Bridge was unstoppable.


    Somehow, even after morphing into a hulking monstrosity, he was still impossibly rapid, darting around the room in blurs. Jon and Chloe couldn’t get any hits in, and were forced rather quickly onto the defensive, constantly retreating and darting around, attempting to avoid direct hits from Bridge.


    “How the hell do we get him to turn back?!” Chloe demanded, just after Bridge slammed his hands together, sending out a directed wave of concussive force that sent her sliding backward a few feet.


    “I don’t think we can!” Jon roared.


    Bridge struck a fist against the ground then and ripped up a slab of concrete that he hurled right at Jon.


    Jon darted forward and dived into a roll, avoiding the slab but finding himself at the mercy of Bridge. Jon saw Bridge too late and threw up his hands in an X to shield himself. Bridge’s fist connected and in an instant, Jon had crashed right through a wall and out of the building, the impact of Bridge’s blow launching him like a rocket.


    “Jon!” Chloe yelled.


    Bridge went at her next, roaring as he charged. She ducked beneath his first few swipes at her, darting around him, remaining quick on her feet. She stared at one of the spikes that jutted out of his skin, torn bits of skin still visible at the base of the spike. An idea popped into her head, but she greatly doubted how effective it would be. Still, it ought to work a lot better than throwing punches at his reinforced skin.


    She continued to dart around Bridge, and the more she evaded his hits, the angrier he seemed to get, his growls turning more guttural with each moment. He hadn’t said a word since his transformation and she wondered if there was something about what had happened that’d nullified his ability to speak.


    With Jin’s blood in their system, the Pandorans turned more feral, more aggressive, in addition to their physical abilities being heightened. Had Bridge gone so feral that there was nothing human left? Just how much of her blood had he mixed in with whatever formula had turned him to this?


    Opportunity presented itself when one of Bridge’s fists found wall and remained lodged in there. Before he could get his fist out, Chloe moved with a burst of space, going right for one of the spikes jutting out of his arm. She grabbed onto it and with all of the strength she could summon, yanked on it.


    The spike snapped and Bridge roared furiously. He freed his hand then and turned around to swat at her. Chloe flipped the spike in her hand and struck with it, stabbing straight at his palm.


    The spike cut through his skin and flesh, pierced through to the back of his palm. At the same time, his foot shot out and caught her. She zipped through the air, felt pain shoot throughout her body as she crashed right through concrete and landed hard against asphalt on the street outside.


    She started to her feet immediately but before she’d risen, Bridge charged right out of the mansion, slamming his way through a wall. As he emerged, the guards who’d been outside dealing with chaos all halted, turning to face the monster with looks of horror on their faces.


    “What the—,”


    “Shoot at him!” Chloe cried out.


    The guards heeded her, opening fire at once. Bridge raised a hand to shield his face as bullets pelted against his skin and bounced right off. And then, angrily, he attacked, striking at the wall of the mansion and ripping loose chunks that he hurled at the guards. Some guards ducked out of the way, others were unluckier.


    Bridge reared, as though he were a bull preparing to charge and then he came right at her, eyes unmistakably furious. She rose but not nearly quickly enough to get out of the way. Bridge’s fist hurtled toward her.


    Jin was there.


    She appeared in an instant, shoving Chloe out of the way and catching the punch that’d been met for her. There was a small shockwave as Jin caught the blow, but it was evident even she wasn’t a match for Bridge. Not after she’d been drained of blood down in the lab.


    Her entire body trembled under the mere effort of stopping one of Bridge’s strikes, and when he sent his second fist crashing into Jin’s stomach, she stood no chance at all. She went flying, blood spraying out of her mouth as she did.


    She hit the ground hard, rolled severally before coming to a stop, then spat more blood from her mouth.


    “Jin!” Chloe yelled. She hurried in Jin’s direction but Bridge started to charge toward her. Before he’d reached her however, Jon threw himself onto Bridge from behind, grabbing one of the spikes protruding from his back and snapping.


    Bridge roared and reached behind him to deal with Jon. Chloe reached Jin, crouching next to her and lifting her head.


    “What the hell are you doing?!” Chloe demanded. “You can’t fight! Not like this.”


    Jin chuckled weakly and spat more blood from her mouth. “I just had to make sure…that you would still owe me.”


    “I need to get you out of here,” Chloe said. She attempted to lift Jin up but Jin stopped her, shaking her head.


    “No good,” she said. “You won’t outrun him. He’ll kill everyone. My blood…not meant for humans. You have to stop him.”


    “In case you haven’t noticed, that’s not something I can do!”


    Jin snorted. She raised one hand and hardened her fingernails before making a firm fist. She winced as she did and a moment later, blood started to trickle out of her palm and down her hand. She undid her fist and extended her hand to Chloe. “You just need more.”


    Chloe’s eyes widened. “No,” she said flatly. “I can’t. You’ll—,”


    She was cut off by an outcry from Jon then. She looked back to find him on the ground, one of Bridge’s spikes protruding from his stomach. Bridge was advancing toward him.


    “It’s the only way,” Jin said softly. “And don’t worry. I’ll live.”


    Chloe hesitated. From behind, she heard the sound of metal scraping, looked again to see Yuri approaching Bridge, the tip of her sword scraping against the ground. She glanced back to Jin.


    She accepted Jin’s hand and raised it to her mouth. And she drank.


    She drank all she could.


    “Yuri, you can’t take him on,” Jon said as Yuri walked past him, her blindfold off now, eyes bloodshot. Clutching the spike in his stomach, Jon returned to his feet.


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    “Stay back, Jonathan,” Yuri said. Her voice was cold, soulless. “He’s mine.”


    Bridge roared and upped the pace gradually until he was full on sprinting toward Yuri. He lunged forward, swinging a powerful fist at her.


    Yuri darted out of the way gracefully and without her expression shifting. She went right at Bridge’s mansion, darting up the wall with tremendous speed before launching herself off of it and right at Bridge.


    Bridge raised a hand to meet her. Yuri twisted and spun in the air, avoiding his strike, before countering with hers. Her sword went straight for his left eye. It found its target. Blood gushed out of his eye as the blade stabbed straight through and Bridge dropped to one knee, a furious roar escaping him.


    Yuri yanked her blade free of his eyes, wiped the blood off then prepared to strike again. Bridge raised his head then and let out a low, guttural growl.


    His hand moved through the air with speed, slamming into Yuri. Yuri hit the wall of an apartment building hard, her blood splattering against it before she dropped to the ground.


    She didn’t move again.


    Jon yanked the spike out of his stomach and fixed a glare on Bridge. He held the spike firmly like a weapon. “Come on, you piece of shit!” he roared. “Is that all you’ve got? Come on! You’re supposed to be the next stage of evolution, right? You’re supposed to be putting on a show for us? Well, I’m still standing and I’ve got to say, this isn’t a very good show!”


    Bridge, who’d been clutching his wounded eye then, lowered his hand and turned his attention to Jon. He grunted and his lips curled into what should have been a smile.


    And for the first time since he’d transformed, he spoke. “Fine.”


    He went at Jon, and threw a blow. Jon ducked beneath the first strike and stabbed with the spike in his hand. The spike pierced through Bridge’s chest. Bridge simply grunted then reached out and seized Jon by his neck, lifting him high off the ground.


    “Disappointing,” said the crazed Chancellor. “I really hoped you’d do something there. Oh well, goodbye.”


    “LET HIM GO!” Chloe screamed at the top of her lungs.


    Bridge turned then, just in time for Chloe’s fist to collide with his face. He let go of Jon at once, the impact from Chloe’s punch sending him staggering backward.


    Bridge raised a hand to the point on his face where Chloe’s blow had connected, rubbing it slightly, a look of surprise on his face. He turned slightly and spat. Blood flew from his mouth. “Huh,” he said, before turning his attention back to Chloe. He licked his lips in a crazed manner. “That’s more like it!”


    Chloe screamed furiously and went at him again. Bridge shifted, moving toward her and readying to catch her strike. Chloe blurred right past him and struck from behind, slamming a fist into his side before rapidly breaking a spike free and stabbing with it. Bridge spun to face her and received consecutive blows to the face that sent him stumbling backward.


    She went at him again. A fist from him connected with her face and knocked her to the side, blood spraying from her mouth, vision blurring for a moment. But she didn’t stop. She spun toward him as he prepared to strike, sending her fist hurtling right at his. Their fists collided and out went a small shockwave that caused the windows on his mansion and nearby buildings to shatter outward, glass raining down on them.


    Before the glass had settled on the ground, shards of it still in the air, the two of them went at each other, eyes glowing with power and bloodlust as they did.


    Chloe screamed loud as she could, her rage deafening her. Bridge roared.


    The two of them exchanged a flurry of attacks, throwing blow after blow, neither one caring much for dodging or remaining on the defensive. Blow after blow connected, each one landing with a resounding thud and causing the earth to rumble enough that anyone in the distance might mistake it for an earthquake.


    On and on the exchange went, a display of crazed bloodlust that could have only one victor. It became apparent soon however, that despite the strength coursing through her as a result of Jin’s blood, that Bridge still had the advantage. His skin was sturdier, more durable, capable of taking more than she was dealing out.


    She, on the other hand, was still very vulnerable and this proved true when Bridge swung his arm wildly, aiming the spikes on his forearm right at her. She made to step back to avoid the spikes but they still slashed across her, sent pain flashing through her.


    Bridge ripped one spike free, shot one hand out, seizing Chloe by the back of her neck and then he plunged the spike right into her stomach.


    A gasp escaped her. Bridge’s lips curled into a smile and he shoved the spike even deeper, before pulling her in close. He brought his face to hers. “That, that was good,” he said, eyes twinkling with madness. “Really, it was. It just wasn’t enough.”


    “Fuck you.”


    Chloe jabbed her thumb into his good eye. He let go of her at once, roaring as he stumbled backward, clutching his eye. Chloe dropped to her knees immediately and watched as he went through the agony.


    A few seconds passed before he lowered his hand from his eye. He growled at her and looked ready to charge.


    Then came the applause. Bridge halted at once.


    Accompanying the applause were footsteps, slow yet powerful. Chloe turned, glancing behind her in the direction it’d come from. Approaching them and clad in armor that was oddly scaly, a truly amused expression on his face was Julius Erwin.


    Erwin reached Chloe. He stopped just beside her, beamed right down at her. His applause didn’t cease. “Commendable,” he remarked. “Truly commendable effort. And you almost had him too.”


    “You’re here.” Chloe attempted to rise to her feet.


    “Don’t bother,” Erwin said gently, ceasing the applause then. “You’ve done just enough, Ms. Taylor. Please, allow me to take it for here. My way of making up for not being here sooner.”


    Chloe met Erwin’s eyes. “He can’t live to see tomorrow.”


    “He won’t, rest assured.”


    Erwin returned his attention to Bridge. “Chancellor Bridge,” he began, continuing his advance toward the monster. “Are you still in there? I’d like to know what it is I’m about to kill.”


    “You think me frightened of you?” Bridge snorted. “Look at me!”


    “Yes, I know, I see you well enough, Chancellor, there’s no need to yell,” Erwin spoke calmly. “And now I know there remains a man in there. That’s good. I want you to plead before you die.”


    Bridge was at Erwin in the blink of an eye. His fist shot through the air, collided against Erwin’s chest. There was a powerful gust of wind that swept dirt in every direction and briefly obscured the two of them.


    But then the dirt cleared and Erwin still stood. Bridge’s strike hadn’t even moved him an inch. The Chancellor’s eyes went wide.


    “What the—,”


    WHAM!


    Erwin’s fist connected with Bridge’s stomach, and the rest of what he’d been about to say was lost in a gasp as the wind was knocked right out of him, blood spraying from his mouth. Bridge wheezed and threw another punch. Erwin parried this with a disrespectful amount of ease, and sent his palm flying into Bridge’s face, landing a slap that sent the Chancellor slamming down into the ground.


    “Get up,” Erwin commanded before slamming a foot into Erwin, sending him flying a great distance away.


    “Jesus,” Chloe murmured, watching with eyes wide as Erwin continued his advance toward the Chancellor.


    Bridge got back up then and looked in Erwin’s direction. The excitement in the monster’s eyes was gone now. In its place, fear.


    He extended a hand toward Erwin. “Wait—,”


    Erwin was right in front of Bridge. “No,” he said coldly, and thrust his foot into Bridge’s stomach, sending him sliding backward. Bridge coughed up more blood. He wiped the blood off his mouth and stared at it in disbelief, before looking back to Erwin.


    “Plea—,”


    Again, Erwin was right in front of him. “Already?” the Major asked. “That’s disappointing.”


    Bridge’s lips curled into a grin then, and he thrust a hand forward, meaning to stab Erwin with one of his spikes. The spike slammed into Erwin’s armor and shattered immediately. Erwin looked down at the point where the spike had met his armor then looked back at Bridge.


    He sighed, as if unenthused and proceeded to clap his hands on either side of Bridge’s face. The Chancellor dropped to his knees immediately, roaring in agony, blood streaming out of his nose and ears.


    Erwin looked down at him, an expression of disgust on his face. “You bore me,” he declared, and then shove a fist right into Bridge’s chest.


    There was a gasp from the Chancellor as Erwin’s fist dug in, followed by a sickening wet sound as Erwin twisted his fist inside of the Chancellor’s chest. A shaky breath escaped Bridge as the color started to fade from his eyes.


    Erwin yanked his hand free of Bridge’s chest, and shoved the Chancellor aside. Bridge hit the ground on his side, lifeless eyes looking in Chloe’s direction.


    Erwin turned around. He looked right at Chloe, looking a little disappointed and then he asked, “Is there anyone else that needs killing? I need to be done here by dinner.”