Virus: Origin of Blood

Isaac ran, or well, rather he flew.

As much as his blood begged him to stand his ground and fight whatever came his way, he wasn't stupid. He would die if he did that in the open, in a territory he didn't understand yet. So instead he flew, pausing now and then to rest and recover his strength.

For over an hour, this plan worked without any issues. He faced no monsters, rested when he could, and learned more about this territory the further he went. It was quite nice, if he had to be honest… to just travel the unknown lands without something trying to kill him every few minutes.

Of course, this didn't last.

Well into the third hour after Harry's extraction, the Zerians began to pop out here and there. Just fliers, and they never caught up to him, but their presence could only mean one thing. They still wanted him dead, and not even a territory full of lava would stop them.

Disappointing, but predictable.

That said, Isaac quickly noticed how they never tried to approach him, not even when he stopped to rest. They just lingered at a safe distance before turning and leaving. A few minutes later, another group would take their place, repeating the cycle.

Why do such a thing? Why not just attack?

He wasn't certain, but it couldn't be anything good. Maybe they were trying to surround him? Predict his path so they could ambush him at the edge of this territory? Those were just two possibilities among many, which meant Isaac had to prepare for the inevitable.

No more running then.

Yet, despite this thought, he didn't turn and charge straight at one of the two groups following him now. That would achieve nothing. No, instead, he returned his gaze to the lands below and began his final search. After spending just a few hours here, he knew exactly what he needed to find.

It didn't even need to be perfect, just good enough to give him a fighting chance.

Final straight… Let's go…

Isaac found what he wanted just twenty minutes before his Infamy rank could advance again. He ignored the distant presence of multiple Zerian patrols and dived, eyes on the target.

It was a volcano, just one of many in this godforsaken territory. At first glance, it didn't look any different from the others. Taller than most mountains on Earth. Filled with thin lava streams flowing down its sides. And with dark smoke billowing from the top.

Really, nothing out of the ordinary. Hell, there weren't even that many monsters nearby. So why did Isaac choose it as his battlefield?

Quite simple.

Warning! You're nearing an Unregulated Quarantine Site.

The Interface offered nothing else, but for Isaac, it was more than enough. He aimed for one of the many tunnels leading into the volcano and didn't slow down until his night vision activated to chase away the darkness inside. Distant hisses, screeches, and growls reached his ears, explaining just why there were almost no monsters outside.

He transformed, landed on solid rock, and summoned the Root to his hand.

Some might call him insane for attempting to enter an Unregulated Quarantine while hunted by an army of aliens. But to him, there was a method to this madness. He had no allies left to help him, so why not use the beasts already here to his advantage? They didn't care about sides; they just wanted to kill them all.

Isaac just had to be smart about this. No wasting Viron. No unnecessary fighting. As strange as it sounded, he came here to survive, not to conquer.

He took a deep breath.

No turning back now.

The Obsidian Golem stumbled, and Isaac pressed the advantage. He pounced, slamming an open palm into the monster's chest. Obliteration tore through the dark crystal like paper. Light left the beast's eyes. A heartbeat later, the golem shattered.

He didn't get a chance to admire his work, though.

A burst of flames came from his right. Isaac twisted away, ignoring the heat scorching his exposed skin, and hurled a single Crimson Death at the source. A pained shriek filled the cavern chamber, cutting off the fire breath.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

One more.

With his final opponent's size, weight, and weapon of choice, Isaac saw the attack coming from a mile away. He sidestepped, allowing the massive club coming for his head to slam into the ground. The large troll, whose skin was always on fire, blinked in confusion, then roared when a Cursed Draw ripped into its chest.

It wasn't enough to kill it, though. Never was with these things. Not with its damaged flesh already stitching itself back together. Still, despite its quick regeneration, the beast dealt quite badly with the pain.

It let go of its club and tried to snatch Isaac with its grubby hands.

Bad idea, pal.

Another Cursed Draw sliced through flesh, separating the beast's hands from its body. Isaac smiled as its pained roar rang in his ears. A Crimson Death into its open mouth silenced it, though.

[Obsidian Golem (LVL. 22) slain.]
[Ember Salamander (LVL. 17) slain.]
[Charred Troll (LVL. 23) slain.]

There were more notifications, from the beasts he had slain earlier, but Isaac ignored them all. He only made sure there was no level-up hiding between them and dismissed the Interface. Better to make sure this place was definitely safe before relaxing even a bit.

With a nod to himself, he went around the small chamber, checking every crook and cranny as well as the connecting tunnels. No more monsters.

Good enough, he thought, sitting down and leaning against the hot wall.

Since entering the volcano, Isaac hadn't stopped moving once. He went deeper and deeper, avoiding the monsters he could, while killing those he couldn't. And sure, by the second crossroad, he had probably lost the way out, but did it matter? He wasn't planning to leave this place anytime soon, if at all.

Onward he went, making random turns and twists. He even jumped through some holes in the ground, and based on how hot it was getting, he had to be quite deep now. So when he found this little chamber, he claimed it and killed all the nearby monsters. Sooner or later, more would come, but by then, he should be in another part of this Quarantine.

All he wanted was a moment of peace once his extraction timer dropped to zero.

And there it is…

Extraction is now ready. Do you wish to leave, or stay and advance your Infamy rank?

Tempting. So tempting to just leave. To abandon this planet and be done with it. But it was just that, a temptation. He wouldn't give in. Couldn't give in. Not now. Not after coming this far. After killing so many.

Isaac gave the Interface his answer, and for the first time, it didn't proceed right away.

Are you sure you wish to advance your Infamy Rank? Approximately only 23% Hosts survive S-rank.

I will take those odds. Proceed.

Acknowledged. Current Infamy Rank: S (Multiplier: 4x)

Your current base bounty has increased to 50000 points.
Bounties are now locked for you. Extract to claim them.
Beware! From now on, your location will be revealed every 10 seconds to the entire planet of Reprizem. You can fight, you can run. Survive.
As your final reward for reaching S-rank, every five minutes, you will generate 1000 Invader Points.

Good luck, Isaac Walker. The Universe is watching.

A laugh echoed through the chamber.

So that's how it is, Isaac thought, a smile on his lips. Just ten seconds… Good that it doesn't matter then.

They knew where he was, after all. Did it mean finding him here would be easy? No. This place was a maze, a maze crawling with monsters most Zerians couldn't even face. So, unless they planned to somehow erase this volcano from existence, they would have to be very careful with how they approached this final stage of the hunt.

Harry had been right. Isaac thrived in chaos. And this Quarantine Site was nothing but chaos.

You did your best trying to reverse our roles. To make me the hunted and you the hunter. But here… here you are nothing more than just another monster for me to kill. So come. I'm waiting.

Final Extraction in: <12h:00m:00s>

"His plan isn't bad, sir."

Rakin hummed, lifting his gaze from the screen that showed his chosen sitting inside the volcanic cavern. "It isn't," he admitted, echoing his assistant's words. "The odds?"

"Eleven to Eighty-nine," Narin answered.

Rakin scoffed. "Fools."

"It's not surprising. He is still but a lone human. A tired one at that. Even you have to see it, sir."

I do, he agreed in the safety of his mind. But he also knew better than to underestimate a motivated Host. That mistake had cost him dearly in his youth.

"Never count a blood-bearer out," he said aloud. "You should know this better than most."

At that, his assistant bowed her head. "Fair enough, sir." For a moment, they both watched the feed in silence. Then Narin spoke again. "Shall I prepare the rewards?"

Rakin shook his head. "Not yet. I'm certain he will give us a good show. Whether he survives… that's another matter. The odds might not be as bad as the gambling fools think, but they still aren't in his favor. How he uses his skills will decide everything."

"Standard procedure, then?"

That brought a smile to his lips. "As always. In the end, my dear, this is just one Host of many. His potential might be very high, but if he cannot win here… then he wasn't worth my attention anyway."

Narin just nodded, so Rakin returned his gaze to the screen. There, the view changed, away from the cavern to the outside of the volcano. His grin widened at the sight of hundreds upon hundreds of Zerians gathering, with more still arriving.

Who do you want to be, Isaac Walker? Another name erased from the pages of history? Or a new major player on the board we call life? Show us all where you truly belong.