Everything the feline had said had indeed happened. Vince had truly come back to life, and he felt stronger. It was as if nothing could stop him. But at the same time, he knew there was something strange about himself.

In the short period since returning to the world of the living and facing those who had been the peaks of his death, he had realized that he had accomplished feats impossible for a mere human. He had just dodged bullets.

That was unimaginable. Even though, for Vince, that whole day was unimaginable. Being murdered by his best friend, making a pact with an ancient god, and coming back to life. Just thinking about it made his head ache.

'Before anything else, I need to get rid of these corpses.'

He took the weapons from the invaders and placed them at his waist. Heading towards his, he opened the first drawer, taking out his old pocket lighter. It was then that he looked at the gasoline cans scattered on the floor and had an idea.

Spreading the liquid over the bodies and the rest of the small place, Vince headed to the door but stopped a bit before leaving. This would be the farewell to his old life. For the world, Vince Martino was dead, and it would be better if everyone kept believing that. He would need time to gather resources and allies who could help him in his revenge and in preventing the rise of the tower. Not to mention that Vince still needed some information about the location where the original body of the Cat was being kept. He had a lot to figure out in a short time.

He pulled the last cigarette from his pack and lit it, looking at his old office for the last time. Many memories echoed in his mind, but this was not the moment to dwell on the past.

With a quick and emotionless motion, Vince just threw his old lighter onto one of the bodies covered in gasoline. He simply walked away, heading towards the street, while the flames engulfed everything around him.

                                                                                         ***

It didn't take long for Vince to be at his front door. The path there had been quite peaceful, even though he had the feeling of being followed the whole way. But no matter how much he looked, he couldn't find anyone who seemed to be spying on him.

Giving up, he simply entered his house. After all the chaos that had been his day, he needed a good shower. Grabbing a clean towel and a change of clothes, he entered the bathroom and stood in front of the mirror.

His short but completely tousled hair seemed messier than usual, but that didn't seem to bother him. The small scar on his eyebrow was almost entirely hidden by a handful of hair that Vince took off his forehead. And when he did that, he finally noticed something he should have noticed as soon as he had stopped in front of the mirror. His eyes, which once had a light brown shade, were now completely blue, the same intensity as the glow when he had linked his soul with the Cat's life energy.

'What the hell is happening to me?'

It's then that, as if responding to Vince's thoughts, a voice echoes from the depths of his mind.

'It's exactly what it looks like; you now possess some properties of the eyes of a Perpetual.'