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Lieutenant Johnmark tried to trigger the shield generator that was installed in his brown military attire, but it didn't work!

'What?' This Lieutenant thought as his heart skipped a beat while his eyes widened. 'Is it a virus…? He has a NetRunner ally!'

He realized why.

Over the years as the world developed post-Genesis, technology developed and one of the pioneers of advanced technology were shield generators. Not any mechanic could handle them, only Mechanists could.

They're a result of Advanced Energy Science and Projection Technology.

They're energy-focused technology, not mechanical meaning Mechanists implemented neural technology to enhance their workings. This is why an Ascended can trigger his shield generator with a single thought.

By implementing neural technology in a shield generator's design, a Mechanist can make its workings more efficient for clients but at the same time, it comes with a risk… NetRunners.

Mechanists simply harness technology to access the psionic network, but NetRunners? They were born in the psionic network.

They live, breath, and eat neural and psionic technology for breakfast.

This was why the moment he failed to activate the shield generator that was installed in his military attire, Lieutenant Johnmark immediately suspected the meddling of a NetRunner.

He realized but it was already too late.

The bomb detonated!

BOOM!

The entire front side of the Coach rocked as thick orange flames spread, engulfing the Lieutenant and making the metal door rapidly expand then contract with a loud sound.

The heat and force compressed the double doors in, squeezing them!

The flames didn't stop there as they also engulfed a few of the passengers who were close to the front, instantly burning them to death.

As for the terrorist, he managed to slip away from the range of the explosion just as it detonated.

Compared to Leon's jury-rigged bomb where the main goal for creating the bomb is attaining maximum possible power through integrating all the parts, scrap, and energy cells that he could get his hands on, this bomb was different.

It was a more sophisticated but subtle bomb used for missions that require precision, not overwhelming power.

This was the reason why the bomb affected only the door and a tiny part of the front side of the Coach, but to the enemy Cyber Gladiator, this was enough.

In comparison, Leon's jury-rigged bomb would have directly blown the entire Coach to oblivion.

The weak power of the bomb compared to Leon's jury-rigged bomb meant it could not kill an E Rank Gene Augur, but the damage it did was enough.

"Ugh!" Lieutenant Johnmark groaned in pain as he was sandwiched against the side of the melted and compressed metal door.

His whole body was covered with blood and terrible burns, he was bleeding heavily but most crucially, the impact of the bomb left him in a daze.

This meant he could not defend himself immediately!

In that moment, this Lieutenant couldn't think straight but still he felt a chill running down his spine as all his instincts told him that he was too vulnerable at the moment and vulnerability sometimes meant death.

Yet, unlike what he expected, he didn't see the black blade of the katana coming for his head, instead…

Whoosh!

A purple blur rushed past him before he could blink.

Pulse Dash!

The E Rank Cyber Gladiator was simply so fast that his movement could not be reliably tracked with the naked eye.

As soon as the Lieutenant saw the purple blur rush past him, his eyes widened as he realized the terrorist's intent. 'The Engineman!'

Just like he expected, the terrorist leader was prepared.

Even when injured and debilitated, the terrorist was not arrogant as he refused to underestimate him.

The terrorist didn't underestimate his ability to regenerate and survive a barrage of attacks even after he just ate a bomb at point-black range.

Instead of going after him to kill him, an E Rank Ascended who was injured, the terrorist was level-headed enough to go for the Engineman first, the most important person in this whole train.

And unlike the Lieutenant, the Engineman was a mundane Geneform, meaning a single attack from the E Rank Cyber Gladiator could unalive him.

'NO!' Lieutenant Johnmark was desperate as his whole body surged with adrenaline but at this moment, even adrenaline was not enough to supercharge his body to react instantly.

He tried to stand up but he couldn't, he was too injured.

'NO!' This Lieutenant felt like he was going crazy as instinctively, his bright orange ADE flared around his body, stimulating his cells.

Cell Repair!

Metabolic Overdrive!

He activated two healing abilities at the same time as instantly, sizzling sounds reverberated from his body as his body visibly started healing, but it was not an instantaneous recovery.

It was not fast enough.

'NOOO!' He felt despair as he turned his head to look inside the electromagnetic engine chamber where the Engineman was.

The Engineman was at the very front of the chamber, controlling the train, unaware of the danger already just behind him.

Lieutenant Johnmark's eyes widened in rage and despair. 'I failed'.

But then, he heard the sound of something massive exploding behind him. 'Another bomb?' Before he could react or turn his head, he saw a bright flash of red light rapidly expand from the periphery of his vision.

BAM!

There was a loud sound and then, a bright red hot plasma beam tore through the space between the damaged double doors, flying right above the Lieutenant's head at supersonic speed!

If the Lieutenant's healing was faster and he stood up, that bright red hot plasma beam would have torn right through his body.

But now, it went right for the terrorist!

Lieutenant Johnmark's eyes lit up as he focused back on the terrorist who had his back facing the rapidly advancing red hot plasma beam.

He didn't see it coming!

Most bullets from kinetic guns achieve supersonic speeds easily, often traveling two to three times the speed of sound. The booming sound bullets make is a sonic boom as a result of breaking the sound barrier.

Plasma beams from Plasma Rifles are usually slower than kinetic bullets due to a lot of factors, but not by a lot. They still fly through the air at supersonic speeds, meaning the terrorist had 0% chances of dodging.

And yet, despite all the factors that were against him, including the fact that he had his back facing the plasma beam, a miracle happened.

The terrorist distorted the rules of reality in an instant!

BZZZ!

Sensing the danger at the very last millisecond, the Cyber Gladiator's violet energy surged, engulfing his body in the last moment as it felt like his body was swirling with purple electricity.

He activated 2 abilities.

Overdrive Mode!

Servo Reflex!

When activated, Overdrive Mode increases the speed and damage of an E Rank Cyber Gladiator by 25% for 30 seconds, causing system heat build-up.

As for Servo Reflex, there's a passive and active version of the ability. The passive version doubles a Cyber Gladiator's reaction time when under 30% HP.

As for the active version of the skill, when activated, by sacrificing 10% HP, a Cyber Gladiator can actively double his reaction speed for 2 minutes!

At the very last millisecond before impact, the terrorist reacted at supersonic speed, moving his body away from the plasma beam!

The terrorist absolutely obliterated the laws of physics.

Moving a body at supersonic speed was absolute bonkers and yet an E Rank Cyber Gladiator just did it.

Whoosh!

The plasma beam soared harmlessly past the terrorist, striking the metallic wall of the maglev train instead as it burned a deep hole on it.

"…!"

Leon's eyes blinked in shock and disbelief.

Apart from Parasite and Talia, this Lieutenant and this terrorist were the only other E Rank Ascended that Leon had ever met since he awakened.

The terrorist especially was the first E Rank Cyber Gladiator that he had met, he never expected E Rank Ascended of this Class to move like that.

He was stunned. 'He dodged it? He actually dodged it?'

But Leon didn't hesitate.

He aimed his Terra Nova 71 again at the Cyber Gladiator, then he pulled the trigger again.

BAM!

He didn't stop, he pulled the trigger again.

BAM!

…and again, and again, and again.

BAM! BAM! BAM!

Red beam after red beam soared into the engine chamber as Leon's Rifle sucked its energy cells like water, shooting again and again.

And yet, instead of making the Cyber Gladiator bleed, Leon saw a diabolic display of insane reflexes instead.

With his bright purple ADE wrapped around his body like a mantle, the terrorist moved like a dancer, a gymnast but a murderous one.

Headshot? His head danced sideways in a blur.

Liver shot? This man's abdomen shifted out of the way at such speeds that it felt like his abdomen was not part of the rest of his body.

A shot to the chest? Somehow, this man also managed to move out of the way as his body seemed to duplicate.

It was crazy.

'Impossible!' Leon thought as his grip on his Rifle shook. 'How is this real?'

If he hadn't verified it before, at this moment, Leon would have believed that this man was a D Rank Cyber Gladiator.

He struggled to fathom how a mere E Rank Ascended could move at supersonic speeds, it sounded too ridiculous for just E Rank!

'Something's not right,' Leon thought as his brain whirred.

He didn't abate the pressure, he didn't stop shooting but his brain geared into overdrive even as he watched the half-masked assassin rock his world with his deadly dance moves.

At some point, one of the hot red beams finally grazed the half-face mask of the terrorist and Leon saw something on his face.

'Is that… a whisker?'

He blinked. 'Wait, a whisker?'

And then it finally clicked.

Among his fragmented memories, a single memory suddenly stuck out like a sore thumb, shining like a beacon of light in the darkness of his lost memories.

It was the memory of a video that he once watched.

In the video, a small furry feline had a staring contest with a Viper and when the Viper struck, despite the speed of the reptile, the furry feline dodged at point-blank range!

'A cat!' Leon's eyes narrowed. 'He has Cat DNA!'

Suddenly, everything made sense as the relevant information surged into his mind in a moment of epiphany.

A cat's reaction speed is 10 times faster than a human and about 3 times faster than the average dog. They can react in as little as 20 milliseconds while the average human takes about 200 to 250 milliseconds to react.

The difference is just staggering.

When an object falls, a cat can detect the movement, process it, and move its entire body in less than 0.1 seconds.

That was superhuman.

This incredible speed comes from a multitude of factors- a highly developed nervous system, sharp vision, and extremely efficient muscles.

On top of that, their whiskers can sense changes in airflow at speeds under 1cm per second, giving them an edge before anything even touches them.

Finally, everything made sense.

But Leon became even more anxious. 'How do I save the Engineman?'

In his shock after seeing this Cyber Gladiator react to supersonic speed, Leon already forgot an important factor, the factor that he was not alone.

Lieutenant Johnmark was still around!

This was not a 1v1 battle, rather, it was a 2v1.

The Lieutenant was also shocked seeing the Cyber Gladiator move. He may not have realized how that was possible, but this Lieutenant realized that this was an opportunity, an opportunity that he could not pass up.

He didn't know where the strange Ascended came from but he could tell that he was E Rank, and he could tell that he was against the terrorists.

That was all he needed to know.

As for the terrorist's speed, Lieutenant Johnmark didn't give a damn.

'He may be faster than me. He can out-strike me, beat me, injure me, but he can never kill me!'

This is the confidence of an E Rank Gene Augur.

From the moment that the terrorist rushed into the engine chamber to now, less than 20 seconds had passed.

During this time, Lieutenant Johnmark already fully recovered from eating a bomb at point-blank range as he put on display the sick recovery abilities of an E Rank Gene Augur.

Then, he finally moved and rolled forward!

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