Chapter 34
“Chloe… Was that her kitten we just killed?” Emily’s voice was low in the dark. Her heart thumped hard and loud. She could feel her own throat tightening.
“Think so.” Chloe’s reply was quiet. She couldn’t believe their luck. They actually met two speed–powered mutant beasts in one day.
Across the hall, panicked voices cut through the silence. “Help! Don’t eat me, please.”
But the mutant cat, which was bigger than three tigers put together, paid no mind. It crushed them, bones and all. The sickening crunch of bones sent shivers down Emily’s spine.
“Chloe, once it’s done over there, you think it’ll come for us?” Emily’s face was pale.
“Definitely,” Chloe replied.
“So… w–what do we…” Emily stammered.
“Let’s move. Twelfth floor. Now,” Chloe said.
They rushed up the stairs. When they got there, guys from the other dorm had already slung ropes across the gap again. A few powered humans were climbing over.
Jason spotted Chloe. His face soured, but he forced a smile. “Chloe. There’s a crazy mutant cat tearing through the guys‘
dorm. It’s massive and attacks on sight. We just need a place to hide for a bit.”
Simone dropped to her knees right there. “Please, Chloe, we’ve got nowhere else to go. People are dying everywhere. I swear I won’t cause trouble for you again.”
Jason added, voice tight, “That thing is deadly. Let’s put our crap aside and team up. Just this once.”
Chloe’s expression didn’t change. She didn’t say a word.
Jason clenched his jaw, dug into his bag, and pulled out a handful of zombie cores. “These boost powers. They’re yours if your team takes us in.”
Seeing that Chloe still didn’t react, Jason tossed the whole bag at her. “Everything I’ve got. All the cores.”
Chloe unzipped the bag. Dozens of cores glinted inside. She raised an eyebrow, thinking, ‘Jason’s got quite the stash. Too bad he’s such a schemer. Could’ve been useful.’
Jason’s eyes were bloodshot. “Just tell me what you want. Do you even get how bad this is? If we go down, you two won’t last long either.”
Chloe blinked slowly. “I want the mutant cat’s core.”
“What?” Jason nearly choked on his anger.
“No core, no deal. Take it or leave it.”
“Fine. Not like you two will live any longer than us,” he snapped.
Chloe tossed the bag back and turned to leave with Emily. Without looking back, she said, “Guess we die together then.” She counted down in her heart.
“Fine! The core’s yours,” Jason bit out. “But I get the corpse.”
Chapter 34
“Deal.” Chloe held up three fingers in a casual OK over her shoulder. She grabbed Jason’s bag and chucked it to Emily saying, “You’ll need these.”
Jason went pale. ‘Damn thief,’ he seethed, thinking.
Inside Dorm 1250, ten guys and three girls sat in silence. Two stoves warmed the room, roasting potatoes. The smell was unbelievable. Soon, quiet gulps filled the air. No one could hide their hunger.
Simone looked the worst. She was the last one left from her dorm. One girl fell crossing the rope; the other two were cat food.
Simone hadn’t eaten well or stayed warm in days. She was ghost–pale and shaky. Her eyes kept drifting to the stoves. Her stomach groaned loudly.
Even the guys looked zoned out.
Jason, though, had eaten enough. Ignoring the hungry stares, he laid it out. “That mutant cat showed up this morning. There were over twenty of us. In ten minutes, only a few made it out.
“I fought it. Had to use a guy as a shield or I’d be dead. Didn’t stand a chance.”
Chloe and Emily shared a look. They knew that the bigger mutant cat was the mother of the kitten they killed.
Suddenly, Simone screamed, pointing outside. They all rushed to the window. Their heartbeats skipped.
The mutant cat, which was triple a tiger’s size, was balancing on the chain between buildings, moving closer with terrifying grace.
“Cut the chain!” Jason yelled. He started hacking at it, but the cat clung on. The cat swung down, and then clawed its way back up.
“How’s something that huge supposed to fit through that little window?” Emily’s voice shook.
Chloe said flatly, “You really don’t know how flexible cats are.”
They scattered. They first locked every window in the hall, and then blocked the broken one on the twelfth floor. Jason had smashed it earlier. They guessed that it was the mutant cat’s best shot.
They waited a long time for the mutant cat, but it never showed. It had slipped into the guys‘ dorm, only to vanish. A blade- like wind whipped down the hallway, chilling them to the bone. In the end, they all huddled in Dorm 1250.
“We need a plan to work together,” Jason said.
Chloe lifted her gaze. “How many powered humans do you have? What can you do?”
Jason was the first to answer. “I’m a double–powered human, with earth and fire powers.”
“I’ve got strength power,” another guy said.
“I… I guess I’m plant–type, but all I can do is make a tiny sprout. Not much use,” someone muttered.
All together, Jason had six powered humans, but their powers were so weak that they’d be dead weight against that mutant
cat.
“What about you?” Jason stared hard at Chloe.
Chloe just shrugged, totally unfazed. “I’ve got ice and wind powers.”
Emily tilted her chin up, all proud. “I have spirit power.”
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Chapter 31
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Jason was genuinely surprised. He never thought that plain–looking Emily was a powered human, too. But he’d never even heard of spirit power and wind power before.
The guys smirked. One muttered, “Spirit power? So, like… you’re crazy or something?”
Emily glanced at Chloe, who gave her a nod. Instantly, a flicker of spiritual energy shot from Emily’s forehead straight into the guy who’d spoken.
His whole face froze, his eyes went blank, his mouth twisted weirdly, and he dropped to the floor, twitching all over like he’d been electrocuted.
Jason shot to his feet, staring at Emily like he’d seen a ghost.
住
AD
