I'm saying this for your sake, not mine."
Emily's tone grows so serious it borders on threatening.
"You know better than I do that your existence is merely tolerated, not welcomed. The people at the top are just waiting for you to make one wrong move so they can wipe all of you out without distinction. Don't give them a reason."
At that point, Ingrid and Lars have no choice but to take Emily's advice.
They shift back into human form before diving into the river through the broken window we used to get in.
Of course, it wasn't like they could just stroll out the front door with all those Monster Hunters around.
"You should get out of here too, Darko."
"You followed me, didn't you?"
"After I saw you whispering with two Nightclaws at school this morning, I had every reason to."
"Well, I'd say you made the right call. I'm not sure things would've turned out this well if you hadn't stepped in."
"Then try not to get yourself into trouble again..."
"I don't make promises I can't keep. Anyway... you know you're really hot when you play bad cop? Next time we fuck, bring a uniform and handcuffs."
Her face immediately turns bright red the moment I say it.
"F-Fine, if that's what you like..."
I was actually just joking.
But if she wants it, who am I to say no?
"...anyway, you remember the promise you made me, right?"
A promise?
"W-What's with that face?! You said that once this whole thing was over... you know... you'd reward me properly..."
Oh, right.
I completely forgot about that.
"If I told you now, it wouldn't be much of a surprise, would it?"
"Y-Yeah, I guess you're right..."
Phew... that was close.
I need to come up with something if I don't want to seriously piss her off.
And fast.