Three weeks later. Nevada.

A black SUV drove down Highway 92, a speedway that stretched across the entire state of Nevada. The SUV was driving fast, really fast, but no one was really there to complain or even call the cops. After all, Highway 92 wasn’t one of the roads that people take too often. Even the State troopers or the Rangers rarely did any patrol along this road.

Finally, after around forty minutes of driving, the highway led the SUV into a rag-tagged town. At first glance, the town looked abandoned. Most of its buildings were barely standing, and dust covered the road. The SUV, however, wasn’t bothered by that. Instead, it swirled around and headed toward one of the most intact buildings left. A bar.

There wasn’t any real parking lot around here, so the SUV came to a stop in front of the bar beside a few pickup trucks. The car door was pushed open, and a young woman stepped out of the vehicle. She wore a dark leather jacket and a pair of jeans, along with a pair of sports shoes on her feet. Her brown hair was in a short pixie haircut. Even as she turned to the bar, she had an intrigued smile on her face. Most smiles were warm, but the one on her cheeks...for some reason, it just felt haunting.

She pushed the bar’s door open and walked inside.

A glance across the building told the girl there were five men inside. One of them was the bartender, with the other four being guests who were sitting around the same table. All of them snapped to the girl as she entered, their expressions far from friendly. None of them said a word as the girl casually walked to and sat down at the counter.

“Howdy!” She waved at the bartender, who reluctantly walked over. For a man of his career, he looked oddly serious, but the girl wasn’t discouraged. “How are you doing there, my friend? My name is Katie Lockwood. Nice to meet you!”

“How can I help you?” The bartender demanded impatiently. Katie Lockwood? Who’s that?

“Right to the point. I like it.” Katie smiled and reached into her jacket. The bartender’s eyes widened. His hand darted to below the counter and held onto a rifle. Thankfully, as Katie pulled her hand out, it was holding onto a piece of paper.

“Ok...let’s see. Over the past three months, around thirty people have disappeared along this highway. Let’s see...a few students. Two pairs of couples. A reporter. Two private investigators. Oh...look at that! A squad of Rangers went on the highway to investigate the disappearances and never returned!”

She looked up at the bartender and stared into his eyes, searching for the slightest clue.

“Do you know anything about this?”

“Who are you? Police? FBI?” The bartender heard the question, and he wasn’t pleased. “I don’t like what you’re implying. You think I, what, killed all those people?”

His voice was vaguely threatening.

“Well…” Katie shrugged and ran her finger down her new haircut. “To be honest, a murderous bartender is hardly the weirdest thing I have seen. Not even close, in fact. Actually, to be completely honest, I’ll be really, really disappointed if you’re just another murderous psychopath.”

“Ok, that’s enough.” Once again, Katie’s dark sarcasm didn't please the bartender. “If you think I killed those people, then, by all means, arrest me. Otherwise, get out of my bar. I don’t have time to waste on games like these.”

He tried to leave, but before he could turn away, Katie reached out with lightning speed and grabbed onto his wrist. He snapped back and struggled, pulling against Katie with all his strength, but Katie just wouldn’t budge.

“One of the people that went missing two days ago is just a boy...ok, an old boy, but a boy nonetheless! He just finished high school! Please...his parents are so worried about him. They’ll do anything to get him back!” She pleaded sincerely before cracking a wide smile. “There. I asked nicely with a tearful plea. Are you feeling more talkative now?”

The bartender finally broke free of Katie’s grip. This time, he reached under the counter and pulled out a rifle, distinctly aiming at Katie.

“Get out. Now!”

The other four men in the bar stood up as well.

Katie sighed, but she made no attempt to leave. “Well...I guess I tried playing it nice. Let the record show that I’ve tried! What record? How should I know? Either way...all I’m trying to say is...” She glanced at a closed door on the side. “Is it really the best idea to keep your prisoners this close to the front of the bar? I mean...what if the prisoners manage to make a sound when an outsider is here?”

The five men in the bar froze. Two of them glanced at the closed door. Was there any sound? How come they didn't hear anything? But as they turned back, it became clear that this wasn’t going to end peacefully.

One of the men locked the door. It was a decision he would deeply regret later.

The bartender lowered his head and sighed. “Look, girl...why? Why not just act like nothing happened and run? We were going to let you go for now and hunt you down later...why are you so urgent to die?”

He raised his rifle and took aim at Katie, who simply closed her eyes and left some instructions. “Go ahead. Just...please don’t aim at my hair. I spent a while getting this haircut, and I really like it…”

The next second, a string of bullets ravaged across Katie’s chest. The rounds of the assault rifle send the girl falling back to the wall, her blood splattering all over the floor. The bartender lowered his rifle, expecting this drama to be over.

But just like everything with Katie, this wasn’t over. Not even close.

“Really? A psycho murderer with rifles? Grab a machete or a chainsaw or something! You’re such a disgrace to all the killers out there!” Leaning against the wall, Katie growled while splitting the blood out of her mouth. “You know when I said I would be disappointed if it’s just an ordinary murderer? I wasn’t kidding!”

The bullets were still in Katie’s body, but she didn't care about them at all. If anything, she enjoyed their presence. Slowly, getting back up, she stretched her arms and pulled out a knife from her pocket. This sight alone was enough to frighten the five men enough to back off. “So, boys, if there’s anything else y’all can do, better do it now, cause when I get to stabbing time...it’s not gonna end well for you.”

The five men exchanged a glance before suddenly taking in a deep breath all at once. And then, all of them, including the bartender, started screaming. Katie frowned and looked down at her Knife. I haven’t even started with them yet...but her confusions were quickly relieved as, in front of her, the five men started to transform.

Claws replaced hands. A layer of carapace covered their skin. Even their eyes, noses, and ears were all transformed, granting them heightened senses. In just moments, they went from ordinary human beings to fierce predators.

Well...not Dark Pantheon Predators, but just predators in general.

But Katie wasn’t too worried about them as opponents. Instead, as she stared at the pieces of broken clothing on the ground, destroyed when the men transformed, she suddenly wanted to cry. Finally! Finally, someone that can understand my pain! Do you know how annoying it is to buy new clothes after every fight?

Using this moment of distraction, the five men struck. The first man tackled Katie and pinned her to the ground. His claw dug through Katie’s stomach, disemboweling her with a single move.

The next second, a branch darted out of the wound and went straight through the man’s skull, killing him.

“Oh, we’ve begun? I didn't notice...” Katie whispered as she got back up as if nothing happened. If her healing took two seconds longer, then her guts would be on the ground by now.

The four men exchanged a glance. Even in this state, they could still think, but perhaps right now they wished they couldn’t. What was the thing that came out of this woman? Some sort of plant? Also...why would she have a plant in her body? And she was just cut open! Were they dreaming or something?

Honestly, the fact that her branches killed the transformed man in one single strike surprised Katie as well. Although most of the boost she received from pain would disappear after a while, a portion of that energy would remain with her forever. For now, this energy would passively permanently reinforce her powers, including by nurturing the Branches in her body. It wasn’t a huge boost, but it was still rather impressive and made her a lot more powerful than she was weeks ago.

At this point, the four men knew very well this wasn’t going to end too well for them. This girl wasn’t the ignorant journalist or police officer they first thought she was. She wasn’t even a murderous psychopath looking for prey in the wild. She was a fellow supernatural being, and by the looks of it, a powerful one at that.

The bartender glanced at his three comrades, and instantly, a plan was formed. The man turned and ran toward the back of the bar as the other three men charged at Katie with their claws and teeth ready.

“You people are so boring to fight against! Can you not talk or something?” The brunette complained as she raised her weapon. Would it kill for you to say a thing or two? Maybe some curses or choice words? What’s the point of fighting if you don’t have the chat function open?

The first man leaped across the air with the intent to feast, only to be grabbed by Katie by the throat. With one hand holding the man in place, Katie raised her Knife in the other hand and started repeatedly stabbing the man in the face. Once. Twice. Ten times. Twenty. The entire time, as the man screamed and spilled green blood across the bar, Katie just kept striking. Nothing could stop her. The other two men literally pulled her apart limb by limb, only for her to be hell-bent on killing the first man.

Attack someone else? Defend herself? Nah...also, could she have used the Branches? Sure, but that would end things way too quickly!

Finally, after a full minute of gruesome and targeted slaughter, the first man finally drew his last breath. Even as he died, his yellow eyes stared down at Katie. What did I ever do to you to warrant this level of hatred? Try stabbing someone else from time to time! Why me...

And then, bathing in the green blood of her victim, Katie turned to the second man. This time, the man realized what was going to happen, and he turned around, ready to flee. Unfortunately, he didn't do so in time as Katie grabbed onto the back of his neck and yanked him back. She would’ve taken her time with him, but with the corner of her eyes, she saw the third man going for the door, trying to flee.

Damn traitor! Or is he a coward since he didn't really betray anyone? Doesn’t matter! I hate both! Katie whispered to herself as she killed the second man with a branch through his remaining eye.

The third man was stuck in a somewhat ironic situation. He tried to go out the door, but he locked the same door just moments ago, and using claws to open locks, well...the most interesting thing was that after spending five precious seconds trying to open the lock with his claws, the man suddenly realized one thing. Wait! I’m a beast with fucking claws! I can break through the wooden door easily!

And then, just as he was about to charge into the door, he felt a Knife cutting through his left leg, piercing the carapace there easily. This sharp pain was followed by a scorching sensation. As he looked down, the third man found a knife through his leg, but...how? Even the shotguns and rifles of the Rangers could barely break through his carapace! What do you mean a random knife can dissect me?

Unfortunately, that question would have to remain unanswered. Katie pinned him to the ground and started carving him apart piece by piece. The third man did his best to resist. His claws slashed across the woman mounted above him, cutting through her chest and belly alike and raining her blood and flesh onto the floor. But before the man could take a breath of relief, he realized a horrifying fact: this only made the girl more excited! And...wait, what’s she doing? She’s digging the knife under his carapace...she wants to flay him alive!

As the cold blade cut through his body and stripped away his carapace piece by piece, the third man feels his mind fading away. Distinctly, he could hear countless screams, all of which he recognized. These were screams of all his victims.

He heard the screams of the couple that he ambushed when they tried to leave the bar. He heard the screams of a young woman who he tore limb from limb. He heard the screams of the Rangers sent to investigate all the disappearances that he and the rest of his kind attacked and added to the missing person’s list. He heard their horrific cries. Their curses. Their prayers. Their begging.

And then, everything went black. Katie removed his head altogether and tossed it across the bar like it was a basketball.

Following the last kill, Katie turned to the side. There, the bartender emerged from the back of the bar. Behind him was a beast standing over two meters tall. It looked very much like what the bartender and the others transformed into, just larger and scarier.

As soon as it entered the front of the bar, the beast looked at Katie, and then at the bodies on the ground. Let’s see...four dead in less than a minute...can I even do that? No? So this girl is more powerful than me? Ok...have a good day, Miss! This bar is yours!

Just like that, Katie watched speechlessly as the terrifying beast turned around and disappeared from the halls of the bar without a moment of hesitation.

“That’s...wise of him.”