Mutation Abyss-Chapter 33: You’re Dying!

"He's bitten, and there's nothing we can do," Theo said firmly. "Drive, Calix. It's too dangerous to stop. Look around, people are panicking. Everything's falling apart."

Calix let out a heavy sigh, clearly torn. He gripped the steering wheel tightly before turning away from the man and pressing his foot harder on the gas. "I'm sorry," he muttered under his breath.

Theo glanced at the side mirror. The older man had collapsed to his knees, his body suddenly twitching and jerking uncontrollably. Theo shut his eyes, knowing what was coming next.

Then a thought hit him... Aries.

'What if that had been Aries?' he thought bitterly.

"She doesn't know how to fight," he murmured, almost to himself. "Someone has to teach her how to defend herself."

Aries was just twenty. A nursing student. Kind, quiet, and not built for a world like this.

"I'll do it! I'll train her!" Calix suddenly offered, his voice energetic.

Theo raised a brow and looked at him suspiciously. "I'd rather have Uncle Andres train her," he replied flatly.

"But my father isn't in shape anymore," Calix argued. "And he doesn't remember all the techniques like he used to. I'm better trained now. I can teach her everything she needs to survive!"

Theo didn't look convinced. He'd seen the way Calix looked at his sister, too interested.

"You've got some funny business going on," Theo said bluntly. "No thanks. I'll ask Uncle Andres to train her. You can train me instead, teach me everything you learned from the military."

Then, a sudden halt of the car jolted Theo forward in his seat. He shot Calix an annoyed glance. "What is it now?"

Calix pointed to the side of the road. "Look."

Theo followed his gaze and saw a small boy sitting by the edge of the road near a broken street sign. The boy looked dirty, scared, and no older than six. He was hugging a worn stuffed toy and crying softly.

"You're seriously thinking of stopping for that?" Theo asked, already sensing where this was going.

"He's a kid," Calix said, already reaching for the door. "We can't just leave him."

Theo grabbed his arm. "Wait. Don't be stupid. What if it's a trap?"

"A trap?"

"Yes, Calix. A trap," Theo said sharply. "I've seen this kind of setup in zombie shows and apocalypse movies all the time. You put a crying kid out where people can see him. The moment someone stops to help... bam! Ambush."

Calix hesitated, looking back at the boy. "But what if he's really alone?"

Theo sighed. "Then it's bad luck. But we can't risk it, not now." There was a pause.

Then Calix smirked. "Rock, paper, scissors?"

Theo narrowed his eyes. "You've got to be kidding me."

"One round only. Winner stays. Loser checks," Calix said, already holding out his hand.

Theo reluctantly raised his hand for a scissor but Calix threw a rock.

Theo groaned. "Damn it."

"Good luck!" Calix grinned.

Theo muttered curses under his breath as he reached for his axe and stepped out. He approached the boy slowly.

The boy looked up with tear-filled eyes, his lips trembling.

"Mister... please... my sister's hurt," the boy whimpered, pointing weakly toward the alley up ahead. freewebnøvel.com

Theo's brows furrowed. His instincts screamed at him. Something didn't feel right.

"Where's your sister?" he asked, keeping his distance.

"Just... there," the boy said, pointing again with a shaking finger.

Theo squinted toward the alley, scanning the shadows. Too many blind spots. He took a cautious step closer then in a a split second, five men burst out from the alley, ragged-looking and armed with crude weapons: a rusted pipe, a broken bat, and a jagged blade.

One of the men ruffled the boy's hair and said, "Good job, Milo. You know what you have to do if you want your sister to survive."

"Damn it," Theo hissed, knowing that he and Calix were now in trouble.

*

Meanwhile, Calix's eyes widened when he saw Theo surrounded by three men, and two more rushing toward his direction. He pulled out his phone and quickly dialed.

"Dad, we're in trouble. We're near the old gas station, south bypass. We're surrounded, send help fast!" Without wasting a second, Calix got out of the car to take down the two men coming his way and help Theo.

*

One man lunged, and Theo reacted instinctively, his kinetic punch sent the guy flying into the side of a parked truck. The second attacker swung a bat, but Theo ducked and countered with a blow to the gut, sending the man crumpling.

Calix joined the fray, kicking one thug in the chest and spinning to block another with his arm. "There's too many of them!"

Theo moved fast, taking down the third man with a brutal hit to the jaw that cracked loudly. He turned to help Calix with the final two.

Calix had just knocked one of the men to the ground when another attacker rushed at him from behind. The sudden impact threw Calix off balance, and he fell hard to the ground.

The man grabbed a metal pipe and raised it, aiming straight for Calix's head. Before the blow could land, the boy appeared behind the man. With a trembling hand, the boy stabbed the small knife into the attacker's back.

The man let out a roar of pain and spun around, eyes wide with rage.

"You little rat!" the man snarled. "Do you really want you and your sister to die?!"

Without hesitation, he grabbed the boy and threw him across the road like a ragdoll.

Theo's eyes widened. The boy was flying fast, too fast, straight toward a pile of broken metal debris, sharp jagged edges jutting out like knives. There was barely any time to react.

"No!" Theo shouted. Without thinking, he sprinted forward and dove just in time to wrap his arms around the child, twisting his body midair to shield him. But the boy's momentum was too strong. Theo couldn't slow the fall completely.

A burning pain tore through his back as the boy and he slammed into the debris.

[Ding! Critical condition detected. Vital organ damaged. You're dying!]

"No, this can't be..." Theo cursed, clenching his teeth. His energy shield flickered weakly, it was meant to block attacks, but not this. Throwing himself to protect the boy wasn't an attack the shield could stop.

His vision started to fade as he heard Calix shouting his name in the distance.