Gary was unsure what would happen once his HP reached 0, whether he would just faint and lose consciousness or if his System would really kill him off, but he sure as hell wasn’t willing to find out. It was a test that he might not exactly come back from. The high schooler was certain that no matter the consequence, if it wasn't for his Last Stand skill, he would have surely died to Kirk’s attacks. Driven by his fear of death, the Werewolf had put his all into that last punch.
His survival instinct had kicked into him, making him use every ounce of strength that had been in his body. The teenager had completely ignored who his opponent was and his personal relationship to him, it had merely become a fight to the death, the only options were either to kill or be killed.
His foot twisted the right way allowing for the power to be used from his whole body, the twist in his hips were perfect. Unbeknown to Gary, he was delivering a textbook blow. It was a solid hit, a perfect punch he had never done before.
Looking at his furry hand, he could see it was covered in blood. At the end of it, he saw that Kirk’s body was limp. Even through his hand, he could feel his heartbeat. It was slowly swallowing down, and the look in Kirk’s eyes was starting to hollow out. Blood continued to drip from the open wound, painting Gary’s hand and the ground red.
“Did Kirk actually lose to the Wolf Altered…but how?” The Underdog members that had survived, couldn’t believe what had happened. It was the same for the Cheetah Squad. Although the Howlers had beaten them, the teenagers weren’t murderers, and they didn’t plan to change that if it could be helped.
Surprisingly, even Olivia had been somewhat tame with her opponents, even though the pain of being whipped with her special weapon had made some of them think they might have been better off dead.
“He…he actually managed to beat Kirk, the rookie champion.” Kai uttered in disbelief at his own words. It was then that Olivia snapped the whip back to herself and wrapped it around her arm.
‘That boy… I could tell he was on his last legs.' She thought to herself. ‘It was almost as if my body chose to do whatever it could to save him. Was that because he turned me into a Werewolf? Would I have been free if I hadn’t intervened and Kirk would have finished him off? … Either way, this result should be more beneficial to me.
‘I thought this group of kids would stay back, and only come in, after the fight between the two, like the other smaller gangs had planned, but that's not the case at all. It’s only a matter of time until news spreads that there is a new Altered in town that's stronger than Kirk. They shouldn't be planning to make their move any time soon.’
Thinking about all of this, a wide smile appeared on Olivia’s face. She had grand aspirations to move up, but she had always been careful. It was hard for any gang to rise up since those in power would do everything to keep the status quo.
The Lady Boss had been biding her time, hoping to gather support from her clients until everything was perfect, yet the Howlers had come and taken over. However, given today’s performance, she felt like they would amount to great things in the end. It was possible this gang would achieve what she always wanted, and if she stayed by the Alpha Werewolf’s side she would reap the benefits as well.
Clenching her hand, she was starting to wonder what she was starting to become as well.
——
[You have defeated your first Altered]
[Quest reward: 2 Pawn points have been granted due to the difficulty of the quest]
[Additional rewards: Instant Level Up]
[Skill selection]
[Congratulations, you have now reached: Level 18]
[A stat point has been granted]
[Optional Quest (Waste not want not) is still in progress]
[Consume the body of the Altered for additional stat points]
Right now, Gary didn't care what the system was showing him
“Kirk!” The Alpha Werewolf growled out through his large snout. “Kirk!”
It was clear that Gary was trying to communicate with his defeated opponent, but the onlookers wondered why. Getting no response, and seeing that he couldn’t keep up his form for much longer, the teenager did something surprising.
Pulling out his hand, Gary caught Kirk before he fell to the ground, and leapt to the side of the building, digging his claws into the walls. He leapt up again, digging his hand in. The Werewolf was jumping up the wall while carrying Kirk away. After reaching the very rooftop, he continued to run off in the distance.
The others just watched in amazement, not quite sure what to do now. All the gangs’ leaders were now gone, with only the Howlers really having someone else who could take charge. Kate who was on the rooftop had lost sight of the two Altered and had no way to follow them.
However, there were still those who were on the ground. Hearing the voice of someone, Kate asked her cameraman to swiftly zoom in on the speaker.
“Listen up!” Kai shouted, as he confidently walked into the centre where Gary and Kirk had been fighting just seconds ago. Pools of blood all around.
“This war is over!” Kai declared. “Everyone, remember our name! We Howlers are the ones who punished the Grey Elephants who created and unleashed these monsters in the town of Slough, and our leader was the one who defeated the Underdogs’ Altered. From this day on, you all better be careful because we will take over everything the Grey Elephant and the Underdog own! Should any of you try to stop us… then I welcome it!”
The words of Kai were loud and clear for everyone to hear, and all the members on the ground had no case to argue. Where were their strong leaders and such? They were nowhere to be seen.
However, the Howlers wouldn't be able to take over things today, not yet and Kai knew that, this declaration was mainly aimed at the other small-time gangs, because he was sure that there was a group of people waiting to make their move, and he was right.
At either end of the streets, the police forces had come out from their cars. They had their megaphones ready.
“Everyone, please stay indoors for a little while longer. It is still not safe to come out. I repeat, please stay indoors for a little longer. It is not safe to come out.” Anton announced over the megaphone.
“Erghh what does he mean it's not safe to come out?” Marie asked, worried this could mean something else was about to happen.
“No, they can't be. We freaking defeated those monsters, and fought off all these gang members!” Innu shouted. “They can't be thinking of…”
“Alright, everyone!’ Sadie the White Rose agent shouted out. “Go and bring them all in!”
Alas, Innu’s guess was spot on.