The man immediately raised both hands in apology. "Alright, alright. My mistake. I shouldn’t have phrased it that way."

But then he looked at West again with something close to admiration. "Still... the fact that you haven’t killed me after I nearly lost my life by your hand twice in under ten minutes says a lot about you."

West gave him a flat look while the man pushed on. "Most awakened, especially in a place like Equivon, would’ve turned me into meat paste before asking any questions. The fact that you didn’t..." He shook his head lightly. "That makes you remarkable."

West did not smile. "Or practical."

"Perhaps both," the man replied.

Debra watched the exchange silently with a tensed look but she did not interrupt.

The man took a breath and then said, "My name is Dr. Amos Halbrecht."

West leaned back slightly against the wall. "You started the research."

Amos nodded. "I did."

"Why?"

There was no accusation in the question and that somehow made things calmer.

Amos looked down at his hands for a moment before answering.

"My son was fifteen," he said quietly. "He was killed at school by an awakened."

This made West’s expression change slightly.

Amos went on. "It wasn’t a grand massacre. It wasn’t some city-level tragedy that made headlines for weeks. It was one boy, losing control in a classroom because he was angry and strong enough that no one could stop him." His eyes dropped. "My son was just... there."

Silence settled inside the shack before Amos lifted his gaze again. "That’s where it began for me. The need. The obsession, if you want to call it that. I wanted regular people to have a chance—to not be helpless in the face of overwhelming power."

West looked at him for a moment before speaking, "Not all places are like Equivon."

Amos gave a small, bitter laugh. "No. They’re not."

"You could’ve moved to other cities with less violent and unreasonable awakeners," West pointed out.

Amos looked at the warped wood floor and nodded once. "Yes. I suppose I could have."

It was not exactly agreement. More like the weary acceptance of a man who had spent too many years proving his point only to end up broken by it.

West pushed off the wall. "Well. Maybe now is as good a time as any."

Amos blinked. "What do you mean?"

West’s gaze passed between the two of them. "I’ll help you."

Debra straightened slightly.

"I’ll get both of you to Misty High City safely," West continued. "Once we’re there, I’ll look into who’s hunting you and stop them if I can."

For the first time since he had arrived a real look of relief broke cleanly across both their faces.

Debra stepped forward. "West..."

He held up a hand. "Don’t."

Although it sounded harsh, West wasn’t really interested in getting into anything emotional or dredging up the mother-son relationship they had. He just wanted to get this over with as soon as possible so he could go on with his life.

Amos nodded repeatedly. "That’s more than fair. More than we could’ve hoped for."

"My driver’s outside," West stated. "The earlier we leave, the better."

That was enough to set them in motion. Whatever little they had left packed in that shack was gathered quickly ranging from documents to a burner phone to two small bags and a wrapped case of data chips Amos insisted on carrying himself.

West didn’t ask what was on them yet. If it mattered, he’d find out soon enough.

They set out down the muddy path through the swamp-lined forest. The ground was like a giant mouth sucking at their shoes with each step. The trees around them were tall and damp with evening mist, bearing trunks that were darkened by moisture and roots that curled like fingers through the earth.

Somewhere farther out, insects buzzed over stagnant water while birds moved uneasily in the branches above. The path itself was narrow and badly concealed but they sauntered ahead nonetheless.

Debra struggled only a little while Amos, despite his age and the exhaustion on his face, kept pace surprisingly well.

West walked ahead with his eyes constantly darting across the surroundings. His senses reached beyond the normal boundaries of hearing and sight, catching the movement of the wind, in the mud and surrounding as a whole.

After several minutes, the outline of the parked vehicle came into view through the trees.

The driver sat where West had left him, motionless from this distance.

"Good," West said. "We’re here..."

He stopped briefly and observed the surrounding before stepping forward.

When they reached the car, West stepped up to the driver’s side window and rapped it lightly with his fingers.

"Take us to the airport."

West eyebrows furrowed when he noticed that there was no response.

He tapped the glass again, a little harder and all of a sudden, the driver’s body tilted.

Frruhhh~

The head of the driver’s body suddenly rolled off...

It came off so cleanly, so suddenly, that for a fraction of a second the human mind refused to process what it was seeing.

The severed head slid sideways off the neck and hit the seat with a sickening thump as a burst of blood sprayed across the inside of the vehicle.

Debra gasped sharply behind him while Amos stumbled back.

"DOWN!"

West’s voice cracked through the swamp like a gunshot.

Debra dropped instantly, dragging Dr. Amos down with her just as something invisible sliced through the air above them.

A sharp shing echoed and the tree behind them split cleanly in half.

For a moment, it remained standing due to the very clean slice...

CRACK~

After a few secondd, it collapsed sideways, crashing into the muddy ground with a heavy, echoing thud.

West turned immediately locking onto the direction the attack came from...

And there they were...

Standing calmly amidst the trees was a feminine figure in flowing, traditional attire that swayed lightly despite the still air. Her posture was upright, composed and calm but she emitted a very dangerous presence with a gleaming katana in her hand.