Gamebound: Glitched

CHAPTER 3 (BETRAYAL) Part 2

"We should regroup and gather more intel on Hanaen's abilities," Yuko suggested, breaking the silence. "We can't go in blind again."

Zoe nodded. "Agreed. We need to find someone who knows more about his powers. There has to be a way to counter them."

We arrived at a safe house Zoe had secured earlier, a small, inconspicuous cottage tucked away in a quiet part of the village. As we entered, Zoe immediately went to work, spreading maps and notes across the table.

"Okay, let's start from the beginning," she said, her voice steady. "What do we know about Hanaen?"

"He's incredibly fast and strong," Yuko began. "And he can create decoys with different properties. The one turned to ash and the other into wood. It means his decoys can have various forms and possibly abilities."

"Right," I added. "And he knows us. He recognized Zoe and wasn't surprised to see us. That means he has information on our movements."

"Which makes him even more dangerous," Zoe said grimly. "We need to figure out his weaknesses and fast. I'll reach out to some of my acquaintances. They might have information on Hanaen or similar powers."

Then my stomack growled and we laughed. "I'm hungry."

"Well, do you know how to cook? There's a small kitchenette. You can make something."

"I don't know how to cook." I admitted.

"Oh, well then. Guess I gotta do it. I'll contact them later. You guys discuss the situation. Tell me if you have any ideas."

Zoe moved to the kitchenette, rummaging through the sparse supplies to find something to prepare. Yuko and I settled around the table, spreading out the maps and notes we had gathered.

"We need to think about how we can drain Hanaen's energy." Yuko said. "...then maybe we can find a weakness in those decoys, like, a specific place to hit."

"Definitely not his groin." I said with a smile. "But draining his energy could be a viable strategy. Maybe we can find something that disrupts his connection to whatever power he's using for those decoys. It could be a talisman, a spell, or even just understanding the source of his power better."

"What if the power is Hanaen's like from his birth?"

Zoe, now stirring a pot on the stove, joined in the conversation. "And we can't discount the possibility of external influences on his power. It's rare for someone to develop such unique abilities without some kind of catalyst or external source. Maybe there's an artifact, a ritual, or even another individual involved in amplifying or controlling his power."

"Good point," I said, nodding in agreement. "If there are external factors at play, it opens up more possibilities for disrupting or neutralizing his abilities. We'll need to investigate any leads on artifacts, rituals, or other individuals who might be connected to Hanaen and his powers."

"What if it's just his normal power, like just his? The guys powerful."

"Okay, we can assume that too." Zoe nodded. She kept a bowl of soup in front of us.

I started inhaling the soup since I was starving.

Later, Zoe had contacted her friends, How? you ask. She sent her protector, that animal could travel at shocking speeds.

We had finished our meal when Zoe's protector, husky started barking.

"What is he doing?"

"He's saying that there are a few monsters we need to kill, come on. It's very urgent, like, very very urgent. An emergency