Skill Invoker System

St. Mary's Hospital

[4:21 PM]

The tension was high in the car as Drake pondered what his life would turn into.

"What do I do?" Drake murmured, worry creeping in.

"It takes time to actually turn into one of those. It takes at least 4-5 hours. It isn't as fast as they make it look in the movies," Elisa said, trying her best to make Drake concentrate on the mission ahead.

Drake's heart raced as fast as the car through the road laid in ruin.

The road was lonely, and as Drake drove, he avoided large cracks from an earthquake.

"We've seen hundreds of innocent people lying dead on the road ever since we left town, Elisa," Drake panted, his eyes reddening.

"I don't want to be part of what's causing this chaos. I can't bear to see myself turn into one of them," Drake murmured, his eyes focused on the road ahead.

"Nobody said you'll turn into them yet; it's just a theory from what I've researched," Elisa said, and Drake banged the steering wheel.

"But you've been right about every other research!" Drake said, slightly raising his voice in frustration.

"Don't you see it's inevitable?" Drake sighed.

At that moment, his eyes met a signboard showing the name of the street where the hospital was situated.

"We are here!" Elisa murmured, and Drake nodded. The street was deserted, not a single person was walking on the street.

Drake reduced the speed at which the car was going just so that he didn't miss the hospital.

"We have to be careful not to draw any attention from the zombies trying to break into the hospital now," Drake murmured.

"Not from afar; let's get close enough to them first, so we intrude by surprise," he said, and Elisa nodded.

"Who knows if they haven't succeeded in breaking in yet," she whispered, her thoughts racing through possibilities.

"I don't think so, I believe we made it on t—"

Spark!

Spark!

Drake's words got interrupted by the sudden sound they both heard.

"What was that?" Elisa asked, turning to Drake, who was also about to ask the same question.

"It sounds like electricity," Elisa murmured, and when they turned back to the road, their mouths fell in shock.

In a close distance from their car stood a figure, sizzling with something that looked like uncontrolled electrical current.

"Zeus..." they both muttered underneath their breaths.

Zeus raised his head and gained eye contact with them. Lightning sizzled at his fingertips, his eyes glowing red.

"You? How did you survive my power? I saw you die," Zeus said, pointing at Drake.

Zeus was gripped with shock, seeing Drake Miller in full flesh. The shock made the redness of his eyes dissolve to his normal eye color.

"I have no idea how you did it, and I don't want to know!" Zeus screamed across to them in the car.

Drake's hands clenched harder against the steering wheel, the memories of his first encounter with Zeus pulsing in his head.

"The only thing I would like to offer you two is a chance of survival against me," Zeus spouted across to them.

"Turn your car around and ditch every idea that tells you to go over to St. Mary's hospital. That task is mine and mine alone!" Zeus shouted, his hands buzzing with lightning.

"I could get the opportunity to unlock the god of fire after claiming your task and level up," Zeus said, his anger showing in his eyes.

With those words that Zeus uttered, Elisa's heart was beginning to beat faster as fear took over.

Drake smirked. His eyes were steady, and his composure was calm.

"Drake, Drake, listen to me..." Elisa whispered to Drake, but Drake's eyes were fixed on Zeus.

Drake wasn't paying any attention to her at all. The sight of Zeus ignited a dormant anger within him.

"Drake, please listen to me... This—This is what he does. This is how Zeus levels up. He feels his tasks aren't just enough for him, so he wants more," Elisa said with a shivering voice.

"So what are you saying, Elisa?" Drake asked, a smirk still playing on his lips as Zeus was warming up on how to strike the car with lightning.

"I'm saying we have to turn back like he said, now!" Elisa shouted, panic taking over her.

"You don't have to worry, I will turn back," Drake murmured, and Elisa heaved a sigh of relief.

But her sigh was short-lived when she heard these remaining words ending the sentence from Drake's mouth,

"Over my dead body..."

Drake smirked as Elisa froze in shock at his stubbornness.

Creak!

Drake stepped out of the car.

"Drake! You're going to get yourself killed," Elisa said, her heart throbbing in her chest as if about to erupt out.

"Zeus, the god-summoner. I heard you cheat on the system by claiming tasks that are not meant for you," Drake said, standing just beside the car.

"I guess she told you that already. She only escaped narrowly from my wrath, and if you don't do as I have commanded, you'll not only incur my wrath on yourself but on her too," Zeus said.

Zeus's heart was brimming with confidence and pride. His shoulders were high up.

"Now, turn around and run along like the little cockroach that you are," Zeus said, his voice deepening as he activated his god-mode.

"Maybe you should be the one running," Drake said, and Zeus scoffed.

"Now let's see about that," Zeus said, the next thing, the lightning on his fingertips grew stronger.

Zap!

A lightning ball with an overflow of charges propelled out of Zeus's fingers.

"You fool!" Zeus screamed as he watched the lightning ball shoot into the air towards Drake.

Instincts kicked in, and Drake tapped into his speed pack, which was remaining just 5%, and he raced out of the way of the lightning ball.

After racing off, Zeus could not locate him. The speed he used was incredibly fast that Zeus lost track of where he was.

"What just happened?" Zeus muttered, shock gripping him at what he saw Drake do.

"Where are you! You ran away with your speed? That's so coward of you," Zeus laughed.

"No, I didn't run, I'm right here," Drake said from behind him.

As Zeus turned around, he trembled seeing Drake Miller materialized from nowhere and landing a disastrous punch to his face.

Dumm!

It all happened with a speed Zeus could not comprehend. The impact of the punch cast him flinging in the air to hit his head on the bonnet of the car.

Elisa watched with mouth wide open in shock, surprise filling her eyes.

"Maybe you're the chicken in this game," Drake said with a smirk as he looked down on Zeus.

"Maybe you met me in my wrong state the first time. That wasn't me. This is who I am," Drake muttered as Zeus struggled to get up but couldn't.

Zeus groaned and rolled in pain.

"This task is mine, and there is nothing you can do to stop me," Drake said, with those words, he walked back into the car.

Zoom!

The car took off.

Soon, they reached a place where from afar, they could see the walls of St. Mary's hospital.

"Do you see that?" Elisa said in awe, almost absentmindedly.

There was a huge problem; zombies were parading the pavement leading to the gate.

As if that wasn't horrible enough, there were a lot of them banging at the front door to the hospital, trying to break in.