"Ah, our prey has taken the bait" 

The clock had passed midnight; it was now the early hours of August 20th, the fourth day since Jonathan's return.

The current time: 00:36.

After consecutive nights patrolling San Diego, Jonathan felt somewhat drained. He decided to head home and sleep immediately after finishing up tonight, catching an extra nap tomorrow daytime. Events would only escalate from now - he had to stay in top shape to handle crises.

He lifted his foot and kicked the corpse of a Xenobiotics creature, flipping it over.

The body at his feet was resembling a writhing mass of dark green slime. Semi-transparent, it contained several 'cores' within. Cutting the Xenobiotics creature in half didn't kill it; instead, each half was alive independently. Only after destroying its 'core' did it cease to move.