CH99:GOLDEN BLOOD MUTANT

The Hour Had Finally Come...

The Granians and humans fought fiercely, losing machinery, limbs, and lives. The humans, with weaker and smaller bodies, relied on new technology and beast crystals, while the aliens used their superior physical forms to crush their enemies.

However, after the arrival of the ArkVille Military Fleets, the number of Granians dropped drastically, and the humans slowly pushed them back. With their last trump card, the Granians hoped to inflict damage on the human forces and regain some hope of winning.

"MURDOCK'S DOWN!" one of the Granians announced, quickly taking his body back into Grim's ship. Moments later, Grim and Huntress, their trump cards, were also knocked out. They remained on the ship, wounded by the attacks from the blood mutants they sought to capture.

Meanwhile...

[Advancement Progress: 75%]

Ace's body, currently fighting on its own, was being upgraded to the next blood mutant class: Knight. In this vulnerable state, he could easily be killed if anyone managed to bypass his defenses and his sister.

"Hurry up over there, Ace," Cherry said to him as she battled the oncoming Granians. "It's getting harder to keep them away from you." She spoke again, but Ace didn't respond.

"Cherry," Sky and Chris called, standing by her side. "Don't worry, we're here to help."

"Help?" With just one look at Sky, anyone could see that she barely had any fight left in her. Her transformed fur was a mixture of red and green blood, fresh and dripping. Her heavy breathing showed her exhaustion, and her wet clothes added to the evidence. "You can barely stand now. Stay with Ace. Chris and I will handle these Granians."

"Alright."

"FALL BACK!" The Granians shouted as they saw the Nexille Military Fleet approaching them. The massive numbers of the fleet caused worry among the aliens, making them doubt the wisdom of their attack.

"Backup has arrived," General Jack announced, as his forces pushed the Granians back. "The lead Granian is down. Let's move in and retrieve Luke and the others."

Consisting of a team of ten, General Jack advanced to Grim's ship, navigating through the chaos of war. At that moment, Grim and Huntress got back on their feet and returned to the battlefield, further securing Jack's chances of rescuing Luke.

"In through the hole," Jack's team entered Grim's ship and found hundreds of Granians running up and down. Most of them were on the ground, gasping for air due to their inability to process Earth's concentrated oxygen levels.

"I'm getting a signal from Luke's military armor," one of the soldiers said to Jack. "He's about five minutes away from us."

"Understood," Jack responded, taking off his own armor and preparing to use his newfound Gifted skills. "Let's go."

***********

"Iron Hawks and Iron Wing Squads, we're going in."

Approximately one thousand six hundred attack airships, each large enough to carry five hundred aircraft, which in turn could hold twenty people, opened heavy fire on the Granians below. Half of these forces assisted the ArkVille fleets in evacuating the remaining civilians, transporting them back to Nexille's Metropolitan City, one of the last clusters of human civilization.

The other half of the forces provided air and ground support, pushing the Granian forces back further. Cherry and Chris were given some breathing room as most of the Granians were pushed back.

Ace, guarded by Sky, was nearly finished with his advancement when suddenly, golden tendrils wrapped around his body and pulled him back. Sky hurriedly followed, but Grim, who had landed in front of her, stopped her.

"An eye for an eye," he said in his alien dialect, as he took one of Sky's eyes and kicked her back. Sky slid across the ground, bleeding and in pain. When she looked back to find Cherry and Chris, she saw them—Cherry was surrounded by two Granians.

Huntress had wrapped her tail around Cherry's neck, causing her to revert to her human form. The second Granian was Chris, another decoy with the temporary ability to shapeshift.

"Traitor..." Sky cried, looking back at Grim, only to have her neck wrapped by his tail. Grim lifted her up as he ran after Ace's body, which was being snatched by something he didn't understand.

*ROOOOOAAAARRR*

A loud, deep, and powerful roar echoed through the streets as the golden blood mutant smashed through a building. Its body, three times larger than Ace and Cherry, terrified both the Granians and humans, who began firing at it.

Jimmy Ackerman, the military soldier turned blood mutant, rejoiced as he had captured the person responsible for transforming him into the abomination he was now. Without wasting time, the blood mutant raised Ace's body over its head, jaws wide open. It wrapped its tongue around Ace and prepared to lower him into its jaws when suddenly, an attack on its head knocked it to the ground. Screams of triumph and joy erupted from the humans and Granians.

"There's more of them."

"They're calling for more of their kind. Everyone, turn your attention upward."

[Nexille Military Ship]

"General Duke, we've got hostiles entering the Earth's surface." All those in or around the city looked up as they witnessed hundreds of thousands of Granian space pods entering the atmosphere. The sight reminded them of the first time the Granians arrived on Earth, but this new attack was even more horrifying due to the increased number of falling pods and movement from the three large Granian spaceships entering Earth.

"All squads," General Duke commanded, "Focus your attention above. Keep those damned aliens from touching the ground. Blow them up if you have to. We cannot let them make it here."

"Yes, sir!"