The Channel Five broadcast had somewhat come to an end, at least the filming of the fight between Gary and Kirk couldn’t be continued any more. Kate would have loved to follow behind the duo, but trying to find the Altered that had disappeared into the distance seemed like it would be nothing but a lost cause. Instead, the reporter went down and attempted to interview the police force, yet every single one of them refused to comment on the matter.
‘Damn, it was clear they were instructed to say this. They must be aware how bad this whole thing is going to make them look. An entire gang war happened right under their noses, despite agents from White Rose having been present. It seems like they might have had some idea of these strange Altered in the first place.’
Kate changed her target and attempted to talk to the people who had been in the area, who proved to be far more talkative. She asked them about how frightened they were, when the strange creatures had started to appear, and whether they had heard anything said from below. After all, the cameraman’s microphone could only pick up so much from the rooftop.
The only thing that was clearly heard and repeated by the public was the name of the mysterious group that had been dressed in black and gold. The Howlers. This was a name that was repeated several times, and it was obvious that the public was on their side.
The common consensus was that the Grey Elephants must have been the ones who had something to do with the strange creatures’ appearance, most guessing that it was a ploy to be used against the Underdogs, who were a group that weren't well respected even on this street.
Normally, people would hide their disliking for them, but they freely spoke about them today. Mainly the shopkeepers and such.
------
One person who had finished watching the video couldn't believe it.
‘Cat dude… I’m not even sure I would be able to come back from that one…’ Jayden thought. ‘That was a strong blow… but what is streaker boy doing caught up in all of this? … It seems for the best that Xin is leaving Slough, after all…’
Now it started to make sense how Gary had been able to locate his sister. Typically, Jayden would have an immediate dislike for anyone remotely connected to any gang, but somehow he still had a soft spot for the Werewolf, perhaps due to him trying to save his sister in the first place.
‘It’s a relief that Dominatrix got involved, if she hadn’t… streaker boy would have undoubtedly been the one to die.’ Jayden concluded. ‘Before I leave Slough, I should pay him one more visit, and let him explain himself, and find out what's his plan in all of this.’
——
When Gary had eaten Hawk and friends or Billy, fear, anger, worry, regret, all sorts of emotions had come over the Werewolf as he got on with the gruelling task. Eventually, it would reach the point where some type of instinct, something deep within him, would take over.
The first few bites were always the hardest to swallow, and he needed to convince himself to think of them as oversized critters, until this other part of him came over him. However, for the first time, Gary remained fully conscious throughout the process.
Eating into Kirk, he had done so in tears. The Werewolf somehow managed to suppress his instinct, going through this as a way not to hide from anything, to remember every bit of what he did, to remember everything that he was doing.
It was tough, but he considered this his own punishment.
Another reason for him not allowing his instinct to take over was so that there would be some parts of Kirk left. He avoided eating the Altered’s bones for one, at least as best he could, but most importantly, he left his head intact.
Most of the flesh of him was gone, and his clothes were laid out on top of his bones somewhat covering him. But there was no need to do anything else, according to the system at least.
[Optional Quest has been completed]
[The following stats have been awarded]
[+3 Strength]
[+6 Dexterity]
[+2 Endurance]
If it was any other time, then perhaps Gary would have been amazed at how many stat points he had gained. Each level up only granted him a single one after all, yet now he was gaining several. On top of that, the Dexterity stat, something that in the past he had been severely lacking in, had increased the most.
It made sense, seeing as Kirk had been an Altered who had heavily relied on his speed, but right now, Gary wasn't in the mood to be thinking about these types of things. He didn't want to think about eating other Altered, or beasts as the system claimed he would need to level up.
[Congratulations, you have gained 1 Knight point]
[1 Knight Point = 5 Pawn Points]
At the moment, for the Quests Gary had completed he had three Pawn Points saved up, and he had already used one to try to upgrade himself to the next Grade. With this he would have surpassed it, before he would try to mess around with the system though he needed to do something with the body.
Looking around, he went to one of the washing lines that were nearby, there was a large bed sheet that had been hung out.
“Sorry.” Gary said as he pulled it off the line, and started to put the rest of Kirk's body on the sheet. After eating the Altered, Gary had regained nearly all of his Energy; he was just 20 points shy, and he had regained his complete health back as well with the passive healing. It was clear there were many benefits to consuming an Altered.
It seemed like Altered did indeed count as beasts to the system, but those beings like the twins, or the orphans, didn’t.
Bringing the sheet together, Gary tied it up at the end, and chucked it around his back. He knew it was somewhat disrespectful but he wasn’t in a situation where he could afford to consider alternatives.
‘There's a lot of blood still on the rooftop, but I guess there really isn't much I can do about it, but what do I do with the bones.’
It was at that point that Gary looked at the markings in the air, his hunting targets. He could see that two of them were active, as for the third it had disappeared.
‘So it looks like the Grey Elephant leader kicked the bucket in the end.’ Gary thought. ‘But that means that Damion, as well as Gil, are still alive.’
Not knowing quite what to do, he did what he usually did in this situation, making a call to a certain person. Only now, that he had time to think about it, did he realise in what sort of situation he had left them, making him wonder if they were okay. He could tell that Olivia was fine, and his current Bond Marks, were active so he at least knew that most of them weren’t dead.
Unfortunately, he was unable to connect. Kai had immediately hung up, not allowing the call to go through. Just in case, Gary tried again, but this time….
[The person you have dialled is currently not available]
Rather than going through a ring, it hung up immediately, either Kai had switched off his phone or it was something else.
‘What is going on?’ Gary wondered.
———
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