Blackport PD: Paranormal Detectives

Chapter 27

Nathan’s POV

The intensity of that unknown power is getting stronger with the every step I’m taking. I could feel my lungs losing oxygen not just because of the smoke but also because of the heavy feeling while lurking at this area.

I closed my eyes shut and thinks about Gene who was downstairs and battling his own ability. If I did not manage to get Mica there on time, his fire will burn him alive, much painful than those whom he burned felt. I took a deep breath and with the courage I have in left, I raise my left foot and walk to the last stair.

I feel the change in the wind and the eerie sounds from the surroundings. I slowly opened my eyes and froze with what I saw. This is no longer the sixth floor I was seeing a while ago. The wide, dark space with loads of black and white smoke emits everywhere in the area. I can hear the loud cries of people and their shouts for help even if no one was here. I roam my eyes around the area and the smoke I was seeing earlier is not just a smoke, but their soul.

The lost souls of the people trapped in Los Paradise... The souls that is already lost, forever.

“Welcome to my lair, meta-human...” A deep voice said that echoes in the entire room. Just by looking everywhere, I could clearly tell where we are, and this is never a good sign. For we are now in their lair, the real Los Paradise where people are trapped and become lost, here in this dark, eerie dimension they created.

“Show yourself. I don’t face cowards,” I bravely said while in a fighting stance. I tried sensing his location but with the energy from various people everywhere, it’s getting hard to know where he really is.

A sarcastic laugh echoed and keeps ringing in my ears, together with the loud cries of the souls around me. I can feel the decrease in oxygen due to the pressure I was feeling this time. The continuous smoke that arises from time to time and this blurry vision that can’t see well especially in the dark do not help at all.

“I’m just here in front of you, yet you can’t see me.” I shiver as I felt a cold wind from all over my body. I tried punching the front but only touches air. Another laugh echoed and the wind has a bit force enough to give me a little pain as it touches my body.

“Of course you will never see me. Only the strongest, the worthiest and those with the selected ability can see through everything.” He continued as I fell down to the ground as a punch from an invisible creature lands on my face.

A group of souls comes from below and holds my body in place, making it unable to move. The harder I resist, the tighter their grips are and.

“Damn, get off me!” I shouted but another invisible punch landed on my face, followed by a laugh from somewhere else. I clenched my fist in anger as and closed my eyes as I tried sensing wherever that son of a b***h is.

“Ooh, it’s so fun playing with helpless meta-humans. Taste th—“ I opened my eyes and aggressively break away from the souls, successfully letting my hand go and grab the invisible force that was coming straight to my face.

I can feel the rush of energy, the unusual energy from this being that replenishes what I have lost. I smirked while grabbing it harder and draining its energy until my body is energized again. Instead of breaking free, he laughs as I felt this invisible hand force tightly grasping my hands.

This is not good.

From all the souls he sucked, the energy he gathered can’t be contained by this body anymore. This is too much for me to handle...

I tried grabbing my hands away but he just holds it tighter while sarcastically laughing.

“Don’t you like the energy?” He asks while the wind blew up on my face. It is cold but my face is dripping with sweat while I am already shaking due to all the intense energy that’s overflowing on my veins.

“W-Why...” I tried asking in between deep breaths. The energy is too much and if does not stop, I will explode and this mission will come to an end. I must slow it down, but how?

I took a deep breath before looking directly in the center in front of me. Even though I see nothing, I know and I can feel him staring back at me, that same feeling I felt earlier when I was running up the stairs.

‘I knew someone was out there...’ I said at the back of my mind. I cleared my throat before acting out the plan.

This has to work, or else...

“S-Stop it, p-please... Y-You’re power is greater than mine...” I pleaded while fake tears are streaming down my face. His grip loosens up a bit and the power getting through my veins are a bit slower. I bit my lip to stop myself from forming a smile and continued with my action.

“You are so powerful that your energy is even limitless. I would like to have that p-power,” I coughed and saw that I spit blood on the ground. My hands are shaking because I’m almost at my full capacity. His grip tightens again that made me scream in pain as more energy passed through me.

“Do you think I will fell into your trap?” He asked and gives off more energy I can ever receive. Blood starts dripping off my nose and my hands and now bruising, spreading slowly across my body.

I don’t have any choice, this is my last shot.

I took a deep breath and asked the words that could possibly spare my life and buy me some time from him.

“You’re powerful already, why do you still collect souls? W-Why are you doing this?”

And just like that, he let go of my hand, leaving me stumble on the ground while my mouth is gaping wide and grasping for oxygen. I closed my eyes shut and let my body fell completely to the ground as air rushes through my lungs and alleviating the loss of oxygen I have earlier.

‘That was a close call,’ I said to myself while watching the swirling wind travels everywhere, grabbing and sucking all the souls including those that are holding on to me a while ago. That wind has now evolved and I can clearly see the black and wide souls joined together and form a humanlike projection.

No facial expressions or face, just a mere blob of lost souls clamped together.

“Since you’re dying anyway, maybe it’s good if I will tell you a story before you’re gone in this world. So, shall we start?” Loads of voices filled the air to say that line. There are voices of girl, boy and even a kid all joined in one. Those are the lost souls that are enveloping him now.

“Los Paradise...” He started while encircling into the place I was laying at. He motioned his fingers and few of the souls separate and forms a scenario in the air as if I’m watching a movie.

“We are also meta-human just like you...” He continued and I saw from the air the formation of two people, looking happy while building something made of scrap. They are using their bare hands and a few tools while developing the area when a flock of people went to their direction and pointed at them.

Even if I can’t hear them, their mere actions and the reaction of the two who became sad simply indicates that they are not welcome and mocked by those people. However, one of them steps up and points at the crowd again, talking about something and shooing people away. The people made face before leaving the area while laughing.

The scene immediately changes up to the time where they successfully built a small building without the help from others. They put up a signage of coffee and cakes at the front and their baked or cooked dishes were lined up on the table. Time had passed and not a single person or a passerby walks to their shop to even buy a single good. This made them sad and the scene changes again wherein the store suddenly becomes full of customers dining happily while they are serving them. What they were eating was familiar to me as this was the dessert they are serving downstairs.

“Ah, these hypocrites. After being served well, this is just how they will treat us back...”

The scene changes again and a massive fire has been engulfing the entire building. A flock of people not too far away from them are laughing while one of the owners ran back to the burning building and tried saving his colleague. He successfully managed to save him but the building exploded once more and set his body on fire.

The passerby just walked away and the scene changes once more.

“Los Paradise. A paradise for lost souls...” He muttered while watching all the people enter the premises of their casino that attracted a lot of people from all directions. I saw from the story scene how people really enjoyed especially while taking a bite of their delicacy, the flower they baked to give out to people and that flower cake is none other than the poison and the end of everyone who tried consuming it.

“Funny, right? They consume what could kill them. Of course, here at Los Paradise, we helped them overcome their sadness and stay here forever. Aren’t we nice?” He asked an the scene changes again to the time where the souls from people from different timeline get out of their body and get locked up here on the sixth floor. Their souls strengthen this casino and helps to attract more people.

“Now....” He immediately grabbed me from the neck and I felt the oxygen depleting fast away from my body. His lips formed a smirk and move it closer to my face before uttering the words that made my heart beat fast.

“Your soul is mine...” He tried sucking my soul and I can feel it getting out of my body. My vision is getting blurry and I can’t move a muscle anymore.

A loud explosion is heard while my eyes are slowly closing down. I heard someone shouted that made me smile before everything went black.

‘I’m saved...’

“Get off him before I burn all these souls to death!”