The monster's scaly skin was a deep gray with wisps of black fog protruding. Its silhouette eerily resembled a human. However, it stood at a staggering height of well over 2.5m (~8ft), with long limbs.
The people behind Theodore gasped loudly. It stared at the boy with its pure white eyes without pupils. Suddenly, it smiled, revealing slightly yellow jagged teeth.
"GET BACK," Theodore shouted.
SMASH
The Void slammed into the window, immediately shattering it. Theodore dodged out of the way narrowly. As it slowly got back up, everyone began screaming.
Theodore turned to them, "Get the hell out of here!" They would stand in his way and just get themselves killed if they stayed.
'Damn it, damn it damn it.' Since he was off-duty, he wasn't carrying his swords. He tried to calm himself, remembering his training.
'Their weakness...'
WHOOSH
Suddenly, the Void dashed forward at an impressive speed. Theodore couldn't track him with his eyes, but his sixth sense kicked in.
BAM
The Void's fist dug into Theodore's arm as he tried to block.
"UGH!" Just from that attack alone, his right forearm bone was crushed. It clicked in his mind; he had to escape. There was no winning. Suddenly, he grabbed the lamp on the table and threw it with his remaining arm.
The Void easily caught and crushed it in his hand while observing the object. However, it bought Theodore a couple of seconds to run.
He ran out the backdoor. 'I need to get to the headquarters,' his best bet was finding backup.
"AHHH, HELP ME PLEASE-"
As he ran, he heard loud screaming. He looked down the street and nearly stopped. The person shouting was half inside the mouth of another Void.
CRUNCH
The crisp sound of the void chomping on the person reached his ears. Conflicted, Theodore continued to run. 'They are already dead, don't stop,' he coldly decided.
However, just then, Theodore felt his back cave in.
BOOM
He was sent flying forward, tumbling over his body. The Void had caught up to him.
"Damn, that really hurts," he whispered to himself as he slowly got up. The place where he was hit went numb immediately.
He wiped the spit dribbling down. "Alright, let's go monster, I didn't like running anyways." He clenched his left fist and raised it while his right arm dangled. The monster smiled, creeping up closer to him. 'I'm not going down here, not now,' he clenched his teeth hard.
"WATCH OUT"
A voice shouted from behind Theodore. Suddenly, bright lights blinded his vision. When he reopened his eyes, his mouth hung open. Several soldiers simultaneously stabbed the Void with a strange glowing blade.
The Void screamed a beastly roar, swiping at the people around. Most managed to dodge and retreat, but a couple, unfortunately were caught. The Void's skin began to crack, bright golden light leaked through.
BOOOOM
A small explosion pushed Theodore back. After the light dimmed, Theodore saw the Void's body unrecognizable and in pieces on the floor.
"What the-?" he was speechless. A hand grabbed his shoulder. Theodore turned around and found the man from before behind him.
"General?" Theodore's voice cracked. The man scanned Theodore up and down before turning away.
"Continue to the Headquarters. Help with the evacuation," his voice was eerily calm despite the constant screaming and explosions around.
He stepped forward, "And Theodore, your sister isn't here, so don't waste your time looking for her."
Suddenly, Theodore's face contorted. "What the fuck do you mean," his voice filled with uncontrollable anger. However, the man disappeared into the distance at an extraordinary speed.
Theodore had never seen equipment that could make a person move that fast. 'Where did he get that?'
"Theo, we have to go," a young boy similar in age to him appeared. Unlike Theodore's dark hair, his was bright golden.
"Evan?" He noticed the boy had similar equipment. The gear hugged his body. It was a pretty red with glowing gold and white accents.
"Come on, let's go." he grabbed Theodore by the waist. "Hold on tight." Suddenly, the two thrusters attached to his hips began to softly hum
"What the hell is this?" Theodore felt his body lift from the ground.
"New technology. It's called Helias Gear," Evan replied.
Suddenly, their speed increased. Theodore made a small yell as they practically flew.
'Where could they have gotten this kinda equipment?'
Their settlement was constantly on the brink of running out of resources. Food, space, and especially technology were limited.
Previously, soldiers used rusty and chipped swords with worn-out leather armor. Now, they could harness controlled energy bursts and blades made of light?
It didn't make sense no matter how much Theodore thought about it, so he chose to forget it for now. Also, there was a more pressing issue.
'I need to get her to the safety zone.' Theodore understood what the general had told him, but he wouldn't believe it.
'I won't stop until I see her, alive or dead.' Although if the case was the latter, he didn't know what he would do.
"Evan, take me to the facility"
"What? That's in the opposite direction of the headquarters," he exclaimed.
"Just drop me off right here," Theodore realized he was asking Evan to risk his life for him.
"Damn, don't be so quick to give up on me, it makes me feel guilty," he smirked.
Evan turned his body and accelerated in the opposite direction.
Theodore let him, it was easier for him to have a ride. However, he was still thankful and nodded lightly.
***
They flew above the underground city in chaos. Buildings were in ruins, fires began to spread, and worst of all, Voids were killing people. The entire area was filled with screams and the sounds of Void's devouring them.
Theodore clenched his fists. An uneasy emotion arose in his heart, watching people die at large. The problem was that there was no emotion. He didn't feel the urge to help.
'No, I just have to save her,' he brushed it off as him placing his sister's life first, which he believed was more justifiable.
After a while, they arrived at the facility, a tightly secured prison that also worked as a research lab. It was an open secret that the military, who called themselves the Restoration, conducted inhumane experiments on prisoners. And currently, it was where Theodore's sister was supposed to be.