Chapter 113

  Jake saw a subtle shimmer like a mirage flickering in and out of existence just a few feet in front of him. Something was happening, but at first, he couldn’t quite prehend what it was. Still unsure of what to expect, he tio retreat, watg the strange phenomenon in front of him.

  As he focused on the source of the strange disturbance, he saw the air before him ripple and distort, revealing a faint outline of a humanoid figure. Like a phantom materializing out of thin air, the creature slowly solidified in front of him until it became pletely visible. Having never entered this type of mutant, Jake summos description with a thought.

  Ex-Human Wraith – Level 25 (Elite)

  Special ability: Invisibility – The mutant activate a disguise mode, rendering itself temporarily invisible and being almost impossible to detect.

  Attributes: Body 10, Mind 5, Magick 15

  He dismissed the information, fog on the ex-human in front of him. Now that he had the threat identified, Feral Instincts fell silent. Having discovered what the skill had been warning him about, Jake ceased retreating. In one quice, he studied the mutant before him.

  Most of the ex-humans he entered were dressed in ragged clothing, in which they were respawned during the regur world reset. Sure enough, those that emerged from replication pods wore their birthday suits.

  The mutant that had just materialized before him was pletely naked. Jake wasn’t sure if the wraith had retly emerged from a pod or if this mutant type was never clothed to begin with. While he couldn’t firm the tter, he was sure the wraith had retly been released from a pod, because it would’ve attacked him much earlier otherwise.

  It had a female body, but it didn’t take Jake by surprise. He’d long since learhat ex-humans could be of either sex, and he never really paid much attention to the gender of a mutant he killed. Ex-humans were simply deformed, evil creatures to be hunted for XP, nothing more.

  Like many other ex-humans, the wraith was armed with long, curved cws. Its oversized mouth en in a cruel grin, revealing rows of serrated fangs that glistened with drool. The mutant’s skin allid and smooth, its body pletely devoid of hair.

  While the wraith was invisible, it must’ve moved slowly to avoid making noise. However, as it became visible, the mutant quickly shifted from a walk to a run toward him. The wraith’s lithe and agile frame allowed it to move quickly and quietly toward him. As soon as the mutant reached him, it unleashed a series of sshes.

  As it turned out, the wraith wasn’t faster or mile than a chaser, which was why he had no trouble dodging or blog its attacks at all. Apart from the ability to turn invisible, the wraith didn’t differ much from a chaser. It didn’t even have the Flurry of Swings ability that many other elite mutants had, including chasers. Jake wondered whether mutants of the wraith breed could turn invisible at any time or if there was a cooldown period.

  When he saening, he immediately attacked the wraith, raking his cws across its pale body. The four long scratches left across its flesh immediately began to bleed. The ex-humaed a shrill cry, then spun around and darted away, almost instantly turning invisible.

  Jake wao give chase, but he was suddenly attacked by several walkers. By the time he dealt with them, the wraith was long gone. He looked around but couldn’t spot it. By now, it could be anywhere, and si was pletely invisible, Jake couldn’t detect it even with the help of his Enhanced Senses.

  Suddenly, his Feral Instincts kicked in, warning him of impending danger. He had a strong hunch that it was the wraith sneaking up on him. He gnced around but couldn’t spot his oppo. Then, he was suddenly attacked from behind, feeling sharp cws sshing at his back.

  He immediately wheeled around, shing out at the invisible figure with a cwed hand. His talons raked the body of the wraith, causing it to bee visible again. As it turned out, when wouhe wraith lost its disguise. It was good to know. After the wraith realized it was now fully visible, it spun around and attempted to flee once more. Only this time, Jake was determined not to let the creature escape. He struck out with his cws, slig through the mutant’s back. At the same time, he also sprouted a tentacle from his body and immediately shed out with it, its bded tip pierg the wraith’s neck, inflig a severe wound on the ex-human.

  Enemy killed. +400 XP

  Immediately after that, another system notification fshed through his mind.

  You have gained enough XP to level up. Your level went up from 32 to 33. You have gained 5 SP.

  The wraith defeated, Jake quickly sed the area. A few walkers and leapers remained in the room, but all the stronger mutant types had been elimihe replication pods were in the process of geing new mutants, but as far as he could tell, none of them were close to releasing fully developed creatures yet.

  Jake dashed toward the of the remaining walkers, sshing at its throat with his cws. The blood poured from the nasty wound, and the walker colpsed to the ground, dead. Jake was already moving toward another creature, not slowing down for a sed. One quick ssh of his cws, and another ex-human was dead. Even before its body dropped to the ground, Jake was already moving on to the arget.

  It took him less than a mio deal with all the remaining ex-humans in the room. He quickly sed his surroundings. Not notig any more creatures to kill, he lowered his cws and moved toward the replication pod. Peering inside, he almost immediately reized the mutant being created within as a walker. He shredded both the co and the underdeveloped creature ih his cws and immediately moved to i another co.

  One by one, he examined all the replication pods, but all the mutants he saw inside beloo the types he’d already analyzed. Just as he was starting to think he wouldn’t find a new mutant type there and would o search for another building filled with replication pods, he finally came across a pod taining a creature he hadn’t analyzed before.

  For a few seds, he watched the creature being developed ihe co. At first, he couldn’t tell what type of mutant it would bee, but as it neared pletion, its feminine, pletely hairless body indicated it would likely be another wraith.

  Creature analyzed. Status: 5/5. Mutation Researplete. Mind Reader has been added to the Geic Development Interface.

  Finally, the quest was plete. Jake destroyed the pod taining the wraith and proceeded to do the same with the remaining pods. After that, he sed the area once more. All the mutants had been killed, and all the cos had beeroyed. The floor of the room glistened with spilled pod liquid mixing with mutant blood, scattered with the bodies of the dead ex-humans he’d sin.

  It was time to allocate his skill points, check out the Mind Reader ability, and perhaps acquire some new skills. If he were human, he would’ve left before assigning his skill points. However, as a mutant, Jake was unfazed by the gruesome se of age or the overp stench of death filling the room. her bothered him o.

  So before returning to the rooftop, he chose to stay in the room a little loo allocate his skill points. Surrounded by the aftermath of the brutal age, he closed his eyes and accessed his character sheet.