"Ever since he showed up, the monsters appeared."

"Maybe he did kill those children..."

"Yeah, he's a freak. Look at him - red eyes, controls blood."

"He's the real monster. It's all his fault."

Kai heard every word of the townsfolk's murmurings.

Their whispers weren't quiet. They weren't even trying to hide it. And yet... his response was the last thing anyone expected.

The other mutants turned to him, wary. They knew what he'd endured. The pain he was still in. Whatever his reasons, be it stopping Nyx, getting in the good books of the Outlaws, or something else entirely, Kai had fought to save these very people. Risked his life and physically suffered more than all of them could imagine.

He hadn't saved everyone. But without him? They all would've become monsters.

He'd even saved Nadya. More than once.

And now?

They looked at him like he was the root of it all.

Nadya felt a twist of guilt in her gut. She'd seen him the same way momentarily when everything began. Treated him like the cause, as if he were in cahoots with Nyx.

But now, she could only pity the man who was lost in the world and seemed cursed with bad luck and by Nyx's obsession.

However, Kai reacted in a way that none of them expected.

Kai didn't get angry. Didn't yell. Didn't defend himself.

He laughed.

A hoarse, strained chuckle that slipped out of his bloodied lips like it didn't belong there.

"I'm the big bad blood demon," he rasped in Russian. "Also known as Red Eyes. Aahh..."

Amina had picked up the language a little. As for Takeshi and Isaac, they were clueless about most of what had been said, but could understand Kai's intentions.

He raised his arms, pulling a mock-scary face, and growled. It was meant to be a joke. A final jab at how ridiculous it all was.

But the townsfolk didn't get it at all.

They flinched back in genuine fear.

He was red with burns, covered in drying blood, and those glowing eyes... they made people's knees buckle.

Kai blinked at their reaction, then looked away with a tired smile.

He didn't know whether to laugh harder or just lie down and never get up.

'I didn't set out to be a hero. What kind of hero uses blood and looks like this? And even if I did want that… It's impossible in a world like this. You can't save anyone, and it seems too bothersome to even try. Still, it'd be a lie to say it doesn't sting to be hated after fighting for them.'

'Oh well. Fuck 'em.'

'At least I've got a lead now… Kai Hawkes. Not bad. Sounds sharp. And I was some kind of soldier. That's something. Might actually get somewhere regarding finding out who I was.'

The moment of dark humour faded, and something else started to swell inside him.

A slow, creeping sense of isolation. Like he was the last man on Earth. No one to care for. No one who cared for him. It festered with bloodlust and ushered in dark thoughts and urges.

He felt like ripping apart the townsfolk with his bare hands, watching them suffer as life left their eyes. He imagined himself drenched in their blood, and as he did, a frightening glint flashed in his eyes.

But he was too tired to act on any of it.

Even if he wanted to snap, it wasn't like the other mutants around him would sit still. And honestly? The townsfolk weren't worth it.

So instead, he stood. His whole body screamed in protest. Every step sent sharp jolts through his nerves, but he endured with a blank expression.

"Let's go," he muttered.

And he started walking. Limping. Not looking back.

Takeshi, Sven, and Isaac followed without a word.

Nadya hesitated, with Amina staying at her side.

She turned one last time.

Only a dozen or so people remained from a town that once had nearly a thousand. There had likely been more survivors around the town, but after the giant monster exploded, there was no way any of them would have made it out alive.

'To think this is all that's left.'

Memories flickered through her mind. Running through the streets as a kid. Being called the daughter of wolves. Then, a time she would much rather forget, until the world changed.

The Z Virus hadn't destroyed her life - it had helped her find a new one. One with purpose.

But it was all gone now.

'I guess all things come to an end.'

She let out a long breath and wrapped her arm around Amina before following the others.

They moved in silence, and Takeshi moved beside Kai and draped his robes over the battered mutant's bare shoulders. Kai nodded, quietly grateful.

Beneath the robes, the blindfolded man wore a loose silk t-shirt and matching trousers - both a lighter shade of blue than the deep, flowing robes that usually covered them.

'How the hell are his clothes still like that?' Kai thought, baffled.

Takeshi looked mostly untouched. Calm. Clean. Practically glowing. Compared to Kai's charred, blood-soaked wreck of a body, he might as well have stepped off the cover of a fashion magazine.

Kai sighed and looked ahead. "Where are we going, anyway? I just started walking. Figured away from the city was a good start."

The others glanced at each other, not having a destination in mind.

Nadya turned to Takeshi with a questioning look.

Then, without a word, the blindfolded swordsman took the lead.

He was confident, silent, and graceful as always.

As such, none of them questioned it.

It wasn't like things could be any worse than they already were, and all they needed was somewhere away from people. That should be easy to find in such a secluded place.

Meanwhile, Sven walked with a casual grin. He had somewhere he could go back to in central Moscow, but tagging along seemed way more fun.

And that was putting it lightly.

Because none of them had a clue what kind of trouble they were going to get into together...

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