Chapter 226: Gaspar [2]

"Take her away!" Mei shouted toward Daisy, her gaze snapping to where Wanda still stood. "Get her out of here!"

"Y...Yes!!"

"Come on, Wanda! We have to run!" Joel said desperately, grasping his granddaughter’s arm and trying to pull her toward safety.

But Wanda refused to move. Her feet remained planted, her expression calm despite the chaos erupting around her.

She looked at Joel with something that might have been sadness or resignation. "I’m sorry, Grandpa," she said quietly.

Then she removed his hand from her arm and began walking forward, directly toward Gaspar.

"Wanda, what are you doing?!" Daisy shouted in horror, rushing forward to grab Wanda’s arm and physically restrain her from this suicidal approach.

The moment Daisy’s hand made contact with Wanda’s skin, she felt a sudden sharp shock run through her palm and up her arm. She flinched violently and yanked her hand back, seeing red sparks crackling around Wanda’s exposed skin, some kind of defensive energy discharge.

Wanda continued walking forward without acknowledging Daisy’s attempted intervention.

"Do you have a death wish?" Mei asked, stepping into Wanda’s path and glaring at her.

"I just want to end this," Wanda replied shortly. She raised her gaze to meet Gaspar’s eyes directly. "I’m tired of running. Tired of people dying because of me."

Gaspar, seeing her approach, smirked with satisfaction. He jumped down from the van’s roof in a controlled drop, landing lightly on the ground despite the height. The yellow tendrils continued deflecting the sporadic gunfire that still rang out from the few fighters who hadn’t given up entirely.

He began walking forward to meet Wanda halfway.

"Wait!" Mei moved quickly, positioning herself directly in front of Wanda and blocking her path. She turned her attention to Gaspar. "Why do you even want her specifically? What’s your objective here?"

"Why would I need to explain my motivations to you?" Gaspar asked, genuinely seeming amused by the question.

"What if we have something else to offer instead?" Mei asked, refusing to back down despite the clear danger. "Something more valuable than a half-Starakian girl who can barely control her own abilities?"

"I seriously doubt you have anything else that would interest me," Gaspar replied dismissively. "I came for that Starakian girl."

"Half-Starakian," Mei corrected sharply, "and she doesn’t even have proper control over her powers yet. She’s essentially useless as any kind of weapon or tool. Moreover, all the Starakians already know about her existence and have been actively hunting her."

She crossed her arms, her tone only rising with confidence. "And judging from your behavior and the way you talk about them, you hate the Starakians. You’d rather avoid drawing their attention at all costs, am I right?"

Gaspar didn’t reply, but something shifted in his expression.

Mei pressed her advantage. "Maybe you’re thinking you can use her for leverage or as some kind of asset. But if I were in your position, I’d seriously refrain from that plan. The Starakians burned down an entire town, an entire community of several dozens of people, just to try and capture her. And they’re probably already planning another large-scale attack to finish what they started."

She gestured toward the long line of vehicles behind them. "Why do you think there are all these cars here? We’re refugees fleeing from a destroyed settlement. Jackson Township doesn’t exist anymore because of her."

Mei paused, then added with scoff, "And as much as we’d love to just be rid of the problem she represents, unfortunately she has family here who care about her. So we’re stuck protecting her. But if you’re willing to take that burden off our hands? Good luck dealing with the Starakians when they inevitably come for her again. They might already be watching us right now from orbit or wherever."

She gave Wanda a brief, apologetic glance before continuing. "And regarding the girl herself? Good luck getting anything useful out of her. She’s half-Starakian and almost completely useless in practical terms. Look at how weak and frail she appears. She can barely feed herself properly."

The words were harsh, very harsh, even from Mei but everybody knew what she was doing.

At Mei’s assessment, Gaspar’s eyes shifted to look at Wanda more carefully, reconsidering his initial evaluation.

Everyone had stopped speaking. The gunfire had ceased entirely. The entire camp watched in stunned, frightened silence as this negotiation played out.

Then Gaspar chuckled.. "You speak very convincingly. Quite the persuasive arguments. But if not her, then what exactly can you offer me instead? What do you have that could possibly match my interest in a Starakian hybrid?"

"We’ve found something interesting," Mei said carefully. "Alien technology. It’s stored in the camping van’s trunk compartment."

"Show me then," Gaspar said, his interest clearly piqued.

Mei gave Wanda a sharp warning look, a silent message to stay quiet and not do anything stupid before moving toward the back of the camping van.

She opened the rear storage compartment, revealing the contents within.

The Alien Box sat there, its three compartments filled with glowing stones, the red of the Fire Spitter, the icy blue of the Frost Walker, and the silver of the Screamer.

Gaspar’s eyes widened noticeably upon seeing the device, genuine surprise and excitement replacing his previously casual demeanor.

"Where did you find this?" He asked, moving closer to examine it.

"In the town where we’d been staying," Mei replied, keeping her voice neutral. "It was abandoned. We didn’t know what it was initially, but we’ve been carrying it with us."

Gaspar’s lips widened into a genuinely delighted smile as his hands reached toward the device, fingers running over the three filled compartments. He traced the surface, like someone who understood exactly what they were looking at and recognized its value.

"Well, well, what a wonderful gift you’ve managed to acquire," he said. "This is far more interesting than some half-breed girl who’ll just cause problems."

"Take it," Mei said, her gaze sharp and direct. "Take the device, but leave her alone. That’s the deal."

Gaspar smirked, looking at Mei with something that might have been respect. "For that braveness and courage you’ve displayed, standing up to me when everyone else ran I’ll accept your offer. The device for the girl. Fair trade."

He reached out his hand toward the Alien Box, preparing to claim his prize.

But right at that moment, he stopped.

A sharp knife blade had suddenly plunged into his back.

Mei’s eyes widened in horror as she saw Rebecca standing there, having somehow approached from behind without anyone noticing. She gripped the knife handle with both hands, her face twisted with anger.

But the blade hadn’t sunk deeply into Gaspar’s flesh. It had barely penetrated at all, stopped by something on his skin.

"What! I...I can’t!" Rebecca grunted, trying to drive the knife deeper or pull it out, but finding herself unable to do either. The weapon was stuck, held fast by whatever supernatural substance protected Gaspar’s body.

"That was very cowardly," Gaspar said quietly, his smile vanishing completely.

His hand shot out with blinding speed, fingers closing around Rebecca’s throat. Then he lifted her bodily off the ground and flung her backward like a rag doll.

Rebecca’s body flew through the air and crashed hard against the bridge’s concrete barrier. Her head struck the solid surface with a sickening crack, and she crumpled to the ground.

"Rebecca!" Daisy screamed, rushing to her side and cradling her head.

Blood was already seeping through Rebecca’s hair where her skull had impacted the barrier. Her eyes were unfocused, consciousness wavering. But somehow she managed to focus on Gaspar, managed to glare at him.

"He...he will kill you," she managed to get out, her voice weak but quite strong.

"What did you say?" Gaspar turned toward her, his eyes narrowing dangerously.

"Ryan..." Rebecca repeated, forcing the words through gritted teeth. "He will kill you..."

"Ryan," Gaspar repeated slowly. His smile returned, but this time it was sadistic rather than amused. "Interesting. So if I take you as well, this dear Ryan will come looking for you? Will he come to rescue you?"

He began walking toward Rebecca with clear intent.

But Mei stepped directly into his path, blocking his approach.

"You said you’d only take the device," she said with a glare. "That was the agreement."

"That agreement was made before she stabbed me in the back," Gaspar replied coldly, preparing to walk past Mei like she was irrelevant.

Mei bit her lip hard enough to draw blood, then stepped in front of him again, refusing to be bypassed.

"Take me instead."

The words escaped from her lips, shocking everyone who heard them.

"Oh?" Gaspar raised an eyebrow, genuinely surprised by the offer.

"If you want to take someone, take me," Mei repeated.

"Wait! Mei?! What are you saying?!" Daisy stood up, her eyes wide with horror.

"Don’t," Mei said, raising her hand to forestall any objections. Her gaze swept across Daisy, then Margaret, then all the others watching helplessly. "Just don’t."

"What a noble girl you are," Gaspar said, his smile widening as he looked at her with new interest. "So willing to sacrifice yourself for others. How admirable. How perfectly exploitable."

"N...no...wait," Rebecca tried to stand up, one hand pressed against her bleeding head as she struggled to her feet. "Don’t...don’t do this..."

But Gaspar had already decided.

One of his yellow tendrils wrapped carefully around the Alien Box, lifting it from the storage compartment. Another tendril extended toward Mei, coiling around her waist and torso like a serpent.

Mei didn’t struggle. Didn’t fight. She simply stood there and allowed herself to be restrained.

Rebecca’s green eyes widened as she watched Mei’s back, watched the tendrils tighten their grip.

"W...WAIT!!" Rebecca screamed, lurching forward with one hand outstretched.

But they had already vanished.

Gaspar, the Alien Box, and Mei—all three disappeared in a blur of yellow motion so fast it was barely visible. One moment they were there, the next they were simply gone, leaving only a faint trail of yellowish energy dissipating in the air.

Rebecca’s hand grasped at empty space where Mei had been standing seconds before.

Then her legs gave out, and she collapsed to her knees, blood still streaming down her face.