Kai could not move.
The battlefield roared around him.
Screams.
Explosions.
Steel.
Magic.
All of it blurred into noise.
Dr. Z was gone.
The girl’s body still lay on the ground.
Half human.
Half monster.
Still staring at nothing.
Kai’s breathing was shallow.
His hands trembled.
Not because of fear.
Because something inside him had gone cold.
He stared at her face for a long time.
---
Then—
A memory surfaced.
A quiet street.
A residential district.
A child struggling with a push up.
Her friends cheering.
A normal face.
A normal person.
And now—
This.
Kai’s jaw tightened.
"..."
His fists clenched.
Anger surged up so suddenly it almost blinded him.
He took one step forward.
Then stopped.
Dr. Z was already gone.
Chasing him now would save no one.
---
Behind him—
A civilian screamed.
Kai turned sharply.
A hybrid had crashed through a collapsed wall and was moving straight toward a group of fleeing people.
Kai moved before thought could stop him.
Wind burst beneath his feet.
He shot forward.
His knuckle duster smashed into the creature’s jaw.
It staggered.
A second strike followed.
Then a third.
The hybrid collapsed into the street.
Kai barely noticed the blood on his hand.