Henry’s newfound mastery wasn’t limited to controlling the intensity and strength of his abilities. His senses had also been sharpened and refined. The heavy odour of the cave was no longer just a single entity of mass filth. He was now able to discern the various scents in the air. He could now detect the scent of each individual in this cave of refuse and death.

  He tuned his senses until he caught the scent of Kevr and gunpowder. Chloe and her squadmates were all dressed in Kevr, and they all had at least a single gun on their persons. Once he caught these two distinct scents, he further distilled the smell until he could distinguish the one he was looking for. All these scents of Chloe’s squadmate carried death with them. They were long dead. Save for Chloe, Barry, and Alex, there was one more of them who was still alive, and he needed to find her scent fast.

  Henry sifted through the scents as he rushed deeper into the cave. With his senses enhanced, he could now make haste without worrying about traps and ambushes. He came to a three-way split path. The scent of the soldiers intensified, along with the scent of death. Many of them met their end in these three tunnels. It would seem that all three of these tunnels led to the same outcome. However, the tunnel to the right carried with it a scent that felt pleasing to his nose. The scent of life.

  Henry didn’t think twice. He dashed into the right tunnel. The scent of death only grew stronger as he ventured deeper into the tunnel. At the same time, the scent of life was also getting stronger. Then, he heard an eerie growl that sent shivers down his spine and chill all over his body. He immediately slowed down in his haste. He took in a deep breath, absorbing all the smells coming his way. Everything smelled the same, except for a few strands of scent. These few scents smelled foul, yet not in a way that death and rot did. It was less intense than dead bodies and rotting carcasses, but it was far more unsettling. Undoubtedly, this was the scent of the faceless monster, and there were a handful of them ahead.

  “Fuck…”

  It was unnerving to think about the threat waiting just ahead. The faceless monster was disconcerting to look at, and it was one cunning bastard. He shuddered to imagine what facing a group of them would be like. Thankfully, he wasn’t here to exterminate them. He was here to save a person, not that it was making things any easier. Henry steeled his nerves as he exited the tunnel and came out to a cavern.

  “What the fuck…” he gasped upon seeing the numerous bodies and carcasses dangling from the ceiling. Most of them were half-eaten, with their organs dangling from their torn-open bodies. It didn’t seem to be a way to conserve or store their food. Henry failed to see any practicality in this method. The lizard wolves could scale walls and crawl on ceilings. The faceless monsters certainly weren’t trying to keep food away from others.

  Henry could think of only one reason they hung up the bodies in such a manner, and that was to intimidate whoever or whatever stumbled into this cavern.

  “Sadistic fucks,” Henry growled as he crept across the cavern. He stuck close to the walls and used the stagmites as cover. He smelled the faceless monsters, but he couldn’t see or hear them. Their scent was everywhere in this pce. It was useless to pinpoint their location using their scent. This appeared to be their nest, or at least a pce where they gathered.

  A few minutes into his search, Henry heard sniffing and breathing. It was faint, but with his heightened senses, he heard them clearly. He followed the sound, and it led him to a naturally formed arch with a huge hole at the bottom. Something had dug the hole a long time ago, and it didn’t bother to refill it. The sound came from the hole, and the scent of life was also trailing from there.

  “Jane?” Henry called out as quietly as possible.

  There was no answer. It was only to be expected. The faceless monsters could mimic voices. She was being cautious.

  “Jane, my name’s Henry. Chloe sent me. I’m here to rescue you.”

  There was still no answer.

  “Don’t be armed. I’m coming towards you. Do not make a sound. The monsters are still here. I will get to you slowly and quietly.”

  Then, a head peeked out from the hole. It was a woman. It was Jane. She looked relieved when she saw Henry, but her face tensed up again in the next moment. She was relieved that the voice indeed came from a human, but she became wary again when she realised the individual was a stranger.

  Henry threw his hands up. “I’m here to get you out.”

  “Who are you?” she asked. “Where did Chloe find you? Did she make it out of this cave?”

  “As I said, my name’s Henry. And no, Chloe did not make it out of the cave, or at least she was still in the cave when I left her side. She may have gotten out by now.”

  Jane was still looking at Henry warily. “Are you with the PIC?”

  “I’m not with the PIC.”

  “Then who are you with? Some private military corporation? You don’t dress like one. In fact, your clothes are peculiar. Just who are you?”

  “I’m not with anyone or any corporation. I’m a friend of Chloe. That’s all I am. I understand you have concerns, but I can assure you that I am here to bring you to safety. You either trust me, or you can take a chance with these monsters. What’s it gonna be?”

  Jane’s inner contemption did not st long. Even if she had her doubts and suspicions, it was better than staying here and awaiting her fate with those abominable monsters. Jane climbed out of the hole and approached Henry. “Fine. I’ll go with you.”

  Henry smiled. “Splendid,” he said and turned his back to her. “Now, would you please get on my back?”

  Jane frowned. “...What?”

  “This is not a joke. I’m being serious here. Even if you can still walk or run on your own, getting on my back is faster.”

  “Are you—”

  “Hurry. There’s no time to hesitate. They’re coming.”

  Hearing the st two words from Henry’s lips, Jane cast aside any reservation and climbed onto his back, albeit with some difficulty. She had scratches and cuts all over her body. A few bruises here and there. Fortunately, her limbs were still intact and rgely unharmed, which was why she had survived for so long by herself.

  “Whoa…” she gasped.

  “What’s wrong?” Henry asked as he hoisted her into a stable position on his back.

  “Oh? It’s— nothing… It’s just that… you’re very warm. This pce is chilly, and yet, you are so warm. It’s like you have a fire burning inside of you. Are you down with a fever?”

  “I am not sick, if that’s your concern. Will be out of here in no time. Just try not to move.” Just as Henry took his first step, he heard a hiss from above. “...Fuck.”

  “It’s right above us,” Jane whispered in horror.

  “Hold on tight,” Henry said and took off sprinting. Stealth be damned.

  Suddenly, there were growls all around them. The faceless monsters had come out of hiding.

  “They’re all around us!”

  “I’m well aware. Just don’t squirm.” Henry held onto Jane tighter than before and leapt to a stagmite nearby. It was rge or sturdy enough to accommodate his weight and mass, but he didn’t need it to. He was simply using it as a foothold to proper himself to the next stagmite. He was leaping from one stagmite to another.

  The sudden manoeuvre sent Jane into panic. It was already strange that the man could just lift her without showing a strained look or uttering a grunt, as if she weighed nothing to him. It became even stranger when he started running. She was familiar with running while carrying a person on her back. It was even one of the basic trainings in her line of work. To run at such a speed while carrying a person on one’s back, no matter how strong one was, was simply an unattainable feat. The man went further and beyond. He even began to leap from stagmites to stagmites. No human could do such a thing, let alone do it with a person on their back.

  The faceless monsters emerged from the shadows and chased after Henry and Jane. They came from the ground, walls, and the ceiling. There were dozens of them. Each of them wore a different form. They shared little simirity, but the little simirity they had was very defining of their identity, an abomination that wore the skin and features of its victims.

  One of the faceless monsters had a serpentine lower body while its upper half was humanoid, to some extent. It had three faces on each side, and it had six arms. It was slithering across the walls, bolting towards Henry. It was the fastest amongst the other faceless monsters.

  Henry flicked his hand, throwing an Aura Bde at the faceless monster. It swerved out of the way of the projectile without losing speed and bance as it continued to give chase.

  Henry tutted. “Slippery bastards,” he grunted.

  “What was that?” asked Jane with an incredulous expression.

  “What was what?”

  “That thing just now! It’s like you emitted some kind of energy projectile from your hand!”

  “Well, it is as you said. An energy projectile was emitted from my hand.”

  “So, you are a superhuman like Chloe.”

  “Something like that,” Henry responded curtly. He gnced behind.

  The serpentine monster was gaining on them.

  “Hold on tight. This is going to make you nauseous.”

  Jane didn’t know what Henry was about to do, but she braced herself for it, tightening her arms around him.

  Henry hopped into the air and spun around, facing the faceless monster darting towards him. He then unleashed the breath he had taken in. A vortex of fmes gushed forth from his mouth and charged towards the faceless monster. The sepertine monster widened all of its six eyes. It was completely caught off guard. It tried to dodge the fmes, but it was not fast enough. The fmes enveloped its body and threw it off the wall.

  The faceless monster dropped to the ground, wailing in agony. It was still alive, but it was burning. It kicked and filed as the fmes consumed it. Its wail eventually turned into throes and croaks of the dying. Then, it fell silent.

  Henry did not stay and watch. He didn’t have the luxury. There were still others. He heard the sounds behind him. Even if the fmes didn’t kill the monster, it certainly had incapacitated it. That was one less faceless monster to worry about.

  “What the hell…” Jane gasped. “You can spit fire, too?”

  “I can do a lot more than that.”

  “Then, do it!” Jane urged.

  Two more faceless monsters were upon them. The two leapt at Henry in their st sprint of distance. However, they were suddenly struck and flung away by an invisible force. They went smashing through the stacites and stagmites.

  “Telekinesis too!?”

  “Well… not exactly, but… I suppose you can see it that way.” Henry wanted to expin, but he changed his mind mid-sentence. He didn’t want to reveal too much about himself if he could help it, although he reckoned he would eventually and inevitably reveal more about himself.

  “The tunnel!” Jane yelled.

  “I see it,” Henry responded calmly. The tunnel where he came from was just ahead. He brandished his wings and propelled forward at a near breakneck speed, not enough to actually break someone’s neck. When he reached the entrance, he retracted his wings and they hurtled into the tunnel. At the same time, he shot a bolt of fire at the entrance to colpse it behind him.

  The tunnel turned as dark as the night without the moon and stars.

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