It hurt every inch of my soul to see a girl who’s already been through so much broken like this in my arms. I didn’t want to let her go. I never wanted to. However, I didn’t have many other options. Those slimy bastards who did this would simply forget me and target Sunflower. And knowing Corleone was behind that water bomb trick, absorption wouldn’t protect her. It’d only speed up her demise.

  Fortunately, I brought an ally trustworthy enough to handle Sunflower for me.

  “Emmy,” I said, turning to the woman.

  She was late in getting here, but determination kept her legs moving. “You run way too-Oh my Daemon! Is that another Type Two Radion? Its body is engulfed in fl-”

  “Emmy!” I shouted, making her jump. “Take her. Carry her far away from here. Try and find Sunshine if you can.”

  “What? No!” Sunflower cried, gripping my arms. “Those guys… They’re too strong for just you alone to handle. And you don’t have any energy stored up. I can sense it.”

  “Sunflower, I-”

  “Wait, just absorb me, ok? Please,” she begged, breathing heavily. “I can help you. I’ll make your body stronger. He’ll kill you, you dumb old man!”

  Emmy raised her hands with a crazy smile. “You should absorb me too, Type Two Surfer. It’s a complete waste of time to fight that Radion in your current state.”

  “See? Even the weirdo agrees. Just absorb-”

  “Sunflower! Just listen to me,” I cut off, tightening my embrace. “You don’t think I can tell how strong that fucker is? I can feel heat, but it doesn’t hurt me. His heat does. My ooze is melting just from looking at him. And it hurts.”

  “So then why-”

  “Because if you’re inside of me, then he’ll have no reason to hold back,” I answered. “That zombie’s bloodlust is already off the charts. I can tell he wants a real fight, and having you or you, Emmy, or both of you would force him to unleash a firepower even I won’t be able to handle.”

  “That explanation contains no ounce of scientific logic,” Emmy said with a frustrated expression.

  “It ain’t science logic. It's fighter logic. Now shut up and take her for me already.”

  The KB finally obliged, taking the teen from me while Sunflower continued to object. But with two broken limbs, shouting was all she could do.

  Emmy started to run when she suddenly stopped. She turned around, looking at me with a worried look. “Don’t become deceased. Is that understood? You’re important to… Daemon.”

  I got into my usual battle stance and said, “I’m a zombie. I’m already dead, remember?”

  “Tha-That’s not what I meant,” Emmy growled, continuing to run away.

  And with that, the two troublemakers I had to worry about now were the two making their way towards me. That giant hunk of fire had to be taller than a damn truck, and he had the audacity to bully a sixteen year old. It didn’t matter how big he was.

  Winning this fight was the only future I saw.

  Corleone shoved his hands into his pockets. “Well, that’s not good. Go after her, big guy.”

  The flame monster stretched the fingers of his left hand. “No.”

  Michael paused. “Do I need to repeat myself?”

  “A payment far greater than what you promised me is standing right here. Consider our partnership done.” The Radion’s voice sounded like he was constantly on the verge of roaring, like a volcano about to burst. “I’ll allow you to leave us alone with your own two legs.”

  “This is the last time I make a deal with you zom-”

  Before Corleone could finish his sentence, the Radion fired a ball of fire at him with his right hand. The explosion was loud, but there wasn’t a scream of pain accompanying it. In fact, once the smoke cleared, I noticed Michael was walking away from us with his back turned.

  Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  Completely unscathed. Even his staggering legs didn’t mean much to me. Wasn’t that blast point blank?

  “Oops. I’ve never been good with my right hand,” the zombie said, turning his head back to me. He then formed a wide grin. “I enjoy using my left more.”

  “Well, consider me ambidextrous ‘cause I’m about to beat your ass with both hands.”

  I rushed in with fists of fury, Sunflower’s earlier screams filling my head and keeping the current objective clear: win. I didn’t land a single blow. The zombie stopped both punches with two fingers, pinching the sides of my knuckles. My feet wanted to retreat, but my body stayed locked forward. It was like he burned into my bones.

  “Y-You’re strong,” I gasped, my arms trembling.

  “Strong? A fine description for the fire, but I believe you have a vile misinterpretation of what that means.” The dancing flames that made up the top of his head spiraled until they resembled dreadlocks. “You see the fire as a destructive entity, but that’s only because of outside forces. The fire is at its purest when it burns silently.”

  Without warning, a burst of flame seared a hole through my chest. I would’ve gone flying if it wasn't for the Radion grabbing my head and throwing me back down to the concrete. He stood over me, watching as I squirmed ed in pain.

  “The fire is only impure when it comes from a man-made flamethrower or an explosive, but those things don’t use the flames correctly. Humans scorched the Earth without the fire’s consent, resulting in the permanent destruction of everything. Fire should burn whenever it wants to. You see it with forest fires, right? Even when it takes days for them to finish, the fire still eventually disappears. That’s what makes fire so pure.”

  “That’s… fucking stupid,” I sternly replied, slowly and painfully getting on one knee.

  “That’s ’cause you have a lack of understanding. Fire is like an animal. Animals have to eat other animals to survive in the same way fire has to burn to survive. But the fire knows when to stop burning. It by itself will never burn more than it has to. It kills itself to allow others to live. That… is purity.”

  Bad guys violating your ears with their dumb speeches had to be one of thr worst things the apocalypse caused.

  “Why are you telling me this? And why do you wanna fight me so badly?”

  “It’s simply ‘cause I despise you.” He grabbed me by my neck and lifted me up to his face. I knew the prick was big, but this gave me a new understanding of what “big” really meant. “Allow me to introduce myself. I am Incinivon: the one who maintains the purity of the flames. And you are Jerome Hunter: the one who wields the Sun.”

  “The… Sun? Newsflash, buddy, I only wield one Radius Ability and it ain’t got nothing to do with “the Sun”.” The heat around my neck made talking a chore, but I pushed through it the best I could. “And what could you possibly despise me for? I’m just a dad tryna protect his goddamn kids.”

  “Kids, huh? You haven’t changed at all, Je-Romeo.”

  My body froze the second I heard that name. The pain embracing my neck. The fireball forming in his right hand. They were all ignored just so I could figure out why the hell he just called me “Je-Romeo”. That nickname came about once I hit that stage in life where talking to girls is all I wanted to do. Only people in my past have called me that, but they were all long dead at this point.

  Why does a dude named “Incinivon” know that nickname!?

  The zombie raised his arm with a fireball bigger than “Do not worry. Your Sun will be very taken care of.”

  Just then, a deep, mechanical wail tore through the air, echoing across the city like a dying beast. Crimson light bathed the streets, washing over us, the broken buildings, and the orange and purple concrete. Even Incinivon’s flames seemed to dim under that red glare.

  “...What the hell is that?” I muttered, my feet dangling.

  The Flame Radion remained silent, his fireball flickering out as he turned toward the sky.

  Every speaker in Hallowsville crackled to life. A cheerful, distorted voice played over the alarm, like a festival announcer with a smile carved too wide.

  [The nightly festivities are starting now! Prepare for a night full of tricks, treats, and most importantly—fun! Remember: Dying is how you lose the game!]

  Those ominous words didn’t sound right coming out of such a bubbly voice. What kind of festivities were we in store for?

  The ground answered my question with swiftness. Long, metal spikes ripped through the concrete, covered in dried blood. They shot up in patterns, forming twisted lines that glowed under the red light. Pumpkins burst from the rooftops, flying high into the night before detonating like fireworks, showering flaming seeds across the street.

  I heard a plethora of screams from blocks away. They were accompanied by manic laughter, howling, and the stomping of radioactive animals.

  If this was Jason’s idea of Halloween, then I’d hate to see his take on Christmas.

  Every parked car on the street blinked awake, headlights cutting through the red haze like eyes opening from a long sleep. Inside each one, figures sat motionless at first, then turned their heads in perfect sync.

  Masks. Costumes. Sinister grins.

  They started driving toward us, slow at first, then faster, tires screeching, engines roaring in unison like a monstrous parade.

  Finally, Incinivon released me. Unfortunately for two of the drivers, that led to their scorching demise. As for the cars headed for me, they turned out to be much luckier. Instead of crashing into my fist, they crashed into my whole body.

  I spiraled in the air, and then landed hard on the driver’s windshield. They swerved uncontrollably, nearly hitting a street pole until spikes shot up from under the car and riddled the driver with holes.

  The chaos wasn’t over just yet. The fiery zombie leaped in and struck my face with his knee. I plummeted back down, his monstrous weight smothering me, my ooze melting.

  With the fireball in his palm expanding, I realized there was only one way out of this, one thing I haven’t tried yet. Incinivon jumped and launched his attack. I was ready for it. Regaining my bearings, I threw my hands in the air, tightened my fingertips, and faced the heat with all my courage.

  However, the instant the fireball made contact, I regretted it. My ability was active, and yet I couldn’t absorb it. The fire was energy. I could feel it, but it was too damn hot for me to contain. My bravery was burning away as quickly as my fingers were. I gritted my teeth in frustration. My toes sunk into the ground.

  I felt weightless in that sea of flames in the State Between Release, but this fireball was crushing my soul. My hands were gone, and my arm stumps were desperately trying to keep my head from incinerating. All hope seemed lost.

  But dying wasn’t an option. Not after what this bastard did. Not when I promised those two that I’d live.

  “You can’t stop the incineration, Jerome.”

  “I’m not… gonna… die!”

  The pain stopped. I was on my knees and my body was broken, but the absorption miraculously worked. At least, I thought it did. There wasn’t a spike in my power. Plus, my limbs should’ve regenerated. Did absorbing his fire have consequences or did I never absorb it in the first place?

  I was about to find out the answer as Incinivon landed in front of me. Strangely, his eyes weren’t locked onto like they were before. He was looking everywhere, checking every nook and cranny on the block, as if I went missing. Or was he looking for someone el-

  No, screw asking more questions!

  My legs were still intact, so I used them to run. Run away as fast as they let me. The Type Two’s search for whatever he was searching for distracted him long enough for me to escape.

  Cowardly action. I knew. But this wasn’t Nuclear Version Jerome. I had more important things to worry about than battling that giant.

  Incinivon punctured the concrete with his finger. “Your little tricks will not stop the flames.”

  “Volcanic Burst.”

  The ground began to rumble, faint at first. Then it turned violent, like the city itself was growling. A red glow pulsed beneath the cracked pavement, and the air turned blistering hot. I felt it spreading under my feet, forcing me to run even faster.

  Then came the burst, lava tearing through the ground in a molten wave. Thankfully, I was able to reach the next block right before I got caught in the eruption. The buildings and the cars weren't so lucky, sinking into the hot liquid. The zombie stood right in the middle of the destruction, unaffected by the exploding cars around him.

  I didn’t have any more time to watch though. The lava was coming to infect the area I rushed into. It was slow, but I couldn’t underestimate it.

  However, upon turning, I bumped into something hard. No, not something.

  Someone.

  And that someone was Jason, glaring at the destruction behind me.

  “AIDS!”

  “Shit! It’s you!” I exclaimed, quickly backing away.

  To my surprise, Jason didn’t pay me any mind, which was strange considering how much he wanted to kill me. In fact, just like with Incinivon, it was like he couldn’t see me at all. There wasn’t even a reaction when I bumped into him.

  I looked at my hands. “Am I… invisible?”