Gale watched the red tail lights of Andrew’s beat up car fade into the overgrown brush and treeline. Blood soaked the chest area of his hoodie. The wound from the day before had opened up.

He sighed, shaking his head. It was a new hoodie he got from the Red Cross, too. Every time the skin walker died, it just came back up slightly stronger than before.

The first time he killed it, it was only slightly stronger than a coyote. By the fourth time he killed it, it almost reached his speed. Still, it wasn’t anything he couldn’t handle. The thing had no technique. It made for a good practice punching bag. What worried him was the system telling him this wasn’t over.

[Mission: Destroy Rift Core]

[Objective: Neutralize the source of reality distortion]

Gale rolled his shoulders and headed back toward the centre of the building. The corridors no longer shifted and changed around him. No more pain in the butt, using Breath of the Void to map out his path. Except now, it looked like a more sinister, scarier abandoned asylum where ghosts could pop up.

A drop of water hit the concrete, making Gale materialize his sword instantly and pointing at its direction.

He forced a grin. This ain’t scary. Skin walkers are scarier than ghosts. Stupid water droplet. You don’t scare me.

Forcing his leg to take another step, he went back to the office that Mia found. He pushed open the wooden door, finding the intact desk and bookshelves behind it. Going straight to the desk, Gale found the files on top of the desk were gone. He opened the drawers of the desk, but all he found were a couple of dead mice and a bible.

“Damn it, Mia.” Gale slapped his forehead. Those could’ve been useful for someone else that’s not a mundane. Maybe Rachel or Ollie could’ve told him what it said and why these asylum people were researching these things.

He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.

Fine. He could just get it back from Mia later. He’d have to explain to them how he managed to live after being eaten alive by a monster anyways.

Hey guys, I’m back from the dead. Psyche, that was all just an illusion you guys went through after taking in so much mould fumes.

Who would believe such a lie? No one, Gale. Even you wouldn’t believe that lie.

Again, Gale took another deep breath and exhaled slowly.

The mission was still on. Better complete it anyways. For the points. It’s not like he cared if anyone entered the asylum and somehow managed to turn on that contraption again that releases the skinwalker and then they all die and it takes their voices. Definitely for the points.

Gale exited the office room, went straight ahead down the corridor, and took the first double door to the right. Going straight after that would lead him to the greenhouse.

Pushing through the double doors, the area remained completely silent except for a drop of water hitting the concrete somewhere. The klaxon by the door blinked and spun a red light. Dammit. Do ghosts have a thing for red lights?

Gale walked over to where the dials and gauges were that he had randomly mashed to contain the skin walker. He flipped up and down random switches until something worked. When he flipped the rightmost red switch, the machine started humming. The old boxy displays turned on. Gauges went up to just where the green line bordered the red. Slowly, at the top of the pillar at the centre of the greenhouse, a black orb formed again, covered in a transparent energy field.

“Guide, what am I looking at?”

[Amazing Vianne’s knowledge base indicates that is a rift.]

“Tell me something I don’t know.” Gale put his palm to his face.

Analyze was more useful than this stupid Guide.

[Rift]

[Class: 0]

[Type: Parasitic]

[Progress: 74%]

[Description: Incomplete rift parasitization of host dimension. Parasitic rifts partially materialize rift materials onto host dimension’s surroundings.]

Gale looked for the “EMERGENCY CONTAINMENT” on the dashboard panel until he found it at the left most area as one big red switch. It was positioned at the “ON” area. The bottom area of the switch was labeled “OFF”.

He pulled down the switch to meet the “OFF” area.

Immediately, the klaxon behind him blared. Red lights strobed across the room. The translucent energy field around the orb flickered, then died.

The black orb at the centre pulsed. Each pulse expanded it slightly.

In the shadows of the greenhouse, something moved. It stood up, taller this time. The Skin Walker, now with a 6th limb, and its limbs were longer. Its wounds from before covered with new skin. Its face had the familiar black holes for eyes, its gaping mouth took on a 3rd row of triangular razor-sharp teeth.

The Weber blade materialized onto Gale’s right hand, ready to pounce at the thing by the corner of the greenhouse.

However, the creature didn’t attack. It went to the corner of a room, facing the wall.

“Where’s my mommy?” it mumbled, voice like a child, shaking as if it were crying. “I want my mommy. Where is she?”

Gale’s hand eased off the Weber’s hilt. The thing looked almost pitiful if it weren’t for its appearance. Like a lost child trapped in a monster’s body. Like the book the older girls screamed about, a guy named Eduardo in Twilight.

“Guide, strategy?”

[Entity appears to be in a docile state. Containment deactivation has not triggered aggressive behaviour. Recommendation: terminate entity then proceed with rift closure.]

“What?” Gale shook his head. “But it looks harmless.”

[Entity threat level remains. Recommendation: immediate termination.]

Your face needs immediate termination. It’s just a child stuck in a monster’s body. What could possibly go wrong?

Gale approached the black orb, Weber in his hand. Jumping up at the pillar, he met the black orb face to face. It was just pure darkness. Nothing even inside it.

He swung the Weber at the orb. The blade hit, but bounced off with a clang like hitting metal against metal.

“Cool, then how do you like this?” Gale activated Phase Touch. A translucent white blue glow wrapped around the edges of the Weber while its circuits lit up.

He swung again.

Same result, a solid clang. But this one had given the surface a slight scratch.

Behind him, the Skin Walker’s head snapped up. Its body uncurled, immediately scuttering up the walls, onto the ceiling, and towards him.

“What are you doing to mommy?” it asked, voice a mix of boy, man, woman, and girl all together.

Gale turned, “The hell are you talking about?”

“YOU’RE HURTING HER!”

It pounced, crossing the room in an instant. Faster than before. Stronger.

Gale sidestepped, then brought down his sword like a guillotine. The blade cleanly decapitated the creature, black blood spraying and then vanishing before it hit the floor.

The headless body stumbled, then fell.

[Skin Walker felled.]

[Extracting Origin from Prey…]

The black orb shook. It got smaller.

[Relationship between entity and rift detected. Termination of entity reduced rift aperture by approximately 10%. Recommendation: eliminate entity.]

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

Fine! The thing was no longer friendly or a child in a monster’s body after it attacked him anyways.

The Skin Walker’s body twitched. Black blood pooled beneath it, then flowed upward, against gravity. The liquid reshaped itself, forming a new head on the creature’s shoulders.

It stood. Limbs grew some more meat into them. Limbs longer with one extra joint. The rows of teeth added a new 4th row.

“YOU HURT MOMMY!” it shrieked, this time sounding like a woman crying.

Gale readied his sword again. “Let’s see how many times it takes.”

He pivoted left as claws missed his head. Duck. Roll. Weave up to block. The creature’s arm hit his blade, numbing his fingers.

“YOU HURT MOMMY!” it shrieked, mouth stretching wider, teeth multiplying.

Its movements were faster but easy to read. It had no technique, just pure childish monster rage. It lunged again, both arms straight out like spears. Gale sidestepped, brought his sword down through its spine.

The creature fell in two pieces, black blood pooling and steaming beneath it.

[Skin Walker felled.]

[Extracting Origin from Prey…]

Grains of light floated from the dead creature’s body, drifting toward Gale. They sank into his skin, a brief warmth spreading through him.

The black orb got smaller again, now about the size of a basketball.

The black blood moved again, flowing upwards and reconnecting the severed halves fibre by fibre. Bone cracked and popped into each other. Torn muscles reformed more muscular. New skin grew over the wounds. The skin walker stood up again, its body thicker, muscles more defined. Its legs became longer, growing another joint in between where it had grown.

“MOMMY IS HURT. YOU DIE NOW,” it said.

It was fast, crossing the distance in half the time it took before. Gale reacted half a step too late. Claws raked across his chest.

He backflipped, putting on distance. Blood dripped from his chest.

The creature circled him, scuttering on the floor. Like watching stop-motion animation at high speed. It attacked again, this time from his left.

Gale blocked, blade cutting into the creature’s arm. It didn’t care. Its other claw swung around, catching him in the ribs. The hit sent him flying into a wall.

The breath left his lungs in a rush.

He rolled right as the creature pounced, its fist smashing into the floor where he’d been. Concrete cracked. The skin walker wasn’t just faster, it was stronger too.

But still stupid. It had no pattern, just like a child waving its arms around. Gale waited for its next lunge, then stepped inside. His sword swung upwards as he let himself spin. The edge of the blade caught its throat.

Too shallow.

The second cycle of the spin caught the upper skull of the skin walker, revealing the cross section of the brain, black blood still pulsing and spraying outwards.

Gale jumped away before it could collapse on him.

[Skin Walker felled.]

[Extracting Origin from Prey…]

Gray grains of light swirled around him into his chest. Then, the black orb shrank further.

Black blood reversed its flow again, rebuilding the monster from skin, muscle, and bone. This time, the reversal only took seconds. It stood nearly eight feet tall now. Longer limbs again, muscle almost ripping out of its skin. Its head had changed too. No longer human-shaped, it looked more now like a spider with 6 eyes.

“YOU. DIE. NOW.” The words came out slowly, no longer resembling a human voice and sounding like both an elephant’s call and a lion’s growl.

It moved as a blur that Gale’s eyes could no longer follow. It was faster than him now with this transformation.

Breath of the Void focused around his vicinity. The tendrils tugged at his senses, immediately the Weber went up.

Clang.

The force sent him skidding a couple of metres back. His hands went numb, and his body lifted up. Its claws held him by the throat.

Gale kicked at the thing’s chest, managing to launch the skin walker backwards and caving its chest in.

Swinging his sword at the creature’s chest, a metallic clang echoed off of the concrete walls. The blade could no longer cut the its skin.

He activated Phase Touch, activating the glow on the edge once more. Swinging the Weber again, this time it passed through the skin walker’s arm. The limb separated from the 2nd joint from the base of its arm.

It thrashed around and screamed, the volume shook the greenhouse’s window forcing Gale to cover his ears.

After it stopped, Gale lunged forward. Weber drove through its chest, sticking out the back.

[Skin Walker felled.]

[Extracting Origin from Prey…]

The black orb had shrunk significantly now, barely larger than a tennis ball.

The black blood didn’t vanish this time. It pooled, thick and oily, then began to boil. Steam rose from it, giving off a bitter smell. The liquid reshaped itself, building a new body from scratch.

This one stood nearly nine feet tall. It didn’t even try to look human anymore. Eight limbs extended from its torso. Its head was just a mouth, teeth arranged in concentric circles.

It attacked without warning, faster than anything he’d faced before. Breath of the Void warned him. Battle instincts kicked in. His head ducked beneath the claws, rolling away and putting up Weber’s flat to defend himself.

The skin walker was already there as if predicting where he’d move to. One claw caught his shoulder, tearing flesh. The adrenaline numbed the pain, but he still felt the blood running down his shoulders.

Gale backpedalled quickly, trying to create space. The skin walker advanced, herding him to a corner.

He looked around quickly for a vantage point.

The skin walker’s limbs extended, claws out on the way to his neck.

Gale jumped up to the greenhouse’s wall, vaulting from it and flipping backwards. Weber blade passed through one of its limbs.

The skin walker shrieked but followed him, aiming its claws at where he’d land.

Sticking out the Weber blade before he landed, the skin walker struck it, causing Gale to spin backwards. Then suddenly, another limb sliced off, then another, until the skin walker only had two legs left.

Gale caught the floor with his two legs and thrusted the spear right at centre mass. Twisting the Weber, the skin walker grew limp.

[Skin Walker felled.]

[Extracting Origin from Prey…]

The black orb pulsed once, twice, then shrank to the size of a golf ball.

Black blood shot upward like a fountain, covering the ceiling and walls. It snaked to the centre of the room, forming a shape that barely looked like its former self.

Ten feet tall, bulging with muscle. Its skin took on a metallic shine under the moonlight and the strobing red light from the klaxon. Its head was just a mouth filled with neverending rows of teeth that seemed to expand inwards infinitely. No eyes, no nose, nothing that resembled anything that could be called a creature.

Gale wiped the blood from his face. Breathing ragged, cuts and bruises everywhere from the previous fights with this… this thing.

“Guide. Tactical assessment.”

[Entity has adapted beyond physical parameters of previous forms. Current form exhibits hardened exoskeleton with enhanced tensile strength. Speed capabilities exceed your baseline by a substantial margin. Direct confrontation inadvisable. Threat Level: High]

“Options?”

[Phase Touch remains effective against hardened surfaces. Recommend combination attack patterns utilizing all available skills.]

The Skin Walker waited, watching him without eyes. Its mouth opened and closed rhythmically, teeth clicking as they spun in a circular motion inside of it.

All or nothing.

Adrenaline rushed through Gale’s veins. Essence lit up every pathway in his body. The rush of life and death battles he experienced in the Eclipsed came back to him.

Phase Touch activated. Blue glow extended through both the front and back of the sword. Distort activated, bending the light around him to blur his outline.

The thing charged, faster than anything he’d seen before. It was but a silver streak in the dim strobing red light of the klaxon.

Its path was clear. Gale stepped aside at the last moment. As it passed, he swung, using Alter to extend the blade, aiming for the joint of its front limb.

Hit. The Weber stabbed directly through the middle joint of the frontmost limb.

Gale let the stab continue his momentum, twisting his body into a spin in mid air. Weber blade followed his motion, slicing downwards at the other side’s frontmost limb.

It tried to sway away, but the blade lengthened just enough to slice off the limb from the base.

It staggered back again and swung its appendages all around, trying to keep him at bay. Black blood splattered everywhere, making Gale take cover behind one of the blocky monitors.

The thing stopped, jumped up to the walls, and pounced at him below.

He faked left, and the thing pushed against the wall to change its direction.

There were no more walls around the creature. It could no longer change direction.

Gale ran up the wall and jumped at the thing still in mid air. Phase Touch emitted a high frequency from the edge.

The thing screamed, flailing its arms around in mid air, but it had no way of clinging onto something.

Gale’s blade flashed through its neck, beheading it one more time. The severed head rolled away, mouth still opening and closing, teeth still rotating.

[Skin Walker felled.]

[Extracting Origin from Prey…]

The black orb gave one final pulse, then disappeared. The room somehow became brighter, as if lifting a veil.

[Mission Complete: Destroy Rift Core]

[Reward: 1000 points]

Gale fell to his knees, breathing hard, his own red blood dripping from his chest. His sword clanged to the floor beside him. Black blood steamed from his clothes, disappearing little by little.

It was fucking over. Finally. Opening the storage box, Weber dematerialized into the inventory.

Thousands of grains of light flew into him once again, partially healing him and closing the wounds on his chest. The more minor cuts around his arms closed, leaving no scar behind.

After catching his breath, Gale checked his status screen. The 1000 points had been added to his total. Enough to buy something useful from Vianne’s store. It was time to reap the rewards of this unprofitable fight.

He opened the catalog, filtering it for only items that were 1000 points.

[G Series ST-Shield – 1000 points]

[Description:

• Activation: Shield that absorbs up to 50 essence worth of damage.
• Passive: Reduces all incoming damage by 10%.
• Lasts 10 minutes per activation.
• Activation Cooldown: 6 hours.
• Maker: ASAIND U-CORP Group]

[Standard Arm & Shin Guards – 1000 points]

[Description:

• Standard issue reinforced combat guards that can be used as a weapon.
• Passive: Reduces all incoming damage by 25%.
• Toggle on with continuous essence drain to double passive.
• Cost: 10 essence per hit.
• MAKER: Weber Labs]

[Weber X1-Ballista – 1000 points]

[Description:

• Activate to fire a blast of inherent-essence type.
• Range up to 1250 meters.
• Cost: 5 essence per shot.
• Maker: Erin Weber]

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep