Becoming a Monster

Chapter 193: Chapter 193: Awakenings Turning Point

The two women’s auras surged under the amplification of Mark’s power. Anyone who wasn’t aware of Jasmine’s and Alicia’s abilities before their awakening would have no idea what they were about to do.

Instead of wondering how the two were going to ’safely’ defeat the zombies while still being on the third floor, all the others could do was to look out the window and see the results for themselves.

The shock in their eyes was almost bulging just from what they began to witness.

Jasmine raised her hands, and with a wave, every plant and root within a span of 50 yards began to surge towards the zombies. Not only was she able to manipulate the plant life, but she was able to shape the plants into dangerous weapons.

Vines that were originally as thin as a finger began to grow to massive proportions, growing to the thickness of an arm. The vines coiled around the nearest zombies, tightening until bones cracked, while sharp thorns erupted from the stems, impaling into their flesh. The roots shot up from beneath the pavement, entangling and smashing the zombies against the ground.

Zombies that were once creatures that Jasmine was only able to support others to kill were now being torn apart by herself.

Alicia, in turn, also began to display her abilities. The rubble from Jasmine’s destruction; chunks of concrete, bricks, and pebbles, started to rise slowly, hovering in the air as if suspended by invisible threads. Her eyes narrowed in focus, and with a muttered incantation, ”Fireball”, every object she controlled burst into flames.

In the blink of an eye, the burning debris rocketed toward the horde of zombies like meteors, smashing into them with explosive force. Each collision ignited the area, spreading fire among the undead ranks. The fiery onslaught was relentless, and combined with Jasmine’s ravaging plant life, it turned the street into a battlefield of destruction.

Despite the zombies’ numbers being dwindled, the zombies were unable to understand what was happening. Only the evolved could at least understand that they were being attacked, but without a visual on where the attacks were coming from, they could only growl in blind rage, smashing their arms into the vines, and stones alike.

The onlookers were left speechless, stunned by the sheer devastation Jasmine and Alicia unleashed. However, those who were more perceptive soon noticed a troubling detail. While the regular zombies were being torn apart with ease, the majority of the evolved zombies were withstanding the assault. The plants and burning debris that tore through the smaller undead barely fazed these more powerful creatures unless Jasmine’s or Alicia’s assault was dedicated to only one individual.

And with the ratio of evolved to regular zombies now being 5:5, it would take the two to use a considerable amount of mana to accomplish such a feat. Although Mark was substantially amplifying their magic, their base stats weren’t at the level to allow them to single handedly destroy an army of undead.

Not to mention, there were two particular zombies where their attacks held minimal effects. One a zombie that was reminiscent of the stone zombie from the parking lot, but this one was imbued with wood instead of stone. The supposed flamboyant material still somehow resisted Alicia’s flames which weren’t a high enough temperature to catch it on fire. Meanwhile, Jasmine also wasn’t able to manipulate the wood that made part of its body since the wood was no longer considered to be alive.

The other monster was one that stood on all fours, its limbs bending as if it was now a four-legged animal. All of its skin was completely gone from its body, living its muscles visible throughout. Its muscles were unlike ones that originated from a human, each muscle intertwined with one another, creating a more firming and stronger power than any normal undead. What was surprising about this creature was that it lacked any eyes, but somehow every root, vine and rubble was avoided the moment it was about to make contact with it.

”We can’t keep this up for long,” Alicia muttered through gritted teeth. Jasmine, too, only nodded in confirmation, her face already beginning to excessively sweat from overexerting herself.

”That’s enough,” Mark interrupted, his voice calm but firm. He removed his hands from their shoulders, the bluish glow of his aura flickering as he began to withdraw his power from the two women. ”You’ve both done more than enough.”

Mark turned to the rest of the group; everyone was still looking out the curtains in disbelief. Their awe stemmed from the fact that almost every regular zombie in the area was killed off by just two people.

”I think I should have proved my point by now, yes?”

There was a murmur of agreement from the crowd, but most were still too shocked to react fully.

Raven was one of the few who regained her senses. ”I can’t say that I’m not impressed; in fact, I still can’t get myself to believe it. But.....the amount of those things that evolved are much more than we have ever faced at one time, and who knows if there’s a ’special’ one within the mix.

Mark nodded; his eyes glued to Raven. ”You’re right,” he said, his tone more serious now. ”But you’re forgetting that it wasn’t just us who awakened, right now, we have our own army of awakened. If we still don’t have the courage to fight some mindless zombies then what are our odds of surviving tomorrow, when the numbers of their evolved become higher? Or what should we do when we encounter an enemy like ’that’ again? We won’t have Noah to save us. We need to venture ahead on our own and gain the strength to protect what we care for. This is our moment to step up.”

Raven’s eyes softened slightly at the thought of that monstrosity that Noah faced. That alone gave Mark’s words much more weight than anything could give it credit for.

You’re right....We can’t let fear hold us back. But! I can’t go along with what you’re suggesting if your plan is to just blindly rush out in attack. I won’t, in good conscience, allow the others to throw their life on the line with a haphazard plan.”

For the first time, Mark felt that he was seeing Raven in a new light. ”That, you won’t have to worry about. Just let us lead the charge and everyone else can follow behind. Raven, I’m sure that if you were to use your skill along with us then we will have nothing to worry about. It’s not just these two that have grown stronger.”

Raven subconsciously glanced towards Jasmine and Alicia before her gaze pandered over to the other four behind them. The large hulking figure seemed more imposing than them all. She wanted to ask what a group of seven people can accomplish, but then she also was reminded that besides them, they had also brought along their own batch of fighters from their school. Mark’s plan was beginning to feel less farfetched than she initially gave it credit for.

”Alright,” she finally said, ”If we’re going to do this, then we should inform all of those involved and to at least understand the abilities they gained from their awakening. Although I would like to be able to rely on you, I at least want the others to be able to work cohesively together in case the unexpected happens.”

”That makes sense, I have no problem with that arrangement.” Mark nodded, changing his gaze towards the others in the room, particularly the other two leaders. ”Are you two also in agreement?”

”No problems here,” Levi responded as if they weren’t about to go into a life-or-death battle.

Peterson, on the other hand, was slow to respond. His eyes were wide open out of both shock and disbelief. He could understand Levi’s stance, but he couldn’t believe that Raven had actually let a child take control over what they built. And even worse, were they expecting him to fight alongside them?

”This is ridiculous!” Peterson said. ”There’s no reason to go out there! If you want to prove your strength so badly then you can go out there alone. Don’t think you’re fooling me. If you really were doing this for everyone then you can just have those two girls wait to replenish their mana and continue to kill off those things instead of endangering everyone else. A good leader shouldn’t force their people into danger. This isn’t a game.”

Mark took the retaliation in stride; Peterson’s outburst was somewhat expected. ”And what’s your plan then? Stand around and wait for someone else to save us? Because if we don’t act, we’ll be the ones who are picked off one by one. You can either stand with us and fight or stay behind and wait for the zombies to continue to grow stronger. But I refuse to let fear dictate my actions any longer.”

The two were unyielding in their stances, Raven stepped between them, her expression earnest. ”Both of you, stop. We need to focus on what’s best for everyone. Peterson, I understand your concerns, but we need to move forward. Mark has a point; we can’t let fear hold us back.

Hearing Raven side with Mark again, Peterson glared in her direction. Was she doing it on purpose? He harbored the negative idea. Levi may not know all of his abilities, but Raven was aware that after his class advancement, all of his abilities relied on firearms. What did she expect for him to accomplish? Was she trying to kill him off?

”If you all still plan on proceeding with such a stupid plan then I won’t take any part in it, and I’ll be damned if any of my men follow you either.”

__________________

”Old man, I thought you weren’t going to join us?” Levi mocked as moments after the confrontation, Peterson and his group were now stationed on the first floor ready to venture out.

Peterson only gave Levi the side eye, not bothering himself in an argument with such a shrewd person who can twist anything he says.

Meanwhile Mark and his main entourage were in the lead. Mark gave one last look to everyone before they burst through the door in single file, spreading out to make room for everyone else.

As soon as the door flung open, the zombies, who had grown eerily calm in the absence of their attackers, immediately snapped to attention. Their eyes glowed with an insatiable hunger as they zero in on the group.

The sound of inconsistent roars sounded, the zombies lacked any sense of hesitation as they ran towards the group, the fastest of the evolved ones reaching the area first.

The people lagging behind tensed up at their speed, their fear growing even more when seeing the lack of reaction from Mark in the others.

Thud!*

But as the creatures neared, the closest one tumbled to the ground, and then the other. Soon, at least ten of the agility zombies were taken down in the span of seconds. In their heads was lodged an arrow. Mark calmly looked up to the second floor, nodding towards the petite girl with the bow, who they came to know as Riley that has traveled with them since the campus. The girl whose advancement allows her to transmute and empower any material in her hand into an arrow, while creating more based on the material’s mass.

Although the others could’ve taken the first wave of zombies out themselves, Mark didn’t want any of them to waste their energy when they didn’t need to.

”Jas, Alicia, focus on delaying the titans’ ones, kill them if you can. Everyone else, wait until they get closer.”

On his que, Jas and Alicia who both took mana potions from the group to restore their reserves, began their siege on the zombies once again.

”Isabelle, are you ready?” Mark asked as the supporter of the group stood half a step behind him.

”Just give the call”

Mark waited a little bit longer, despite the anxious eyes of Raven to his side. Although she was aware of the plan of letting Mark’s group be the front line, she also was aware that not leading the battle with them will only sour her position in the group when it was over.

”Why are we waiting? We shouldn’t let them get any closer to everyone.” Raven quickly urged; her mind was already made up to enter her own titan form to engage the zombies if Mark took any longer.

With just a glance, he returned his sights to the approaching horde, unbothered by the zombies’ approach as he calmly answered her.

”I told you before that we have a secret weapon.....’She’ is our secret weapon.”

He waited a moment longer, not offering to explain himself anymore. His mind was calculating the next set of plans, but that’s when his eyes shined now that the zombies entered their range.