Endzone: Simulated Apocalypse

"N-No," Kirika hurriedly said, shaking her head, as she was confronted by Cyanide's question. "That's… more than enough to prove your talent in aura reading. A-Ahem, I mean, you still missed a few, like really tiny insects and stuff, but since you're new to the whole thing anyway, I'll let it slip… just this time!"

Cyanide didn't respond other than giving a soft snort, and Kirika was sent back into utter bewilderment with a sigh.

"… Just who are you, really…?" She muttered under her breath.

Cyanide chose to pretend he didn't hear, and carried on walking as if nothing had happened. To him, aura reading really was quite easy. He has always been a quick learner, but this particular skill was especially simple for him since it required the user to be in a calm state of mind, and… well, Cyanide was always in a calm state of mind. All he had to do was close his eyes, and he would be able to feel the auras of other living beings around him.

Although this wasn't as pinpoint accurate as the [Radar] skill and using it required him to close his eyes, sacrificing sight for a short period of time, it was still undoubtedly a great power to have. According to Kirika, if he practiced enough, he'll eventually reach a point where even blinking will let him detect auras around him briefly, so he doesn't have to intentionally close his eyes and search.

Of course, getting to such a stage would take some time, even for Cyanide. He had no intention of actually purposely spending time on training this skill, and instead would only save it for when there was downtime or his body was too tired to do anything else. There were far more important things to do, and besides, with Kirika here, he hardly needed to worry about mastering this skill for himself that quickly.

Soon, the two arrived at what seemed like the entrance to a cave. This wasn't particularly odd, considering many forests had caves in them, but…

"The aura… it's getting stronger," Kirika said in a serious tone, narrowing her eyes.

That's right—Cyanide felt it as well. Whatever that dangerous aura they felt earlier was, it was in here. They needed to make sure they were prepared before going in.

"… I hope you have invisibility," Cyanide said, to which Kirika gave a nod.

"Of course. Who hasn't wished to become invisible before in their lives?"

Even Cyanide, back on Earth, had occasionally thought of how much easier certain missions would've been if he could simply turn invisible. Naturally, back then, that was mere fantasy, but now, it was perfectly real and within their reach.

"How long?" Cyanide asked.

"Tier two. So, ten seconds."

"… Good enough."

After making sure both of them were prepared, the two headed into the cave cautiously. It was dark, of course, but thankfully, Kirika had a flashlight on her, made with a Blueprint she had discovered before meeting Cyanide. She offered to make one for Cyanide later as well, so long as he provided the materials—which weren't hard to obtain at all, per se: just a few pieces of Metal and some Wires, both of which could be dropped from all mutants. The hardest one to get was the Battery, but Cyanide had found some scavenging the CEO of Aterra's office a few days ago, so there was no big deal.

Still, even with a flashlight, the cave was ominously dark.

From the entrance, it didn't seem like it would be very wide, but the deeper Cyanide and Kirika went, the wider the cave expanded and the darker it became. Stalactites hung from the cave ceiling while stalagmites jut out from the cave's floor, sharp and dangerous.

"… Wouldn't want to fall on one of those," Kirika muttered, rolling her eyes.

On the contrary, Cyanide's reaction was completely different:

"Hm. Would make a fine weapon."

Kirika sighed, rolling her eyes. "Is that all you ever think abou-"

"Shh-!" Cyanide suddenly stopped in his footsteps, crouching down, and made the military hand signal to halt. Kirika, having been trained in a samurai family, understood what it meant, and slowly drew her blade without making a sound, and turned off her flashlight.

Then, the two turned invisible, silently waiting for their prey to come. But whether they were the hunters or the hunted… that was uncertain just yet.

From deeper within the cave, a footstep could be heard. Just now, it had kicked on a stone, which was what alerted Cyanide. But now, it was being more careful. The mechanical footsteps were soft, calculated, but certainly not gentle. They progressively grew louder and louder, and neither Cyanide and Kirika dared to move an inch.

And then, it came.

First, beyond several stalagmites and stalactites, came an ominous and terrifying red eye, shining like a laser in the darkness. Then, another followed, and soon came the rest of the creature's body.

It was beautiful.

Beautiful, but dangerous. Although Cyanide and Kirika no longer had their light, the creature's burning robotic red eyes were more than enough to let them catch a glimpse at the glory of the rest of its body.

Steel silver feathers coated its entire body like fur, perfectly symmetrical and patterned, while two long, saber-like tusks jutted out of the top of its mouth and hung down like metal teeth. Its tail, like a sharp steel arrow made up of several arrowheads attached together, swooped side to side as it trotted dangerously.

It breathed lightly, making low, mechanical growls, and spun its head side to side as it searched for the two humans who had entered its private den and invaded its home. Unfortunate for said two humans, no invisibility was going to help them here. This beast was not just any mutant—it was a Stage Five with bestial senses, smell included. Even if they couldn't be seen, they could certainly be sniffed out by the creature's powerful nose.

"GRRR…"

There they were. The beast's head spun to where Cyanide and Kirika were hiding in their invisibility several meters away, and slowly began trotting towards them on all four of its plated, metal feet.

This forest, this cave, was HIS territory.. And anyone who trespassed on it… would become his food.