[ OMG that rat is the size of a plane! And I thought a tiger-sized rat was horrifying enough! ]
[ Mommy Poki! Screw the livestream, RUNNNN~~ ]
The viewers of the livestream burst into a frenzy of comments.
Even within the Capital city, Sir Adam shot up from his seat,
"Does our intel say anything about a rodent THAT monstrous?!"
President Reed, though more composed, mirrored the world's shock.
Eyes widened, mouth agape, he stammered,
"This… This… How can we possibly deal with mutants of this size?"
On the screen, the colossal rat lunged toward Brandon Void with terrifying speed and ferocity.
Brandon hovered mid air, clad in his dark ethereal armor, remained eerily composed, his mind racing to analyze the situation.
'It's only been a few hours and it has already evolved to such an extent. It must have evolved by consuming its own kind…"
His mind then slipped into a tranquil state, a world where time seemed to slow.
It was time to invoke the power he'd been gifted for the first time -
[ Void Manifestation ( Tier I ) ] !!!
As the ten black vortexes hovered behind Brandon, a sinister dark energy mist began to creep out, snaking its way towards him.
Their dark energy tendrils slithered, coiling around his outstretched hand, transmuting into a malevolent sword.
Looking down toward the result of his [ Void Manifestation ( Tier I ) ] skill, Brandon thought,
'Interesting… This is not merely a sword. It's a manifestation of the void itself, a physical embodiment of nothingness. A paradoxical weapon that is and isn't at the same time.'
The eerie glow of black flames lashed from the blade's body, each flicker of flame thirsting for destruction.
'I can feel it's bloodlust, but something seems off…'
Before Brandon could finish his thoughts, the colossal mutant rat was already inches away.
With a swift and powerful motion, Brandon met the colossal rat head-on.
His ethereal sword slashed vertically through the air, trailing a streak of black flames in its wake.
The blade collided with the rat's massive form, creating a cataclysmic impact that reverberated through the surroundings.
The collision erupted in an explosion of raw energy, engulfing the area in a blinding burst of light.
BOOOOOOOOOOMMM !!!
The resulting shockwave, a savage hymn of raw power, shattered nearby structures into rubble.
Debris and dust filled the air, creating a chaotic and apocalyptic scene.
Brandon, the eye of the storm, was sent hurtling through the air, his body crashing into the street below with bone-shattering force.
As dust spiraled, obscuring the full scope of the disaster, the colossal mutant rat, unfazed, landed gracefully. Its eyes gleamed with a new ferocity.
=========
<< Capital City - Military Base >>
In the confines of the military base, Crystal's eyes were glued to the unfolding livestream footage.
Her heartbeat echoed the rhythm of her escalating fear and determination.
Jade, clad in a small white ethereal armor, twirled around the room with boundless energy. Her voice filled with excitement as she called out to her mother, eager to show off her newfound sense of power.
"Mommy, Mommy, look at me!"
Jade exclaimed, her voice filled with youthful enthusiasm.
"Am I a superhero like daddy?"
"Yes… yes… my darling,"
Crystal's absentminded reply held a tinge of worry. Her gaze never left the screen.
Her eyes widened as Brandon, encased in his cracked armor, plummeted from the sky, carving a massive crater on impact.
The enveloping dust concealed his extent of injuries.
Meanwhile, Baron, dressed in a small jet-black ethereal armor, was sitting idly on the carpeted floor.
He pointed to the screen where Brandon lay in the crater.
His eyes were filled with curiosity and a hint of confusion as he looked up at his mother.
"Mommy, are we the same?"
Crystal's gaze never wavered from the screen, her heart pounding in her chest with each agonized cough that escaped Brandon's lips.
Deep lines of worry etched on her picturesque face.
Her hands trembled with the need to reach out and comfort him, to soothe his wounds and offer solace in his moment of vulnerability.
Unconsciously, Crystal clenched her fists, her nails digging into her palms, as if trying to channel her own strength to him.
Her body leaned forward, as if willing herself closer to him, her breath caught in her throat.
"Mommy? Mommy?? Are eww okay?"
Baron's sweet voice echoes in the room.
==========
Back in front of the gates of the Void Fortress…
Within the deep crater's hollow, Brandon lay sprawled on the unforgiving ground, his breath labored and ragged.
The coughs continued, each punctuated by splatters of his lifeblood.
*COUGH* *COUGH* *COUGH*
Lili watching from atop the walls, shouted over a communication device,
"Boss! Are you ok?! Get up!"
Brandon, despite the agony, muttered a weak response,
"Working on it, Lili. This thing is no ordinary mutant."
With the monstrous rat closing in, images of his beloved butler Geoffrey, his 500 brothers and sisters and the empire that awaited his return flashed before his eyes.
He wasn't just outmatched; he was fighting for a future he'd barely begun to rebuild.
His body screamed at him to flee, but he knew there was no running from this.
He needed power, more power than he currently possessed.
He needed to activate his second Divine Skill!
[ Devour ( Tier I ) ] !!!
The environment responded to Brandon's call.
Trees bent toward the vortexes as if bowing to an unstoppable force, and the very ground quivered, giving a haunting resonance that echoed the power he was about to unleash.
They hungered for more, eager to satiate their insatiable thirst.
Like voracious maws, they greedily devoured the blood of the waves of mutant rat underlings that were killed earlier as the stream of blood dribbled down into the depths of the crater.
In that moment, Brandon felt a surge of power coursing through his veins.
'This skill… is way too OP…' Brandon thought.
For a moment, everything stood still.
The chaotic world around him faded as he felt the very essence of life itself channeling through him, guided by the enigmatic vortexes.
It was a brief, calm respite amidst the tumult, a moment of clarity before plunging back into the storm.
In that moment, the boundaries between Brandon and the vortexes blurred, their connection growing deeper.
The life force flowed into him, merging with his weary body, weaving its way through his veins like an ethereal tapestry.
The energy danced through his being, mending his wounds with an otherworldly vigor, knitting together flesh and sinew.
Yet, with each pulse of power that surged within him, there was a subtle shift in Brandon's demeanor.
His eyes, once filled with unyielding determination, transformed before the viewer's gaze.
Veins, vibrant crimson, spread like intricate webs across the surface of his eyeballs, tracing an ominous pattern.
Within that crimson lattice, a hint of something sinister glimmered, heralding a shift in his demeanor.
His sanity teetered on a precipice, threatened by a maniacal bloodlust that lurked in the shadows of his mind.
A voice, whispering from the deepest recesses of his mind, began to taunt him, urging him to give in to the bloodlust.