Crimson Instinct

*Xin Lei*

"You bastard!"

The man roared, and I heard a shot rang towards my right.

*Bang*

There was silence for a moment before I heard a low groan.

"Ugh…"

That was Rodey's voice. Damn, did that shot really hit him!?

The man laughed, and he said, "Ahahaha! I see you going down! Hahaha! Rodey, you are dead! I hit Rodey, you arrogant bastard! I, Bloodygame, took you out!"

I froze.

Bloodygame... Bloodygame…

That's right...How can I forget this voice? 

It was the same voice that I heard in the video recording. He was that same man who killed Fu Meili…

I completely missed recognizing his voice because of all this smoke curtain suddenly coming out of nowhere.

No wonder I felt this voice sounded so familiar!

I gritted my teeth. My jaw clenched as I felt an intense fury rage inside me. Fu Meili's cries were still fresh in my mind.

He killed Fu Meili. He killed that little girl!

I felt so mad that I wanted to just dash at his place and kill that son of a bastard!

But I forced myself to be calm. Rodey might be injured. I didn't know the condition of the woman with him either. And now Chu Jie and that man disappeared too from my side.

I nudged Cocoa to follow me and rushed towards Rodey, but then I heard that same man's voice again.

"No, no, no, woman. I can see you~~ Don't bother trying to save them."

"Sis!!!"

"Hey! Leave us!"

I turned towards my left and faintly saw some silhouettes struggling as I heard Chu Jie and that man's voice.

"S-sis!"

"Hahaha! We caught you! Did you see it, woman? Oops! I forgot that you cannot see in this smoke. Rodey is done for! And now we caught your buddies here too!"

I stiffened.

They caught Chu Jie and that man?

Another voice came from eleven o'clock direction, "Now only you are left."

"Grrr…"

"Hey, don't forget that monster dog!"

"Oops, my bad."

What should I do now? I can hear their voices, and I can shoot in that direction, but I cannot take the risk when Chu Jie and that man aren't visible. What if they change their positions and my shot hits either of them?

No. I cannot do that. I cannot make Cocoa recklessly attack either.

That must be why he wasn't moving from his spot too. I am sure he can smell their scent, but he was being cautious, too, in this smoke with almost no visibility.

Suddenly, I heard a sharp gasp.

"Ah!!!"

And then I heard a thud.

"Hey, what happened?"

Bloodygame spoke, "What was that noise?"

Then I heard another loud noise as if something was smashed.

I narrowed my eyes. I faintly saw those men's silhouettes moving around in confusion.

"Grrr…"

I felt Cocoa suddenly jump past me. I didn't realize when a man came to my side, but before he could do anything, Cocoa already killed him.

But in that short time frame when Cocoa lunged at him, the smoke cleared for a few moments, and I saw a table fan at a distance.

A fan...just what I need!

The others were totally confused with the sudden noises, so I got my chance to slip at that side.

As I reached closer, I saw that there were bloodstains on the fan's blades.

I froze.

Was this another tool by which they used to hurt people?

I imagined them forcing the victim's hands in the blade while it would be switched on. I felt nauseated.

But this was the end. Tonight, everything will be over. There will be no more innocent people trapped in this dark place anymore and getting tortured.

I quickly bent and found the plug. It was already attached to the switch.

*Bang*

Once again, I heard a loud bang, but this time, it belonged to a gunshot.

Who fired it? Did they shoot Ch Jie or...no, no! Focus!

Damn, I didn't have time. I quickly switched the fan on. The rotors started moving, and a strong gust of wind came out.

It worked!

I quickly looked behind and got in my position.

"Where is this wind coming from!?"

"The smoke! It's dispersing!"

"What are you just standing there for!?" One of the man's sight finally fell on me. "There! That woman! She did-"

But I quickly shot him, and he collapsed. The smoke began to clear away, and more and more men came into my view.

Cocoa, too, quickly jumped on the next man who was about to attack. But what shocked me was to see Rodey holding the neck of another man and strangling him. The woman was hiding behind him at a safe distance, but I could see the worry and panic on her face. Two men were already dead beside him.

He wasn't hurt at all by the gunshot!

The man, Bloodygame, spoke, and I finally saw his face. He was looking at Rodey in horror. "You…Aren't you dead? I shot you!"

Rodey chuckled. "An ant like you can never take me down. I was merely pretending to lie dead under the table, and you took that as me while I took its cover and escaped."

I see. So, he wanted to make them believe that he was dead, so they take their attention off him. He faked that painful groan.

"Rodey, you bastard! I will kill you now!"

He aimed towards him, and I quickly fired a shot, but another man pushed me from the side.

Damn. He was hiding in that blind spot!

My shot missed his head. Instead, it hit his hand and knocked off the gun.

The man who pushed me lunged at me, but I turned to my right. I grabbed his neck and pulled him down, and jabbed my knee at his jaw. Then I shot him as well.

"Sis…Help me…"

I looked up to see Chu Jie, who was held at gunpoint.

The man sneered. "This ends now."

"S-sis…"

I froze. He was about to press the trigger. 

No!

But just then, he stumbled and fell.

"Arf! Arf!"

Huh? What happened? Cocoa seemed to be restless.

I saw a hole at his right temple as he collapsed.

"This ends NOW."

I stiffened.

That voice…Bai Li.