Chapter 434 Extra Tickets!
Cindy lay on the ground, her body trembling. She knew what Kiba"s question to her and Byron meant.
Only one of them would live!
And the person to die would be decided by either her or Byron!
"What should I do?" Byron was sweating bullets from fear.
The only choice the question gave was to either kill Cindy or sacrifice himself.
But how could he sacrifice the love of his life?! Yes, she betrayed him and hurt him. But that wasn"t intentional.
Love couldn"t be poisoned to hatred easily...
Bryon swallowed and lifted his head, looking at Kiba.
"Please... don"t," Byron begged. "We apologize for what we have done."
"Apologise? But why, father-in-law?" Kiba asked with a questioning look.
Byron didn"t reply. He was sure Kiba knew everything.
"Regardless, when we first met, I promised to give you a chance to a trip to wonderland. Now, the extra person gets the free ticket to wonderland!" Kiba reminded him. "And I"m giving you two the chance to decide who gets the free trip!"
Byron"s guts twirled and his back turned cold.
In the first meeting, he has thought Kiba has been fooled by them. Back then, Kiba has informed him and his team that Xander and Kyron have gone on a trip... a trip to wonderland.
Now, he knew the true name of wonderland.
Underworld!
Land of death!
There was no way he wanted to go there.
Cindy similarly felt depressed. The choices she had were the types she never ever expected in her life.
She eyed her boyfriend and thought of the sweet times they had shared. They had made wonderful memories together as a couple.
Despite the nature of their work, their relations.h.i.+p remained pure. In fact, their love even showed up in their relations.h.i.+p.
It was due to absolute trust in each other that they could rely on each other in an organization like Polaris. They knew they always had each other"s back.
But now, they were left with no choice but to stab another person in the back!
"No! I can"t do that!" Cindy gritted her teeth.
Lillian and Madison sat down on the floor, and rested their heads on their hands. Their eyes brightened with every pa.s.sing second as they carefully observed the facial reactions of the loving couple.
Byron and Cindy"s faces were ugly, unsightly, and looked far worse than crying. Their bodies were radiating despair; a complete sense of loss.
"This is getting boring, daddy!" Madison shouted after some time. "We can"t waste our entire time just because a couple can"t decide who gets the ticket!"
"Right!" Lillian focused on Kiba and said, "Daddy! I have an extra ticket with me! Why don"t we send both of them to the trip?"
Madison eagerly nodded at the suggestion.
"The loving couple would then have no reason to feel sad! They would be united!" Madison was impressed by her twin"s generosity and kind-heartedness.
She turned towards the couple, her eyes sparkling as she said, "You are lucky! My sister is contributing out of her own pocket!"
She looked at them expectantly; waiting for them to express their grat.i.tude. Sadly, all she got was looks of pure terror and despair.
Some distance away, Ruby"s lips curved up. She couldn"t help but think of the day when she was also given a choice.
A choice that changed her life.
As she further saw the unsightly expressions on Byron and Cindy"s face, she chuckled inwardly.
"I was sure this would happen!"
She expected her former team members to be swallowed by despair. Only this hope was the reason why she could handle the last few weeks as they planned to capture her master.
"Well, if Lillian has an extra ticket, then maybe, we can give it to both?" Kiba wondered aloud, his eyes locked on the couple.
"What do you think?" Kiba asked for their opinion.
Cindy opened her lips, and just as she uttered a single word, her pupils shrank. She caught a flicker of shadow as Byron jumped on her.
His hand transformed into a steel claw and it came down, slas.h.i.+ng towards her throat.
"Cindy! I"m sorry, but this is the only way!" Byron shouted as the claw swept down with a screeching sound. "You cheated on me, so it is also fair!"
He didn"t want to die, and even his love for her couldn"t change it.
Tears build up in Cindy"s eyes as the claw reached her throat. She was too slow to react, and could only wait for the raging pain to devour her.
~snap~
Much to her surprise, she didn"t hear slas.h.i.+ng sound, but rather heard a snapping sound. Alongside, a scream rang out.
"AHHH!"
Byron let out a heart-wrenching scream.
Cindy quickly cleared the tears in her eyes and looked ahead. The claw of her leader-c.u.m-boyfriend was snapped into two!
"Father-in-law, how could you attack a woman?" Kiba asked, his voice icy cold. "And that too, a naked, helpless woman?"
Byron screamed and saliva dripped down from the corners of his mouth.
Slowly, as the pain subsidized, he noticed the terrified and yet, angered face of Cindy... her soft eyes filled with disbelief at his actions; accusing him of betrayal.
Her expression and the look in her eyes made his soul tremble.
He has made the most difficult decision of his life, and now, after failing and looking at her face... his heart melted into the lava of agony.
Slowly, he moved his eyes on Kiba who was standing there, relaxed.
"Y-you... you were never going to allow me to chose!" Byron muttered with utter sorrow. "You just wanted to screw my brain!"
Kiba didn"t reply but only looked at him with a faint smile.
Giving impossible choices, and then making the mind make the most difficult choice of life, but only to be denied that chance and face the consequences of failure...
It was more fun than torture and cruel death.
"You are evil for doing this to me!" Byron shouted. "Evil!"
"Oh please, drop the victim act," Kiba scoffed in disdain. "It doesn"t suit you."
Byron, Cindy, and others have partic.i.p.ated in human-trafficking and organ harvesting activities. They have directly or indirectly, killed hundreds, if not thousands, in the worst possible way.
Many of their victims were even used as guinea pigs for scientists in terrifying experiments. Being a genetic scientist himself, Kiba knew how agonizing the life of an experiment specimen was. It was the worst thing that could ever happen to anyone; a fate far worse than death.
Yet, Byron was calling him evil and pretending to be a victim.
Kiba didn"t consider himself as good by any standard, and he knew, he was everything that society represented as evil.
Playboy, wife stealer, killer...
Still, being called evil by people like Byron made him laugh at the hypocrisy.
"Well, it was fun, but your accusations have spoiled my mood," Kiba lifted a hand and stretched a finger.
Byron"s body froze and his eyes constricted. He couldn"t move and his field of vision was superimposed with a fingertip, shrouding everything.
As the finger approached him, he felt suffocated and heavy, as if a mountain was slamming down on him...
And then, he felt nothing, nothing at all.
He was dead, turned into a b.l.o.o.d.y paste.
Cindy looked at the moment as the finger smashed her leader-c.u.m-boyfriend into a b.l.o.o.d.y paste, and she threw up.
"Nooo!"
She collapsed down further... her soul listless. No matter the cruelties she has committed in her life, she was never prepared for this, not even after seeing Byron trying to kill her.
"Ah! I guess my extra ticket is safe!" Lillian remarked while studying the b.l.o.o.d.y paste.
"Don"t worry," Madison knew her sister liked to be generous with others. "We can always give it to someone else!"
"Yes! There are many needy people!" Lillian clapped her hands excitedly. "I will help them all!"
Madison smiled and patted her twin. Then, she aimed a hand at the b.l.o.o.d.y paste and twisted her hand.
Strands of crimson color streamed out from the paste, concentrating before her hand. Slowly, a ring formed, and the paste turned colorless.
"Daddy"s ex-father-in-law even left behind a gift for us!" Madison noted as she grabbed the ring.
Ria and Katrina looked at the scene in total shock. They shuddered and their knees buckled in terror.
Just like that, their leader was killed, not even leaving behind a body. Despite that, the twins were discussing as if he has gone to a wonderful trip! And now, even saying he has left behind a gift for them!!
Ria and Katrina looked at each other and swallowed. Secretly, they thanked their lucky stars for sparring them.
But just then, the s.p.a.ce before them blurred, and Kiba appeared.
"I..."
Ria and Katrina felt their throats turning dry and no word came out of their mouths.
"Lillian counted three, and she was right," Kiba said as his hand arrived on Ria"s chin. Her aesthetic face s.h.i.+vered by his touch.
"But the count can always change," Kiba wondered aloud. "Am I right, Lillian?"
"Yes! Daddy!" Lillian answered from behind. She wouldn"t mind giving a ticket or two.
"Please, don"t change the count! We will do anything!" Ria begged with all the strength she has.
Katrina also nodded, her eyes filled with fear and a desire to live.
"Well, I can"t promise," Kiba freed his hand off Ria"s face, and brought an index finger on Katrina.
Katrina kept silent and prayed for him to change his mind.
She was ready to do anything; even become his slave. She felt that was a good thing after what happened today.
But everything depended on him! It was his choice! Not hers!!
Kiba slowly traced a finger down her face; appreciating her clear skin which had no hint of makeup.
Her nose was straight, standing proudly. Her lips were as red as a delicious cherry, waiting to be consumed.
His finger wandered over every portion of her face, admiring every single detail.
"Because I have a code," Kiba continued as his finger stopped between her lips. "Never spare anyone who shows killing intent towards me."
Her lips quivered and her face began sweating. She and her team have held killing and murderous intent after their initial plan failed. They might have tried to hide it, but in the depths of their hearts, their intentions couldn"t be any clear.
"But from the last one month, I have been breaking the code," Kiba said, his lips spreading into a smile. "I guess I"m turning soft-hearted."
Katrina"s b.r.e.a.s.t.s fell in relief, and she eagerly took his finger between her mouth, sucking it lovingly.
"Thank you!" Ria cried and joined Katrina in thanking him.
...
In the Hall of Legacies.
Enchantia observed everything happening near the pool bank. She broke out into a smile and chuckled as Kiba spoke of turning soft-hearted.
[[Haha, what a kid. Lying with a straight face.]]
She might not be aware of the things he has been doing in Delta City and the infamy he has gained, but she knew his character and his mission.
He needed as many mutants as possible as alive in the core region until he reached the source of nanites. Killing them on the spot would serve him no role.
So, what part of him was turning soft?
He was as cruel as she could remember from the time she has known him as Zed in BSE-79.
[[The nights here are cold, even for humans who call themselves as mutants. But it looks like that kid has made ample preparations for keeping himself warm at night.]]
Enchantia mused as she observed Kiba"s eyes lingering on Katrina"s collar bone and her ma.s.sive b.r.e.a.s.t.s.
His eyes then wandered off to the small t.i.ts of Ria. Her pink nipples reflected in his sparkling eyes.
[[Oh kid, you are so much fun. Enjoy women while bringing them close to certain death.]]
The Legacy Orbs flashed brightly, and stardust splashed out, falling on the pool below.
[[Destroy this so-called core region and start the genocide already.]]
Enchantia was bored and this was one of the few times she was truly excited. She wanted to hear the screams of despair when he used the living beings in the core region as his guinea pigs.
Just the thought of human suffering made waves surge in the pool.
...
Sometime later.
Kiba stood some thirty meters away from the Pond of l.u.s.t. The etherealness and serenity from the pond were like warmth in the middle of winter, extremely inviting.
~ BA DUMP~
His heart pounded loudly, and his heart rate and blood pressure increased. Simultaneously, the speed of his blood flow amplified, double the amount of what could be natural.
"The pond is truly powerful," Kiba thought, his expression heavy. "My body couldn"t escape even its minor effects."
If not for his psychic power, he would have been consumed by the strange nature of the pond and the earlier mist. And had he even touched the pond surface as Cindy and others planned, he would have been knocked out.
His physical body wouldn"t be able to handle the potent energy particles in the pond... No human"s body could.
"Ruby said the pond was made for the pleasures of the royalty of that world, but it is far too powerful to serve only that role."