As Kirstie destroyed the lab, far away, her father's face began to wither in the Valley of Fire.
Threads of energy seeped out of his face and rushed into the Source Hounding Crystal floating before Lord Harley.
"AAAHHHHHH!"
Kurtis screamed like a pig mercilessly slaughtered by the butcher's knife. Every cell of his body seemed to be cut to release energy for the crystal's absorption.
The pain was unbearable. Not even the terrifying blows from Kiba made him scream so much.
"I expected you to cry from joy after seeing your daughter turning into an Alpha, but you are instead screaming!"
Lord Harley observed with a surprised expression.
"But then again, parents express joy in different ways. Who am I to judge you?"
Lord Harley rubbed Kurtis' head and assured him it was alright to express joy like this.
"UWWWWW!"
Kurtis could only scream further in utter despair.
When Lord Harley said he would use him for an experiment, he didn't expect his powers to be used as fuel to simulate his daughter's potential.
Even now, he couldn't believe the Source Hounding Crystal could be used for such a purpose, that too from so far away.
Lord Harley ignored the screaming father and brought his eyes back on the projection displaying the visuals from Kirstie's point of view.
In the lingering smoke, Rebecca stood across her, her expression serious.
"Oh dear Rebecca… you have the power to stop her, but would you dare to?"
Lord Harley wondered before grabbing the crystal.
BOOM!
Simultaneously, in the ruined lab, Kirstie's aura exploded. Swirls of flames emerged from her and spun, turning into a cyclone with her as the nucleus.
She pointed at Rebecca, and a column of flame burst from the cyclone, shooting at Rebecca like a savage beast.
Rebecca placed her hand in front, and a sucking force surged from her palm.
Whish!
The column of flame rushed into her palm and disappeared without landing a scratch on her.
But Kirstie smirked.
Because the milliseconds Rebecca spend nullifying the attack, Kirstie used them to launch two Alpha-rank attacks.
And Rebecca wasn't the target of either!
A dazzling arc of fire swept at Katherine and Sophia, who were rushing in the direction of Section II. Another arc of fire slashed into Section II, where Zed was.
Katherine was forced to stop.
She was an Alpha, and for her to block an Alpha's attack, it required efforts, especially when she has to protect her daughter as well.
She waved her hand, and purple energy erupted in front of her, turning into a shield.!
BANG!
Sparks sputtered out as the arc blasted into it, causing a terrifying shockwave to emerge from the impact. Everything in the vicinity was crushed…
At the same time, Zed felt a tingling sensation from the back of his head. He was in danger!
"She definitely doesn't like me…!"
Criss-crossing his hands, he channeled out every bit of his energy. Flames exploded out and turned into a wall.
BANG!
The arc slammed on the wall, and like a hot knife cutting through butter, it cut forward.
Zed pumped flames into his feet and jumped back, but his reflexes were far too slow in front of an Alpha-rank attack.
The arc cut into his chest, and blood erupted into the air like a fountain. His skin turned charcoal-black, releasing the smell of burned flesh.
Just as the arc penetrated into his internals, a feminine hand emerged and tightly clenched it. The arc disappeared in a puff of smoke.
"I'm sorry…" Rebecca caught Zed as he was about to fall. "I got distracted."
Zed didn't respond to her apology. There was no time as Kirstie has appeared in Section II.
Kirstie looked at Zed and smiled.
"You are still alive… let's see for how long."
Zed: "..."
Kirstie then eyed her mother and said, "Will you really stop me, mother?"
Rebecca frowned.
This wasn't her Kirstie speaking. Even if her powers turned her insane, she wouldn't act like this. She was sure.
But the body was of Kirstie, and so was the consciousness.
Some distance away, Katherine's eyes narrowed as she looked at Kirstie. From her perspective, she saw Kirstie's flame body surrounded by an eerie black aura.
"This is bad!"
As a descendent of the House of Neville, she has a connection with Life and Death Gate. As such, only she could see the eerie black and understand its significance.
"Rebecca..."
Katherine started bitterly.
"Her powers are rapidly increasing even now, but her body isn't able to bear it. I'm afraid she doesn't have long… perhaps a few hours in the best-case scenario."
"!!!!"
All of the blood from Rebecca's face faded to white. Her hands dropped, and she began to slump to the floor.
Zed caught her, his expression filled with pity.
After almost losing Hope, he could understand her feelings. She was in despair, something he had once experienced.
"Rebecca, don't give up, not yet."
Zed said with his trademark reassuring smile.
"A few hours are good enough to find a cure and rise from the ashes."
Rebecca nodded. She couldn't afford to give up, not now.
"Hehe, I like your confidence."
Kirstie lifted her head and started laughing.
"But to save me, you need to overpower me!"
Swoosh~!
Waves of flame spread from her, burning away everything in their path. Even the fabric of space began to melt and distort, causing the dimension of the facilities to tremble violently.
Through the distorted space, the picture of Zed's house emerged, signifying the damage to the dimension.
"And to overpower me, you need to attack me with everything you have got! But do you have the guts to do so?!"
Rebecca flinched.
It was difficult to kill in a battle of Alphas, but even more difficult than killing was overpowering the opponent.
If she wanted to overpower Kirstie, she would need to use her full powers as Kirstie's powers were rapidly increasing. But there was a significant possibility she might kill her instead.
Even if not kill, she would land a life-threatening injury, something that would ruin the prospects of saving Kirstie.
"Hehe, you have to decide, mother."
Kirstie said with an evil smile.
"Do you have the heart to endanger my life when I don't have that long to live?"
After asking this, she disappeared amidst the flames.
"!"
Katherine's eyebrows knotted, and she slashed out with her hand.
BOOM
Her hand cut into the palm of Kirstie, and an explosion of energy ensued. Berserk energy ripples erupted, and Kirstie grinned.
"You…!" Katherine turned her head back.
"Ahh!"
The fluctuations of their clash have sent Sophia flying. The ripples were also approaching her, and she was in no state to protect herself, given her strength.
"You little bitch!"
Katherine cursed Kirstie and retreated to protect Sophia.
"If you want to save your daughter, stay out of this."
Kirstie warned and then disappeared.
At speed faster than sound, she arrived before Rebecca and Zed and punched at them.
Rebecca's face constricted, but she couldn't afford to not do anything.
She blocked Kirstie's fists, and the latter smiled wickedly.
"Hehehe, let's see how long you can block me and save your son at the same time."
Zed stepped back and looked at Kirstie.
"Save me?"
An unforeseen rage emerged in his eyes. This didn't suit his present disposition, but she has done the unforgivable.
"To look down on me… whoever is doing this has succeeded if the aim was to piss me."
He turned around and propelled himself into the air like a missile, and rushed into the corridor.
"He's running away, but there's nowhere to go!"
Kirstie said amidst laughter and launched another attack on Rebecca.
She wasn't worried.
The shockwaves have unstabilized the dimension and broken the fabric of space. So teleporting out was difficult even for Alphas as long as the shockwaves didn't stop!
…
Zed stopped before the only area that has survived the destruction.
Section IV.
Protected by multiple barriers and force-shield, it remained safe without taking a single scratch.
Zed placed his hand on the glass panel next to the door. A light emerged and passed through his hand and then his entire body.
[Fingerprint and blood source verified. Are you sure you want to open the forbidden section?]
A message flashed on the panel with two options: yes and no.
"What's there?"
Kirstie, Rebecca, and Katherine were surprised by the tone of the message. They were far away but were able to observe everything.
Suddenly, as Zed brought his finger on the top option, the world turned pin-drop silent.
A chill raced down the spines of Alphas, and they stopped.
Their bodies turned numb, and a sense of deadly crisis gripped them.
It was like every droplet of their Alpha blood was warning them… telling them to run away!!
In the Valley of Fire, Lord Harley's hand holding the crystal turned icy-cold.
"Whatever it is…it is bad!"
Lord Harley quickly commanded Kirstie to stop Zed from pressing yes.