Meanwhile, Isabella navigated the collapsed infrastructure, zombies swarming her from all directions. Despite their efforts, they couldn't close in fast enough before being splashed with nano cell, transforming into blood and then being absorbed by her bright red dress. Her movements were fluid and almost playful.
"Hmm~, it's boring," she murmured, yawning as she opened the comms and spoke to Ishtar.
"Ishtar, how's your side?"
"Enjoying myself! Why do you ask?" Ishtar responded happily, smashing zombies with her grinding warhammer and melting everything nearby with swirling radiation heat.
"Nothing in particular."
"I'm sure you're just bored and want to get back to your research."
"Ah, you figured it out."
"And I also haven't forgotten that you opened the speaker. Quinn shouldn't have heard or known about anything I'm saying. I'm sure you're the suspect."
"That one's also been figured out."
"So you don't even deny..."
"Hehehe"
"I'll get my revenge later for this prank."
"I'll wait—
Suddenly, Isabella spots a shadowy humanoid figure falling from a tall building directly above her. Its claw aimed silently and swiftly at her head. She reacted instantly, blocking it with her sheathed estoc, sparks flying from the contact. She then swarmed the shadowy creature with nano cells, but it dodged alertly, apparently aware of her blood's potential.
It then retreated, but Isabella remained alert, sensing it was still nearby, waiting for an opportunity.
"Huh? Isabella, are you okay? The communications just cut off," Ishtar's worried voice crackled through the comms.
"Hm, I've got some speedy creature entertaining me here," Isabella replied casually.
"Whoa, I'm going to—
She prepared to join her, as facing zombies had become boring if she could crush them easily whenever she wished. But suddenly, she felt a rumble beneath her feet. She looked toward the source and saw an unusually proportioned, muscular creature, its body linear and armored arms disproportionately large as if pumped full of steroids.
It roared fiercely, attempting to ram her. She countered by smashing it with her grinding warhammer, striking its massive arm. The collision caused both to stumble back a few centimeters—an unexpectedly exhilarating feeling, as their strength matched and her excitement surged with an overwhelming release of radiation.
"Ohh! You can endure my strength?" she exclaimed excitedly.
Roar!
The muscular creature, enraged, threw a powerful right punch. She blocked it with her warhammer, both pushing back slightly, feeling a strange thrill from the clash. It then threw a left punch; she dodged and responded with a strike to its flank, sending it flying back into a wall.
"Even my radiation..." Isabella watched the creature fall with excitement, her radiation levels kept rising and melting the ground around her.
"This is exciting!" she exclaimed.
"Ishtar, Isabella, do you hear me? A strong foe has been detected. Those are Joe," Ciel's voice suddenly crackled through the comms.
"Yeah, it's too late; I'm already confronting it now. It can match my strength and endure my radiation," Ishtar reported with mild annoyance.
"Same here, but this one's too fast for my nano cell to touch," Isabella added nonchalantly.
"Can you two kill them?"
"Yeah, of course. Whom are you talking about?"
"You heard her."
"Okay, but be careful."
The Strength Joe stumbledly stood up, its arms glowing brightly red from the intense radiation heat from Ishtar, its then roaring loudly like a beast.
"Looks like we have a good toy here, Isabella," Ishtar casually remarked.
Her grinding warhammer, with rotating heads that continuously spun at a dazzling speed, sparks loudly as the area around her brightens due to the rising radiation levels.
"Hm, let's contact later."
Grrr!
"Ahh! I'm burning up! Make sure you're still alive after this!" She shouted as she sprinted toward Strength Joe, excitement burning in her eyes.
At the same time, Isabella remained standing still, alert and waiting for the hidden enemy who was lurking nearby, eager to strike at any opportunity. Despite the swarm of zombies still pressing towards her, they couldn't close the distance. Her levitating blood continued to devour them, swirling around her in a crimson vortex.
"Still hiding, huh?" Isabella whispered, her gaze sharp and unwavering, looking at any suspicious movements around her.
She unsheathed her estoc, a sleek, bright red blade featuring a dual-bladed design to optimize for piercing and slashing with precise, calculated moments.
"Then I'll find you."
_____
Somewhere far from the crowded middle of the hordes, the drifting zombies are dying from an unknown assailant, their heads bearing fresh stab wounds that glint faintly in the dim light—silent and swift. The unknown attacker, Aaron, stares intently at the recently fallen zombie he has caused, his eyes portray a mixture of indifference and focus.
"Morph level is between the 10s and 19s, which is pretty low for normal abandoned cities infected with the Morphathy Virus," he murmured, crouching down to inspect the zombie's wound carefully. His fingers lightly touch the decayed flesh to assess its condition and the extent of the infection.
The Morphathy Virus is the second fatal infectious agent that transforms sapient beings into Morphogynous Zombies—mindless, ravenous creatures. It sparked the second wave of the outbreak, forcing the remaining intelligent race to abandon surface civilization and retreat underground to preserve what was left of humanity.
"Only recently infected? But it has caused many casualties already..." He furrows his brow, studying the spark contracts of the zombie's Morph level, noting they do not directly correlate with the number of zombies present and active.
"Something doesn't add up. The city dwellings don't look neglected or overly weakened, which suggests the horde's leader is either stronger or more intelligent. Neither possibility is reassuring; both are worrisome."
Suddenly, chaos erupts over the comms, with distressing reports from Quinn, Ishtar, and Isabella—having been ambushed by a formidable foe. Listening intently, Aaron realizes what kind of creature he's dealing with.
"I see... now I understand what you are..." He narrows his eyes with grim determination.
He gazes at the tallest building visible in the distance, offering a complete overview of the area. Without hesitation, he springs toward the structure, leaping over debris, toppled crates, and fallen metal scraps. Approaching a second-floor window, he throws a knife, piercing through the glass and stabbing a zombie's head just as it rears up.
In a blur of motion, Aaron vanishes from his original position and reappears beside the zombie he took down. Recognizing that it isn't alone, he quickly throws two more knives to incapacitate nearby zombies, then snatches another and thrusts all in rapid succession—targeting their heads before they can make a noise—moving with speed and precision.
Aaron is equipped with Spacial Technology, enabling him to warp instantly to marked locations through tools, has a spatial inventory, and enhanced senses. His spatial senses improve his perception, detection, and accuracy, making him a deadly assassin. Though he doesn't understand the origin of his mysterious time-related powers, he's grateful for the chance to change the course of events.
Without hesitation, he continues running, killing zombies along his path, using his knives as teleportation marks. Eventually, he senses a particularly strong creature nearby. He slows his pace, moving cautiously, trying to eliminate any noise he makes.
Suddenly, a vivid vision flashes before him—an attack from behind by a clawed, unknown figure, followed by gunfire from the rifle of the target he intended to eliminate— all within five seconds.
He swiftly sidesteps, the coat he was wearing slipping off as a glitching figure in it appears and kicks him backward amid the echo of gunshots.
("Five seconds?! A five-second vision only?! Am I weakening?") He thinks, confused.
Despite his momentary doubt, Aaron quickly regains control, lands on his feet, and draws his hand cannons. He shoots at the attacker, who then brandishes two knives and stabs the glitching figure from behind.
"Present! The fucker is about to escape!" he shouts.
Hearing him, Aaron aims his hand cannon at the fleeing figure and fires—hitting the leader in the head, causing it to collapse.
He approaches the corpse of the fallen leader, examining it closely.
"I knew it, it's an Intellect Joe on the brink of evolution. Leaving it alive is dangerous—it's driven by predatory instincts to mark and hunt its prey," Aaron states calmly, crouching to get a better look.
"Yeah, a pest using swarm tactics to hunt," Past mutters in disgust.
"And now this horde is effectively a mindless mob," Aaron replies flatly, standing up casually.
"Hey, present, you're so careless. Do you think just because you have time powers, you're invisible? Be grateful you've got a coat that can summon me in the future."
Suddenly, the coat cracks all over as if shattered glass, indicating a fragility. Embarrassed, Aaron looks away.
"Sorry, it's been a while since I faced life-threatening combat... I got careless."
"Tch, never mind that. Your coat can't handle my presence on this timeline. Make it durable enough to last longer."
"Okay."
The past's figure slowly dissolves into shimmering sparks, vanishing as he returns to his original timeline.
"Hahh~... my initial invention of time-related power isn't strong enough to sustain itself for long."
During his period of confinement, Aaron experienced a series of revelations, realizing that his powers extend beyond mere regressing, time travel, or even glimpses of the future—for he understood that visions are only accessible in the present moment. He contemplated integrating his abilities with spatial technology to craft a summoning device capable of calling forth his alternate self from another timeline to assist with pressing tasks.
"Well, progress takes time," Aaron murmured as he activated his communication device and established a connection with Ciel.
"Ciel, what's the current situation?" he inquired.
"Thankfully, it remains manageable despite the emergence of new threats. All morphomyst creatures have been eliminated, leaving only hordes of Morphogynous zombies. They are visibly thinning on the monitors," she reported seriously, her gaze fixed on the screens.
"We can hold out longer, except for the gun barrels, which are so overheated that they're about to melt."
"Understood. Slow down turret fire to give the barrels a chance to cool; let the guard drones handle most of the firing and also... How are your side's conditions?"
"Nothing particularly dangerous so far. How about on your end?"
"Same here—nothing too complicated. I'm about to return to the vehicle while continuing to clear zombies along the way."
"Stay safe out there."
"You too."