‘How did I even get a bounty so soon?' Khan cursed in his mind.
Merely a day had passed since the arrival there, but Khan had already managed to get a bounty. The events in Lower Level 2 were obviously the reason for that, but Khan had no idea how the news spread so quickly.
‘Joel and the others mentioned a boss,' Khan recalled before choosing to investigate a bit further.
"[I've just gotten into the dock]," Khan said, feigning ignorance. "[I can't possibly have a bounty]."
"[Humans always underestimate us]," The Orlats in charge chuckled.
That vague statement answered Khan's doubt, even if it left him surprised. The dock allowed communications with the other floors only through public phones, which slowed down the spreading of information. However, the Orlats seemed immune to the issue even when matters involved other species.
‘I had to expect the smugglers to react like this,' Khan sighed in his mind. After all, he had witnessed the Nele doing the exact same thing.
"[Does she have a bounty too]?" Khan asked while nodding toward Jenna.
"[No one would dare to put a bounty on a Nele]," The Orlats snorted, "[But you can use her to solve your problems]."
Khan mostly ignored the last part of the statement. His thoughts moved quickly as he tried to make a point of the situation and decide what to do.
The fact that Jenna didn't have a bounty was reassuring, but it also generated many questions. Khan didn't know whether the Orlats was going against his orders for personal gains or the whole matter was just a ploy to get to Jenna.
Both options made sense. Khan could imagine Joel's boss wanting to retaliate against the Nele. He could also see the Orlats using an unrelated matter to their advantage.
There could even be options that Khan couldn't consider due to his lack of knowledge. Everything sounded possible when he thought about it. Yet, none of that mattered. He only had to plan his next step, which didn't take long among the coldness that invaded him.
"[I guess you revealed my position to this group]," Khan wondered. "[Do you all work together? Are our employers part of this too]?"
The Orlats reacted exactly as Khan expected. The alien in charge and two more Orlats stepped forward and revealed proud expressions that explained what Khan wanted to know.
"[I came up with this plan]," The Orlats in charge bragged.
"[We did]," One of the Orlats that had stepped forward corrected.
"[Yes, we did]!" The third Orlats added.
"[So]," Khan announced as his gaze moved over the rest of the workers, "[Are you here just to watch the show]?"
Khan focused mostly on the human among the workers to see if he could trigger some guilt or regret. However, the worker continued to wear his cold face.
"[They are the alibi]," The Orlats in charge shortly replied. "[Hurry up now. The bounty hunters should be almost here]."
‘I bet they asked for something in return,' Khan commented in his mind, but his thoughts already started to quiet down to highlight the mana in the area.
The Orlats in charge and one of those who had stepped forward were second-level warriors. The other was a first-level warrior, like the rest of the workers. The group was far from threatening in Khan's eyes, but he couldn't waste time chasing people around with Jenna still exposed.
Every trace of hesitation disappeared from Khan's mind as his mana flowed in a far too familiar pattern. He sprinted forward while his hand reached for the sheath on his left, and a line of blood suddenly splashed on the group.
The workers needed a whole second to understand what had happened. They had been pretty confident before, but Khan's sprint put doubts into their minds. Then, seeing half of their leader's head sliding away and falling onto the floor gave pure panic.
The other second-level warrior tried to say something. The contents of his line would have probably expressed his anger, but the group never had the chance to hear them. The Orlats found a knife stabbed in his head before he could even realize that Khan had reached him.
The panic reached the critical point when the knife cut through the Orlats' head even if Khan wasn't moving it. The mana around the weapon was enough to pierce that flesh, and the alien soon fell to the floor.
Everyone ran away at that point. Those first-level warriors knew they had no chance against Khan, but the latter only had eyes for the last member of the ploy.
Khan sprinted before performing a leap once he got close enough to his target. His feet landed on the Orlats' head, and his mana descended to create a pressure that no first-level warrior could endure.
Cracking and squashing noises reached Khan's ears. He found his feet in a gory puddle created by the Orlats' smashed head, but he didn't experience any disgust. He was simply too used to that scene.
‘I've done it now,' Khan almost mocked himself.
Milia 222 was no stranger to murders and death in general, but Khan had tried to keep himself out of that. The events with Joel's group had been an exception that didn't offer him ways out, but the current situation was different.
Nothing would have stopped Khan from grabbing Jenna and running away. No one would have caught him. Yet, that path wouldn't have solved anything. The bounty wouldn't have disappeared, and people would have still tried to use him to get to Jenna.
Khan didn't have backing inside the dock, so he had to resort to harsher methods to solve and prevent future problems. He would imitate Maban. He would make the organizations there too scared to approach him lightly.
Of course, Khan wasn't Maban. That approach could mark him as a target of some major forces in the dock, but he had felt the need to make a statement. That gamble could endanger his mission, but it was better than living in fear of his surroundings.
Khan didn't need to turn to know that Jenna had reached him, and a cold face unfolded in his vision when he did. Jenna had already drawn her root, and her eyes scanned the escaping workers.
"[Apparently, there is a bounty on my head]," Khan revealed in a calm tone. "[A group is also on its way to get me]."
"[Is this because of me]?" Jenna asked while fixing her eyes on Khan.
"[Probably]," Khan admitted.
Jenna's cold expression grew sad. Her hand went on Khan's knife to touch the drops of blood that had tainted its surface. That was already the second time her presence forced Khan to fight. The urge to give more of herself to him grew stronger, but she suppressed it for now.
"[We don't need to reach my species' district]," Jenna announced while retracting her hand to focus on her surroundings. "[Piran won't stay put when a Nele is in danger]."
"[That's the problem]," Khan pointed out. "[You don't have a bounty, but fighting with me will force the Nele to react. I would involve your species if I let you stay]."
"[That's my choice to make]," Jenna stated.
"[I made a promise to Caja]," Khan reminded Jenna.
"[That doesn't work with me]," Jenna smiled as her voice grew warmer. "[How do you expect me to leave you on your own]?"
Khan reached for Jenna's cheek, and she snuggled in his palm. Her calm felt almost surreal when enemies were on their way, but Khan had yet to accept her decision.
"[I can't be an ally of the Nele if I use them to avoid dangers]," Khan explained. "[I must consider their interests]."
Jenna wanted to be stubborn. She knew that Khan couldn't change her mind unless she wanted to. She was even set on making up for Khan's selflessness, but the current situation was a bit complicated in that aspect.
Khan was being selfless in his desire to avoid problems for the Nele, but that decision might work in his favor in the long run. The Nele might start to see his pure intentions and finally accept him among their social array.
"[I want to fight at your side so badly]," Jenna complained while reaching for the hand on her cheek.
"[Hey, I'll be back in no time]," Khan reassured. "[Besides, I want to enjoy this alone]."
Khan didn't misuse his words, and Jenna didn't miss that. Khan's eyes revealed some excitement. He was looking forward to the imminent fight, and Jenna smiled at that sight.
"[I'll let you win this time]," Jenna eventually uttered.
"[Do you have a way to contact your species]?" Khan wondered. "[I don't know what will happen if you meet the group before reaching the district]."
"[Don't worry about me]," Jenna giggled before lifting her free hand and nearing it to her mouth.
Synthetic mana gathered in Jenna's palm until it gained pale shades. Jenna blew on that tiny, uneven sphere at that point, and the energy dispersed in the environment.
Khan kept his attention on the technique for the entirety of its duration. He could sense the request that Jenna made to the synthetic mana. She wanted it to convey a simple call for help that she sent in the direction of the Nele's district.
"[I'll think about suitable paybacks while you are away]," Jenna declared before hugging Khan.
"[I didn't expect anything less from you]," Khan laughed. "[Go now, and be safe]."
"[You too]," Jenna whispered before leaving Khan and turning in the district's direction. The main streets were the fastest way there, but she opted for some smaller ones.
Khan watched Jenna walk away and disappear in the distance before closing his eyes. The smell of the synthetic mana invaded his nose, but he went beyond that superficial sensation as his thoughts blended with his experience and perception.
The Orlats didn't give any detail about the incoming group, but common sense pointed toward an encirclement. Eventual bounty hunters would use their knowledge of the dock to close Khan's escape routes and ensure his capture.
The symphony played by the mana was far from peaceful. Multiple buildings and structures relied on that energy to function, creating different waves and colors. Still, none of them carried any notable power.
The dock could have many peculiarities, but its shifts were quite organized. Most crews busy with lesser tasks worked at the same hours. It was also quite late, so Khan guessed that the streets were empty.
The absence of interferences allowed Khan to stretch his sensitivity further and deeper than usual. Every unusual ripple in the symphony of mana carried greater meaning. The arrival of ships caused some of them, but the others were the result of incoming sources of interference.
‘They are indeed encircling me,' Khan concluded as the ripples grew closer and started to happen more often.
Khan opened his eyes, but his mind remained immersed in the mana. He couldn't see anything in his surroundings, but he felt that someone was coming. He couldn't count how many enemies were coming for him, but he knew they were all around him.
The Nele's district was on Khan's left, so he sprinted to his right. The best way to avoid an encirclement was to prevent its formation. He only had to clear one side of that tactic to turn the assault into a chase.
Unknown streets unfolded in Khan's eyes, but he pressed forward, and some figures eventually appeared in the distance. Two Orlats and a Fuveall were arguing next to the guardrail about the functioning of their screens. The two Orlats seemed angry at the Fuveall, but Khan's arrival made them drop the argument.
Khan wasn't easy to recognize during his sprints, but the distance and the trio's level fixed that problem. The two Orlats and the Fuveall were second-level warriors, and they didn't hesitate to drop their devices when they saw him running in their direction.
Time was short. Khan would reach the three aliens in a matter of seconds, but they didn't panic. The Fuveall crouched to seize something from a backpack standing at his side, and a series of sparks ran through the metal plates on his arm before he cracked it forward.
Dozens of small metal spheres flew toward Khan and released blue sparks once they touched the floor. Crackling noises took control of the street, and violent sensations invaded the symphony of mana, warning Khan about the potential danger of those items.
Khan felt forced to interrupt his sprint before those blue sparks. The synthetic mana shattered as soon as it came near those items, and Khan knew that the same would happen to him if he touched them.
The two Orlats had wielded their weapons in the meantime. Khan saw two rifles pointed at him, and azure light promptly came out of them. The aliens had pulled the trigger as soon as he stopped, but he had faced enough bullets not to fear them.
The bullets were a constant in a mess created by the sparks. Their trajectory was clear, and the same went for their power. They brought an order easy to track, and Khan followed its rhythm.
Khan leaped forward as soon as the mana bullets left the rifles. He flew above the blue sparks before tapping softly below. His feet only needed to touch the projectiles for his jump to gain new strength.
The Fuveall had taken a firing stance while the Orlats fired their guns. He had grabbed the metal plates on his left elbow while pointing that arm at Khan. Mana flowed through the altered limb until sparks crackled on its fingertips. The alien was ready to fire a spell, but Khan didn't follow the intended trajectory.
The Fuveall had waited for Khan to land on the sparks, but the second jump messed up his plans. The alien tried to lift his arm to point it back at Khan, but the latter was already above his head by then.
Khan spun in the air above the three aliens, and a purple-red spear shot out of him when he completed a rotation. The Fuveall retracted his mana and crouched at the sight of the incoming spell, and the Orlats instinctively tried to hide under him.
The chaos spear exploded, unleashing a pillar of mana that partially hit Khan and pushed him forward. The impact would have usually destabilized his descent, but he had been ready. The symphony had told him what to do.
The spinning motion allowed Khan to exploit the pushing force released by the spear. He landed on his feet, farther than anyone could expect, and mana flowed through his body as he prepared to run away.
However, two traces of mana seeped through the purple-red pillar and forced Khan to turn. The Fuveall and one of the Orlats jumped out of the violent energy to leave the spell's range. They had actually survived the chaos spear.
The two's condition was far from ideal. Implants filled the Fuveall's back, but most had crumbled, and blood had tainted them. As for the Orlats, the skin in her upper body had disappeared, leaving her bones in the open.
The Orlats immediately collapsed due to her injuries, but the Fuveall remained on his feet. Clanging noises came out of his body as the few working implants on his back moved to stabilize his posture.
Khan could sense the Fuveall's struggle through the amount of mana he used in the process. The alien was basically using spells to remain on his feet, but that didn't make him combat-ready.
"How many are after me?" Khan asked in the human language for fear of failing to mispronounce some words.
"I-If you spare my lif-," The Fuveall began to say, but a violent interference suddenly ran through the symphony of mana and forced Khan to jump ahead.
A whooshing noise ran behind Khan as he hid behind the Fuveall. The alien felt too weak to do anything, so Khan could peek past him to check where the attack had come from.
Khan had kept track of that sudden mass of mana moving at high speed through the air. He knew the general direction of the attack, but he didn't see anything from his position. The streets in his view were completely empty.
Another interference ran through the symphony of mana. Khan felt surprised to notice that the attack aimed at the exact center of his forehead. He didn't hear anything hinting at its arrival, but he knew it was coming.
Khan pushed the Fuveall in front of him before sprinting back in his original direction. The attack landed on the alien's back and came out of his chest, leaving a fist-sized hole. Blood and metal flowed out of the injury, and the Fuveall died in the next seconds.
‘A sniper,' Khan concluded as he continued to run.
Khan was too fast for that long-range weapon. A couple of shots tried to reach him, but he only needed to slow down or accelerate whenever the sniper attempted to predict his movements.
The street opened into a square with many branches. Some led to slightly messier areas, while others dived deeper into the lower parts of the dock.
Khan couldn't risk enraging even more people. The landing areas were off-limits, especially with the mess that was after him, so he followed the path that kept him on the surface even if the symphony advised against that.
After the square, Khan jumped into another main street, which turned out to have a tall figure at its end. A Bise taller than two meters was waiting for him. Voices came out of the screen at its feet, but the alien ignored them as it kept its dark eyes fixed on Khan.
A broader picture formed in Khan's mind. He didn't know enough about the dock to understand how common those events were, but he could guess that his enemies weren't newbies.
The screens hinted at some kind of thorough planning and experience. Moreover, there seemed to be multiple layers in that encirclement. Khan was moving too quickly for his enemies to catch up with him, which meant someone had always been stationed behind the first group.
The synthetic mana reacted oddly to the Bise. The alien felt like a bright beacon when Khan looked at it through his sensitivity. An insane amount of energy was flowing through its body and was pushing the synthetic mana away, hinting at the arrival of a massive attack.
Khan couldn't back away. The interferences in the symphony behind him had grown more frequent. He could almost hear the steps connected to those tremors. Enemies were in his pursuit, so he had to advance.
The Bise was a second-level warrior, but its presence was heavy. Khan felt that the mana coming out of its body could block the entire street. The alien's size and bulging muscles only worsened the scene. Khan could instantly understand that his opponent was strong.
Nevertheless, Khan's mind had no room for worries. Only the mana existed in his senses. He could feel the wall of energy standing in his path, and he knew that he could pierce it.
The Bise shot forward, and Khan accelerated. Purple-red light covered the second-grade knife, while a yellowish layer engulfed the alien and expanded to connect the two guardrails. The Bise even lowered its head to point its tiny horns forward and push the spell toward Khan.
The wall drew close. Each step of the Bise pushed the synthetic mana away and made the guardrails release creaking noises. Its spell was a raw and dense mass of energy moved forward by sheer strength, and Khan faced it head-on.
The Bise was too tall for Khan. He couldn't aim for a clean kill, but that was the last of his problems. The alien's spell was rudimentary, but it had accumulated enough mana to make its surface harder than steel.
The Divine Reaper could pierce anything, especially with Khan's mana anomaly. Yet, its techniques focused on small areas, and he had a whole wall to overcome.
Khan followed the flow of mana and let his body rotate according to its rhythm. He stabbed his knife at the Bise's left side before sliding to the floor and continuing his cut.
The knife pierced the yellowish membrane and opened a path where Khan could pass. However, the interference caused by his attack destabilized the mana past the firm surface, increasing its violence and surpassing Khan's expectations.
Khan had planned to jump on his feet as soon as he crossed the Bise, but the unexpected violence of the mana kept him on the floor and pushed him away. Actual winds fell on him, destabilizing his balance and preventing him from using his momentum efficiently.
A mere misstep could cause a disaster at that speed, and Khan experienced that. The slide transformed into an uncontrollable rotation that brought him left and right along the street.
Khan rolled on himself and crashed on the guardrails multiple times as he tried to retrieve his balance. He protected his head, but his back, shoulders, and legs hit violently on the floor and metal structures that prevented him from falling below.
The momentum eventually dispersed. Khan found himself at the end of the street with sore spots all over his body, but he was alive. Sadly, the same went for his opponent.
Khan could sense the familiar pressure rebuilding on the other side of the street. The Bise was preparing another attack, and Khan wouldn't face it again, at least not in those conditions.
Still, a tremor ran through the symphony and warned Khan about another incoming attack. The sniper had shot again, and he was in no position to escape its trajectory.
Khan stretched his right arm behind him in time to make the bullet land on his palm. Pain spread from his hand, and the impact pushed him away, but he didn't suffer any lasting injury. The [Blood Shield] had protected him.
Khan jumped on his feet to run again. He didn't know where he was going. He was only aware of what he was avoiding. The landing areas were off-limit, he had to dodge the sniper, and he had to escape the Bise chasing him with its mad charge.
Luckily for Khan, the group didn't seem to have a third encirclement. No more enemies appeared in front of him. Actually, unaware bystanders resumed filling the streets and became interested in the scene.
That interest waned as soon as the bystanders noticed the Bise and its mad charge. The wall of mana that it created was simply too big, and screams of fear and pain soon reached Khan's ears.
Khan didn't care about the dock's inhabitants. He even managed to relax after a while since his pursuers had no chance to catch up with him. He could focus entirely on the mana, but that only made him aware of the changes waiting for him.
Something was different in the areas before Khan. The environment was darker and filthier. No actual garbage filled the streets, but he felt that the very air had grown oily.
The symphony of the mana also changed. Strange sounds that Khan had never heard fused with the simple waves of the synthetic mana to announce the arrival into a different atmosphere.
The sniper began to fire like crazy. The person behind that weapon had always tried to make their shots count, but that behavior changed when Khan approached that new area.
Darker streets and buildings unfolded in Khan's vision. The style of the dock changed completely, and multiple strange influences occupied the areas, creating a unique symphony that carried deep tones.
Khan had an idea of the situation, but the path didn't give him alternatives. He had to press forward and enter that dark quadrant to find a way back, but his pace became erratic due to the many bullets flying in his direction.
Eventually, the sniper managed to synchronize the shot with the movement of Khan's legs. The bullet flew precisely toward where he was landing, but he only needed to duck, slide, or jump to avoid it.
However, a mass of energy suddenly flew out from a corner of a building and arrived at high speed before Khan. He didn't hear any sound of steps, but he couldn't deny what he was seeing. A two meters tall hooded figure had landed in front of him.
The sniper's shot landed inside the hood, but its light didn't illuminate its insides. Instead, a similar bullet with darker shades shot out of that opening and flew toward the attack's source.
Khan didn't move even if the Bise was still charging. He couldn't take his eyes off the hooded figure. He couldn't see anything about that person, but that was the only proof he needed. He had met a Tors.
