"What's going on? Hmm?" Kara noticed Robert's unusual behavior and followed his gaze. With her powerful x-ray vision, Kara naturally saw the anomaly that Robert had detected, which made her frown instantly. "Not only are supernatural events dangerous, but incidents like this can be equally harmful!"
In the area that Robert and Kara were observing, a group of thuggish-looking gang members, radiating a violent aura, were lurking in a corner of the park's woods. With the sky getting darker, the park only had three groups of people left: Robert and Kara, these sinister-looking individuals, and the family of four having a picnic.
Theoretically, these gang members' actions should go unnoticed, but Robert and Kara were not ordinary people. Sometimes, surprises just happen...
In the woods, two people were tied up and kneeling on the ground, trembling with fear. Their mouths were gagged, and their eyes were covered, leaving them only their ears to hear the faint wind around them.
But in their current state, such sounds were terrifying, especially as they vaguely guessed what was about to happen to them. This knowledge of impending doom, without knowing exactly when it would happen, was torturous for them.
Of course, this was precisely the purpose of the surrounding gang members—to torment these two both mentally and physically before killing them to serve as a warning to other gang members with dissenting thoughts. In other words, it was to uphold the gang's rules.
"It's time. Let's send them off," a cold voice said, making the two kneeling individuals shudder. One of them even wet himself in fear, the liquid soaking his pants and the ground around him.
"Tsk tsk tsk, such cowardice. If you're this scared, why did you betray the gang in the first place?" another mocking voice chimed in, clearly noticing the urine on the ground, as the pungent smell was starting to rise.
"Mmmph!" The two on the ground shook their heads vigorously and made muffled noises, trying to explain.
"No need to explain. Your actions are crystal clear!" The cold voice interrupted them as two guns with silencers were placed against the back of their heads, making them shiver once more.
"Pffft!"
"Pffft!"
The sound of silenced gunfire wasn't very loud in the night, but the man in the family of four turned pale, especially since his son had just gone off to relieve himself.
"Do those two deserve to die?" Kara asked Robert, puzzled. Initially, she thought Robert might save the two captives from the gang, but Robert made no move.
"It's not just about them. All of these guys are guilty; they still reek of blood. Your eyes can see things others can't, but you can't sense the specific presence of qi, nor do you have mental detection abilities. So it's normal you didn't notice," Robert said, shaking his head.
"Moreover, these people have a lingering strange aura on them. It's a sign of recent contact with superhumans."
"Superhumans…" Kara's eyes flickered at Robert's words, clearly thinking about the superhumans from the official agencies they had fought before, especially the powerful Lan Qi.
Previously, Kara hadn't realized there were so many superhuman strongmen. During so many past supernatural events, she hadn't seen many superhumans take action, particularly truly formidable ones.
Now, Kara was beginning to understand that not all superhumans would step forward during such events, contrary to what the Avengers had previously thought.
Johnny Stone and others had believed that even if they didn't become superheroes, they'd be dragged into supernatural events if they happened nearby. Thus, it was better to proactively improve their powers to better handle these events.
Now, as Robert mentioned superhumans again, Kara realized many superhumans completely hid their identities, even better than they did.
"However, we can at least save these few…" Robert said as Kara's thoughts wandered, and conflict had already erupted nearby.
The son from the family of four had gone to relieve himself in the woods and happened to hear the gunshots. Driven by curiosity, he peeked in the direction of the sound and saw two people lying in pools of blood, with several thuggish-looking men standing over them.
"Ah!" The boy screamed, quickly covering his mouth, but it was too late. The gang members heard him and immediately reacted, moving to surround and silence him.
"Damn it!" The father, rushing over, cursed under his breath. He regretted not bringing his gun, a necessity for a well-armed American. How could he defend his family without it?
"Come out! I see you!" One gang member shouted as the boy hid in a bush, trembling, knowing that making a sound or coming out would mean certain death.
"I need to get a gun, or we have no chance!" The father, a former Marine, began evaluating the situation. His combat experience was vast, but without a gun, he had little hope against the gang members, especially with his family nearby.
"Bang!" The father saw an opportunity. He ambushed a lone gang member, killing him swiftly and taking his gun.
"Nice skills! His combat technique is nearly on par with Steve's," Robert remarked. He had been ready to step in but decided to observe the father's impressive skills.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!" In the deepening night, gunfire sounded as the father took down the gang members one by one with precise shots.
"I thought this would be a disaster for the family, but this guy's gun skills are pretty good," Kara murmured as the father nearly wiped out the gang, leaving only one member hiding behind a tree.
"Damn! Who is this guy? I should still be valuable; they shouldn't kill me yet…" The surviving gang member, who had executed the captives, was now panicking, suspecting he might have been targeted for elimination himself.
"Who are you? We can talk this out…" The gang member tried to negotiate while moving, but the father had only one bullet left and needed to be careful.
"Climb up the tree and stay quiet, no matter what," the father whispered to his son, helping him up before rolling to another tree for cover.
"Bang!" The gang member, now more cautious, fired a shot, having called for backup.
"He's out of bullets. Shouldn't we step in?" Kara asked Robert.
"Two different superhuman forces are approaching. One feels like Luke, a werewolf, but stronger. The other must be a vampire, but unlike Morbius…" Robert murmured, gazing into the night.
"Luke? Who's that?" Kara asked, confused.
"Clark's stepfather, I think," Robert answered after some thought.
"Hmph!" Kara snorted, pinching Robert's arm in irritation, leaving him bewildered.
Just as Robert was feeling perplexed, the vampire and werewolf he sensed arrived in the forest.
"Well, well, did your traitorous identity get exposed, or are you playing a double agent?" The vampire descended, smirking at the gang member.
"I knew something was off about your scent. I smelled something foul, but I didn't expect you to betray me and consort with a vampire!" The werewolf emerged from the trees, glaring coldly at the gang member.
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