He charged. Tackled the Runner shoulder-first, slamming it against the curved wall. As it writhed to claw back, he grabbed a length of frayed black cable hanging from the ceiling, leapt onto its back and wrapped it tightly around its throat and shoulders, anchoring it in place against the wreckage.
"Stay down!"
The Runner thrashed violently. It clawed, it bit, it screeched, flailing within the cramped cage of the bus.
"GRAHHH!"
Johnquis used his first skill for the first time after grinding for months through all the hardship and fights to survive, he finally got to use it.
He spoke the name of the skill,
"CHAIN SLAVE"
His Eater Blade chain glowed black-red, smoke hissing from its edges. He pointed his right hand at the Runner, and the chain shot through its chest. He gripped the chain harder.
SQUELCH.
The chain pierced flesh and bone, touching something pulsing—its heart.
The Runner froze. The chain coiled tightly around its heart.
The Eater Blade chain connected through Johnquis's right arm, running through his body, now linked to the Runner's heart.
The Runner struggled, still fighting, but Johnquis held firm. The chain was not enough to hold it completely.
Johnquis felt a burning pain in his right hand. Blood seeped down his arm, flowing through the chain connected to the Runner's heart.
[Skill: Chain Slave — Blood Cost: 5%]
He tightened his grip, pulling the chain with all his might. The Runner snarled, twisting violently against the bonds.
The narrow bus became a battlefield of desperation. The creature slamming its weight into the walls, cracking the metal and glass around them.
[Skill: Chain Slave — Blood Cost: 16%]
Johnquis pushed through the burning pain in his arm, tightening the bindings further. His vision blurred, heartbeat pounding in his ears, but he refused to let go.
The Runner growled, claws raking the floor, trying to pull free.
[Skill: Chain Slave — Blood Cost: 29%]
With the Runner's movements growing desperate but limited, Johnquis gritted his teeth and pulled the chain again.
The bond tightened. The chain hissed like a live thing.
Johnquis could feel his own blood draining fast, dizziness creeping at the edges of his vision.
His breaths came ragged but steady.
The Runner's furious growls slowed, its eyes flickering with confusion and rage.
[Skill: Chain Slave — Blood Cost: 46%]
Summoning every last drop of strength, Johnquis screamed through the pain and agony.
He pulled the chain with all his might.
"I'LL MAKE YOU MY SLAVE!!!!!!"
[Skill: Chain Slave — Blood Cost: 57%]
The Runner's thrashing stopped. Its body slumped, muscles relaxing as if defeated.
Its wild, burning eyes dulled.
The narrow bus fell silent but for their heavy breathing.
[System Announcement]
Chain Slave: Binding Complete.
Target fully subdued and linked to user.
The chain connecting them vanished.
Johnquis collapsed onto the cold floor. His right hand trembled as blood dripped from the wounds, the chain still glowing faintly in his grip.
The Runner lay motionless, bound, now his slave forever.
Johnquis lay on the cold floor, skin pale and slick with sweat. Blood pooled beneath him, slow and dark. He'd lost too much. His vision blurred. His body stopped responding. Everything slipped away.
He was out.
A dull ping echoed in his skull.
Another.
And another.
Johnquis moved.
His eyes cracked open, dry and burning. His vision swam with static for a moment before focusing on rusted metal and broken glass above him. Sunlight leaked through the shattered windows of the overturned bus, warm and glaring. It had to be past noon.
His mouth was dry. Every muscle in his body screamed in protest. His right hand pulsed with sharp, throbbing heat. Blood had dried across his fingers.
He looked down on his right hand with the eater stone embedded. Ahead, the Runner he had just enslaved wore a collar wrapped around its neck. It didn't move. It didn't resist. It only… waited.
[System Ping!]
[Mission: FAILED]
Completion Rate: 37%
Star Rating: ★☆☆☆☆→ ½★
Warning: At 0 Stars, automatic punishment will be executed. Penalty: DEATH.
Johnquis blinked.
"…What?"
The words floated in his mind, cold and cruel.
He sat up slowly, the weight of the chain dragging behind him. His body felt like dead weight, skin pale and bruised. The ache in his bones was only outmatched by the heaviness in his chest. Lex. Mars. Randy. Gone.
He turned his head slowly.
The Runner's eyes were still open but empty. The savage hunger was gone, replaced with obedience.
It was crouched, not standing. As if waiting for a command.
Johnquis clenched his teeth.
"Get… away from me."
The Runner obeyed.
It moved in slow, careful steps toward the middle of the flipped bus and crouched in a corner, knees bent, arms low. Watching him and breathing softly.
[System Ping!]
[You now command: 1x Level 2 High Eater — Runner Class]
[Max Slave Limit Reached (1/1)]
[Blood Cost Settled — Final Tally: 57%]
"So that's it… After you murdered my squad, now you're chained to me. Problems just never leave me, huh?"
He stood up slowly, still dizzy from the blood loss.
"Well… they weren't really my squad. I was just a fill-in. They didn't even see me as one of them, so…"
His vision blurred for a second, the world tilting.
"I need to go to the nearest Bloodpost. I'm running low… I need more blood."
He turned his head, eyes falling on Lex's body.
"But before that…"
Johnquis staggered forward, barely able to keep his balance as he moved toward Lex's body.
Her lifeless body lay on the floor, face pale, her stomach torn wide open. He crouched beside her, swallowing hard. He didn't cry. He just sat there for a long second, head bowed.
"I'm sorry, Lex…"
He reached down, tried to lift her but pain tore through his side. His arms buckled. He winced, nearly falling over.
"Nope. Not happening. Damn Chain Slave cost too much blood…"
He grunted, rolling onto his back next to her, panting. Slowly, he turned his head toward the corner of the bus.
The Runner sat there, motionless, like a demon at rest.
Johnquis called out,
"Hey."
It looked up.
He pointed weakly.
"Pick her up. Gently. Gently."
The Runner blinked, then moved.
It crawled forward, careful. Its claws retracted slightly. It reached under Lex's body and lifted her like a child holding something fragile.
Johnquis stared.
"…Okay. That's… freaky."
The Runner waited, Lex cradled in its arms, head tilted like it was waiting for further instructions.
"Over there."
He motioned toward a cleaner patch of sunlight near the front of the bus, away from blood and glass.
The Runner obeyed.
"Now just… lay her down."
Johnquis said, almost unsure.
"Flat. No bending her arm like that. She's not a chair."
The Runner paused, made a slight adjustment, and gently placed her on the ground.
Johnquis sighed.
"Okay. Now go get what's left of Randy and Mars."
The Runner turned to him slowly, tilting its head.
"Yeah, I said it. Don't act confused now."
He waved vaguely at the scattered remains.
The Runner blinked. Then it moved.
As it collected the remnants of what used to be his squad, Johnquis sat slumped against the bus wall, holding his right arm.
"…My life really is a mess."