The Girl

"It's like a dream!" The girl stood by the highway, watching the tornado whirl past. Her body was always within Jason's protective zone, so even though she could feel the wind, it had no real impact. The scene of her rescue was so surreal it was etched in her memory.

"Don't tell anyone!" Jason gave her a glance.

"I know, I know, you're like Storm from the X-men, so powerful... but you're a man. Are there people like the Fantastic Four in this world? Are you one of them?" The girl couldn't help her curiosity. "Alright... I promise I won't ask anymore, as you guys fear being discovered by government agents... perhaps they would take someone like you for dissection or scientific experiments."

"No, girl, they would just say you're crazy! They won't believe a word you say." Jason shook his head, laughing at her. This girl was carefree, quickly forgetting the perilous ordeal, her incessant questions reminded him of a curious toddler. It seemed she wasn't affected at all.

The two stood in silence, the girl would sneak glances at Jason every once in a while. When Jason would return her gaze, she'd flash him a smile, causing Jason to shake his head, responding only with a smile. When the wind died down a bit, Jason stepped away, telling her, "Alright, girl, I should get going. I still have a long way to go."

"Are we walking?" The girl asked Jason, looking around, "Aren't we waiting for rescue?"

"You can!" Jason replied, not paying her any mind, he headed straight for the place he had parked earlier.

The girl followed Jason, although he walked fast, she managed to keep up. But after a while, she was panting heavily.

"Hey, sir... can you wait for me?"

"No, I've told you, I have things to do, I can't wait for you, I need to get to my next destination!" Jason replied, quickening his pace even more.

"Alright, alright, I'll keep up." The girl said, trailing behind Jason.

After more than half an hour, they finally reached the parking spot. The trail was chaotic, just like everywhere else, with some cars that weren't swept away by the tornado cluttering the path.

However, there weren't many people around anymore, most had left. They walked on the highway, trying to flag down passing cars. Only a middle-aged man remained, standing beside Jason's car, seemingly waiting for something. He saw Jason from a distance and waved.

"Hey, buddy, is this your car? You're very lucky!" The middle-aged man reached out to Jason, "It's a miracle. Your car is here, I think it's time to give it back to you. If I hadn't been standing here, they might have stripped your car for parts, or drawn guns to fight over a drivable car."

The middle-aged man had been waiting here for Jason's car. This touched Jason, who nodded and smiled, "Thank you very much. However... I'm planning to go to a nearby town, do you need a lift?"

"No, I'm almost at my destination, you better get going!" The middle-aged man patted the hood of Jason's car, waved at Jason and motioned for him to get in and go.

As Jason got into the car, preparing to start it, the girl called out in surprise, "I'm also going to the next town, we're on the same route, can you give me a lift?" She gave Jason a smile as she spoke.

Nodding his head, Jason waved goodbye to the middle-aged man. As the girl got into the car, a dark shadow leapt from the back seat to the passenger seat, causing the girl to scream loudly.

"Hey, Annie, quiet down." Jason greeted the black cat.

The black cat indeed quieted down. Lying on the passenger seat motionless. However, the girl seated behind Jason now took an interest in the little black cat, looking at it with a tilted head and saying joyfully, "Hey, your name's Annie, right? You're such a beautiful little creature."

The black cat lazily glanced at her, showing no interest. It had a dismissive expression. This piqued the girl's interest in the black cat even more. She couldn't help but reach out to touch it, all the while laughing at Jason, "Not many men like cats, I thought only women did!"

"Are you saying women and cats share common characteristics?" Jason retorted, "Buckle up." He stepped on the gas, causing the girl to nearly bang her head on the seat in front of her, earning a grunt.

In the eyes of the black cat, a mocking expression flashed, seeming to disdain the girl's behavior even more.

"Oh my goodness, what a clever little baby." The girl couldn't help but applaud the black cat's expression, not caring about the close call she had just had. She turned to Jason and said, "How do you raise it? It's so amusing. It must be a little comedian."

"No, you are!" Jason replied unexpectedly.

The girl burst into laughter. Jason's serious demeanor was completely undermined by his playful remark. But it seemed that the girl never had much grace to begin with. She was a lively type.

"I'm Denise Dean, can I get to know you?" The girl reached out her hand.

"Jason."

"Then we're friends!" Jason didn't extend his hand, but the girl reached out and shook his arm. It was a handshake. "I live in town. To be honest, there are often tornadoes here. But I just learned how to drive and I'm not used to dealing with tornadoes in the car, so..." She felt a bit embarrassed mentioning this.

"That's normal!" Jason chuckled as the car sped down the road, avoiding various debris that had fallen on the ground along the way. There were crashed cars, dead cows, and broken windows in some buildings. The black cat rested its front paws on the window and stared absentmindedly.

The car soon arrived in the small town and stopped at the entrance. The girl turned to Jason and said, "You saved me. Can I invite you to my house? I want to... thank you."

"No, you're fine. If it were someone else, I would have saved them too." Jason didn't accept her invitation. Instead, he waved his hand and said, "You're lucky today. Go home, maybe you can still get your car back from the insurance company. It looks new and beautiful."

"Almost got me killed though!" The girl complained, but immediately laughed again. She waved at the little black cat and said, "Well then, goodbye little one, you're so cute! Goodbye, Jason. This is my phone number, call me if you need anything... of course, I'll call you too." She handed Jason a note through the car window, fearing he would refuse.

"Goodbye, miss!" Jason smiled and with a flick of his hand, a white bird landed on his hand. The white bird stayed for a moment before flying away towards the town.

Jason nodded and continued following the little bird in his car for some distance. Eventually, he parked the car next to a hotel, in the open-air parking lot.

"Go find Sofia, you're connected by blood. Is she here? Once you find her, take me with you!" Jason murmured to the little white bird in the air. The bird chirped and flew away, quickly disappearing into the sky above the town.

Sofia should be in this town.

Jason wasn't in a hurry to find her. Instead, he found a place to stay first. He booked a room at a small hotel and went straight up. The little black cat jumped onto Jason's shoulder, and after getting the key, they headed to the room.

By now, the sky had started to darken.

The dark night belonged to certain people or creatures.

After having dinner at a fast food restaurant downstairs, Jason stayed in his room, reading books about black magic. He wanted to find a way to break the seal on the black cat. But it seemed that there was no record of such a seal.

Under the cover of night, a girl slowly walked through the town, and as she passed, the streetlights along the road went out...