This chapter is pretty bloody.
Peace?...
Was never an option.
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/FWOOSH!/
In one swift motion, not giving his enemies any chance to react, Dale grabbed a stop sign in the middle of the sidewalk and plucked it like a blade of grass.
/CRACK!/
Under the pulling force of his right arm, the concrete broke apart violently, sticking to the end of the Stop sign like dirt in the roots of a tree.
/BAM!/
Following this swift movement, he kicked the ground with his right foot and took an extra step with his left, turning his body to face whatever was inside the dark alley, meeting straight to face with a hooded man that had yet to react to his sudden appearance!
"!"
'Wh...'
It was only when the stop sign was a palm from his face that he reacted, his pupils contracting.
The hooded man's body instinctively jumped backward, lifting his arms to block his face.
Many years of training, all for that single moment of quick thinking...
Even so, that wasn't quick enough.
/BAM!/
Like a club, Dale swung the sign, hitting the man's face with the concrete block at the end of his weapon, flinging him back like a tennis ball.
"..."
'I didn't feel much...'
From the way his weapon hit the man, he could tell something was wrong, the weight and feeling were all wrong.
His enemy had cushioned the impact, surviving the impact!
"FUCKER!"
Meanwhile, another person appeared next to him from the shadows, trying to grab him and tackle him, but Dale wouldn't give him the luxury of doing so.
/Crunch/
/CRACK!/
He kicked the man straight in the face, sending him flying like the other man until he hit the wall of one of the houses in the alley, bouncing back straight toward the ground and creating a large dent in it.
The impact had been so great that the wall itself was about to collapse.
This time, the hit was spot on.
It seemed this thug wasn't as capable as the other, and by the crack he heard, it had cost him his life.
Dale didn't feel much as he thought about this, his body already moving without his consent.
Perhaps it was his own strengthened mentality after experiencing something beyond the scope of most, or maybe this was the effect of his Skills...
He couldn't tell.
/Fwoosh!/
But before the man even hit the wall, Dale had already turned around, rushing towards the car.
He could hear faint confused noises coming from within, it seemed they had started to react... This included everyone in the vicinity.
Behind him, a shadow jumped from one of the windows of the houses, landing next to the body of their fallen companion.
He moved next to the other agent, the one that resisted his blow, helping him get up from the ground.
/Flash flash flash.../
At the same time outside, the people watching him from afar started to draw their weapons, aiming them all at Dale.
This filled Dale's chest with half a dozen red dots...
The people in the other vehicles also started to move as well, assuming the worst as they prepared to clash.
Yet it was too late, by the time they did all of this, Dale had already reaped another life!
/BAM!/
All of this happened in such a short moment that the people inside the black van only had time to process the noises before Dale plunged his fists into the black van like a train hitting a car!
/CRUSH!/
The reinforced aluminum alloy the van was made of seemed like paper as his two arms shredded through it without the least resistance.
/TREMBLE!/
/BEEP! BEEP!
The impact of his fists against it caused the van to tilt and start beeping, making everyone within hit their heads against the walls violently.
"Come here." Dale said deeply as he felt a strange emotion surge from within his chest
It was primal anger, the kind every human felt when their lives were in danger.
Hormones were being pumped into his veins by his brain, causing his body to twitch as he moved forward with great momentum.
/Grab!/
He grasped something within the car, what he believed to be their necks, and pulled!
"!"
'Tsk, I missed one of them.'
"AHHH!"
One of the men screamed in fear as he felt the tugging force on his collar, together with the pain that followed as his body was forcibly pulled against the metal frame of the car.
/RIP!/
However, luckily for him, just at the nick of the moment, his instincts told him to take a step forward, and this action made him evade Dale's fingers by a hair's width, not being grasped by the neck like his otherwise, unfortunate companion.
So instead of feeling immense pain, his shirt simply couldn't take it as it was ripped apart violently by his tug.
And although his neck, shoulders, and the back of his head were still injured, bleeding slightly, he was alive... For now.
/CRUNCH!/
The other one wasn't as lucky as he didn't even have the chance to scream his last words.
Brutally, his neck was tightly grasped and pulled outside of the van as blood splattered around due to his skin scrapping against the broken edges of the reinforced metal van.
Alas, no one even heard his last breath, as the noises of the car breaking apart muffled the sounds of his neck breaking.
In one continuous motion, Dale pulled the man out of the van like a kid opening a Christmas present, ending his life with a cold expression.
/THUD!/
/Crack!/
He threw him brutally toward the ground like a firecracker, just to make sure he wouldn't be a problem anymore.
/Crunch.../
This made his body bounce and produce some crunching sounds, most likely, due to more of his bones breaking…
Bits and pieces of blood and gore slowly drained into the sewage drain at the side of the road...
'Two... Many more to go.'
"What is going on!?" Screamed the man whose shirt had been ripped as he grabbed something from within the van
It was a black assault rifle! And not just any kind of rifle...
'A Railgun?...'
/Buzz.../
/BAM!/
/BAM!/
/BAM!/
"!"
Suddenly, Dale saw himself in a bind.
Behind him, were two unidentified enemies, he didn't know how they looked, but they were approaching.
In the front, a man was raising a Railgun, pointing it at his face through the hole he just made, pressing the trigger as the gun slowly charged.
He could also see the driver of the car doing something he couldn't tell, likely grabbing a weapon of his own.
From around the street, he could see a few armed men jumping from within their concealed vehicles, weapons of many kinds in their hands.
And from above, albeit faint, he heard the sound of suppressed rounds making their way to him as they ripped through the air at high speeds.
/Badum.../
His heart skipped a beat as he saw all of this unfold, the world around him seemingly slowing down.
No, that was wrong, the world wasn't slowing down, he was merely...
"..."
Dale's pupils contracted, and his heart started pumping blood furiously throughout his body.
'I'm going to die.' He thought to himself 'slowly'
At this moment, Dale was forced to face reality... Or risk his life for the sake of his integrity.
There was something he always kept at the back of his mind ever since he started growing stronger through the Green Box.
A sense of familiarity he couldn't so easily let go of...
His connection with the world.
From a teenager to a monster, a teenage disaster, Dale had always been afraid...
Afraid of losing his sense of self in the face of inhuman strength.
Every time he acted around others, most of this brutal raw power would be locked away, hidden within his flesh.
No one would notice, and no one would ever realize just what sort of beast they were dealing with.
A tiger wasn't that ferocious when it posed as a cat...
He thought it was only natural, to limit oneself when the difference between you and your significant other is too extreme.
To pace yourself down to their level so proper communication and interactions could be established.
And over time, amidst his constant self-limitation, he started to forget... The brutal power he possessed.
But as he saw all of this unfold, something snapped within.
After him, perhaps already before him...
His family and friends.
What would they do, what had they done?...
And at the thought of this... Horrific outcome...
He stopped holding back.
/Flash!/
"HAA!" He screamed as he raised his leg
/CRACK!/
/BAAAM!/
He kicked forward, almost splitting the van as he sent it sliding across the street like a comet, striking another car in the distance!
/SCREAMS!/
On its way, the van crushed many of the soldiers, their fate, most likely... Not pretty.
/BEEEP BEEP BEEEP!/
The alarms of the cars rang one after the other as mayhem took over the street, but Dale did not care, whatever came as the consequences of his actions, he would face it after he showed these people the outcome of going after him.
"Huff!"
/CLANG CLANG CLANG!/
Due to his moment of anger, Dale barely had enough time to react to the flying bullets going at subsonic speeds.
He raised his weapon, but it was only made of weak and thin materials, not enough to stop them.
The bullets pierced straight through it, blasting the concrete and the metal in a rail of fire!
/CUT!/
/PIERCE!/
His Stats allowed him to follow the speed of the bullets, but they were numerous.
A few managed to hit him, damaging his shirt as they dug into his flesh... Or so they should.
/Clong.../
Upon hitting his body, the bullets immediately bounced off or just completely disintegrated, barely doing any damage.
And the reason for that was simple... They were here to capture Dale, not kill him.
Their weapons were made for capturing Humans...
All they did was tickle Dale!
"Ha..."
Dale chuckled as he saw the rubber bullet pierce through his shirt.
At this speed, it would've broken the bones of a normal person easily, this wasn't your everyday crowd-control weapon.
Still, this didn't make him feel any better, as he was sure these people had in their hands fatal weapons, such as the railgun pointed at his chest moments prior.
He also saw the damage to his weapon, rubber bullets couldn't have caused it...
This meant that mixed with the flimsy rubber, metal was being shot at him.
/Grunt.../
"Urg..."
He turned his face to the ground, seeing the driver of the van slowly rise from the ground amidst the shards of glass and metal.
/Rise.../
Dale raised his right hand and smashed the top end of his Stop sign at the head of the man, crushing it into a paste!
Like a watermelon being crushed by a large blunt blade...
He had barely put any strength into that blow, but his head was completely squished.
'Not yet...'
He had to show them... What he was capable of.
/Shine!/
His right hand lit up in violent bluish light like the flames twitching flames of a campfire, illuminating the alley behind him, and making the two man behind him flinch.
/REVOLVE!/
Around his right fist, his palm started to grow translucent as the air was drawn into it, gathering into a vortex with his fist at the center, until it grew strong enough to start moving some of the cars around him.
All of this within a second.
/Step.../
Dale took another step forward, raising his right arm once more and letting all see what may as well be...
The last thing they would ever see.
/THROW/
/BAAAANG!/
Following one of the piercing stances he learned with old man Testros, Dale threw the vortex ball at one of the buildings in the distance, making it curve before hitting the low-end buildings on the side, slashing across them like a bullet through bark!
/SCREAMS!/
And with it, the screams of the people around the street.
/Chaos!/
As the chaos rang in front of him, Dale's expression went dark.
Finally having a taste of the creature he had become, he quickly got into a stance, turning around to face his two other assailants.
Although it was dark, his eyes could perfectly see the enemies deep within.
Unconsciously, due to the feeling of urgency and adrenaline, the Mana within his body started to move, making his eyes glow slightly in the dark.
"I knew it." Dale said in a heavy tone
'I can't say about the others, they seem "normal"...'
'But I can't say the same about these two.'
Within the darkness of the alley, a hooded man stood there, his 2 hands opened wide as they glowed in faint purple light.
Next to him was a man with a mask, the tip of his fingers leaving behind a slight neon-green trail in the air as they moved.
"Mana…"
'They can use it too...'
'Just what is going... SHIT!'
Due to this shock, Dale forgot to capitalize on his advantage and rush forward, giving his enemies time to breathe and assess the situation.
The hooded man cracked his neck, his eyes were now sharpened and wary.
While the masked man's closed his fists, cracking his knuckles as he opened his hands like claws.
It was clear they weren't normal.
The hooded man received such a strong blow and yet, he was still conscious, but not without some damage.
His nose was bleeding heavily, while his forehead, chin, and cheeks were severely scratched, but still, that was nothing compared to what he expected.
While the masked man's expression was violent, looking at Dale with extreme anger and bloodlust, even though he had yet to feel anything of that sort.
"A total failure…" The hooded man said in a low tone as he remained still, staying in a stand-off with Dale
'He got me by total surprise. His documented fighting experience is wrong.'
'My carelessness resulted in my subordinates' deaths...'
For him, this situation was already irreparable, and those on the ground were as good as dead.
And he could tell that 'those' people were on the way, they would definitely capitalize on the chaos to ambush them after this clash was done.
'Instead of paying attention to him, I was more focused on the enemy outside, allowing him to hit me in the face and break my nose...'
'What a disgrace.'
/Pff!/
He spat some blood on the ground.
'He took out Jeremaya and Sputize within 3 seconds almost soundlessly, and I only heard Guy's scream followed by the sound of the van toppling over.'
'Boris... What remains of his head is now halfway through the gutter.'
'Barely half a minute has passed since the start of this conflict.'
'This combination of strength, speed, action, and decision making wasn't in the report… This isn't a young adult that knows no better, this is a Top Class combatant.'
'If he's experienced or not doesn't matter, he crushed the armor-platted van with a single hand as if it was a can of beer.'
'We're not even being paid that well, it was my mistake for trusting those bastards.'
He wasn't the only one thinking such things as the masked man beside him was also going through the same thought process.
"!"
The moment he blinked and reopened his eyes, he realized that Dale had suddenly moved and that he had already covered half of the distance between them.
/Shing!/
This time, he was ready, he raised his two hands, purple light shining around them as he got into a martial arts stance.
The masked man did the same, jumping back as many trails of green light remained in the air.
Dale on the other hand held his sign, which was now slightly bent.
It was much fainter than the hooded guy, but his stop sign was also glowing in a fainter, bluish-green light...
/CLANG!/
The sound of metal clashing, the purple light, and the green light collided, causing sparks to light up the alley.
/SHATTER!/
""!""
But they were both surprised.
'He wasn't pushed back?' They thought almost at the same time
"..."
But contrary to his expectations, the villain didn't utter a single word, he blocked Dale's assault with his two hands in a cross position without even taking a single step back.
But the ground beneath him had shattered into several large chunks.
/SLASH!/
Taking this opportunity, the masked man appeared from the side, jumping from the alley's walls, and piercing towards Dale's chest with his right hand!
/Evade!/
Showing his speed and mastery, Dale turned his neck to the side as he punched upward.
"!!!"
/BAM!/
/BOOM!/
Using everything he had, the air seemingly exploded as he punched straight into the masked man's chest, sending him into the sky!
Yet just like before... It was light.
/Jump.../
Dale jumped back, creating some distance between them.
'These people... What sort of combat technique is that?'
'They keep reducing my strength of impacts, redirecting them elsewhere... Or absorbing it.'
'I thought I was the only one that could...'
But he shook his head, there was no point in thinking too much!
"Huff!"
/CRACK!/
Dale kicked the ground once more, breaking it as he rushed towards his enemy, he couldn't let either escape!
"!"
'He's coming!'
/CLANG!/
Once again, Dale pierced with his stop sign while the man blocked, but this time, he was sent back as he gritted his teeth.
"This didn't work either?" Dale mumbled with a serious gaze
'I used quite a bit of energy there…'
'Curses, if only I could do anything else instead of just barbarically adding energy onto my spear… If this can even be called a one…'
The stop sign was now fully bent, after two strikes, it couldn't be used for anything else other than a club.
But it had done its job.
/Clong…/
Dale threw it to the side, it was useless to hold onto it now.
'... While these people... They seem fully seem like martial masters.'
As he thought of that, he realized something was wrong.
'The masked man... Left?'
His expression turned furious.
'Bastard!'
At the very least, giving the direction he fled, it was completely opposite to his house.
Albeit it hurt him greatly, he had to let him go, at the very least, he would get his answers from the one in front of him!
"..."
'Should I...?'
/FWOOSH!/
/CLANG!/
"...?"
'He's testing me now?' The hooded man thought in annoyance
Dale tried his luck by throwing the metallic disk of the sign toward his enemy, but the hooded man effortlessly parried it away without even moving from his position.
But he didn't do anything after... The hooded man continued to observe Dale as he thought of a way to escape.
He didn't care if he could take him down or not, he just needed a way to escape like the other one, the mission was a failure, and now, it was time to retreat.
If he fails to do so, he will spend the next few days wishing for a quick death…
He did not resent his companion for leaving him behind, instead, he commended him for finding a chance to do so.
If one vanishes from sight, there is a chance of disrupting the enemies' momentum, if possible, he could even ambush him from afar.
But he didn't expect that to happen, he was on his own.
'What is he going to do now?' He thought to himself as he watched Dale throw his stop sign away
'Behind me, there's a wall, passing through it is an option, but if I reveal an opening, he'll strike me.'
'He isn't that proficient with his 'Gift', he probably became an Adapter not so long ago...'
'However, his raw power is immense, even after punching through the thick, ballistic-proof frame of the van, his fists remain unharmed.'
'He was directly hit with the Type-B Anti-Reinforcer Nullifier bullet, but he can still control his Gift and use it as if nothing happened.'
'There also seems to be no decrease in his overall defensive capabilities, as one of the bullets hit him straight in the shoulder, but he didn't even realize it.'
'Above all, after the show he gave the snipers, he doesn't look tired in the least…'
'What was his age again? 19?'
'What a fucking monster…'
'But I guess this is why I'm here.'
'I had been doubtful of the reason for contacting us, but were they aware of this?'
'The mission looked too simple, but at first, I thought it was due to the political instability and the necessity for things to be silent rather than our combat power...'
'I was wrong in my judgment?'
'This should be enough as an excuse for my failure…!'
/FWOOSH!/
Although it only took 20 seconds from the moment they clashed until now, Dale had enough.
But so did the hooded man, who was getting fed up with clashing against Dale like this, his time was running out, and he needed to leave ASAP…
Otherwise, the USA would be his grave, far from his homeland...
The purple light within his hands started to change, forming a pair of whips!
/SNAP!/
Like lighting, he moved the 2 whips with elegant precision, aiming one at Dale's forehead and the other at his crotch!
"!"
But Dale did not waver, his pair of mental Skills helped him in maintaining calm and focus.
Thanks to them and his experiences facing monsters in Azimuth, he didn't panic and instead, moved his head to the side as he jumped to the left, effectively evading the man's 2 blows.
"Not so quick." The man said for the first time
The 2 purple whips moved, seemingly alive as they bound Dale's neck and right leg.
"HUFF!"
"?!"
But instead of exclaiming, Dale pulled, the sheer force of it made the man fly forward with a look of disbelief plastered on his face.
Even though the 2 whips were trying their best to choke him, Dale didn't care as he made an uppercut with all his power.
/FWOOSH!/
But like before, the man did a strange movement with his arms, creating an air pocket in front of his chest that pushed him out of harm's way, sending him to Dale's side.
/SLAM!/
Dale did not wait for a second, slamming his fist sideways into his face, but this time, the tapped on the ground with his fist, sending him into the air as he avoided Dale's fist at the nick of time.
/CRACK!/
Dale's fist crashed through the side of the house, blasting its wall and ripping apart one of the metallic support beans within the cement.
"URG!"
'This kid is too damn violent! Does he want to wake up the entire nation?!'
'He doesn't seem aware of how to properly use his Gift in coordination with his Physical Adaptation, otherwise, had been capable of doing so...'
He faintly glanced at the destroyed buildings on the other side of the street...
'Things would've been much simpler.'
/Land... SLAM!/
"SH...!!"
/Crack!/
When the man successfully landed, he was welcomed with Dale's bloodthirsty face as he raised his fist upwards towards his chin...
The man tried his best to block the uppercut, but his right arm fractured as he was sent 4 stories into the sky.
"!"
'An opportunity!'
He quickly looked around and took this chance to escape! Materializing a new pair of whips that wrapped around a metal beam of one of the houses, using them like grappling hooks as he fled like an old-style comics Hero...
"Tsk."
But Dale was still focused, his target had yet to move from his sight…
With his right foot, he kicked a small stone into his hand as he took a pitcher stance.
'Testros told me to never do this… But I have no option, he can't escape.'
'The result of trying something even remotely similar was shown a bit before... I can only imagine what could happen if I...'
'Besides, I want to see what will happen if I do it with my all.' Dale thought as a twisted smile formed on his lips
He started to channel every drop of Mana he could move toward his right arm and then toward the rock in his hand.
It was the fastest he could manage without severely damaging his arm, but even so, the rock suddenly shone brightly like a lightbulb in the dark.
/Step…/
/BANG!/
Dale lifted his leg and stepped forward, creating an impact wave that shook everything in the alley around, including even the buildings next to him.
At the same time, he bent his back as his arm moved.
And he released the rock with everything he had in the direction of the man...
/FWOOSH!/
The air screamed as the blue rock flew upward...
"SHIT!" The man exclaimed as he saw the flash of light…
He tried to protect his body, but it was to no avail as there was no way he could reduce its momentum and block it.
Barely even reacting to it, the man only had time to protect his head.
/CRACK!/
Due to the energy contained within it, the rock shattered into many pieces, and like a shotgun blast, dozens of small stone fragments hit his body all at once, some passing right through it…
/BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!/
Before exploding at the same time like blue fireworks in the sky!
/Shater!/
The sound of the explosion was so loud that several houses nearby immediately had their windows burst, and even Dale was thrown backward as he stumbled down on the ground, taking a short gasp as he quickly recovered his stamina.
/Gulp.../
"..."
'No wonder he didn't allow me to practice inside his house… I'll stop complaining.'
'Besides… I don't feel that tired, my arm is a bit sore, looks like I forced it.'
Despite all of this, Dale only felt mildly worked up, he could still feel the warm energy on his chest, and although it had decreased, he believed he could do it again at least 3 or 4 more times with the same intensity unless he decided to channel it all into a single object.
The resulting exposition would surely be... Quite the spectacle to witness.
But he had no time to appreciate the light show.
'I need to go after him, he's definitely injured…'
/Chatter!/
/Weee Wooo! Weee Wooo!/
Dale only had so much time to think as the people living around the place finally started to react.
Sirens rang all around, the police, firefighters, ambulances... And screams started to fill the street with each passing second.
Even though this confrontation had only taken a minute or two, it was enough to startle half of the neighborhood.
"To go after him… Or…"
Amidst his thoughts, his eyes sharpened as he took a step back and turned around, making his way to the two fallen kidnappers.
He wouldn't get out of here without some answers.
…
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Notes
Great.
This chapter is pretty neat, conflict in the real world is always a plus in these VR stories.
At least I hope I did it right and that you all enjoyed it.
Previously, Dale was only supposed to fight 3 enemies and the fight had been much milder, as in comparison to the base chapter, I added 2.5 K words to the entire conflict.
Lore-wise, this change will definitely have bigger consequences, but overall, things don't change much, because in the first instance, everything that had to be done to cover this issue will be done again to cover this one, so we're golden.
Or are we?
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