CHAPTER 18: CHAPTER 18: MONSTER!!

Eva leaned against the metal door of the convenience store, the small package already tucked into her courier bag.

It was a basic delivery, quick grab, short ride, no complications.

But her mind was elsewhere.

Too much had been going on since Jace entered her life. Since that night. Since she woke up weaker, slower... powerless.

She sighed and adjusted the strap of the bag on her shoulder. The busy street around her faded into a low hum.

This delivery job was supposed to be her distraction, but even now, she couldn’t focus.

Helping Jace build that base made sense. If they figured out how to reverse the transfer, she could get her abilities back.

But every second she spent doing tech support or hunting for spare parts with him was another second she wasn’t doing what really mattered.

Protecting the night.

It wasn’t about glory. No one even knew who Splice was, her mask didn’t come with press coverage or viral clips. That wasn’t the point.

She’d been out there for years, helping where she could. Quietly. Especially women, those out late, vulnerable, overlooked by a system that didn’t care until something went wrong.

Her ability made her fast. Strong. Able to act when others froze. And now... now she couldn’t even catch a pickpocket if she tried.

She squeezed the strap tighter. It wasn’t just the power that was gone, it was the ability to matter. To do something. She hated how helpless she felt. How exposed.

A car horn snapped her out of the spiral. She shook her head, muttering, "Focus, Eva. Get this done. Keep moving."

But even as she entered her car again, her chest felt heavy.

Jace had her powers. He didn’t ask for them. And sure, maybe he was trying to fix it... but what if he couldn’t?

What if he ended up doing more with them than she ever did?

And what did that mean for her?

She rested her head on the steering wheel and sighed.

It felt like she’d gone back in time. Back to when she didn’t know she had powers. Back to when life was ordinary, quiet, and painfully purposeless.

The worst part was how familiar the feeling was.

She had spent so long trying to mean something. Trying to protect people, trying to stop the things she had once been too weak to stop.

And now?

It was like someone had reached into her chest and pulled out everything that made her able. Not special. Not heroic. Just capable.

It was hard not to blame Jace.

Maybe he didn’t do it on purpose. And yeah, she was the one who made the choice that night. No one forced her. But still...

He gained something.

And she lost everything.

It didn’t feel fair. It didn’t feel right.

And most of all, it didn’t feel like she had a choice.

She lifted her head slowly and stared out the windshield. The streets looked the same. The city was still broken in all the same places.

Only now, she couldn’t do anything about it.

Her hands curled around the wheel, knuckles pale. "I can’t keep doing nothing," she whispered.

But deep down, she didn’t know what she could do, not anymore.

Eva’s hand was on the ignition when she caught something in her peripheral vision, fast, airborne, and headed straight for her.

She narrowed her eyes.

It wasn’t a bird.

It wasn’t a drone.

It was—

CRASH!

A motorcycle came flying out of nowhere, smashing into the hood of her parked car and tumbling violently to the ground.

"What the hell—" she recoiled, instinctively ducking even though the worst was already over.

Before she could react further, more noise came from the same direction. Tires screeching.

Engines roaring. Several cars swerved into view, weaving through traffic at breakneck speed, nearly colliding with one another.

Drivers were leaning on their horns. Some had their heads out the windows.

Then came the screaming.

"MONSTERRRRR!!!"

"IT’S A MONSTER!"

"HELPPPP!!"

Eva’s pulse spiked. She shoved the door open and stepped out cautiously, scanning the chaos.

People were running, some stumbling, some throwing glances over their shoulders like they expected death to catch up in seconds.

Something was coming.

Something bad.

And for the first time in years, she had no powers.

She looked back at her crushed hood, then toward the incoming crowd, her stomach twisting.

She might not be Splice right now.

But people were going to die.

And she couldn’t just stand there.

She quickly threw on her hoodie and tightened it around her face.

As she sprinted toward the chaos, a loud crash stopped her mid-stride.

A car flew through the air like a crumpled soda can and slammed into a parked delivery truck.

BOOM.

She staggered back.

And then she saw it.

A figure emerged through the settling smoke and dust. Towering. At least eight feet tall. Hulking shoulders.

Thick, gnarled limbs covered in grayish-blue skin that shimmered slightly under the streetlights. Its face was something between a malformed skull and a predatory snarl.

No eyes. No nose. Just fangs and a breathing cavity that wheezed with each step.

It was not human.

Worse, it wasn’t even close to a metahuman.

Eva froze. In all her years of patrolling the streets, every metahuman she encountered, hero or villain, had still looked like a person. This thing looked like it belonged in a warzone on another planet.

She felt fear creep up her spine.

Her breath hitched.

Her fists clenched by instinct, but she wasn’t stupid. She was not fighting that. Not without her powers. Not even with them, probably.

But people were still running.

And someone had to help.

She turned, motioning for a group of teenagers frozen behind a nearby food truck. "Go! Now! Run!"

They didn’t argue. They bolted.

She scanned the area. More civilians were trapped near storefronts, hiding behind cars, or paralyzed by fear.

She gritted her teeth, stepping further into the open, waving her arms.

"Move!" she shouted. "Get off the street!"

She thought about calling Jace. For a second, her hand reached for her phone.

But what could he even do? He had no training. And even if he had the ability... he’d never fought something like this. Not yet.

She let her hand drop.

He may have stolen her powers.

He may be part of the reason she felt powerless now.

But she didn’t want to watch him die.

Because deep down she knew... that would be the same as seeing her powers perish.