ꜰᴏʀᴛɪꜱꜱɪᴍᴜᴍ

The abandoned industrial district loomed in silence, its rusted warehouses and broken fences whispering stories of a past long forgotten. A faint breeze carried the scent of oil, dust, and something... rotting.

Samuel tilted his head lazily. "Smells like something died here."

Elizabeth ignored him, activating her scanner. A faint blue light pulsed from the small device in her gloved hand, casting brief flashes on the cracked concrete. "Monster traces detected," she murmured, her brows furrowing.

Samuel took a few steps forward, posture casual, hands still buried in his pockets. "You know," he muttered, "for something that's supposed to be dangerous, it's awfully good at playing hide and seek."

Suddenly, the air shifted.

A low growl echoed from the alley between two warehouse walls, guttural, deep, and inhuman.

Elizabeth tensed, her eyes snapping toward the sound. "Contact. East quadrant."

Samuel glanced sideways at her, a lazy grin tugging at the corner of his lips. "You and your quadrants," he muttered under his breath, just loud enough for her to hear. "One day, you'll call it 'left' like a normal person."

Elizabeth didn't respond, her eyes locked on the threat ahead.

"Finally," Samuel sighed, cracking his neck as if he'd just woken up from a nap. "I was starting to think this night would end without a warm-up."

From the shadows, a creature stepped forward. It was tall easily over ten feet, its limbs too long, its posture hunched. Its skin glistened black, like oil slicked over muscle. Sharp bone-like protrusions jutted out from its arms and back, and a hideous, too-wide grin stretched across its face almost smug.

D-Rank, Elizabeth estimated, judging its size and mutation pattern. But something about it felt... unstable. Its form trembled slightly, bone spikes twitching as if struggling to stay in shape.

"Samuel—" she warned.

But he was already stepping ahead.

"I got this," he called back casually.

The monster let out a screech and lunged forward with unnatural speed.

Samuel didn't flinch.

In a flash, the air around his body shimmered as a faint silver glow enveloped him. His eyes darkened, the steel-blue shifting into something sharper colder.

Then, with a single step, he vanished.

BOOM!

The ground behind the monster exploded as Samuel reappeared, his fist buried in its back. The monster howled, swinging wildly, but Samuel ducked effortlessly, his movements like flowing water.

"I hate the loud ones," he muttered, leaping back just as the creature's claw shattered the concrete where he had stood.

Elizabeth tapped her comms. "Silver Vane engaging. Target shows signs of mutation instability. Requesting backup if escalation occurs."

"Not necessary," Samuel replied, removing his coat and tossing it to Elizabeth. "I'll end this in sixty seconds."

Elizabeth sighed as she caught the coat. He always said that.

The monster shrieked again and lunged this time with glowing red cracks forming across its body. Elizabeth's eyes widened as she quickly stepped back to avoid being a burden. It was trying to detonate itself.

"Samuel, back—!"

But Samuel was already mid-air.

"Ability: Phase Break."

In an instant, the space around him fractured like glass, and time seemed to slow. In one seamless motion, he passed through the monster literally appearing behind it just as it stopped mid-roar.

The monster stood frozen.

A second later, its entire body collapsed into itself, shattering into glimmering fragments before vanishing in a pulse of light.

Silence.

Samuel landed softly, stretching his arms. "Told you. Sixty seconds."

Elizabeth walked over, scanning the remains. "It wasn't just a D-Rank. That thing was mutating transitioning toward C or even B. If we were a minute later..."

He waved her off. "But we weren't."

She exhaled. "You're reckless."

"And you're always worried," he replied with a wink. "Balance."

Before Elizabeth could retort, her scanner beeped again twice.

She looked at the screen.

Then she froze.

Samuel raised a brow at her reaction. "What is it?"

Elizabeth looked up, eyes wide, and exhaled.

"There's another one."

A second signature no... a third.

Coming fast.

And they weren't D-Rank.

They were A-Rank.

Samuel's smile faded before turning into a smirk.

"And I thought the night would be boring. Well," he muttered, cracking his knuckles. "Looks like this night just got interesting."