Meanwhile, far away from NYC City, Erza sat alone in the cabin of an unmanned helicopter. The night outside was pitch black, and the only sound was the rhythmic chopping of the propellers. Her nerves were on edge. She swallowed hard, trying to shake the uneasy feeling creeping up her spine. "Is it just me, or does this feel haunted?" she whispered to herself, glancing around the empty cabin. Her voice echoed faintly in the confined space.
"Why couldn't I fly back with him? Leaving me alone here... What if this thing crashes? Are there even parachutes?" Erza muttered anxiously. She searched the cabin half-heartedly, finding nothing that reassured her.
The helicopter hit turbulence, jostling her seat. Her stomach flipped, and she clung tightly to the armrests, her face pale with fear. "It's over! I'm going to die!" she groaned dramatically, bracing for the worst. When the turbulence finally passed, Erza let out a shaky breath. "Phew… made it." She slumped back in her seat, though her relief was short-lived. Little did she know, the flight was far from over.
Back in NYC City, Zack quietly entered the upstairs room where Annie lay sleeping. Her fever had finally broken. He placed a hand on her forehead, feeling the cool skin beneath his palm. A sense of relief washed over him.
"Let me know as soon as she wakes up," Zack said to Sophia, who stood nearby.
"Where are you going?" Sophia asked but quickly changed. "Never mind. Just don't stay up too late."
Zack nodded and headed downstairs. He moved with purpose, making his way to the basement of his Mansion. The shelves there were packed with bottles and jars filled with chemicals. After a few minutes of searching, Zack found what he was looking for—a tube of light blue liquid. He loaded it into a syringe, grabbed a bottle of coagulation spray, and left.
He walked to Mansion No. 7, an unoccupied house nearby. Its decor was simple, a remnant of the developer's pre-apocalypse effort to sell properties. Zack entered the basement, where Tarantula stood guard over the maimed commander and the strongman. Both were still alive, though barely.
"You should clean yourself up," Zack told Tarantula without looking at her. "We don't want to scare Annie when she wakes up."
Tarantula nodded and left immediately, leaving Zack alone with the two captives. The basement was eerily quiet except for the shallow breathing of the two men. "Stop pretending. I know you're awake," Zack said coldly, addressing the commander, whose body trembled faintly from pain.
The man's act of unconsciousness was laughably obvious. Realizing he'd been caught, the commander opened his eyes. His voice was hoarse and garbled, likely due to a broken jaw. "You… won't get… anything… out of me…"
Zack smirked. "Don't waste your energy."
He turned to inspect the strongman. Despite having his limbs sawed off, the man was still alive. Not only that, but his wounds had stopped bleeding on their own, rendering the coagulation spray unnecessary. "Impressive," Zack muttered, more to himself. The mutations had clearly enhanced the man's physical resilience, though his healing ability was far from making him immortal.
Satisfied, Zack turned back to the commander. He held up the syringe, his smirk widening into something more menacing. "Your turn."
The commander stiffened, sensing danger. "What… what are you going to do?" he stammered, his voice shaking.
"Relax. It's not poison," Zack said in a mockingly soothing tone. "This little concoction enhances your neural perception while suppressing your body's natural defenses. In simple terms, it makes the pain a lot worse—and keeps you awake through all of it."
The devilish grin on Zack's face made the commander's blood run cold. "There can't be such a thing..." Although the commander tried to sound disbelieving, the fear etched on his face gave him away.
"Honestly, I don't quite believe it either. But..." Zack paused, holding up a syringe. "You'll know soon enough."
Before the commander could react, Zack plunged the syringe into his neck. The commander flinched. "Don't, don't, don't… If you have something to say, just say it! Everyone will blame you if something happens—"
The commander's words stumbled over his fear. His bravado faltered as the cold liquid started to push into his veins. "You're awfully chatty for someone in your position," Zack said with a faint smirk. "But don't worry. The night is long… we'll take our time."
Zack slowly injected the liquid, locking eyes with the commander as he did. "Wait a bit," Zack said, pulling a chair over and sitting down. "It'll take about three minutes to kick in."
The commander's breathing became uneven as his pupils dilated. At first, there was nothing but silence. Then— "Aaaaaaaahhhh!!!" A scream so sharp and piercing erupted that it triggered the motion sensor lights across the entire area.
The commander convulsed, his shattered jaw trembling as veins bulged across his face and neck. Every nerve in his body, previously numbed by pain, seemed to awaken with vengeance. The sensation surged through him, every fiber of his being consumed by indescribable pain. His limbs spasmed uncontrollably, broken bones grinding against each other, each movement sending unbearable agony ripping through him.He rolled on the ground, desperate for relief, but every touch against the cold, hard floor only amplified his suffering. The torment refused to subside. His nerves wouldn't numb, his mind wouldn't let him faint—it was an endless loop of anguish.
"Ahhhhhhh!!!"
Zack watched impassively as the man writhed and screamed. "Now," he said, holding up a pair of pliers, "are you ready to talk?"
The commander, his face soaked in sweat and twisted in agony, managed to stammer, "You… you haven't asked me anything yet…"
Zack blinked, as if just remembering. "Oh, right." From a nearby table, he pulled two wires attached to a power source. Adjusting the current, he touched the ends of the wires to the commander's skin. The shock jolted through the commander's body. His nerves, momentarily overloaded, stopped transmitting the relentless pain. The man gasped, his body going limp for a brief, blessed moment of relief. His chest heaved as if he'd just surfaced from drowning.
"Feeling better?" Zack asked with a faint smile. He was glad preparing this serum beforehand when he have the time. How this work is a marvel on it's own.
The serum works by targeting the nerves in the body that send pain signals to the brain. It enhances the activity of these nerves, making them more sensitive to pain by increasing the chemicals and electrical signals they use to communicate. This makes every sensation feel much more painful than usual. However, when an electric shock is applied, it disrupts this process. The sudden burst of electricity overwhelms the nerves, shutting down their ability to send signals for a brief moment. It also interferes with the chemicals that the serum relies on, effectively "resetting" the nerves and stopping the enhanced pain effect. This gives the person temporary relief until the nerves recover and the serum starts working again.
"Yes… yes…" the commander started to reply, but before the words were fully out, Zack pulled the wires away. The pain came rushing back, crashing over him like a tsunami. The commander's eyes rolled back as his mouth opened in a silent scream. His body convulsed violently, veins straining against his skin.
Zack reattached the wires, letting the man catch his breath again. "Now, let's get started. Answer my questions, and I'll make sure this doesn't last forever. Got it?"
"Got it! Got it!" the commander blurted out, nodding frantically. Sweat dripped off his face, pooling on the floor beneath him.
"Who sent you?" Zack asked.