THE REN UPGRADE: MONSTERS WITHIN

11: Dragon Lore

The bikers thought they could take him. But they were very wrong. 

As they readied their firearms, Ren moved like lightning. They were determined to kill him, but the bullets did not stop him, even though they rained non-stop. 

This gathered the attention of passersby. How could a man withstand a rain of bullets into his body? Why would anyone do this in broad daylight? 

Phones were swiped out, cameras rolled into the action. 

Ren channeled the basic phase of his Okdu training in a split second. He took one power flight in the air and sent his foot flying into the firearms. CRACK! CRACKKKK! All three flew out of the grasps of the alarmed bikers. 

A collective gasp rose from the audience. 

Descending, Ren slammed into the first biker with a roar of rage. Taking the other two with him. He knocked them into the interlocked floor of the sidewalk. SLAM!

Their bikes crashed to the floor. THUD!

“You dare disrupt my moment with the damsel!” he roared, reaching for the nearest lamppost. 

The stupefied bikers watched with wide eyes as Ren began to root it out. CREAKKK! SNAP! 

He pulled it from the ground in one clean move. 

Gasps of surprise drifted from the onlookers who had gathered at a safe distance. Murmurs rented the air. 

“Who in hell is that man?”

“Did you just see him pull that metal stuff from the ground?”

“Holy shite! How strong can he be? Look at those arms!”

Another teenage girl stared at Ren with stars exploding in her eyes. “Oh my God!” she exclaimed. “He's so dreamy!” 

Ren lifted the lamppost in the air, his eyes blazing hot. The bikers immediately scrambled to their feet and bolted. 

“That's right!” He yelled, breaking the lamppost in two. SNAP! He bolted after them. “YOU BETTER RUN!” He grunted as his limbs powered after the bikers like lightning. 

It became an intense game of chase. A big fiery cat after the tiny mice. And these mice? They seemed to be skilled killers as well. They were fast on their feet, scaling signage frames and moving up high-rise buildings like it was an easy feat. JUMP! 

Helicopter blades whirred in the distance. The bikers increased their pace, running towards the nearest rooftop. “GO, GO, GO!”

But the nearest rooftop had a locked door blocking their access. 

“SHIT! SHIT!” They cursed as they tried to break down the door. CRACK! BLAM! WHAM! 

Behind them, Ren was quickly closing the distance, powering like a beast. His arms bulged with thick, angry veins. Red-hot fire blazed in his eyes. 

He was a terror to behold. The bikers were desperate to get away from him. 

With a roar, they rammed their shoulders into the door and SNAP! They burst through the rooftop, the cold wind slapped them hard in the face. 

They immediately scrambled to their feet and ran towards the hovering helicopter, fighting against the wind that threatened to push them off the rooftop. 

Meanwhile, behind them, Ren was taking his time. Feeding them the illusion of escape while the wrath built like a storm inside him.

“COME ON!” Their colleague on the helicopter howled at them. “GET CLOSER!”

The blades hovered close to the ground now. The bikers raced towards the entrance. Their counterpart offered his arm, snapping his fingers to hasten them up. 

As the last of them caught onto the helicopter, Ren dove straight into him. He caught his ankle and flipped him upside down. 

AARGH! The wind carried the man’s wail of agony. 

At the same time, Ren caught the door handle. GRAB! And he jumped into the helicopter, tossing the man by his ankle. CRASH!

“Stay back!” The men cried, scrambling away from him. The counterpart grabbed his gun and fired a few shots into Ren’s back. 

Hissing in rage, Ren whirled and snatched the gun from him. GRAB! Then he sent it flying into his face! Left. Right. Center. SMASH! CRACK! WHAM!

The man doubled over to his knees and hit the floor with a plonk, a bloody mess.

“RAHH!” Ren weaved his fingers through his long hair, panting hard. “I’ve missed a good fight.”

Then, he whirled and fired the gun. CRACK! BAM! BAM! The bullets sliced into each of their thighs and shoulders. The men screamed in pure anguish, trying to get away from his rampage. 

When he was satisfied, Ren stopped and dropped into one of the seats. “Tell me. Who sent you bastards?”

They glared at him as they tried to stem the blood pumping out of their wounds. 

Ren heaved a deep sigh and got to his feet. He paused in front of the first man, hanging over him like a shadow of ruin. “You know,” his hand shot out like a viper and wrapped around the man's throat, “you might want to start talking.” He forced the gun through the man's lips and cocked it. The man's cries echoed around the metal in a muffled sound. 

“Unless you want to get off this ride,” Ren added in a lower, menacing tone.

“No, Suki!” One of the others screamed, scrambling forward. “No, no, no! Please, let him go! I-I'll tell you!”

Ren nodded slowly, a satisfied smirk painting his lips. “That's more like it. Go on, spill.”

“We were contacted by an anonymous source to take you down. The bounty's 100 million.”

“Ah,” Ren scoffed, pushing the gun further down the man's throat. He looked like a man completely out of his wits. “That's not what I want to know. Tell me who sent you after me.”

“We don't know! I swear!” 

“Heh!” Ren cocked the gun again, and the man at his mercy whimpered, weeping like a child. “That's too bad. I was hoping to walk away from this without spilling a drop of blood.”

“Wait! P-Please… We can track them! I promise.”

“Then fucking do it. You've wasted enough of my time.”

“I-I just need to get my laptop.” 

Ren released the gun and stepped away from the man. Then, he spread his arm in an open gesture. “Go on, then.”

The man tried to limp to his feet, but one of his tendons was severed. He groaned in pain, rolling over on his sides and back and pushing himself towards the bag that held his laptop. 

“C-Can I ask?” he stammered through the pain, watching Ren with eyes wide with fear. 

Ren cocked his head, observing the man with bored interest. “It better not piss me off.”

The man swallowed a lump as he reached for his bag. “W-What are you? The bullets… We shot you! Yet…”

Ren threw his head back in a deep chuckle. “I'm not from your world, human. Neither am I from your time. You think your little bullets can stop me? I am the origin of that tiny firecracker!”

*****

Minutes later, the helicopter was seen dropping low into a large courtyard lined with perfectly trimmed palms and carpeted runways.

Ren stepped off the helicopter and went straight to the large house. Guards came at him. He dropped each one of them. He keyed into his martial energy, connecting palms and fingers to critical cores and setting their insides ablaze. 

When he finally made his way into the house, Colin Reeves stood there with a gun wobbling in his fingers. “Stay back!”

Ren observed the infamous son of the former hospital director for a moment. Then, he chuckled quietly. “So, it was you? What were you thinking, coming after me? You're just a tiny squeaky rat who—”

CRACK! BAM! Colin fired aimlessly, hitting the floors and walls. “I'm not a squeaky rat, you asshole!”

In the blink of an eye, Ren breezed through the space and grabbed his throat. 

“ARGHHH!” Colin screamed as fire instantly seared into his skin. “Stop! I'm sorry! Let me go!”

“Give me one reason why I should spare you, Colin Reeves,” Ren snarled in his face. “And you better make it quick.”