CH67:NARROW ESCAPE

[30HP remaining.]

[WARNING!! You're losing a lot of blood and your borrowed power will not last forever.]

[It is better to run and live to fight another day than to stay and die.]

Ace quickly placed his large palm against his injury and temporarily sealed the wound while looking for a way out. The man grinned once more while saying, "I can see that look in your eyes, beast. You're surprised to come across me, aren't you? Well, to make things simpler for you, I am a Hunter. My job is to kill your kind and keep people safe and you've just put some lives in danger by drinking all that blood…"

*BANG*

The Hunter drew his gun and shot one glowing bullet at Ace. Not wanting to know what would happen if the bullet passed through him, Ace quickly jumped through the roof and was now on the roof. Looking around him, he saw a clear and straight path for him to escape.

Before he could even take one step forward, the Hunter used his whip and latched it onto Ace's leg and yanked as hard as he could. Ace tried as hard as he could to stand his ground, but the Hunter's strength was proving to be greater than Ace's.

'Damn it, that's enough.'

[Blood Drain Skill Activated.]

Ace faced his palm at the Hunter and slowly folded his hand into a fist. The Hunter's body slowly lifted into the air as he begun to scream in pain. His eyes turned blood-shot red as blood begun to slowly leave through his head holes and skin. The Hunter lost all senses of control as Ace drained slowly drained him.

[Bloodlust Quenched:50%]

"Let, me go…you beast!!" Once the whip was no longer attached to his leg, Ace made a hasty retreat and left the Hunter lying on the ground with half of his blood drained from his body.

[Your bloodlust has partially been quenched.]

[!!WARNING!! You've run out of time and must pay for the consequences.]

Before Ace reverted to his human form, he made sure it happened at a place where no one would easily find him, so he made sure to hide at the top floor in an abandoned skyscraper. As soon as he landed, the blood that was used in his blood mutant form dissolved back into his body while his muscles shrank and buffed up repeatedly. His eyes rolled back into his head while never felt before levels of pain flooded his body.

His veins turned black and his once white skin was now a faint blue tone, signifying his low blood levels. This painful process went on for ten more minutes until he finally relaxed.

[Stats]

[Blood Level: 50%]

[Blood Bank: Empty]

[Emergency healing cannot be fully performed. The Human part of your body will have to heal on its own unless you consume blood.]

'Isn't there an alternative to blood? What if I end up in a place without humans?"

[A blood mutant does not specifically depend on human blood. You can consume both human, animal, and alien blood. However, raw fresh meat is a second alternative. The fresher it is, the better.]

"Is there an upside to consuming raw meat?"

[Consuming raw meat keeps your sustenance longer than consuming blood directly. It also keeps your hunger levels at bay.]

Now that he knew there was an alternative food source instead of drinking blood, Ace lay his head down to rest knowing that he didn't have to drain from innocent or guilty people, unless they deserved it. Before he shut his eyes to rest, Ace remembered Sky and wondered where she could be at the moment. It was still early and he could go and look for her but given his current position, he'd have to push it for another time.

----------------------

[Meanwhile…]

"We're finally here. At last, we've got here. So good to be home." Chris smiled intently as he and Cherry arrived into the same city Ace just got in. Cherry, who was quiet during the whole trip, looked at Chris weirdly and wondered how this buff, blonde-haired hunk knew her skinny, awkward brother and even knew how dangerous and wanted they both were.

"Tell me exactly, Chris," Cherry interrogated. "How exactly do you know my brother? Don't give me that sappy 'he's a friend from school' excuse. Ace didn't have any friends from school."

"Alright, little one," Chris nervously replied while scratching the back on his head. "Ace is my friend from school."

"Didn't I just say…'

"But I'm being honest," Chris cut her off. "He's a friend from school. I met him when he was getting bullied by some kid called Jason, I think."

"Jason!!" Cherry wondered. "You went to the same high school as he did? "

"High school?" he wondered, "I'm not talking about high school. I'm talking about military school."

The total look of confusion on Cherry's face let Chris know that she had no idea what he was talking about. Chris gently sat her aside and begun to explain everything to her.

"Either you've been asleep for over five months or you're not a Gifted like me."

"Gifted?" She asked. "What's a Gifted?" Chris went ahead and explained what happened, starting from the alien evasion, to the serums that granted people supernatural powers according to their blood type. He also explained to Cherry about how he overheard a message about the aliens putting a bounty on Ace's head and forcing a manhunt on Ace and some other girl she never knew about.

"How come you don't know any of these things, Cherry?" Chris wondered. "Almost everyone on this planet knows about the aliens and Gifted."

"Doesn't matter," She cut him short. "We've got more important things to do. As we speak, two of the most dangerous of those Granians are on their way here and if we don't move quick, we'll be screwed."

"Okay. Let me just take you to my friend. He'll know where to direct us and where we'll need to start. Follow me."