Evolving Infinitely From An E-Class Hero-Chapter 76: Stoping The Derrick

Almost like it was the creatures doing, the rain finally slowed down to a fine drizzle, but the armor was still thick with scent of sea salt.

I was still brimming with accomplishment in my lungs after acquiring the new title of "Master". I had no idea what would come with such a name but I was really excited to find out.

Tti-ring.

[Master...]

[+HP is at 50%] 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

[Initiating skill: Regenerate]

That familiar surge of sweetness drove through my spine and then to the rest of my body. The cuts and bruises on my face closed up to look good as new.

Tti-ring.

[Regeneration complete.]

Exhaled a long breathe. "It’s over," I muttered. "Finally."

But before I could savor the victory, a distant shape tore through the gray horizon, cutting through the storm’s tailwinds.

The Whistling Derrick.

Amit was moving unnaturally fast for its size and all the lights that were flickering on it had now died off.

At this speed, the cruiser looked like a missile aimed not at the sea, but at the shore itself. The massive hull churned the water into towering, ghostly waves and I could almost hear the metal groaning, ready to splinter upon impact.

My mind raced as I zoomed in on the ship, and to my surprise, the survivors were now on the deck and were completely exposed once the bow smashed into the beach.

And then, I saw her.

Lady Phoenix leapt from the rim of the ship. One moment she stood on the buckling deck, the next, she was airborne, with her arms spread wide. Her fiery wings unfurled behind her in a dazzling spread of red and gold. They crackled with energy, lighting up the gray sky.

She descended into the shallow surf with a crash that sent a pillar of seawater high into the air. The water rose to her breast, swirled around her as she planted her feet with a wide stance and her wings folding gracefully behind her like burning sails.

The Whistling Derrick thundered forward.

But Lady Phoenix did not budge.

Her palms pressed against the bow. Her fiery aura flared as she braced her entire body against the oncoming cruiser ship. I could see each muscle tense in her arms and legs.

"Now!" I cried out to her instinctively.

She did not respond with words, but with power.

Whoosh! A shockwave of energy pulsed from her wings, crackling through the water. The hull of the ship groaned loudly like they both were in a fierce battle.

Sparks erupted immediately dey made contact and then Lady Phoenix screeched backwards with her planted feet as the force of the ship pushed her backwards. She wouldn’t budge and pushed back with all her strength.

The seconds felt more like minutes but everly due to her incredible strength, she was able to push back at the ship till it came to a rest right on the loose sand of the beach. The ship’s prow sank into the sand, engines screaming until they finally wound down with a shudder. Then everywhere and everything fell silent.

By the stars... That was amazing... " I said to myself as I made a beeline for her position.

She brushed rain water from her face as her wings retracted into her back.

"Don’t even try to crash a ship into a beach again," she said with a low voice as she tried to steady her panting breathe.

Just then—

Chop!

Chop!

Chop!

Chop!

Chop!

Behind us, ISA helicopters and rescue craft made their way through the sky. Spotlights cut through the lingering mist.

The survivors’ aboard The Whistling Derrick shouts turned to cheers as they made their way down emergency chutes and life rafts, guided by armored medics and engineers.

I watched the first group of survivors scramble onto the beach. Mothers clutched children; old men brushed sand from their clothes. They waved at us, tears in their eyes as a sign of gratitude.

One by one, they were airlifted to safety.

I turned back to Lady Phoenix.

"Why, why did you jump?" I asked.

"Because the civilians were still up there. And because no one, no matter how fast—should ever hit the beach like that." She paused, surveying the landscape. "This mission isn’t over, you know."

She spotted the corpse of the airborne Calamity Creature which I had killed.

"You took care of it..." She said as she began walking over to where the creature lay still and lifeless.

"Tch! You took it’s fucking head off..." She said with a disgusted look on her face.

"Yeah well..."

"We definitely need to find out where this creatures are coming from and plug it!"

"I agree ma’am! This is the largest number ever seen at once... Three..." I replied.

"This one was the hardest I’ve fought against, the last one was fairly easy. But this one was really something... Like it was trained to be bigger, faster and alot smarter than the rest."

"Hold on... You’ve dealt with one of these before?" Lady Phoenix asked with a twiched eyebrow.

"Yes! Not too long ago. About a week or a couple days... You haven’t?"

"Nope... I mean they have been spotted in several Sectors across the globe alone but I haven’t been deployed to take care of any of them... Until now, that is..." She said.

"Yeah, it was a real dozzy... A warm up right after Golden Guardian attacked me..."

Lady Phoenix’s eyes shot at me upon uttering my last sentence. Her eyes grew wide with surprise and she furrowed her eyebrows inquisitively.

"What?"

"Yup!"

"Yes, Golden Guardian attacked me. I think he was in the area when the Calamity Creature attacked and he was dispatched to come save the day... But I was already at the scene and had already killed the Calamity Creature..."

"You’re joking... Jordan Smith... The number one superhero and the strongest amongst the Guardian Corps attacked you...?"

"Hand to heaven..."

"Then how the fuck are you still standing here breathing, standing and very much alive... Because as a member of the Guardian Corps myself, Jordan is more of a monster than a hero!"