Nile stared at his arm as black tendrils slowly knitted his wound shut. It was still painful, but the sharpness had dulled to a background throb—something he could handle.
He exhaled shakily, eyes half-lidded with exhaustion. The Venom symbiote… he remembered reading the comics when he was younger, and watching the movies. For a second, he actually smiled.
Spider-Man 3… God, that movie sucked.
The moment passed. Reality dragged him back as Rize's body twitched under the steel beams.
He gulped.
I can't bring her back to my apartment. But I can't leave her here either. If I do, that clown freak or Dr. Kanou's people might find her.
He glanced at the glowing screen beside him, still hanging silently in the air.
Option 2 was clear. It didn't say 'change fate' or 'go with the flow.' It said save Rize.
His hand rose to his mouth, scratching at the side of his nose as he thought.
This system… I don't know if it's here to help me or screw me over, but I'll use it for now. I'll use it to get stronger. Doesn't mean I have to obey everything it tells me. Next thing I know, it'll be asking me to make out with Juuzou—and I'm not into that.
He gave a short, tired laugh, then turned to the steel beams.
They were too heavy to lift outright. He struggled for several minutes, arms straining, barely able to shift the metal an inch. Sweat slicked his face. His injuries weren't helping.
Eventually, he found a thinner steel pipe among the wreckage and wedged it beneath the beam pinning Rize down. He jammed it under and pushed down at the far end.
Leverage. That's the word, right? You put the fulcrum close to the weight, apply force from farther out…
The beam shifted just enough for him to drag Rize free. Her body was still limp, her regeneration active but sluggish.
He slung her over his shoulder, grunting under the weight. God, I'm scrawny. No way I should be able to do this. I was six foot—no way I'm five-anything now, he thought bitterly, stumbling toward the nearest fire escape.
He had a plan. A risky one—but it was all he had.
Step by step, he hauled her up the fire escape to the top of a nearby building. Every step was a test of will. By the time he reached the roof, his lungs burned, his legs were shaking, and his vision had started to blur.
But he had to move fast. She'd wake up soon.
He grabbed a length of metal wire—ripped from an old utility box—and wrapped it around her ankle. He tested the knot twice. Then, inch by inch, he rolled her over the edge and let her dangle, suspended ten stories above the street.
He collapsed against the rooftop ledge, breathing hard, sweat dripping down his temple.
Now all he could do was wait.
Time passed.
His arm continued healing, the tendrils working slowly but steadily. Eventually, he noticed her body twitching again. Then her head shifted. Her fingers flexed.
She was waking up.
She didn't look up at first—just glanced around in confusion, her voice hoarse and irritated.
"Where… the hell am I?"
A pause.
"Why am I hanging?"
Another beat.
"Why'd you ruin my hunt? What were those beams? And why the hell am I dangling off the side of a building?"
Finally, she looked up and saw him.
And she smiled.
Not a warm smile. Not grateful.
Knowing. Amused. Sharp.
She didn't know exactly how the beams had fallen, but she understood what was happening now. She was injured, suspended in midair, and a human was staring down at her with a fraying rope in his hands.
She could try to climb up—but she knew. He'd drop her.
She didn't think he had the guts.
Nile swallowed. He was scared, yeah. Terrified, even. But he couldn't let it show. If she smelled blood in the water, she'd devour him.
He had to fake confidence. Had to hold the line.
"Still alive, huh?" he said. "Rize… if that's even your real name."
She tilted her head, amused.
"I didn't leave you to die. You know… I just couldn't let a pretty girl go out like that."
He smirked half-heartedly. The fear still clawed at his spine, but he kept his voice even.
"I've got a suggestion, though. Maybe stop going around murdering people just for the fun of it. Especially when you're not hungry. It draws too much attention. Like tonight. Somebody dropped a bunch of steel beams on you. You almost died. Doesn't that tell you something?"
Rize chuckled. Her voice was light and lyrical, even as she dangled like a spider.
"Why would I listen to a human?"
Her grin widened.
"You don't understand me. You don't understand what it's like. I don't kill out of hunger. I kill because it's fun. I enjoy it. The fear. The blood. The screams."
Her voice dropped into something darker.
"And if you don't pull me up… I'll kill you. Eventually."
Nile didn't blink.
"I think you'll kill me no matter what. Pull you up, let you fall, it doesn't matter. So for now… I think I'll just stay up here."
The rope creaked faintly.
Rize looked up at Nile. Her eyes gleamed like something ancient and cruel beneath the blood crusted on her face.
Nile tilted his head to the side, brow twitching.
What the hell is wrong with this crazy bitch? he thought, a short laugh slipping out despite himself.
He adjusted his grip on the wire—then loosened it just enough to make her body drop a few inches. Not enough to harm her. Just enough to make a point.
She didn't flinch. She only smiled wider.
"You know you actually taste quite exquisite," said Rize with a grin. "Better than anyone I've ever had. I really don't think your a ghoul… not quite human, either. You smell wrong. Your blood—"
"stop...," he said cutting her off pressing his fingers into his nose, voice dry, "I really don't think I taste that good. I used to get blood in my mouth all the time as a kid. Split lips. Nosebleeds. It's not great."
Rize's lips parted in a grin.
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
"Your arm. It's healed."
Nile didn't reply.
Rize chuckled, slow and gleeful, her voice dipping into something far more monstrous.
Her smile widened, all teeth and hunger.
"I might just keep you alive long enough to taste you again. To hurt you again. Over and over and over."
Nile stared down at her, silent. His fingers tightened around the rope.
God, she's insane.
She grinned up at him, delighted by her own cruelty.
And Nile smiled back
and let her go.