Apocalypse System: I Evolve by Devouring Everything

Wake Up, Mutant!

"Don't pull the trigger yet, Bule! Look at his hands, there’s a weird light. I’m scared he’ll explode if you shoot him."

"Oh, come on, don't be a wuss, Kid! He's half-dead anyway. Look, his blood is black, not red. Must be radiation or something from that hole in the sky."

"I said shut up! Boss Baron wants this kid alive if he really caused that explosion. You know how much a 'mutant' is worth at HQ, right?"

Jonathan could hear the voices faintly through the loud ringing in his ears. His head felt like it had been smashed by a sledgehammer repeatedly. Through his blurry vision, he saw dirty boots covered in mud and blood.

"Hey, you hear me? Still alive?" One of them kicked Jonathan’s shoulder roughly.

"Damn it... I can't even move a finger. System, reboot faster!" Jonathan thought in frustration.

[Rebooting... 03:45...]

[Warning: Cellular Damage at 60%.]

[Combat Awareness Estimation: Low.]

"Looks like he passed out, Boss. Or in a coma? But his body is burning up, like he was boiled alive."

A large man with a bulletproof vest and a scorpion tattoo on his neck stepped forward. That was Baron. He took a deep drag of his cigarette and blew the smoke right into Jonathan’s face.

"Load him onto the truck. Use the steel chains in the back. No regular ropes, I’m not risking him waking up and going berserk like that monster."

"Got it, Boss! What about the girls? That one is pretty cute, good for entertainment back at base."

Baron glanced at Emma, who was still unconscious, then at Sienna, who was groaning as she woke up. "Take them all. What about the other guy... what's his name? The one in the crumpled suit?"

"Reymond, Boss. I checked his wallet, full of credit cards. Useless trash in this world."

"Shoot his leg and drag him. If he makes noise, cut his tongue out."

"N-no! Please don't kill me!" Sienna suddenly screamed, sitting up in panic. She looked around at the dried-up monster corpses and the armed men surrounding them. "I have money! I have jewelry! Take it all, just let me go!"

Baron laughed hoarsely, sounding like sandpaper rubbing together. "Money? Jewelry? Sweetie, haven't you looked at the sky? The world has changed. Your gold won't buy your life from those monsters."

"But... but I can be useful! I'm pretty, right? I'll do anything for you, just keep me safe!" Sienna crawled toward Baron, trying to use whatever charm she had left despite her dirt-streaked face.

"Sienna... you... you really are trash..." Reymond mumbled, having also regained consciousness. He clutched his trembling leg.

"Shut up, Rey! You can't even save yourself! We need to survive!" Sienna snapped. She then pointed at Jonathan lying on the ground. "That! He's the one you want, right? He has weird powers! Take him, but let me join you!"

"Wow, nice. The girl is selling him out herself," Baron's subordinate, Kancil, chuckled mockingly. "What do you think, Boss? Bonus 'maid'?"

Baron smirked, then grabbed Sienna’s hair roughly. "Smart girl. Fine, you come with me. But if you try anything funny, I'll feed you to the monsters out there as an appetizer."

"Thank you, Boss! Thank you!" Sienna cried in relief, completely ignoring Jonathan and Reymond.

"Jon... Jonathan..." Emma’s weak voice called out. She was waking up and saw Jonathan being dragged by two thugs. "Let him go! Where are you taking him?!"

"Oh look, a wannabe hero. Shut up, Kid!" Bule aimed his rifle barrel at Emma’s forehead. "Want a hole in your head?"

"Don't hurt her!" Emma tried to crawl, but Kancil kicked her stomach, making her cough violently.

"Emma... run..." Jonathan whispered. His voice was barely audible, drowned out by the truck engine starting up.

[Rebooting... 01:20...]

[Alpha Authority Detected...]

[Initiating Emergency Neural Repair...]

"One more minute. I just need one minute." If the system failed this time, his body would crumble before he could wake up. Jonathan closed his eyes, focusing his remaining consciousness on the pulse of energy starting to flow back into his fingertips.

"Alright, toss this Jon-Jon in the back! We need to move before the next monster wave hits. I hear roaring from the city center." Baron barked orders.

Two thugs lifted Jonathan and threw him onto the open truck bed like a slab of meat. Steel chains were wrapped around his wrists and ankles so tight they cut into his skin.

"Crazy, this guy is heavy. His muscles are hard as iron, Boss!" Bule exclaimed.

"That's why I said he's not human anymore. Hurry up!"

The truck started moving, crushing debris and corpses littering the road. In the back, Jonathan lay next to the bound Emma, while Sienna sat in the front seat with Baron, trying to flirt her way into safety.

"Jon... are you okay?" Emma whispered, tears rolling down her cheeks. "I'm sorry, I couldn't fight them."

"Emma... cover... your ears..." Jonathan whispered, his eyes suddenly snapping open.

His pupils were no longer black, but glowing dark purple in the darkness of the truck bed.

[Reboot Complete.]

[Synchronization: 30% (Stable).]

[Alpha Predator Mode: Active.]

[New Task: Clean Up the Trash Around You.]

"Hey, look! His eyes are glowing! Boss, the mutant is awake!" Kancil shouted from the back.

"Huh? Seriously?" Bule turned around and immediately cocked his gun. "Hey, don't move! I'll blow your head off if you try anything!"

Jonathan didn't answer with words. He took a deep breath, feeling a flow of energy far purer than before. The pain hadn't fully vanished, but now it was fuel for his rage.

"What did you say? Blow my head off?" Jonathan smirked. His voice sounded double, like two people speaking at once.

"Don't get cocky! Die!" Bule pulled the trigger.

BANG!

The bullet flew, but before it touched Jonathan’s forehead, a hand wrapped in purple light caught it in mid-air.

"Impossible..." Bule stared, his hands shaking. "You... you caught a bullet?"

"My turn."

CRACK!

Jonathan ripped the steel chains binding his hands as if they were plastic. The chains shattered. In a flash, Jonathan was in front of Bule. He grabbed the thug's neck and lifted him high.

"Help! Boss! Help me—"

SNAP!

Bule’s neck broke instantly. Jonathan tossed the corpse out of the speeding truck.

"What's happening back there?!" Baron shouted from the cabin, slamming the brakes so hard everyone was thrown forward.

Jonathan leaped onto the truck roof, smashing the windshield with his foot. He stared directly at Baron and the screaming Sienna.

"Sienna, who did you say you wanted to follow?" Jonathan asked coldly.

"J-Jon... Jonathan, I... I was forced! I swear! I just wanted to get help for you!" Sienna tried to lie again, her voice trembling uncontrollably.

"Your lies aren't funny anymore." Jonathan reached into the cabin and dragged Baron out by his collar through the window.

"Let go of me, you freak! I have an army! You'll be hunted till you die!" Baron tried to stab Jonathan’s arm with a combat knife, but the blade snapped against Jonathan’s evolved skin.

"Hunt me? Go ahead. But you won't see tomorrow."

Jonathan slammed Baron onto the asphalt, then jumped down. He stomped on Baron’s chest until his ribs cracked one by one.

[Absorption Initiated...]

[Draining Target Vitality...]

[Evolution Points: +10... +15...]

"AAAAAAHH! MERCY! MERCY!" Baron’s screams echoed through the empty street.

Baron’s other men, including Kancil, tried to shoot Jonathan from a distance, but he just waved his hand. A small gravitational wave from his imperfect Alpha Domain hit them, causing the bullets to veer off course and hit the shooters instead.

"You're all... just nutrients to me," Jonathan said, walking toward the bleeding Kancil.

Sienna scrambled out of the truck, trying to run into a dark alley, but Jonathan appeared in front of her in a blink. His speed was illogical.

"Going somewhere, Honey?"

"Jon, please... forgive me... I'll do anything! I'll be your slave, please!" Sienna prostrated at Jonathan’s feet, hugging his shoes in panic.

"Slave? I don't need traitors in my kingdom." Jonathan lifted Sienna’s chin with a cold finger. "But I'll let you live. So you can watch from the bottom, how I conquer this world while you remain trash fought over by lowlifes."

Jonathan shoved Sienna until she fell. He turned back to the truck, where Emma was staring at him with mixed feelings—fear, but also awe.

"Emma, let's go. We can't stay here."

"Jon... you've changed so much," Emma whispered as Jonathan snapped her bindings with a flick.

" The world forced me to change, Em. From now on, trust no one but me. Understand?"

Emma nodded slowly. Jonathan led her away from the burning truck. But just as they took a few steps, Jonathan’s system flashed a blood-red warning filling his entire visual field.

[CATASTROPHE LEVEL WARNING!]

[Underground Anomaly Detected!]

[Alpha Synchronization Reaching Resonance Point with Planetary Core!]

[Threat: 'The Great Mother' Awakening!]

The ground beneath them suddenly exploded upward. Not an earthquake, but something massive trying to break out. A giant tentacle the size of a school bus emerged, crushing whatever remained of the street.

"What is that?!" Emma screamed, clutching Jonathan’s arm.

Jonathan stared at the countless tentacles erupting from every corner. In the center of the massive hole, a giant eye appeared, staring straight at him.

[Main Mission Updated: Protect Genetic Core or the Entire City Will Explode in 10 Minutes.]

[Status: Current Alpha Power Only at 12% of Minimum Requirement.]

Jonathan clenched his fist until it bled. "Ten minutes? You kidding me, System?!"

Suddenly, from the darkness of the tentacles, a figure emerged that Jonathan knew very well. The figure stood on one of the tentacles, eyes glowing bright red, face identical to... Jonathan himself.

"Hello, Failed Version," the figure spoke mockingly. "Thanks for opening the gate for me."

Jonathan froze. The figure wasn't just similar—it was wearing the exact same clothes Jonathan wore when he got fired yesterday.

"Who the hell are you?!" Jonathan shouted.

"Me? I'm who you were supposed to be... if you hadn't gotten that trash system." The figure raised a hand, and suddenly all the tentacles shot toward Jonathan at once.

"Die, Thief!"

Jonathan only had time to push Emma away—

BOOOOM!!

The street was swallowed by thousands of tons of flesh and fangs.

Dust consumed everything.