Chapter 264 – Floor 54: Part 1

  Floor 54: None Shall Survive

  Eliminate everyone in the Power Plant and leave no witnesses.

  Reward: One (1) Tier enhancement for all Essences.

  Mathew drifted back into consciousness like a man clawing his way through suffocating darkness. His thoughts were sluggish and tangled, each one slipping away before it could form. The world around him was awash in a deep, oppressive red that seemed to stain his vision, bleeding into the edges of his awareness.

  His body felt heavy and unfamiliar, and each breath he took burned like fire in his chest. He felt sick, his muscles ached, and his limbs occasionally spasmed. The container that held the drop of blood was still in his hands, the lid completely opened.

  Mathew had just enough sense of mind to look around and assess his situation. It appeared as if no time at all had passed in that strange dreamland he had experienced. The remaining Ashen Pact members were still fighting furiously against their attackers, and there were just as many monstrous creations as before.

  Several people had noticed him by this point, and he saw them coming toward him, their weapons raised and ready. But Mathew was incapable of moving, and he could barely string together a thought, let alone fight or flee.

  The Sacred Vessel fell from his hands, his fingers no longer capable of gripping it, and the container made a loud ringing sound as it struck the concrete floor.

  Mathew’s thoughts were fractured and disjointed, but one sensation pierced through the haze. Hunger. It wasn’t the dull ache of an empty stomach, but was something far deeper. It was a feral need that clawed at him from the inside.

  His entire body trembled with its intensity, and his every nerve screamed for action. He wanted Aether. He needed it more than anything. The crimson tint that stained his vision wasn’t just a trick of the light; it was a manifestation of that intense need.

  The feeling consumed him, burning away all his emotions and confusion. His thoughts focused, rationality fled, and Mathew lost control.

  He needed to destroy, to feel the life drain from those around him and smell the Aether their deaths brought. He wanted that energy and the strength it gave him. The need was sharp, relentless and ravenous. It tore through him, leaving nothing but a void to be filled with violence and ruin.

  Hated swelled in his chest, hot and all-consuming, as if it had been etched into his very soul. It obliterated reason, leaving only an animalistic drive to destroy anything and everything in his path.

  Mathew was no longer sure where his thoughts ended, and this primal need began; they were one and the same. He tried to fight it, but his reason only lasted for a moment before he became overwhelmed.

  He stumbled forward, his breathing ragged and uneven, as if every inhalation was a battle he barely won. Mathew’s skin, slick with sweat, flushed red, and veins bulged. His eyes, bloodshot and wild, darted around the room as they locked onto every threat and source of Aether.

  Mathew roared, a sound so raw and primal that it silenced the chaos around him. It wasn’t human, nor was it similar to the monstrous creations the Ashen Pact used. It was something ancient, a raw eruption of hunger and rage that sent a chill down everyone’s spine.

  Before anyone could react, Mathew moved. He was a blur, faster than anyone could track. One moment he was standing in the center of the room, trembling with suppressed energy, and the next, he was upon them.

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  His fist victim barely had time to scream before Mathew’s hands tore into them, ripping flesh and bone apart with terrifying ease. Mathew’s strength was overwhelming; his strikes landed with bone-crushing force. Those who tried to fight back found themselves woefully outmatched.

  Their weapon and magic were useless against his sheer ferocity. Bullets didn’t slow him down, and those that managed to hit him caused only minor damage, which healed almost instantly. Mathew weaved around magical explosions, leapt over the limbs of attacking monsters, and killed everyone in his path.

  As the carnage unfolded, Mathew’s body began to shift. At first, the changes were subtle. There was a ripple beneath his skin and an elongation of his fingers. But as he continued to tear through his foes and absorb the Aether around him, his transformation grew more monstrous.

  His frame expanded as his muscles and bones stretched abnormally, and he gained height. His limbs lengthened, their proportions becoming monstrous and alien. His fingers twisted into sharp, jagged claws. Every movement Mathew made seemed unnervingly fluid as if his very body had cast off the constraints of humanity.

  Mathew’s skin lightened to bone white, and his veins stood out in dark lines.

  As he killed and the Aether accumulated, bones erupted from his flesh in sharp, uneven spikes that tore their way out from his body without slowing him down. An armour-like layer formed across his chest and limbs, its edges serrated like a natural weapon designed for killing.

  Mathew’s jaw extended slightly as his teeth sharpened into vicious points, and his eyes glowed in the dim light of the Power Plant. The Ashen Pact and those sent by the Clans could only watch in horror as Mathew’s form stabilized into a towering monstrosity of raw power and terror.

  By the time his transformation was complete, he was unrecognizable. He stood over the broken remnants of his victims, his frame dwarfing those around him. Even the creatures born from the Ashen Pact’s experiments couldn’t compare with him.

  He let out another roar, this one so deep and loud that it shook the foundations of the room.

  Page Break

  The room was silent now, save for the faint, uneven sound of Mathew’s breathing. He stood in the center of the carnage, his body hunched as if the weight of what had just transpired threatened to crush him. He was covered in blood from head to toe; it dripped from his hands and streaked across his face. His tattered clothing clung to him, barely covering his body.

  Mathew’s chest rose and fell heavily, each breath sharp and ragged as though he had been running for miles. The air was thick with the metallic tang of blood and the spicey stench of Aether. Mathew’s hands hung at his sides, trembling occasionally.

  The ground was slick with gore around him, a tapestry of broken bodies and dark pools that reflected the dim light. No one else was left alive; every member of the Ashen Pact and those seeking to destroy them had been reduced to little more than pieces.

  For a long time, Mathew didn’t move. He stared at his hands, his fingers flexing slightly or twitching uncontrollably. His mind was a storm of disjointed memories and fragmented sensations. There were flashes of violence, the feeling of flesh beneath his claws and the sounds of screaming.

  He couldn’t remember much of what happened; it was as if someone else had seized control of his body and did what they wanted. All he knew was that he had done this, and now he stood alone amid the aftermath.

  The silence pressed down on him like a physical thing. He took a hesitant step forward, his foot splashing in a pool of blood, and he stumbled slightly as his leg could barely hold his weight. His muscles ached, and his bones felt heavy.

  Looking down, Mathew caught a glimpse of his reflection in a shard of broken glass. He looked like an entirely different person, the bright red blood already drying a dark brownish-black. But in the darkness, his blue eyes shone unnaturally bright.

  Mathew staggered forward, each of his steps slow and heavy. His gaze swept across the ruined room, and, for a moment, it lingered on several of the intact bodies scattered around like broken dolls. He paused near one of them, and his eyes focused on the clothing that had mostly survived the battle.

  Ignoring the bloodstains, Mathew tugged off the few bits of clothing he still wore and stripped the body with shaking hands. His movements were mechanical, almost detached. Once dressed, Mathew rose unsteadily and made his way outside.

  The yard was nearly unrecognizable, a wasteland of ruin marred by the battle that had occurred. Craters pockmarked the ground where magical explosions had torn through the soil. The air was thick with the smell of burnt earth and charred flesh.

  Broken bodies lay scattered around the yard, including the monstrous creatures of the Ashen Pact. Looking around quickly, Mathew could see that there were no survivors there.

  Passing through the destruction as quickly as possible, Mathew found one of the cars that had been left there by the clans and climbed inside. Finding the keys in the ignition, he started the engine and slowly drove away.

  The sound of a completion notification followed him down the street.