Evolving Infinitely From An E-Class Hero-Chapter 72: The Third One

Step!

Step!

Step!

Both our footsteps contrasted with eachother as we walked through the corridors of the cruiser.

The corridors of the Whistling Derrick were a metallic labyrinth. It was void of bright lights, cold and splattered with blood and scorched debris.

Water dripped steadily from busted pipes overhead, and ship’s occasional groan reminded us that it was still barely afloat.

Lady Phoenix and I moved through it like golden and black phantoms, pausing at every motionless body.

Each time we stopped checked the body, we were met with burned hope to find out the person was dead beyond recovery.

"Dead too," I muttered, scanning the latest body. She nodded grimly and moved on without saying a word.

The air was still thick with the scent of smoke and burnt fuel. The deeper we went, the darker the rooms became. Until finished found it.

A large reinforced steel door, dented but still very much intact.

Lady Phoenix placed a firm hand on the door, "This... Might be it."

I stepped forward beside her and pressed my palm against the control pad. After a few seconds, the door hissed and the control made a couple clicking sound and it slid open.

"Open so said me..."

I said with a proud smirk while exchanging eye contacts with Lady Phoenix, we walked into the room without caution and when we turned to look, we were met with a great shock.

Inside, hundreds of terrified eyes turned towards us.

Survivors!

Finally!

They were packed together like fish in a can of sardine.

They were injured, shivering, silent, some clenched each other, others stared blankly as if their souls had already left their bodies.

Men, women, children.

The moment they saw us in our gear, their eyes lifted with a new sense of hope as a few of them stood up cautiously.

"It’s okay now," I said with a steady voice. "You all are safe..."

A flurry of murmur and side talks erupted from the crowd as some of them began to step forward towards us.

In a matter of seconds, a generous number of survivors had made their way to stand a few feet away from Lady Phoenix and I.

"You have nothing to worry citizens... I the S-Class hero; Lady Phoenix is here..." Lady Phoenix said loudly with a tang of practiced heroism in her voice.

"You’re not going to introduce me?..." I teased, but she merely ignored me and continued exermining the crowd.

"No need to fear, we’ve neutralized both Calamity Creatures... They will no longer be a problem..."

Silence followed.

Kpim.

"Arrrmmmm..." Then, a hesitant voice broke through from within the crowd.

"Two?" The man stepped forward, very well into his middle ages, wearing a seaman’s uniform.

"Lady Phoenix, I swear on my life... I saw three ghostly creatures from hell out there!" He said as sweat trickled down his forehead.

Lady Phoenix eyes snapped to him and furrowed deeply. "Step Forward..."

The man obeyed, his eyes were wide with horror as he stepped into a space, she stood tall and and said with a commanding voice. "Tell me what you’ve seen..."

"Oh golly!"

"One looked like a massive eel3, the other...a large tarantula spider but it barely had any hair! Can you believe that!!..."

"Keep talking!"

"Yes ma’am! The third one..." He swallowed hard.

Gulp.

"It had wings blue and wide, like some demon bat... It flew past us and tore through the sky like a nightmare!! I’m telling yah, I saw it with my two eyes..."

Lady Phoenix’s expression changed upon hearing what the man said.

"Tch!"

"...That’s why I stopped receiving signals from Agent James Clark," she muttered.

"Agent who?..." I asked innocently.

"The mission’s liaison, the recon helicopter never made it back!"

She turned to me immediately and looked straight into my eyes, "We have to find it and kill it now! It’s thinks the other two have devoured the people here so it would be heading for the mainland!"

"... You’re right, we’re less than a mile out. We cannot let it reach the shores if Sector C."

"We have to go..."

The both of us turned, above to take our leave when the people began to cry out.

"What about us?"

"You can’t leave us here!"

"Please! We have wounded people here!"

"What if another one comes out from the ocean and attack us!"

"The ship might sink!"

"Take my daughter somewhere safe!"

The crowd protested, I looked around to see fear, desperation in their eyes. These people had already been through a lot for one night.

I walked out of the room while Lady Phoenix engaged in an attempt to calm the survivors down.

"What do I do, What do I do, What do I do, What do I do..." I said to myself repeatedly as my brain went at a thousand miles per second.

I was at a crossroads here, leave the survivors here and go I after the third Calamity Creature or stay with the hostages here and risk the creature tearing down whatever it comes in contact with in the mainland.

Of course I thought of staying at the Whistling Derrick with the people till we reach shore, but the ISA do not know about the happenings of this mission, so a Calamity Creature on its way to the mainland will definitely take them by surprise.

Even before a high ranked Hero can get there it would have done a lot of damage.

If I leave the survivors and go after the creature, there is a possibility that another one could surface from the sea and attack again or worst, the ship not being able to hold its own and start sinking.

Just then, an idea struck me like a bolt of lighting.

I clenched my fist, "Forever Core..." I whispered mentally, "Super charge the Forever Pikes!"

Tti-ring.

[Vessel...]

[Supercharging of the Forever Pikes has begun]

[Super Charge Percentage: 30%]

[Estimated time of charge completion is 1 minute]

"Very good, that’s enough time for me to get to the deck..." I said to myself and turned back to the room.

"Lady Phoenix... I would asked for you to remain with the hostages... " I said with a loud, clear and firm voice.

"Huh?..."

"I have a plan..."

Tti-ring.

[Super Charge Percentage: 50%]