After giving the green light to my subordinates, as you can imagine, what happened next was horrifying. Goliath was the first to transform into what appeared to be a 3-meter-tall humanoid figure covered in a dark-silver metal. He then charged into the crowd in front of us with such force that he was just a blur before crashing into the store across from us. The people in his path didn't even have time to react before they were turned into a bloody mess. Inside the store, several were injured and screaming in agony, and those who managed to flee were visibly shaken.
The people around us were frozen in shock, as if time had stopped, until a woman's scream shattered the silence, triggering chaos. Everyone began running and shouting, "THE MUTANTS ARE ATTACKING!" "WHERE IS THE POLICE?!" "GET OUT OF MY WAY, BITCH!" as they scrambled to save their lives. Clearly, these weren't the type of civilians in movies who wait around; some tried to defend themselves by ramming us with their cars. However, their efforts were in vain when I saw Max narrow his eyes in concentration, raise his hands, and materialize a massive metal slab shaped like a coffin with enormous spikes inside. He launched it toward the cars, engulfing them completely and impaling everything inside. Muffled screams from within momentarily grabbed my attention before I shifted my focus to Lisa. She was taking control of several people hiding in stores, ordering them to kill any survivors they could find.
Her control wasn't perfect; the people she manipulated moved awkwardly, stumbling as if they were clumsy zombies. But I paid no mind to this; it only caused more havoc in a large area of the city center. As I looked for Leo, I finally spotted him. While he was invisible to the naked eye, groups of people were being hurled violently, as though hit by a speeding car. It was clear that Leo was there, as his presence could be deduced from the devastation. His methods pleased me since they maximized suffering, and as a result, notifications of collected fragments began pouring in nonstop:
[Ding!] [Scary +30,475 Fs] [Hurt +10,100 Fs] [Panic +22,230 Fs] [Sadness +8,235 Fs] [Scary +573-
Amid all this, you might wonder what I was doing while observing the chaos. The answer? Nothing. That's right—nothing. Most people would lose control if they suddenly had superpowers at their disposal, but I've made sure not to let it go to my head. I don't have plot armor, you know—or at least, I'm pretty sure I don't. If I didn't plan my moves carefully, I'd likely have died long ago. So I stood in various spots where misery was concentrated, quietly absorbing it. This is why I orchestrated such a large-scale attack in the first place. My goal is to collect as many fragments as I can; there will be time later to join in the fun.
[I thought to myself, placing my hands behind my back as a red light began to glow faintly through my clothes, gradually growing stronger as it continuously absorbed the surrounding energy.]
Obviously, I started charging my ability in my chest as I walked slowly through the chaos, ready to counter any unexpected event. But mostly, I wanted to test my limits—how much I could collect before reaching capacity and how long it would take to get there. Two full minutes had passed since I began absorbing energy, and I hadn't reached my limit yet, which made me very pleased. As I walked, faint red electric tendrils began to flicker around my mask—purely a visual effect, of course—but it made people avoid me as if I were a plague while they tried to escape the surrounding turmoil. I couldn't be happier with this highly necessary visual investment.
While moving through areas filled with suffering, standing amidst ruins and agonized victims, I noticed something unexpected. Dark energy began emanating visibly from these places, gathering around me. The concentration was so intense that it was plainly visible, resembling black smoke flowing toward my body. My subordinates, who stayed relatively close to me in case of an emergency, also noticed this phenomenon. Seeing the smoke gather around me seemed to convince them fully of my claims about harnessing despair.
As if they had just consumed 10 energy drinks at once, they doubled down on the destruction. Leo increased his speed, delivering devastating blows to anyone he encountered. Lisa had amassed what appeared to be a horde of about 120 people to destroy entire establishments in unison. For a moment, I thought it resembled a zombie apocalypse—ha! Their heightened efforts significantly increased the flow of black smoke around me, which I continued to absorb. I was thrilled at the possibilities of what I could create with so many fragments. I needed even more.
While we were thoroughly destroying the street and pressing forward, we encountered resistance. What kind? The police, of course. They had set up a barricade and were directing civilians to evacuate through a designated route. This displeased me, as it felt like they were interfering with my plans. As my subordinates regrouped with me, Goliath took the lead, knowing he had solid defenses. After all, the mass slaughter he had committed had significantly enhanced his durability.
Goliath's strong will was unexpectedly impressive, as he retained a notable degree of rationality despite the carnage. As he positioned himself in front of us, Lisa placed about 80 civilians as a human shield, clearly intending for them to serve as cannon fodder. Meanwhile, Max prepared to materialize an iron maiden at any moment to block incoming gunfire. Although I was relatively calm at the moment, it pained me to see my fragment collection slowing down. With some irritation, I glared at the barricade ahead.
A police officer with a megaphone stood out among the group, shouting:
[Officer] "Mutants! This is the New York Police Department. Cease your destructive activities immediately! We will not tolerate any more chaos in our city. If you do not stop now, we will take drastic measures. The military has already been notified and is on its way to your location. Lay down your weapons and surrender, or we will open fire! This is your final warning!"
What clearly made me angry. Obviously, I was trying to control myself, but I hated being given orders, so I made a decision impulsively. I told Goliath to step aside while ordering Lisa to move the people she was controlling out of the way so I could get a clear view of those bastards. Once Lisa had moved the crowd out of my sight, I could see the police, standing alert and ready for any movement. At that moment, as soon as I had them in my sights, I unleashed the energy stored in my chest directly at their position.
The charging time had been approximately four minutes. While I wasn't highly skilled in aiming, it wasn't hard to hit them since they were right in front of me. The moment the energy was released, a devastating dark-red beam shot continuously from my chest toward them. It only took two seconds to hit before detonating in an explosion. All I could see after the impact was a shockwave that hurled me backward, interrupting the flow of energy from my chest to the devastating beam. The same thing happened to my subordinates—everyone was thrown back, except Goliath, who managed to hold his ground against the shockwave.
After they helped me to my feet, they looked at me with a hint of fear and stepped aside to give me space to see the aftermath of my attack. All that remained was a massive crater. Damn it, not even ashes of the police or their vehicles were left. A devastating trench extended along the road in front of me—about two meters deep and wide, stretching far into the distance. I was stunned by the damage caused by an attack charged for just four minutes. There was still 1/8 of the energy left in my chest that hadn't been released, interrupted by the shockwave, but I was still satisfied.
Damn, I've never seen a conventional missile hit, but from the explosion just now, I'm certain this doesn't fall short in power. The attack even extended far down the road. That was my last thought as a mild pain coursed through my body. While tolerable, it had clearly put some strain on me.
After an explosion of such magnitude, nothing was left—absolutely nothing. I was satisfied, knowing that this blast would undoubtedly draw the attention of the bigger fish. So, I told my subordinates it was time to retreat. At least, that was the plan until a jet landed in front of us, with helicopters circling overhead, capturing our position with cameras—or so it seemed. I knew better than anyone who we were about to face.