"WHAT WAS THAT?!" Clemencia pointed with a shaky finger at the spot where the arm once laid "What were those things?!"
"Doctor…" – White Hat looked at him.
"I-I…" he struggled with his words, the shock still holding his body "I don't know…"
A heavy silence followed after that. Dr. Slug was baffled, scared and shocked by what had happened. White Hat just stood there, watching the wrecked lab. Clemencia was looking around, her mouth agape in the pure confusion and lack of words to express what was on her mind.
CLAP!
Dr. Slug and Clemencia both jumped up at the sudden noise. White Hat had clapped his hands to get their attention.
"OK! Listen now." he straightened up, composing himself in a way that could only be a habit "We have to stope those monsters. They had escaped and who knows what they might be doing. The lives of the citizens are a priority."
He looked at them and pointed at the scientist.
"We'll talk about this mess later! I want you to send as much robots out to locate the monsters and assist in evacuation and rescue if needed. There were 4 creatures. We'll go after them and either detain on incapacitate them. Is that clear?!"
"Yes!" "Yessir!"
Every robot in White Hat manor was mobilized, even 606 came out, grumbling and holding a crowbar but still followed the group into town.
Pedestrians were hurrying out of a few burning complexes, a few cars were turned over, people still caught in one, a kid was crying as medics tried to stop his mother's bleeding while they waited for an ambulance… It was chaos and White Hat's face morphed into an angry scowl.
"We have to split to cover as much area as possible. Help anybody you find to evacuate and rescue those in danger – the lives of innocents are more important than stopping those monsters!" White Hat commanded, falling into a quick stride "If you find yourself in trouble, please call for backup and don't do anything too reckless…"
With those last words they split.
….
'Why the hell am I even doing this task so meticulously?!'
Dr. Slug was shocked after half an hour of carefully coordinating robots around the town and searching for people himself among the chaos. He had just realized what he'd been doing and had been diligently following White Hat's orders without any protest.
"Who's there?!" – Slug pointed one of his guns the moment he heard some gravel falling.
"Whoah! Calm down, Sluggy, it's me!"
"Clemencia?! What are you doing here?!"
"Weeeeel~ I was following one of the monsters' traces when I met ya. Have you seen anything strange pass by?"
"No? Are you sure? I would have seen if-"
SCREEEEEEEE~! GRAAAAH!
They quickly turned around and were barely fast enough to dodge the two beast swooping down at them.
"Holy-" – Clemencia swung her bat and hit one of the monsters on the head.
The monster screeched as the impact broke off one of its horns.
"Look at what you did! You made them madder!" – Slug aimed and shot with his ray gun.
It didn't do much damage, only scorched the monsters a bit.
'How the heck?! That lump of steel did more damage that my gun? It is supposed to pierce steel!'
"Get a hold of yourself, Sluggy!"
One of the monsters jumped in the air and blew a stream of fire at them. They had to roll out of the way, some of the flames scorching the end of Slug's lab coat. Without them noticing, the other monster had snuck around them.
"Graaah!" – it lunged at Clemencia, its jaws ready to snap around her neck.
"Guh!" – she managed to lift her bat just in time, stopping the monster's maw.
Teeth scraped the metal bat, breath smelling of ammonia and rot hit her face and almost made her gag. Brownish drool dripped from the monster's maw as she tried not to fall backwards and push it back. Deciding it was not worth trying to bite through the metal, it swiped its claws at her. She didn't have enough time to pull back. The creature's claws sliced through her clothes, blood flew at fout deep gashed appeared on her thigh. She was lucky to have leaned back or that would have been her stomach.
"AGH!" – the pain was evident in her voice.
Meanwhile Dr. Slug had been trying to shoot down the second monster but his attempts were unsuccessful. His weapon barely did any damage and the monster was flying too high up to hit him with anything else. It had been spitting fireballs at him and he'd been dodging them well enough, only a few singed spots on his clothes could be seen. The shout of pain startled him.
"Clemencia!" he shouted "Damn it!"
The monster had managed to topple her, her leg bleeding a lot and the bat had been flung to the side. A fireball hit him directly in the back, forcing him take off his burning lab coat. He ran toward the downed girl and hurled the burning garment at the other monster. It shook its head, buying him some time. He lifted Clemencia's bat, a bit surprised at its weight, and swung it with all his strength at its head. It was as if he'd hit a brick wall, the monster in the air had swooped down. Hot, searing pain bloomed on the scientist's back. His black sweater shredded, just like his back. He hit the concrete, CRACK, his goggles broke as his face met the hard surface.
'Is this how I die…?' – he thought, blood streaming down his face, staining whatever remained of his paper bag.
"TRASH!"
"USELESS SHIT!" *Thwack!*
"Why?! Why did I have such a-"
"I WISH YOU WERE NEVER BORN!"
"Die, loser! You will never amount to anything and you know it."
'NO! I cannot die! I won't! This won't be the end! I will-'
Dr. Slug's vision was becoming foggy. He struggled but the monster on his back was too heavy. He could only lie helplessly as he watched the other monster advance towards Clemencia and the hot breath of the other closing on his neck.
Shink!
The monster lifting Clemencia up suddenly lost its arm. It screeched as dark blood (the same color as White Hat's) gushed from the stump. Slug's eyes moved to the newly-arrived figure of White Hat. He looked frazzled. Monocle hanging over his shoulder, tie loose, his coat missing, clothes messy and dusty. He was panting, the handle of his cane tightly gripped in his hand and turning out to be the handle of a sword right now.
White Hat had received a ping from Clemencia but she hadn't responded after he tried to call her, so he had hurried to the location from where it came. When he saw the condition in which Clemencia and Dr. Slug were in… he saw red.
Dark aura swirled around White Hat, billowing his clothes. His teeth were bared (sharp…) and his eyes were slightly glowing, pupils turning into slits. It was the first time the doctor had seen him so utterly furious. The sheer pressure and malice made him feel as if he was dunked into a tub of ice, a pit of dread opening in his being, despite not being the target of it. His vision swam even more and his heart's beats were deafening in his ears. The weight was suddenly lifted from his back as the monsters tried to flee again. Black tendrils shot from White Hat's shadow and wrapped around the fleeing beasts.
"You will NOT escape!" – White Hat's voice was distorted and terrifying.
After that… Slug knew no more.
…..
Beep~ Beep~
He awoke to the smell of hospital and beeping of a heart monitor. He blinked his eyes and looked around. There was an IV in his arm but thankfully he was not the one needing a monitor. On the bed on his left was a rasping man hooked to many machines, the noise had been coming from there. Slug noticed a nurse in the other side of the room looking at him, then gasp and run out when she noticed him looking at her.
'Why would she…?' he brought a hand to his face, not feeling his bag, nor goggles 'Of course that is the reason!' – he grumbled.
A knock on the door was followed by White Hat peering in, holding a huge basket filled with fruit.
"I heard you were awake."
"A get well basket, really?" – Slug deadpanned.
"I couldn't bring any of your gadgets because something might happen to Mr. Frent there. He got crushed by a falling debris, you see…"
"I don't care. Did you at least bring a paper bag with you?"
"No, why do you ask?"
"To hide my face of course! It feels disgusting! People always stare and think less of me because of my baby-faced head!"
"I am sorry but the doctor would have to be able to look at your head. You hit it pretty hard on the ground."
"Yeah, yeah."
The smile disappeared from White Hat's face and it made the doctor swallow nervously.
"I was going to ask you later but since you are awake right now…" White Hat placed the basked on the stand next to the bed "What happened back then? How did these… monsters came to be in your lab?"
The scientist them proceeded to tell him what he had done, about the experiment and the incident just before they came to his private lab.
"I see…" White Hat had a somber look on his face "What you did was reckless, dangerous and I am advising you to never try something like this again or we might not be this lucky next time we have to face demons." – he turned to leave the room.
"Sir…" – Slug felt like had was a child again, this time just being scolded and somehow feeling guiltier than ever before.
"Yes?"
"What do you mean by Demons? You obviously knew something, stopping them and-"
"It is best we leave it like this for now, Dr. Snow."
Slug's mouth clamps shut, shiver running down his spine.
"Yes, sir."
White Hat exited the room and went down the hall. He stopped when he saw 606 sitting on a bench in the hall. It had been a surprise when the usually grumpy, lazy bear had beaten the last demon, with the crowbar, by himself.
"606! Why are you here? I thought you were going to wait inside."
"Grouh." – he pointed at himself, White hat, then the door and shook his head.
"So, we cannot enter right now?" – he asked and the bear nodded.
They waited and soon after the nurse came out.
"I changed her bandages. You can go in again."
"Thank you." – White Hat bowed and smiled at her.
She hurried off to somewhere. The two entered the room. Clemencia had lifted the upper half of the bed and was currently smooshing the face of a plush unicorn that had come with White Hat's get well basket, plus a few boxes of candy and a brand new hoodie.
"Oh, Six'O, White Hat!" she waved enthusiastically "You are back! How was Sluggy?"
"He was fine and awake."
"Guu." – 606 put something in her lap, it was a badge that had a puppy on it and said '2 cute, have to boop!' with a heart instead of the dot on the exclamation mark.
"Oooh! This is so sweet."
"Guurururu." – 606 turned around and stomped out of the room, if he was a man, he would be blushing.
She quickly put the badge in the basket and looked at White Hat.
"I have to ask…" she held her breath, squeezing the plushie "… did Sluggy have a really, really handsome face or was that the blood loss?"
"Haha! No, it wasn't." White Hat laughed good-naturedly "He indeed looks like that."
"Oof! It is such a shame though, him hiding it under the paper bag but it is funnier! I don't think any amount of squiggles would make such an ikemen look silly."
They laughed for a while longer.
"I am sorry… for what I did." – White hat said.
"For what? You saved us!"
"I-I lost control back then… I-I could have hurt you or even-"
"NO! No, no, nope! We are not going there!" she waved her arm in front of him "You saved our lives, you saved many more by stopping those things! So don't start being all gloomy."
"Demons…" – he whispered.
"What?"
"Those things were demons."
"And?"
"I… am…" he looked like he was hurting to talk "I am also a demon."
She just stared at him, expression unchanging. Internally, she was glad she was the only other patient in this room.
"How easily I ripped them apart… I-I am scared, to be honest." He looked at his trembling hand "W-what if I lose control again? What if I hurt someone, hurt one of you? I-"
"You won't. I know you." she hugged the unicorn even tighter "You are the nicest, kindest, most compassionate and self-sacrificing person I know! You CAN'T possibly hurt us willingly! I know it, Six'O knows it! Sluggy too, probably… It seems YOU are the only one not seeing it, yet! So, stop underestimating yourself and beating yourself about something like this! You saved me, I really appreciate it, truly… So I am planning to stay and help you with anything! Even if it means hammering it in your head that you are the most awesome hero on this world!"
White Hat looked at her, pointing at him, smiled and laughed. She was not bothered by his sharp teeth at all.