Chapter 10 – Betrayal and Flight
"Pain…"
That single word echoed endlessly in Apolo's mind as he twitched inside the crater his body had carved into the earth. The ground around him was cracked and broken under the moonlight, dust rising with every faint movement he made.
His head rang like someone was hammering a rusted bell inside his skull. His heartbeat was a wild, disobedient beast, thumping without rhythm, slamming against his chest like it wanted out. Breathing felt like trying to inhale through crushed lungs. Every gasp was sharp, shallow, and unsteady. His vision blurred in and out, shapes stretching and shrinking as his brain struggled to understand what was happening.
The world around him pulsed—dark, unclear and muffled.
Yet even through the haze, one very thing reached him clearly:
That cold, confident laughter with familiar voice.
It made his skin crawl.
Apolo's fingers trembled, but he forced them to curl into a fist. His teeth clenched weakly as a bitter thought flash to the surface of his fading in and out consciousness.
"Can people really go this far just to kill one person?"
There was no answer obviously. Only the heavy ringing in his skull and the faint pounding of footsteps somewhere unknown around him.
He exhaled shakily, fighting to calm his scattered mind.
"I took you down with surprise once… and I can do it again."
The thought steadied him. Just a little.
---
Meanwhile, several meters away, the bulky adventurer exchanged a confused look with the female adventurer. They had expected chaos, maybe another group of Adventurers, or maybe a dying hybrid… but not this. Not what they were sensing.
Derek stepped forward casually, his boots crunching lightly against the dry leaves scattered across the forest floor. His voice carried an easy laugh.
"Hahaha! We were just passing through when we heard the sounds of battle over here. We couldn't resist our curiosity, so we decided to take a look."
"Fair enough," a deep voice responded. This time, the voice was much closer—close enough to send a shiver crawling down the backs of the two adventurers behind Derek.
Their eyes darted around.
How? How did he notice us? Our cover should've been perfect…
The male adventurer's jaw tightened, while the female bit her lip, confused and alert.
A series of heavy thuds echoed—slow at first, then growing louder, like someone dragging a mountain-sized weight through the forest. Branches cracked. Rocks shifted. Something massive pushed through the thick, dark undergrowth.
Then the creature emerged.
A silvery gorilla hybrid, towering over two meters tall. Bulky. Muscular. Covered in thick, shimmering fur that reflected the faint moonlight. Its arms hung like huge logs, each thick enough to crush a normal man with one blow. Its glowing eyes swept across the battlefield before locking onto Apolo's barely moving form.
The sight stunned Derek's group.
"Vice-chief! You're back!" the surviving hybrids cried out, their voices filled with relief. Only four of them remained from the original ten. They immediately canceled their transformations, their bodies shrinking down as they saluted the massive figure.
Derek blinked, his lips twitching as if he found the situation slightly amusing.
Through their telepathic link, the female adventurer's worried voice echoed in his mind.
"Sir… isn't that the leader that kid punched away earlier?"
Derek gave a small dismissive wave, not responding to her question. Instead, he walked forward, eyes fixed on the silver gorilla. The vice-chief didn't move, only stared at Apolo's twitching body in the crater.
Derek pointed lazily.
"Is he the possessed hybrid that nearly destroyed what's left of Sky City?"
The gorilla's lips pulled back in a horrifying grin, revealing rows of sharp, jagged teeth. It nodded its massive head and spoke in a guttural, distorted accent:
"Let us join hands… capture him together. Once we take him to my village, our chief will split the reward equally."
"Your chief?" Derek raised a brow.
"No time to explain. Once he is in our hands, everything will be made clear."
Without waiting for another word, the vice-chief darted toward Apolo. Despite his size, his movement was fast—each step shaking the ground and sending small stones rolling downhill.
Derek and his group followed immediately. Even without transforming, they easily kept up. This alone made the gorilla glance back in mild shock.
How are these humans so fast without transforming…?
"Sir, you're not really agreeing to this, are you?" the female adventurer asked through the telepathic link.
"Of course not," Derek replied, calm as ever. "We'll use him for now. Once we capture the kid, we'll take him out."
"B–But isn't that betrayal?" the bulky adventurer protested, anger slipping into his voice.
"Shut up, you brute!" the female hissed, almost raising her hand to slap him. "Look at his eyes! That gorilla is using us. If we help him capture the kid, he'll definitely use their chief to eliminate us afterward. Sir… what's this reward they're talking about?"
Derek's voice turned cold.
"A kill order was issued recently. The Queen wants Apolo Quinn killed on sight. As for the reward… I'll tell you later. For now, stay quiet."
Their entire conversation lasted less than a heartbeat in real time.
---
The vice-chief closed in.
When the distance between him and Apolo reached ten meters, he kicked off the ground with a monstrous force, launching himself into the air. His massive shadow swallowed Apolo's cratered body whole as he descended like a falling mountain.
His intent was clear.
Crush him. End him.
The moment before impact—
Apolo's tightly shut eyes snapped open.
He rolled.
BOOOOOOOM!
The ground exploded. Dust and dry leaves shot into the air like a storm. The forest, already dark and clouded, became a swirling blur of choking dust.
"What an idiot—!" Derek began, but he didn't finish the sentence.
BAAAAAANG!
A shadow burst out of the dust cloud.
Two figures collided. One small. One massive.
The impact shook the air.
The vice-chief staggered back, heavy footsteps trembling the earth. His chest rose and fell unevenly. A smaller figure was sent flying, tumbling through the dried leaves and skidding across the hard ground tens of meters away.
But that figure moved.
Slowly at first… then faster.
Apolo pushed himself up, blood dripping down his forehead. His breathing was rough, but his eyes were sharp—cold and wild at the same time.
Then—
He disappeared.
Like a phantom.
He blinked tens of meters away from the gorilla and Derek's group. Before anyone could react, he blurred again, his figure melting into the shadows of the forest.
Gone.
"CHASE HIM!!!" the vice-chief roared, slamming his fist into the ground hard enough to crack it.
The remaining hybrids transformed instantly, their bodies swelling as they sprinted after Apolo, disappearing between the blackened trees.
Derek lifted a hand and signaled his own people.
"Go."
His teammates vanished into the forest, each moving with silent speed.
The clearing quieted. Dust settled slowly. The air was thick with tension and the smell of crushed leaves.
The vice-chief stood trembling with rage, one massive hand rubbing his bruised jaw where Apolo had struck him. His eyes burned with fury, locked on the direction Apolo had escaped.
Derek took a slow breath.
Then his lips curled into a cold smile.
He stepped forward—calm, calculated, deliberate—approaching the furious gorilla like a man walking toward an animal he had already decided to kill.