A hard fight

"Ashen…Ashen, please wake up," a tearful voice called out, pulling Ashen back to consciousness.

His eyelids fluttered, and then he slowly opened his eyes to find two children gazing at him with tears welling up in their eyes.

Before Ashen could utter a word, the children saw him awaken and immediately enveloped him in a heartfelt hug.

Ashen lay there in silence, returning their embrace .

Ashen gently released the children from the hug, and as they separated, Ethan immediately questioned him with a mixture of worry and confusion.

"What happened? You said you'd be back after taking a look, but you stayed there for hours, and we didn't know what to do. When we finally went down to check on you, we found you injured and covered in blood, with many corpses around you. We thought you had died," Ethan's voice trembled as he spoke the last words

Ashen gently patted Ethan's head and offered an apologetic tone, "I'm sorry, Ethan. I didn't expect to encounter someone I knew, and things got complicated, so I had to stay longer than planned. Speaking of which, take a look at this."

He extended his hand, and little lightning bolts appeared, dancing along his palm. With a swift motion, he directed the bolts to converge into a single one, which he then aimed at the wall, causing it to strike with a crackle of energy.

"Wow, how did you do that? I thought your unique talent was that black energy," Ethan began, sounding amazed.

"It's a new trick I learned. I might teach you how to do it in the future," Ashen replied. He then stood up and declared, "Now, let's go outside. We need to continue our journey."

The twins followed Ashen, with Ethan eagerly asking for future lessons while Emma's mind grappled with the thoughts of the previous night. She looked at the corpses and Ashen's injured body and a theory about what happened last night formed in her mind. She felt the need to ask. But despite her curiosity, she pushed the questions aside and followed along.

____________

At 3 pm,

Ashen and the twins pressed on toward the tower, their journey accompanied by training and battles with tons of zombies . Now, they took a moment to rest and refuel with some snacks on a half-building.

Ashen, as always, remained vigilant, keeping an eye out for any potential threats. While resting, he reflected on the morning's battles, seeking ways to enhance his use of Lightning Bolt.

However, something moving in the surroundings suddenly caught his attention, prompting him to mutter, "Hmm? What was that?" He turned his focus to investigate the source of the disturbance.

As Ashen scoured the area between the buildings and ruins, he struggled to pinpoint the source of the disturbance. Just as he was about to venture further, the sound of rapid footsteps approaching from behind caught his attention.

Reacting on instinct, Ashen swiftly unsheathed his daggers, assuming a defensive stance as he pivoted to confront his attacker.

The encounter was marked by a thunderous collision of claws against daggers, and Ashen was sent hurtling backward, only to be brought to a sudden halt as he collided with a nearby wall.

The wall, despite showing numerous cracks from the force of the impact, held its ground and prevented Ashen from being thrown any further.

Still reeling from the encounter, Ashen couldn't help but think, "What the heck was that?" The sheer force of the collision had left him feeling as though he'd been struck by a speeding truck. The dust rose and Ashen lay there

Despite the lingering pain, Ashen wasted no time as he heard the footsteps of the monster coming his way. He swiftly conjured a bolt of lightning and unleashed it toward the approaching monster, creating a brilliant flash. Simultaneously, he moved away from the spot.

A pained scream from the creature confirmed the success of his attack. As the dust settled, a figure began to emerge from the haze, slowly becoming clearer.

"Now, let's find out who you are, you fast and deadly monster," Ashen muttered, preparing to confront the figure as it came into full view.

He was met by what seemed like a winged cheetah.

The mutant creature before Ashen bore a hybrid resemblance to a cheetah and an eagle. Its body was reminiscent of a cheetah, covered in golden-brown fur adorned with dark spots. At the same time, it boasted eagle-like wings, adorned with brown and white feathers, and sharp claws, tailored for both agility and swift strikes.

Ashen watched the creature cautiously, hoping it couldn't take to the sky. He closed his eyes and tried to use his ability in analyzing the enemy but it didn't work no matter what he did.

" What's happening? " Thought Ashen as he started to panic. His mind raced to find the reason of this. He didn't use his ability from the start of the apocalypse as it It put a lot of pressure on his mind but now when he tried to activate it he failed

. The monster noticed the panic on Ashen's face and it lunged at him, he raised his daggers crosswise to block the attack, this time redirecting the force to avoid being thrown off. As he closed on the claws with his daggers and pulled him a bit left. And he was about to continue with a knee to the monster's head.

However, the monster responded with agility, using its other leg to strike Ashen's shoulder. He managed to step back, but the creature's leg claw still managed to leave a gash on his shoulder.

A cold sweat formed on Ashen's brow as he contemplated the consequences if that attack had landed successfully. "I was about to lose my arm, this is not the time to think about my ability I should focus on the monster in front of me " he thought, his awareness of the creature's capabilities growing.

"I hate fast opponents," Ashen thought as he summoned another bolt of lightning to create some distance between himself and the monster. He then engaged in a fierce melee battle with the creature.

After what felt like an eternity of grappling with the mutant, the twins finally reached the scene to only find Ashen covered in small scratches and wounds. Without even turning his head, Ashen swiftly issued orders to them.

"Ethan, start messing with its mind, and Emma, slow it down as much as you can during our clashes. And both of you, keep your distance. It's incredibly fast," Ashen instructed.

As the fight wore on, Ashen sensed the scales tipping in his favor, gaining the upper hand gradually. However, he remained vigilant and knew that the twins were already fatigued, which meant their stamina wouldn't last much longer. Moreover, the commotion from their battle was sure to attract nearby zombies, further complicating the situation.

With a sense of urgency, Ashen contemplated his next move. He concluded, "I think I should do it." Raising his voice, he ordered, "A fatal strike after 5 seconds."

The twins, aware of the plan, said nothing, focusing on their tasks. Five seconds elapsed, and Ashen readied himself for the decisive move.

- BOOM -

Ashen executed his plan with precision, launching a lightning-charged dagger in a rapid strike toward the cheetah-eagle hybrid.

It was an attack he had been contemplating, and he had discussed it with the twins, intending to try it out after they had rested. However, fate had different plans.

The attack landed squarely on the monster's skull, driving the dagger in by about 5 centimeters. Simultaneously, the creature's entire body convulsed as it was shocked by the potent lightning bolts.

The sudden change in tactics caught the cheetah-eagle hybrid off guard. It had little time to react as its vision temporarily went blind due to Ethan's unique talent and its body grew significantly heavier under the influence of Emma's unique talent. The combined effects left the creature defenseless and disoriented.

Ashen was about to strike again with a final attack but the cheetah, driven by a surge of desperation, unleashed an attack with newfound speed, aiming for Ashen's heart. With little time to react, Ashen could only raise his arm as a shield.

The cheetah's sharp claws pierced through Ashen's arm nearly cutting it, and causing him to stagger backward. The beast capitalized on the moment, pouncing onto him. It used one leg to pin Ashen in place and the other to strike at his head, its eyes now ablaze with madness and a deadly intent.

In his dire predicament, Ashen's options were limited. The cheetah-eagle hybrid was above him, overpowering him, and he realized that using his lightning bolt ability would take too long, likely leading to his demise.

"You're the one who caused this, you stupid monster," Ashen thought, his anger fueling his determination. Then, a surge of yellow lightning enveloped both him and the creature, as bolts of electricity crackled around them.

Their agonized screams echoed in the air, a testament to the excruciating pain they were both enduring in the electric storm.

Ashen endured the excruciating pain, knowing that stopping meant certain death. He persisted, determined to prevail.

After ten grueling seconds, a notification chimed in Ashen's mind, offering relief akin to a lost wanderer finding an oasis. He ceased the torrent of lightning, and within a second, a white light enveloped him, healing all of his previous injuries.

"Huh…huh…huh... finally, it's dead," Ashen thought, his breaths heavy and ragged. It had been one of the most perilous fights he had ever faced.

A radiant aura surrounded the monster's lifeless body, and then two objects, also radiating with light, emerged from it.

"What is this?" Ashen wondered aloud, his curiosity piqued.

The two radiant objects floated towards Ashen and gently landed beside him. As the luminous aura faded away, he could see the contents of the objects. One contained two daggers, their blades a sleek black with striking red lines adorning them. The second object revealed a pair of unique-looking shoes.

"Are these equipment?" Ashen pondered, his hand hovering over the mysterious items. However, his contemplation was abruptly interrupted by the ominous sound of numerous footsteps approaching.

He quickly turned his attention to the source of the noise, discovering an approaching horde of zombies. Leading the pack was an exceptionally large and unique-looking zombie, standing at a towering height of 8 feet.

"Amazing, what else can happen?" Ashen thought, feeling a mixture of sarcasm and determination as he prepared to face this new threat.