Ep 4
The next morning found Seth leaning against the rusted rail of an abandoned overpass, watching the city wake up beneath a sky the color of bruised steel.
Sleep had barely touched him. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw fragments: broken faces, crumbling walls, whispering shadows beckoning from the corners of forgotten streets.
His blood thrummed with something wild. Like a drumbeat growing louder inside his chest.
He wasn't sure how long he stood there before he noticed — far below, near the shattered remains of a tram station — a group gathering.
Not ordinary people.
Even from this distance, Seth felt it — that distortion in the air, that ripple of wrongness.
Three figures. Hooded. Moving too smoothly, too silently.
And in their midst — a boy. No older than Maia would have been.
The boy looked terrified.
Cornered.
Seth felt the ancient hunger awaken in him — the instinct to intervene, to protect, to destroy the predators.
His fists clenched at his sides.
His jaw locked.
Seth didn't move.
He calmed his breathing and stayed pressed against the cold railing, watching them.
He needed to understand who they were first.
He had to know what was happening before unleashing something he might not be able to stop.
Under the dim light, he saw one of the figures — taller, with an almost reptilian movement — lean toward the boy, saying something Seth couldn't hear from a distance.
The boy shook his head desperately, trying to pull away.
One of the others reached out... and for a moment, the reality around them seemed to tremble, as if the air itself was trying to reject that touch.
Transformers, Seth realized.
Humans — or not quite humans — capable of shaping or corrupting the essence of others.
They weren't official Saviors. These operated in the shadows.
Hunters of living flesh.
Of untapped potential.
Seth descended silently on the cracked concrete stairs, letting the shadows consume him.
He slinked between the rusted pillars of the bridge, getting closer to the group without losing focus.
Every step was calculated.
Every breath, measured.
When he got close enough, he felt the pulsation of that strange presence again — corrupted, viscous, almost repellent.
The creatures continued their ritual, completely ignoring him. The boy was trapped in a circle drawn with a glowing substance, faintly vibrating in the damp air.
Seth clenched his jaw.
He couldn't just charge at them.
He had to be quick. Decisive.
In one fluid motion, Seth tore a piece of rubble free and threw it with mathematical precision at a streetlamp above the group.
The glass exploded with a sharp crack, and the light went out.
In the sudden darkness, Seth sprinted toward the boy.
In an instant, he felt the power awakening inside him — that smoldering flame deep within his being.
But he didn't let it erupt. Not yet.
He grabbed the boy's arm and, with a force that wasn't natural for him, pulled him out of the energy circle.
The creatures screamed once, twice — a thick sound, like metal scraping stone.
Seth didn't look back.
He ran, keeping the boy close, darting through the city's ruins like a ghost carried by the wind.
Behind him, he heard their footsteps. Heavy, fast, inhuman.
He cursed mentally.
He couldn't distance himself too much.
Not yet.
Seth ran, feeling the boy shivering in his arm like a leaf in a storm.
The footsteps of the pursuers grew closer.
Too fast.
Too close.
And then, somewhere between the irregular beats of his heart, something broke.
The ancient instinct, as deep as another life carved into his bones, awakened.
There was no time for reasoning. No time for fear.
With a deep sigh, Seth let the inner fire burst forth.
The air around him stretched like a thin membrane — and then cracked.
His skin darkened, taking on a subtle shade of burnt ash.
And his eyes — his eyes — now glowed with an incandescent violet, like two dying stars.
His fingers elongated slightly, hardening, and in his palms, a raw force began to pulse, capable of breaking bones like dust.
The boy in his arms trembled, but Seth held him carefully, protecting him.
Behind them, the hunters stopped suddenly, as if an invisible hand had frozen their feet to the asphalt.
They felt it.
They felt what had awakened before them.
A low, disgusted growl echoed in the dark.
One of them, the tall one with snake-like movements, ripped off his hood, revealing a face torn by black veins and a mouth full of jagged teeth.
— Apex... hissed the creature with hatred and hunger.
It wasn't just recognition.
It was fear.
Seth clenched his jaw and felt another wave of power flowing through every fiber of his being.
But he stopped before losing complete control.
It wasn't the time to show himself fully.
Not today.
With one last burst of strength, Seth jumped onto the low roof of an abandoned building, the boy still protected in his arms.
From above, he watched as the hunters hesitated, then disappeared into the shadows of the city, choosing to retreat.
This was just the beginning.
Seth breathed heavily, letting the boy down for the first time since he had saved him.
Now, for the first time, he could look at him clearly.
The boy had large, green eyes, like a rain-soaked leaf.
He was dirty, dressed in torn clothes, but his gaze still held a glimmer of hope.
— What's your name? Seth asked, his voice rougher, harsher than it had ever been.
The boy hesitated for a moment, then, with a hint of courage:
— Lucas.
Seth looked at Lucas for a long, heavy moment.
The boy was shivering from the cold and fear, but in his eyes still burned a sliver of trust. In Seth. In the unknown that had saved him without asking for anything in return.
Seth inhaled deeply, feeling his Apex instinct demanding something else — fight, hunt, destruction.
But no.
Not yet.
He gently leaned down and placed his hand on the boy's shoulder.
— Come on. I'll take you to a safe place.
Lucas nodded without saying a word.
They walked quickly, slipping through side streets, avoiding surveillance cameras and brightly lit areas.
Every step was calculated. Every corner suspicious.
After twenty minutes, Seth arrived at an old block with chipped plaster and the entrance door barely hanging on its hinges.
Victor's apartment was on the third floor.
Seth quickly climbed the stairs, the boy pressed to him, and knocked on the door in three short rhythms.
Victor opened almost immediately.
His face tightened at the sight of Seth, darker, wilder than he knew him — and then he lowered his gaze to the boy.
— What the hell...?
— Victor, I need you, Seth said, in a tone that left no room for refusal.
Victor stepped back, allowing them to enter.
The apartment smelled of old coffee and clothes drying on the radiator. It was small, messy, but warm.
Lucas stepped inside, pressing himself against the wall like a wild animal, restless, but unwilling to run.
Seth turned to Victor, looking him in the eye.
— Take care of him. Just for a few hours. He's... important.
Victor seemed like he wanted to ask a thousand questions, but stopped, reading the seriousness in his friend's gaze.
— Fine. He stays with me. But where are you going?
Seth turned toward the door.
— To find those who hunted him.
Without adding anything else, Seth stepped into the night, leaving the warmth of the apartment behind and stepping back into the darkness.
The hunt had only just begun.