No soul in the once-peaceful village had ever seen anything like it: The air thick with acrid scent of timber and the stench of chaos. Red flames devoured everything in their path, melting away years of history and memories…
Townsfolk elves ran, fueled by a need for salvation... Yet, in a village infested by a tide of monsters, the only true option was escape.
Vulen ran as fast as his small legs could carry him while Charlotte clung tightly to his hand. Both of them watched how their civilized neighbors fought for their lives and protected their children.
Everyone in the town had planned and carefully rehearsed protocols for such an event, but it was all just too fast… too sudden… too real.
She saw a desperate elf woman clutching her child when four slimy land fishes slithered toward her. Then, beside them, a group of baby wolves snarled, trying to reach other children frozen atop a car. One of those children was Charlotte's friend… and she could hear her screams echoing the despair of the moment.
"Help!" they all yelled, watching an adult strike the beasts with a hatchet.
"We're almost home, Charlotte! Mother will help you," Vulen exclaimed.
He was trying to run and reassure her at the same time… attempting to distract her from her bleeding…
"Okay," she whispered.
As they sprinted, a large wolf took notice of them. It saw them make a quick turn at the end of the street and launched forward, weaving beside other humans and monsters. Charlotte was hurt… an easy prey.
The boy ran and began to tire, all changing after noticing the wolf give chase.
"AHH!" he screamed in terror.
"Don't run! I promise I'll make this quick!"
The monster's growl sent shivers down Vulen's spine. They were taking part in a frantic dance of evasion that continued before being a few meters behind.
The wolf's body was airborne for a fraction of a second until being hit by something hard. Vulen and Charlotte collapsed onto the muddy floor. Both of them looked up and saw someone had saved their lives…
"AAARGH!" Harold screamed with a roar, slamming a metallic knife into the beast.
"FATHER!"
The struck animal jumped back a few feet and its malevolent eyes fixed on Harold. In its mind, it calculated that this previously easy prey had now become more difficult to consume.
Harold possessed the means to focus mana and generate a weapon from his will, unlike his small children… It became a fact that made the wolf run away into the chaos.
"I'll come back for you later!" the beast exclaimed.
With the immediate threat gone, the man looked at his children in relief. Then, he saw Charlotte's injured hand and noticed that both of his children were crying.
"It's okay, I'm here now. Let's get you two to mother. She's helping a few of the townsfolk just a few blocks from here."
The man's voice was soft and reassuring. He carefully cradled Charlotte in his arms and signalled to Vulen.
"Follow me, and don't look around, okay? Everything will be-" he was saying, only for his daughter to cut him off with a scream.
Harold's gaze snapped to a new threat: Three large bearbeasts approaching rapidly. Their forms were covered in thick fur, though it became clear they were preparing to attack.
"He's distracted!" one of them exclaimed.
"I'll get the child!" another snarled, fixed on Charlotte.
Harold hadn't noticed them at all. This was the worst position they could have been in. Those bearbeasts had been waiting for this exact moment… waiting for the father to be occupied and for his hands to be busy… Carrying Charlotte was the perfect distraction.
"SHIT!"
Was this their end? He didn't know, but instinct forced him to turn away and pull both children closer. Harold was going to shield them from the strikes to come… the strikes that would kill him.
The thought of death slowed the perception of time, and allowed him to see their small faces. He clenched his teeth and closed his eyes, bracing for the inevitable. After that… nothing.
Moments passed... No blow, no pain, only a wave of shock and a loud thud erupting from behind him. He still held Vulen and Charlotte when his eyes slowly fluttered open and met someone…
Clad in a cowboy hat, a flowing cotton poncho, and brown jean pants, stood Rod Winger.
Vulen and Harold stared in awe. His sheer speed had blurred the air and the unfamiliar air pump shotgun he carried stunned them.
In truth, Rod had shot the nearest bearbeast and made its body fly back a few meters.
"No you don't!" the Gun Hero exclaimed and he quickly aimed, firing again and hitting the second bearbeast.
"GRH!" it groaned in pain.
"I didn't think there were gun users here… so I guess we're gonna have to change things up a bit," the third bearbeast spoke and stood there, studying the Hero.
It drew in a deep breath.
How could they speak? How could they think? These questions would confuse most people. Not him. Rod was experienced.
His long years as a government operative prepared him for intelligent monsters; he'd even encountered them in Efea. Nevertheless, these were different. They were using mana techniques… They were evolving.
Before another second passed, the beast sprang forward with alarming speed and attacked, only for Rod to dodge its sweeping claws over and over again.
"Woah!"
He used a subtle surge of mana to weave and pushed the bear back with his palm. This sent its looming form flying into a nearby wooden vehicle.
It was mesmerizing how easily Rod dealt with the monstrous creatures… He moved so effortlessly, as if he were predicting their every strike. And because of that, Harold and Vulen couldn't stop watching.
This kept up until their gazes drifted to Catra, who ran atop the small village houses while trying to catch up to her father.
Seeing Rod and the survivors, she leaped off the roof, landed on the dirt road, generated an air pump shotgun from her interlink and fired. Her quick attack hit the second bearbeast again and pushed it back further.
"Are you okay?" she asked Harold and his family.
They didn't respond for a few blank seconds… The three of them were just trying to process the overwhelming reality of their rescue.
"It's okay. You're safe now," the cheetah told Vulen and Charlotte with a light smile, mirroring the comfort Rod had once offered her a long time ago.
"Who are you people?" Harold finally asked.
The Hero stood a few meters away, his gaze staring at the three slowly recovering bearbeasts. He didn't really register his question, thus, Catra replied.
"I'm Catra, and that's my dad. He's the Gun Hero."
"Rod Winger?" the man asked in a disbelieving murmur.
He was cut off by a colossal roar from the edge of town.
"ARRGH!"
It was a horrific sound torn from the depths of agony, almost like coming from a wounded animal trying its hardest to survive.
When he heard it, Rod's head snapped toward the noise and immediately understood what monster made it… He had to act immediately or everyone in the village would die.
"Catra, listen to me very carefully. Can you do that?"
In an instant, the cheetah girl focused on him, hesitating to respond.
"Yeah."
"As the official Gun Hero, I order you to take these people to the infirmary we saw at the edge of town, where Warriors are there trying to keep survivors safe. I also need you to seek out more people around town and help them get there. Do you understand?"
Catra looked at him with a nervousness she'd never felt before… He'd never spoken to her with such authority, and it scared her.
"Okay…"
"Catra… This isn't like any hunts we've done. These animals have consciousness. They can think, speak, and lie. If there is ever a need to use lethal force, use it. I give you permission. Don't let anyone die. Do you understand?"
The girl's eyes widened to their limit. Kill thinking creatures?
"But-"
"CATRA! GO, NOW!" Rod exclaimed after noticing the bearbeasts move again.
The Hero instantly ran forward, avoiding the bears' initial attacks and strategically drawing them away. He needed to guide them somewhere Catra wouldn't see… somewhere he could DEAL with them.
As he left, the cheetah girl grappled with the implication of his last command. Killing? She just couldn't stop thinking about it, to the point that it terrified her.
Only when Charlotte grabbed Catra's shirt did she snap back to reality. The cheetah saw her tears streaming down and the bite marks on her hand.
"Did these animals do it to her?" she thought before being interrupted.
"Please help us…" Vulen pleaded.
Catra looked at all three of them for a small moment… at the worry on their faces.
"Okay… let's get going," she finally spoke.
She didn't know if it would work… Still, she needed to be the calm protector her father had been for her… And that's what she planned on doing.
While they moved quickly to the distant infirmary, Rod was already on the other side of town. He easily dodged the slashing claws of the bearbeasts at the same time he saw people fighting for their lives.
"It's time to get serious," the man thought, returning the air pump shotgun to his interlink and swapping it for a small caliber pistol.
He moved toward the nearest monster. For the frantic people around, it all happened in a mere flash. Not for Rod. The Hero weaved from left to right with speeds only heard in folklore and shot the monsters directly in the head at point-blank range, saving the townsfolk one by one.
The remaining bearbeasts stopped moving when they saw his devastating work: A solitary man had systematically killed all of their friends… their companions…
"Who… is this monster?" a bearbeast growled and turned its head toward one of its brothers for reassurance, only to be met by a horrifying surprise.
Its brother was on the ground, dead from a clean bullet wound to the back of its head.
"Wha-" the monster tried saying just as its gaze snapped to the other brother on the floor.
Both died in an instant… The bearbeast's eyes watered after feeling the presence of Rod from behind. The beast had concentrated its mana on speed buffs, making it possible to see the moment… to perceive him…
Through some shadows made by a fire beside them, it saw the Gun Hero raise his pistol directly at its head… The last thing it did was close its eyes, hearing a gunshot rip through the air.
With the monsters in that part of town dead, the villagers welcomed their savior with relief.
"Thank you so much!" a few of them exclaimed, trying to embrace their families.
"Head to the right side of town. The infirmary is being protected by men and women strong enough to fight. I'll continue to deal with the monsters. Stay vigilant," the Hero calmly responded.
Seeing them move beside him compelled an almost imperceptible smile to appear on his face. He felt like the Gun Hero again… The satisfaction of saving lives… the compliments. He remembered the addiction to it. Nevertheless, focusing was a must.
Once the last civilian was safely out of sight, his gaze drifted to the bodies sprawled on the ground… A bloody scene, that's what it was. A tableau of carnage forcing him to view the gun in his hand and see flashbacks of horrific things he'd done under the government.
"This is… why I left, huh?" he thought.
The man could have continued his stillness for infinity, though, a scream snapped him out.
"ARRGH!"
Rod's eyes moved to the edge of town and golden lightning crackled around him. He needed to take care of this, NOW.
The man sprinted toward the rice fields, not seeing any monsters there. Then everything changed for the worst.
His power suddenly vanished. He was left floating for a moment before crashing onto the ground, rolling and softening the landing the best he could.
"Oh no… no, no, no, no, no…" he murmured while slowly getting up.
The first thing he did was search for a machine similar to the one in the Spellex factory. He saw nothing. Afterward, he focused on his gloves and tried activating his powers again. Nothing… This was the worst possible time for it to happen.
Panic threatened to set it, until hearing that scream again. It seemed way closer this time, and it made the Hero look. He noticed it: a large, three-story tall dragon shaped beast that lumbered towards the town.
Rod had to make a choice… He could head to the infirmary and help evacuate the remaining townspeople, or he could confront the creature right then and there.
It would have been an easy task if he had his powers… He grit his teeth in frustration and generate a sniper rifle. His choice was made…
The man quickly pressed a button on the communication device he and Catra shared, and readied himself for what needed to be done.
"Catra, I'm going to stop a large monster from entering the town… I need you to hold your own and help with the evacuation," he said, hoping for his daughter to be okay.
It took another ominous roar for a voice to come through.
"Okay, dad. We're safe for now. I'll tell them to begin the evacuation when we get to the safe haven," Catra responded.
"Okay, I'll leave it to you. Try avoiding the left side of town if possible. If I fail to stop the monster, run and don't look back. Do you understand? I'll come look for you."
The man's words caused a dread to seize her. Fail to stop the monster? Run and don't look back?
"Dad…" She whispered.
"It's okay, kiddo, just… stay safe. It'll be fine… I'll catch you on the flip side," Rod responded with forced cheerfulness.
He started moving his hand to stop broadcasting until Catra's plea froze him.
"Wait! Dad…" she began, stopping mid-sentence.
She wanted to say it so badly: "Please, be careful. I'm scared. I don't want you to go."
The memory of how Lofo urged for her to be honest about her feelings was always in her mind, but her rigid subconscious wouldn't let her do it. She couldn't show any fear nor any weakness. Not to him.
"Okay… I… I'll wait for you," were the only words that escaped her lips.
Back in the rice fields, Rod stared at the immense beast, listening to her. He didn't respond immediately, choosing to think for some time.
"Just don't make popcorn. I won't take that long," he finished with a faint chuckle.
The communication shut off afterwards.
Rod closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath. He opened them and sprinted towards his next target. It was time to be a hero.