Cherreads

Chapter 22 - Chapter 22 — Crystal Warrior

The abandoned construction building stood silent beneath the night sky.

Half-finished concrete walls rose into the darkness, their surfaces scarred with cracks, exposed steel bars, and unfinished edges. Several sections of the roof were missing entirely, leaving wide openings where pale moonlight poured down into the hollow structure. Silver light washed across the dusty concrete floor.

A cold breeze drifted through the open building, rustling loose sheets of plastic and broken boards scattered across the ground. Dust floated lazily in the air, glittering whenever it passed through the moonlight.

Jack stepped inside. His footsteps echoed softly through the empty space. He paused near the entrance and scanned the structure carefully — no voices, no movement, no cars passing nearby.

Good.

This place had become his unofficial training ground. No cameras, no curious pedestrians wandering in, and most importantly, no questions.

Jack walked deeper into the building until he reached the center of the wide concrete floor. He stopped beneath one of the broken roof openings where moonlight fell directly around him like a spotlight.

He glanced down at the Omnitrix. The dial glowed faintly green, and above it a holographic alien silhouette rotated slowly — tall, angular, armored in crystal.

Jack smiled. "…Diamondhead."

Even after unlocking several aliens already, the moment before testing a new form still gave him a small thrill. He rolled his shoulders. "Alright. Let's try this properly."

His thumb pressed the dial.

KRR-CHAK!

Green light exploded outward. Energy wrapped around his body like a living storm. Bones hardened, muscles reshaped, and his skin transformed into something completely different. Jagged crystal structures spread across his limbs as his human form vanished beneath layers of living gemstone.

The transformation ended with a sharp crystalline crack.

Where Jack had been standing, a crystal warrior now stood beneath the moonlight.

Diamondhead straightened slowly. Moonlight scattered across his body as it struck the blue-white crystal plates forming his armor, reflections bouncing across the room like fractured beams of light. The edges of his shoulders looked like polished blades. Each movement produced a faint grinding sound as crystal shifted against crystal.

Jack flexed his arms. The alien body felt heavy, dense, unbreakable.

"…Yeah," he muttered. "This one looks awesome."

He walked toward a cracked mirror leaning against a concrete pillar nearby. The reflection staring back at him looked like something pulled from another world — a tall alien composed entirely of living crystal, broad shoulders, sharp angular limbs, and the glowing Omnitrix symbol embedded in the center of his chest.

Jack tilted his head. "Definitely one of the coolest ones."

He raised his right hand. A faint pulse of energy flowed through his arm and crystal formed instantly across his palm, a long shard extending outward like a spear growing from his hand.

Jack blinked. "…That was easy."

He pointed toward the far side of the building. The shard fired.

CRASH.

The crystal spike blasted across the room and slammed into a concrete pillar. The impact echoed through the empty building as the shard buried itself deep into the wall, small cracks spreading outward from the point of impact.

Jack stared at the damage. "…Okay. That's some serious firepower."

He walked over to inspect the pillar. The concrete had fractured under the force — not shattered, but definitely weakened. Jack nodded slowly. "Long range attacks. Good penetration."

Then he stepped back toward the open floor. "Let's try something else."

He focused again. Energy flowed through the crystal body like liquid light.

CRRRSHK!

Sharp crystal spikes erupted from the ground. Three massive crystal pillars burst upward from the concrete floor around him, their jagged edges catching the moonlight. Jack stepped back and laughed quietly. "Area control too?"

He walked toward one of the spikes and tapped it. Solid — very solid. The structure barely vibrated. Jack circled the pillars slowly, imagining it for a moment. Enemies rushing toward him, then crystal spikes bursting from the ground beneath their feet.

Jack grinned slightly. "Yeah. That would ruin someone's day."

Next he tested strength. Jack picked up a large chunk of broken concrete from the ground — at least forty pounds. He squeezed. The rock shattered instantly in his crystal grip, fragments scattering across the floor.

Jack nodded. "Strength isn't bad either."

Then he tried something different. Jack concentrated on his arm. The crystal shifted, reshaping, extending. His forearm lengthened into a razor-sharp crystal blade. Jack swung it once.

CLANG.

The blade sliced cleanly through a rusted steel beam nearby. The beam dropped to the floor with a loud metallic crash. Jack stared at the clean cut. Then he smiled.

"Okay… Diamondhead is dangerous."

His mind immediately began running through possibilities. Armed enemies — crystal shields could block bullets. Groups of attackers — ground spikes could trap them instantly. Armored opponents — that blade would cut straight through.

Jack folded his crystal arms. "Not the fastest alien… but in the right fight?" He chuckled. "This form could dominate."

He walked toward the crystal shard still embedded in the wall from earlier, grabbed it with one hand, and squeezed. The crystal slowly began dissolving, the sharp edges fading as the structure broke down into glowing fragments.

Exactly as he suspected.

"Good. If the crystals disappear… no one can collect alien samples." That solved a potential problem. The last thing Jack needed was scientists discovering alien material in New York — especially in a world where organizations like S.H.I.E.L.D. definitely existed.

The Omnitrix timer appeared.

[ Transformation Ending ]

Green light surrounded him again. The crystal body dissolved into energy and moments later Jack stood in human form once more. Around him the crystal pillars he had created began fading, their jagged structures softening as fragments broke apart into glowing particles. Within seconds the entire formation dissolved into the air.

Jack watched the last shard vanish. "Perfect. No evidence left behind."

For a moment he stood quietly beneath the broken roof. Above him, moonlight spilled into the empty structure while the city beyond the abandoned building continued moving — traffic, lights, distant sirens. Completely unaware that a new alien warrior had just joined its streets.

Jack glanced down at the Omnitrix. Walkatrout, XLR8, Four Arms, and now Diamondhead. Slowly, piece by piece, he was building an arsenal.

Jack smiled slightly. The city had no idea what was coming.

Diamondhead had arrived.

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