[Silence... desolation... war-torn tranquillity.]
The Granians gathered at Grim's ship remained in place, only speaking to each other while waiting for further instructions. This strange behavior confused Ace, Cherry, General Jack, and the watching survivors. These aliens, strange and frightening, were all just in one place.
"I feel like we should attack," Cherry said as she created more blood tendrils. General Jack quickly stood in front of her, fear taking over. The sight of Cherry's blood mutant form, though feminine, reminded him of the day Jim attacked the base.
"Even though you have this power that I'm yet to see, it would be foolish to attack. We have to wait for them to come to us," General Jack replied.
"What about you, Jack?" Ace asked. "What are you going to do? You're not a gifted, are you?"
"What I've been turned into cannot be explained simply, but yes, I am something similar to that, but on a weaker scale. Back to the topic, we have to wait for them to come here. You and your red friend here will deliver the weakening blows, and I'll come in with the final hit. Remember, you two must stick together. If you split for even a moment, these beings will jump on you all at once, using their numbers to their advantage."
"Understood," Ace replied as he partially transformed his arms and legs, making him as tall as a Granians.
"And don't worry. I know how your power works. If I'm correct, we might beat this if you can turn into that," Jack said to Ace, pointing at Cherry. "You can turn into that, right?"
"It comes on its own," Ace replied. "When it does, my control lasts for a short while until it disappears."
As if it was listening in on their conversation, Ace's system provided him with a message that motivated him to fight.
[Gather enough Experience Points to unlock your Blood Mutant Form. This will be of extreme help to you and your cause. Hurry, there isn't much time.]
"We've got movement," Cherry announced as the aliens ahead of them spread apart, making way for something or someone to pass through. The front of Grim's ship opened once again with the aliens moving forward.
"Jason!" Ace and Cherry gasped as they saw Ace's bully walking with the Granians. His enormous body and lightning aura circling around him shook the three of them, making them wonder if they could handle him or not. To make things worse, the ship's front remained open with even more Granians moving out.
"Let's move, NOW!" Jack ordered, and together they all moved forward. The three humans moved slowly and calmly, each with their powers activated. The aliens moved faster with their pods speeding.
[Blood Sprint: Activated.]
Following Jack's plan, Ace and Cherry dashed toward the creatures at speeds faster than their pods. As soon as they got close enough to the first Granians, they attacked them gruesomely and drained them of every ounce of blood their scaly bodies held.
Ace turned the blood into blood spikes, which he let float over his head. Cherry used it to reinforce her tendrils, making them longer and sharper.
[+25 EXP]
The Granians, mostly unmoved by the terrifying display of blood mutant power, continued advancing forward as the barrels on their pods glowed. Ace noticed this and quickly hid behind the pod belonging to the first alien they killed.
"FIRE!" The Granians shot energy blasts at the blood mutants, but due to their large, disorganized numbers, some of those blasts hit each other, instantly killing them.
Ace took shelter behind the pod, while Cherry stood in front of it, using her tendrils to grab as many Granians as possible. She used their bodies as shields while slowly moving forward. Her blood mutant body also allowed her to absorb the hits, rendering them useless.
"IS THAT ALL YOU'VE GOT?" She roared while ripping the heads off the captured Granians. As their blood poured to the ground, Ace gathered it all together, forming blood spikes. He then fired them at the creatures like bullets, aiming for their heads and chests.
The first line of Granians were mostly dead, with others impaled, crashing into each other, followed by a few explosions here and there. The two blood mutants were holding their own, making their enemies look weak and pathetic. However, this also proved why they were highly sought after by them. Ace and Cherry were two beings that controlled the most important part of every creature, and having that power as their own would make them unstoppable.
"Keep going," Jack said as he came in with the final blows. Using his telekinetic powers, he crushed their open wounds, causing blood to gather in one area and explode, rupturing their blood vessels in the process. "We're making it."
Just as Ace felt like they had a chance of winning, everything took a dark turn as he saw his sister's body fly over the pod he was taking cover behind. Cherry skidded across the floor, electric sparks jumping all over her body. She remained still and lifeless, only her ribs moving up and down, showing that she was breathing.
"Cherry..." Frightened and scared, Ace looked at his sister, desperately hoping for her to get up. "Cherry... CHERRY!!!" The boy's eyes began to tear up as rage took over. His hands dug into the ground he was on as the blood spikes hovering over his head bubbled.
"ACEY BOY!" Jason called out as he approached the pod Ace was hiding behind. "COME OUT AND PLAY, ACEY. I HAVE SOMETHING TO SHOW YOU RI..." Jason's face was met by a huge spike of blood that hit him with enough force to send him moving backward a little.
The spike broke upon impact, leaving only a simple red scar on Jason's skin. "YOU'VE GOTTEN STRONG, ACEY BOY!" Jason said with an angry smile on his face. "WHY DON'T YOU COME OUT AND..." Once again, Jason's head was met with another spike that bashed into his head.
Ace, on the other hand, jumped out from the pod with more spikes forming behind him. One spike after the other, the blood mutant attacked Jason, infuriated that he had hurt his sister. As all of this happened, the alien forces decided to let Jason handle Ace as they attacked Jack and Cherry.
"Ace," Jack called out as he held Cherry in his arms, "fall back. There are too many of them." Ace looked around him and saw the Granians rushing to his sister's side. Knowing that she wouldn't get up in time, Ace turned back and dashed for her. However...
"YOU'RE NOT GETTING AWAY THAT EASY, ACE!" Jason stretched his arm out and grabbed Ace. He then bashed him into the ground repeatedly, causing the boy's body to ache and bleed severely.
[-5 HP]
[-5 HP]
[-5 HP]
[-5 HP]
[-5 HP]
[-5 HP]
[You've lost 30 health points.]
[HP: 20/50]
[Activating Fight or Flight Mode.]
[Fight Mode: Activated.]
"LET... GO OF... MEEEE!!!"