Leave The Monster Alone

Mark went further inside, his eyes looking around for a familiar face till it fell on something right in the middle finger of the room and he felt bile rise up in his throat. 

The figure in front of him looked barely alive and almost frozen to death, inhuman eyes looking back at him from a face that was more insect than human. 

But he recognized that bracelet on her wrist and his heart sank. 

"She's rather lovely in this for is she not? I was afraid for a few seconds that your friend might have ended up killing her but she was a fighter. She survived just long enough to be used for her parts" Nathan was inside the room as well with an unconscious Rika at his side. His hand held a suspicious vial Mark really wanted to scan. 

The other was smiling his easy smile for some reason and Keito felt his hands tremble at his side. His eyes moved to Rika who seemed to be doing no good. Why her bracket was on Shiroá wrist, Mark had no idea but she looked to be still alive. 

Honestly, it was more than Mark could have asked for but he was still cautious about the situation. Nathan was a dangerous foe, one who could not be topped in this ecology at least. Mark had no hope of winning from him. 

"What do you want? What do you want in return for Rika's life?" The other made a thinking motion and Mark felt impatient. Every second inside here was a second waste. That time could be spent in helping Rika and others get out of here. 

"What do I want? Actually, nothing currently since I have everything I need from here. You can take them if you want. Think of this as a favour you will own me and one I will collect in the future once you are strong enough. I sincerely believe the turtle and the Phoenix are wrong about things so I look forward to your journey" "-hey wait" But it was fruitless. 

The other left just as suddenly as he had entered. Keito looked at Shiro, expecting to feel sorrow or even rage. She had been the reason En had died but he felt nothing, not even compassion. 

She had died a horrible death, one prolonged by sorrow and desperation but Mark looked at her as if she was air. To him, her existence did not register in his brain. It might have been a worrying sign had he cared to look at it but his brain decided to prioritise Rika's safety first. It would be a big loss if she died as well. 

And she was a friend who needed to be prioritised as well, the one who was likely alive. There was a slim chance that Shiro was alive as well but Mark did not stop to check on her. Every second wasted was a second Rika would be close to her death now.

"Hang in there" the female was not conscious when he picked her up. It was difficult to balance her unconscious body over his own but he somehow managed.

"Now don't forget our deal. I will contact you when I would need your help. Till then, it's goodbye" Nathan waved Mark off as he left. Mark did think of bugging the other but then decided against it. The other would likely find out before Mark would be able to succeed and he could not predict the other yet.

What if the other took offence? Mark could not afford it with Rika in this condition.

"Alan here, take her and get her to Liam. I will go find Zeno and sort this situation out. Liam should still be waiting for Rika outside and we need him to leave" 

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World quest unlocked: Criterion reached 

Quest name: The rebellion 

Part 2 - Head back to the base and make sure the vile is completed on time. 

Error: Change in instructions.

New mission: Find Zeno and ensure the base is secured. Not an optional quest and failure would result in death for everyone present.

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All of a sudden the instructions had changed for him. It was no doubt because of the interference they were facing but how it would affect the future Mark was not sure. With one problem handled, now he had to find Zeno to make sense of this mess.

And there was only one place that was left as well - the core computer and the central office.

So mark headed there, his senses feeling the central core computer still there which was not supposed to be there. Liam should have taken it with him but it had been delayed because of En's need to show him.

However, what was done was done and now Mark needed to figure out what Zeno wanted from that computer.

When he arrived there, Zeno already had a hand on top of the core computer but his face was frowning in concentration and disdain. Whatever he had found there, he had likely not appreciated it at all.

"What's the situation inside here? Outside is a mess and Shiro was killed" Zeno finally snapped out of his trance at his words. His face showed an expression of rage like Mark had never seen before. It was supposed to be terrifying and yet the emptiness of his mind would not allow him to feel anything.

"Great, first this core computer and now Shiro. Do you have any idea where the base captain might have hid the divine core that was supposed to be inside here? It should resonate with me since I'm the chosen one but I can't feel it. At least Shiro served her purpose, as foretold by the god in my head" the other sounded frustrated and Mark felt the faint surprise come over him.

A divine core? Here? He had never heard about it and even Fidi had never said anything.

As for its location? Now there were too many targets for Mark to name. It could have been Liam, Fidi or even Nathan who took that core with them.

"I don't since they never mentioned anything about it. But it does not feel any different to me. The energy signatures are rather stable when they come in contact with my senses" since the other already thought of him as similar to them, Mark found no harm in telling him this much.

The other looked at him in wonder and then groaned in disappointment. Privately, Mark decided he needed to ask Liam about the core and that story if he had the time to do so.

"All that and everything went to waste. Now I will need to start once again now but no matter. At least we have this base now. Tell Shiro to stop whatever she is doing and come back here. We need to discuss and make rounds to check what we have left" silence descended over the whole place.

Out of everyone, only Zeno had not paid attention to it when Mark had revealed the final state of Shiro and now no one was brave enough to repeat those words to Zeno. 

In the end, it fell down to Mark to do so.

"Zeno, Shiro is likely dead, her body lying frozen in the sample labs below. I don't know what happened but I rushed to find you first in this case" the other finally noticed his words, his eyes going hard.

But Mark saw the wet shine they had and he suddenly regretted telling the other this truth. It was bound to come out but the timing could have been better.

"Is that so. Someone go and retrieve her body. Maybe we can still use it for something. Everyone else, do a perimeter check and keep a count of all the bodies. Mark, stay here and help me get access inside of these files" no one questioned Zeno's words. They were all eager to get away from the half-human.

Mark could only see the male's face but he knew the tears were leaking down the other's face at this very second due to sadness and worry but he did his best to not let it show as well.

Mark knew he also should feel like crying after having lost En because he had been someone who had been with Mark so much longer than Shiro had been with Zeno but his mind and his eyes, both were dry without any emotion.

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System warning: Aprrpoaching mental overload. The user is advised to turn off emotion suppressors.

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Of course, Mark did not lower his walls at all. Even if he did lower them, all that was waiting for him was an emotional breakdown. It was a choice between bad and worse.

So when the first pang of hurt was felt by his brain, Mark ignored it in favour of being progressive. Alan would be back at any time and they needed to deal with the aftermath now.

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World Mission: The rebellion - completed

(You now have access to the secret base #1)

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