Gritting his teeth, Morningstar cursed the fact that he couldn't yet use the Chain Runes ability. It was clear that the power from the runes was much greater than his current ability and if he could use it he might easily defeat the cat and the zombie.
Roar!
The cat which was chasing behind him suddenly opened its mouth and let out a roar which sent waves of gust of wind shooting towards him. Morningstar who had already been on guard quickly sidestep and let the wind pass forward.
He couldn't help but feel glad to have dodged it, if that shockwave could have hit him, Morningstar knew he likely wouldn't only sustain injuries but also break a spinal cord with one or two bones.
Kofi who was running towards where Morningstar was quickly saw the wind coming towards him, with a strange twinkle in his eyes, Kofi kept rushing forward and just when the wind was about to hit him, he stomped his foot on the floor and propelled himself higher into the air making the wind missed him and slam into the huge zombie behind him.
To Morningstar's shock and horror, the zombie didn't fall to the ground after being struck by the wind. Instead, it simply staggered back a few steps, its chest squirming and writhing as if something was moving beneath the skin and the injury which just surfaced quickly healed.
He didn't have the time to think too much as he made a quick turn in order not to cross paths with Kofi or the zombie chasing him. Two was already hard for Morningstar to handle and not to talk of another strange one which seems to be able to heal on a whim.
Kofi who was now close by saw through Morningstar's intention. He couldn't help but anxiously yell, "Hey, let's team up and deal with them." Kofi felt like with Morningstar's current strength it wouldn't be hard to deal with them, who was he to blame when he didn't even know that Morningstar didn't have any weapon or he might have also stood his ground?
Morningstar ignored him and sprinted away, he could hear Kofi calling after him. But he didn't stop instead he focused all his energy on putting as much distance between himself and the cat.
Kofi made a split-second decision and took off after Morningstar, hoping to catch up to him. He ran as fast as he could, both he and Morningstar were moving at an inhuman speed leaving behind blur, even the zombie and cat. Once in a while, they encounter some wondering zombies, Morningstar always one punch them and keeps moving while Kofi uses his sword to slice their head off but none has the chance to pick the runes.
Morningstar who was at the forefront made a sharp turn close to a half-collapsed building, suddenly, a zombie lunged toward him from that spot thankfully Morningstar has never let down his guard even when being chased so he quickly acted on instinct by swinging his fist and letting it connect with the zombie's neck and with a resounding crack, the zombie crumpled to the ground, he didn't even spare it a second glance. He knew he had to keep moving, or he would be overwhelmed by the cat behind him, he unhesitatingly didn't even check for the runes and kept moving.
He saw a collapsed building in front of him, which had created a maze of broken concrete and twisted metal. He darted through the wreckage, and while running he kept on trying to control the floor of energy in him. Suddenly three zombies appeared in front of him and without thinking, he barreled into one of the creatures, knocking it to the ground and using the momentum, he launched himself into the air, grabbing hold of a chunk of wall and pulling himself up to leap to the other part of the building.
"Come on, come on! Work for this daddy!" Morningstar groaned inwardly as he still couldn't grasp full control of the QI in his body.
He turned another corner, only to be met with a sight that made his heart sink. In front of him was a massive pile of rubble, blocking his path and effectively trapping him in a dead end. He could hear the creatures behind him getting closer.
Just then, Kofi skidded to a halt beside him, panting and out of breath. He looked up at the blockade and shook his head. "Are you kidding me?" he said with a sigh.
Just then, the cat finally caught up, without hesitation, Kofi pressed the rune on his sword and transformed it into a bow, he then quickly aimed and pulled the string and released it immediately. With a whoosh the arrow which was condensed from spiritual energy flew towards the cat which was dashing at them at full speed, it felt danger but couldn't retreat since its speed was too much to take such action, instead, it could only desperately tried twisting its body and the arrow which originally should have slammed into its skull could only hit its abdomen.
Roar!
With a pained yowl, the cat turned its fury on Kofi. Its initial target had been Morningstar, but the blow from the arrow had enraged it and it was determined to make Kofi pay.
Ignoring the blood pouring from its abdomen, the cat leapt toward Kofi who quickly readied himself for the attack. With lightning-fast reflexes, he transformed the bow into his sword and blocked the cat's claws, the force of the impact causing his arms to tremble and his feet to sink into the ground. He knew one wrong move and he could be seriously injured, or worse death.
As the cat's attention was focused on Kofi, Morningstar saw an opportunity. With a quick glance, he spotted a metal pipe protruding from a nearby wall. He reached out and grasped the pipe and yanked it from the wall with a burst of adrenaline-fueled strength.
The cat was still clawing at Kofi and Morningstar was determined to end the battle immediately since he felt more threat from the huge zombie and he knew only some seconds before the big guy arrived. He stomped his foot and launched himself toward the cat using the pipe like a baseball bat. He swung it with all his might, striking the cat's head with a resounding clang.
Roaaaar!!!
The cat's head felt dizzy as blood poured out from it, Kofi's eyes lit up as he moved backwards and transformed the sword into a bow then he pulled the string with all his strength, and he even activated one of his skills.
With a fierce yell, Kofi released the glowing arrow. It shot through the air with astonishing speed, piercing the cat's head like a hot knife through butter.
The moment the arrow struck, Kofi shouted "Explode!" The energy within the arrow seemed to erupt, causing the cat's head to burst like a balloon, raining blood and gore across the ground. The cat's body spasmed once, then fell to the ground, lifeless.
As the cat's body slumped to the ground, something small and shiny fell out of its body. Morningstar's eyes widened as he realized it was a gauntlet set made of pure black metal with spikes protruding from the knuckles.
Without thinking, Morningstar leapt toward the gauntlets, scooping them up before Kofi could even blink. He turned the gauntlets over in his hands, examining them with fascination.
"I'll give them back to you when we're done with the zombie," Morningstar said, gesturing to the approaching monster. Kofi nodded, his expression grim. No words were needed between them. They both knew what had to be done.
They turned their attention to the zombie, which was now just a few yards away.
"Don't sweat it, it's just one zombie," Morningstar said, trying to lighten the mood. Kofi gave him a wry smile, though his eyes were still focused on the monster in front of them.
"It's no laughing matter, but thanks for trying to cheer me up Obiɛno¹," he said, his voice tinged with gratitude.
"I'll take what I can get," Morningstar shrugs.
As the zombie with purple eyes glared at them, a dark energy began to crackle around its hands. With a guttural growl, it took another step forward, and its bones began to crack and re-form. With each step it took, its body grew, its limbs elongating and its muscles bulging.
By the time it was just a few feet away from them, it stood over three meters tall, its body towering above them both. Its eyes were now glowing bright purple, and it let out a bone-chilling roar.
Rooooar!!!
"Obiɛno,¹ so you say it's just one zombie?" Kofi asked as he looked at the three-meter-tall zombie with alarm.
Morningstar could hardly retort as he was also feeling shocked, thinking back to his joke, he couldn't help but let out a wry smile.
"Ah, I take back my words."
****
Note:
¹ In the Twi language, spoken in Ghana, a brother is called "Obiɛno."
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