The group quickly returned to the bunker to deal with Lucia. Gabriel took the woman to her room where he examined her body carefully and concluded that for now she wasn't in any kind of imminent danger. Her pale skin was decorated almost entirely by the purple bruises but the internal damage was minimal. A regular human would be in serious danger right now but thanks to her mutations she could overcome the damage with enough time.

After that situation Gabriel started talking to Oscar in private while Michi watched Lucia and Yeni remained in the communications room.

Gabriel: Well, Oscar the unique Crystal is yours.

Oscar: I'm not going to refuse but why me? the ability to cancel physical damage would be great for Yeni.

Gabriel: It would be a bad idea to put all our eggs in one basket. Also, if this mutation works as I think . . . .is more effective offensively than defensively.

Oscar: Ok, whatever you say.

Oscar Evolved

Torque: This unique mutation allows you to apply your force directly to spin an object that is 15 centimeters or less from your skin. It can only be applied to one object at a time.

After obtaining his new mutation Oscar told him what was the description of his unique mutation to Gabriel and he nodded. The redhead took from his pocket one of the rocks he used in his sling and passed it to his partner.

Gabriel: Try applying your skill to this.

When Oscar tried to use his new ability on the rock it began to rotate quite quickly in his palm. It wasn't extremely impressive and didn't approach the stupidly strong rotation power of the unique infected. However both survivors nodded with an expression of satisfaction on their faces.

Oscar: Great, I can think of a couple of things we can do with this.

Gabriel: I think the same, we hit a jackpot. You should focus on training as much as possible until you master it. Yeni, Michi and I will go to collect the crystals we leave behind.

Oscar: What do I do with Lucia?

Gabriel: She will be fine but if she woke up tell her to be at rest until I come back.

Oscar: Are you going to tell her something about the stupidity she did?

Gabriel: Yes, leave that to me. I know how to deal with this situation.

Oscar: You don't have the slightest idea what to say right?

Gabriel: Ok look I have a conflict, Lucia did something super idiot but she managed to kill the unique infected.

Oscar: You should tell her that, be direct and tell her that while she could fix the problem in the end she will die if she acts like that again.

Gabriel: Thanks for the advice, being direct seems to be the solution the best solution to deal with people.

Oscar: There is no time for bulshit in the end of times.

After that talk Gabriel gathered the whole team in the dining room to discuss what they would do next.

Gabriel: Ok guys let's go again, Yeni and Michi come with me and Oscar stay with Lucia as we discussed.

Michi: Gabriel you should stay and take care of Lucia in case there are any medical complications, besides you didn't leave that fight unharmed.

Yeni: Yea Quickshot, Michi and I can take care of those motherfuckers, after all in theory we don't even have to fight.

Gabriel: No, a lot of shit happen for today and I don't want any more surprise.

Michi: As you wish.

Yeni: Ok faggot but when we come back take a break.

The task didn't have any setback, since most of those infected on the road and in the area had been cleaned only a couple of hours ago. Oscar reported the surrounding status every 30 minutes while taking short breaks from his training. When they finally finished gathering everything, they had a couple of hours before nightfall, so in time they returned to the base.

When they returned, the first thing Gabriel did was check on Lucia who was still slept. Then he went to see how Oscar was doing with his training and he had just managed to touch the surface of his powers, the veteran still has problems controlling his strength and precision. Finally he decided to use some of the crystals to level up.

The mutations Gabriel chose were simple, he increased his vitality back and his unique mutation so he could use it in the midst of combat. Thanks to this he could use Explosive mode without worrying about side effects and if the situation requires it he could sacrifice his hair in the middle of combat. Speaking of which by now he had a short beard and his hair had grown to the point that it looked like a standard short haircut. After that Michi approached him quickly to tell him that Lucia had awake and Gabriel quickly dressed to give him a visit.

Gabriel Evolved

Damage relocation 2: You can relocate the damage in your body. It is a fast process and can be used in combat.

Vitality 4: You have eight times the vitality of a regular person.

The woman was lying in her bed, she still couldn't get up but didn't seem to have any permanent damage.

Lucia: Hi Gabriel.

Gabriel: How are you? Do you feel any pain or discomfort?

Lucia: I just feel a little sore.

Gabriel: Yes, that is the effect of your mutation plus the analgesics that I gave you. Nothing strong like morphine so in a couple of days you will be like new.

Lucia: A couple of days ?!

Gabriel: That's why it is problematic to cancel the pain, even if you feel perfect, your body still has to deal with the damage. So it is better to be safe than sorry, also we need to talk about other things.

Lucia: Yes I know, I got a little crazy but at the end of the day everything ended well!.

Gabriel: I know this isn't the first time this happens to you.

Lucia: Oh yeah. . .that video.

Gabriel: Yes, look, I'm glad you don't have any permanent damage and that at the end of the day and thanks to you we could kill the Crooked Man but you can't do that again.

Lucia: I know. . .look . . eee . okay .. . .Fine I will try fix this, it is something that always happens to me when I am under a lot of stress.

Gabriel: For now let's put the fights to a minimum, I think it will take you to fight against rather weak hordes until you gradually get used to it.

Lucia: That sound like a great idea !.

The day ended without any other problem, Gabriel went to work on a special project and after a few hours in the workshop he only had to wait for the fiberglass resin to finish drying. The next morning they decided to go hunting a small horde that had moved near the base. Lucia and Oscar stayed at the base while Michi, Yeni and Gabriel went to deal with this problem.

The horde was located in the middle of a shopping mall, a couple of weeks ago it was a pretty place to spend the afternoon but now it was a nest infested with nightmare beings. Luckily this place was quite narrow so the usual strategy of the group worked perfectly. Gabriel in the back with his sling while Yeni maintained a defensive line.

Michi: 40 common infected, 5 Hunters and. . .4 unidentified in this pack.

After a few seconds the group could see what those unidentified infested were. The Bone Breaker was an extremely dangerous zombie variant for every survivor fighting hand-to-hand. The evolved form of a Brute not only possessed twice the strength but also had his entire body covered by a dense layer of bone. That organic armor completely covered everything except for the eyes and mouth, these were their only weaknesses and to take advantage of them you would have to have superhuman abilities.

Gabriel: Fuck.

Michi: What's up?

Gabriel: I'll explain later, for now focus on the Hunter and then on the Bone Breakers.

The combat began and the first to attack as always were the Hunters, but as was evident their claws could not pass the impenetrable defense of Yeni. However, when the new contestants began to approach the story changed a bit. The woman's shield managed to keep them at bay but the force of their blows was enough to dent it. Luckily she had her reliable mace that was ideal for dealing with enemies with armor. Using her unnatural strength she was able to break the skull of these infected with a single blow. Its regeneration and resistance made it an ideal tank but its equipment unfortunately lacked these properties and after this battle it would be necessary to do a lot of maintenance.

Gabriel activated explosive mode and fired his sling, his fluid and fast movements gave the illusion that he was using a bizarre firearm instead of one of the oldest weapons in history. Thanks to the combination he was able to hit the weak points of these creatures directly. However, he still need a minimum of two attacks to kill a Bonebreaker. It was fine but you could tell the difference between someone who focuses 100% on something like Yeni that could kill these creatures in one blow with her mace and Gabriel who tried to be a Jack of all trades.

The battle was more exhausting than usual but after three hours they returned to the bunker. Gabriel dedicated himself to assembling the final parts of Oscar's new weapon, basically it was an automatic crossbow but with several modifications. The limb and the frame were standard but the mechanisms that had up and down the arrow track were unique. In the upper part there was a kind of box similar to that used by repeating crossbows invented in China but with the modification used by magazine loaded with bolts. Thanks to this he could shoot 20 times in a row and have a minimum recharge time, ideal for dealing with hordes of dozens of infected.

The lower mechanism was the most interesting since it depended entirely on Oscar's unique mutation to function. A rectangle that contained a gear that allows the crossbow to be loaded immediately. Thanks to a series of gears the force exerted on the wheel make that the crossbow rope automatically returned to its original position after being fired. The trigger was a safety measure to slow the rotation and avoid wasting ammunition.

Speaking of the trigger it was very close to the bolts so Oscar could apply his rotating power to them to spin them like they were a bullet. Thanks to this the penetrating power of these had nothing to envy to a standard hunting rifle. This added to the rate of fire, the ease of getting ammunition and the fact that it was completely silent made it the ideal weapon to deal with hordes from a safe distance.

Catequil Crossbow

An automatic crossbow, its magazine has a capacity of 20 bolts.

Unfortunately, Oscar's unique mutation consumed too much stamina, so increasing it was a priority and since it scaled with his physical strength increased it would increase the efficiency of his attacks. Finally, being awake more hours will help him continue training with this ability to master it.

Oscar evolved

Herculean Strength 2: You have extra strength, you could lift 100 kilos with ease.

Herculean Strength 3: You have extra strength, you could lift 200 kilos with ease.

Enchant Stamina 4: You have great Stamina! You can run easily run eight marathons.

Enchant Stamina 5: You have great Stamina! You can run easily run sixteen marathons.

Sleep efficiency 2: You only have to sleep 2 hours per day.

Sleep efficiency 3: You don't have to sleep anymore.