Modern Monster

A volley of pure fear and panic erupted in the crowd watching. Kaiyo couldn’t even move; she didn’t understand what she was looking at.

How… where…

“MONSTERS!” a civilian screeched in dread. “RUN!!!” The moment the public heard the word "monster," everyone’s panic amplified a thousandfold.

Kaiyo didn’t need a Sense to hear the sound of claws scraping the ground and soft communicative squeaks all around her. Her brain stopped; they didn’t have time to think about what was happening! She needed to run, run as fast as she could! Pulling herself off the ground, she sprinted away from the lifeless head of Kyro.

She couldn’t believe her eyes! All around her, monsters, who were invisible just moments ago, began appearing out of thin air. Their snouts were long, broad, and hideous. Two yellow, overgrown teeth overlapped their long bottom lips. Their ears were perked up with excitement, emitting squeaks of triumph. Their bodies had a thick and translucent fur pelt, and their eyes burned red for fresh meat. Behind their fur was a distinct curled, pink, and furless tail.

She couldn’t count how many there were. Tens, maybe hundreds, were scurrying around the rich man’s dead body. Hiding behind a large tree, she watched from afar, soon coming to a realization. Arokai, she gasped, then quickly covered her mouth, daring herself not to make another sound.

Arokai were bronze-ranked monsters. They were roughly the size of a large domesticated dog. But do not be fooled; these were pure, bloodthirsty monsters who would attack you on sight.

They were known for eating the carcasses of other monsters, sneaking into homes, and deftly grabbing children with their coordinated pack. They also went by the name "City Wolves." Their keen and intelligent, coordinated minds resembled that of a normal wolf. However, they stopped at nothing when it came to food.

Like their closest cousin, the rat, they had a never-subsided hunger void, making them desperate. They would eat practically anything edible, similar to the common rat, but on a whole other level. Their small cousin paled in comparison to these monsters' evolutionary dangers. Above their unclean and physical dangers, their most terrifying trump card was their unique ability to blend into their surroundings.

She truly wished that wasn’t the case, but she couldn’t deny what she saw happen right before her eyes! She felt like vomiting, seeing the Arokai nibbling on the dead man's body. Kaiyo gasped in horror once she realized who was near the monsters' feast. The mother…

The person whom Kyro had assaulted into unconsciousness was limply resting on the pavement floor just a few feet away from the horrifying scene. The monsters didn’t seem interested in the lady at the moment; they were too fixated on the fresh human.

Someone needed to save the poor homeless lady! At that moment, she heard a loud, commanding order from the Knights.

“Everyone! Do not come near!” The two Knights sitting at their post finally started taking action. She let out a sigh of relief. Now that Kyro was dead, they could step up and save her. Not to mention getting rid of the monsters, too.

Kaiyo hesitantly cast a sideward gaze at the rich man. One of the Arokai tore off his ear and happily devoured it like a piece of candy. Kaiyo gagged at the sight, not because she was sad or guilty, but simply because the scene was gruesome and disturbing. She couldn’t help but feel doubt welling up inside her.

I could have warned him that something was coming. I already knew it, and I did nothing. So why don’t I feel guilty?…

She was ashamed of herself for being so cold. Even though it was evident that Kyro was an evil person, she could have saved a life in the end. Does that make me a bad person?

Kaiyo felt the baby in her arms give a soft cry of distress. She caressed the poor thing and rocked it slowly, calming him down. No, this was worth it. In her eyes, at least, saving a baby with a full life ahead was far more valuable than a rich man who only tormented those around him.

Infants were the purest life forms, untainted by society’s sinfulness and not yet molded by the environment. She didn’t know the person Kyro was, and she frankly didn’t care. Kaiyo’s gut told her he would never change. She’d rather save a child who would grow up to be a kind person than someone who’d continue their sinful life.

“BANG!”

Shots were fired by the Knights. It wasn’t long before a whole corps of Knights, containing a few dozen, showed up with their sleek, indestructible uniforms. Many had simple guns resembling a common Glock, but each time they fired at the monsters, the weapon would glow either blue, red, green, yellow, or purple, depending on the user.

“BANG! BANG!”

A few Arokai were instantly shot down lifeless in front of her. Gallons of blood spilled on the sidewalk of the city, making it seem as if it had rained blood from above. The monsters that were chowing down on the dead body of Kyro squeaked in alarm as they watched their fellow members die in front of them.

These were no common guns; these were SenseGuns! Her father also carried one around with him when he was on duty. The gun would transfer one’s Sense Energy into supermagnetic waves, forming a bullet of energy. It didn’t matter which Sense you had; they all would operate similarly. The guns only needed energy to fuel their power, and one's Sense was more than enough to do the job.

Evidently, there was a limit to how many shots one could fire. After all, it was similar to activating a Super Sense. Kaiyo herself could only trigger it for a few minutes before feeling fatigued, so she guessed the same logic applied to this weapon.

The monsters weren’t dumb, and they immediately understood they were outmatched. A few started using their unique ability to vanish into thin air, but unfortunately, some were not as clever. A monster uttered a loud, ear-quivering battle cry and lunged at one of the Knights from the side. The Knight gasped in surprise, not expecting them to fight back.

“SNAP!”

He was far too late…

The Arokai chomped on its target, sinking its jagged, long front teeth into his throat. The innocent Knight wasn’t even capable of letting out a cry of pain before his head was cut clean from his neck, falling straight to the ground. The body went limp and unresponsive right away as it tumbled on the pavement.

Noticing their fallen comrade, the others let out a scream of rage while firing six bullets from their weapon into the monster’s body. It wasn’t long before the Arokai who had attacked the innocent Knight went limp along with the life it took. Kaiyo’s heart panged with sympathy.

Unlike Kyro, these people were doing what they were told and genuinely put their lives on the line. She felt sick watching blood vessels burst from the victim’s body. She was far away, but she wanted to run, run as fast as she could from the terrible scene. But what about the mother?

Kaiyo couldn’t quite see where the mother lay anymore, and that only fed more doubt into her mind. I can’t just go in there and check. That’s a death sentence. But I have this… She looked at the now sleeping child. What would happen if the mother is actually alive and starts looking for her child frantically, not knowing where or what happened to him? That would break her heart.

But I can’t just wait any longer. I need to get out of here. Going back and forth with herself, she made up her mind. Even if the mother is alive, she won’t last long. I can’t leave this baby here to starve along with her.

The child's tiny hand wrapped around her finger. She gave a hopeful smile. Kaiyo then abruptly started breaking into an urgent run, taking a detour to her house. She needed her parents' help to save this child. It didn’t even occur to her how she would confront Asashi after their argument, but it didn’t matter. This was far more important than arguing with her father. And she knew he would agree, too.