An odd feeling stirred in Garyâs body as he watched Daphne walk toward him. She had her hand raised and was wiggling her fingers. There was even an odd smile on her face, which made Gary feel like those fingers might end up somewhere else.
In the end, his natural reaction was to take steps back as she came forward.
âWhat are you doing?â Daphne asked. âIf you move back, then I canât help you sort this out.â
âThatâs the problem,â Gary replied. âI donât even know what youâre going to do. What do you mean by shortcut?â
When Gary thought about it more, what if this was some type of strange plan from Daphne all along? What if this was a way to get the Howlers to lower their guard? Then, with her powers, she could take over Gary and cause him to go on a rampage in his own city, fighting those he cared about.
It wasnât out of the realm of possibility.
âI know what youâre worried about, and I wanted to keep some of my powers a secret, but I guess there needs to be some trust between us,â Daphne claimed. âThe stronger a personâs will is, the harder it is for me to control them.â
âItâs easy to control direct animals or beasts that lack intelligence. I can control Altered when theyâre transformed because it seems to lower the personâs will or intelligence.â
âMost people who are Altered arenât the brightest in the first place. But usually, the stronger an individual, the stronger their will is.â
âI can control strong beasts that only have the thought to kill, but I doubt I could control Harvor. For you, itâs the same, Gary. Youâre most likely too strong for me to control.â
âSo, for this to work, you have to let me take control of a part of you. See what I can bring out. If you want, you can fight against it, and Iâm sure youâll be able to break free,â Daphne explained.
The explanation did settle Gary slightly, but it meant he would have to believe Daphneâs words, that everything she was saying was the truth.
âI guess, if Kai believed her enough to allow her to be alone with me, then I should trust her as well. Heâs a much better judge of character than I am.â
Gary let out a big breath and took a step forward toward Daphne. They didnât have a lot of time, so what other choice did Gary have?
âThereâs a chance this might not work,â Gary said as he looked down at Daphneâs face. The two of them were relatively close.
Strange thoughts began to enter Garyâs mind. If he just leaned forward, he could even kiss her.
âNo, damn it, you have Xin!â Gary thought, shaking his head.
âI know⊠Youâre not exactly an Altered, right?â Daphne said, pressing her hand on Garyâs chest.
âHow did youâugh!â Gary felt something strange activate in his body, and he fell to his knees.
âRemember what I said,â Daphne said, grunting as she kept her hand on his chest. The veins on her arm were moving, and sweat started to run down her face. âYou have to let me in, you have to let me unlock it inside you.â
Experimenting with her powers, Daphne was able to do a number of things. For one, she could force other Altered to transform back into humans.
She could also make it so they fully turned into an Altered as well. In fact, there were times when people struggled to use their Altered forms, and they would pay large sums of money to the Bree family to help them with such things.
After all, not everyone could fully transform into their Altered form even after becoming one.
Taking this a step further, she could use her power to draw out an Alteredâs abilities even further, and this was what she was trying to do with Gary as well.
[Interference with the system detected.]
[Interference with the system detected.]
[The user is strong enough to block the interference. Would you like to block the interference?]
Gary felt strange. His mind was somewhat foggy, and he couldnât think straight, but when he saw the system screens, he realized what Daphne said had to be somewhat true.
âI guess this is my only chance to reject it⊠but I have no choice!â
[You have declined to block the interference.]
[Your system has been adjusted.]
[New transformation has been unlocked.]
At that moment, Daphne no longer felt any resistance. Her powers had flowed into Gary, and she quickly pulled her arm away. She felt faint and nearly fell over backward, but her eyes were locked on Gary in front of her. She couldnât take her eyes off him.
âWhat⊠is this?â Daphne said, this time it was her who was taking a step back, and she knew if she didnât get out of the way, she might be caught up in it all.
Half an hour had passed, and in that time, Daphne had lost control of Gary. At the same time her powers had ended, Garyâs transformation had also come to an end.
He lay there, no longer wearing any of his clothes, his bare body lying among the dirt on the ground.
âIt worked,â Daphne said. âThe shortcut worked⊠with this, I think you might have a chance to beat him.â
Gary lifted his head, still crouched on the ground. Noticing that his clothes were gone, he looked at the forest. In a one-kilometer area, there was nothing but destruction.
The trees had disappeared, and the ground looked leveled.
âMaybe⊠this will be enough,â Gary said.
***