“Fight… Me!” Its shoulders heaved exaggeratedly. The Giant Rat bodies around it had already turned into nothing more than blood paste.
Jin-woo looked back towards where his spear had been. It had somehow gotten dislodged and laid a few feet away from the cages and pillar he had pinned it too. It must have been thrown off its place after the first throw because the pillar had been demolished and the cage unrecognizably twisted and broken. Both covered in debris and massive pieces of stone.
He put down two of the three vials. Grabbed his short spear and the sizzling one.
He threw the spear wide, intending to miss and cause some noise behind the Rat Lord. And followed with the vial right after, not waiting for the short spear to land. Without waiting, he lunged for the other two.
The Rat Lord roared in agony. Jin-woo heard the bubbling of its skin from even that great of a distance.
"Pain!” Jin-woo launched another vial straight into its face. Its face and meat on it seemed to drip onto the floor. He could imagine that was how he looked when he first fought the poison rats. But this was far more potent.
The Rat Lord reeled backwards, nearly toppling over. "Remember… Pain!” Its voice shook the last vial in Jin-woo’s hands.
In a hurry, he threw it at the monstrous behemoth before it shattered in his palms. The last vial wrecked havoc on its left leg, exposing bones and melting much of it.
The Mutated Rat Lord fell face first. Clawing at its eyes and cheeks. It writhed in agony. Screams got louder every moment longer.
Jin-woo ran towards his long spear. He could feel the disgust assault his stomach, the smell had gotten worse than anything he had ever witnessed even in this dungeon. Seeing skin and muscle melt did little to help the situation. But he pressed forwards anyway. He wondered what negative effects would he see from such mental clarity. The robotic, mechanical, mind of his could not all be roses and butterflies.
"Remember..." Its voice made loose debris rattle in their spots. “Needles make… Stronger!”
He grabbed his spear and turned with pace. Fully intent on finishing the battle while it was still down and in agony.
The thought of using the rest of his mana barely registered before Jin-woo witnessed horror incarnate.
The Rat Lord's flesh erupted outward. Surgical staples pinging off walls like shrapnel. Muscle layered over muscle in impossible configurations as the creature's frame expanded. Its horrifically melted face roared a battlecry that forced Jin-woo to his knees in an attempt to protect his already bleeding ears. Bones cracked and reformed, each sickening snap and pop echoed throughout the chamber. He could hear vials and other glass instruments shatter that were close enough.
What stood before him now towered easily fifteen feet tall. Its mass nearly doubled.
His system interface flashed urgent warnings to escape. Demina agreed with its assessment in a myriad of warnings and threat assessments that littered his feed.
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
[CRITICAL ALERT: HOSTILE EVOLUTION DETECTED]
[PHASE 2 - ACTIVATED!]
[THREAT PARAMETERS EXCEEDED]
[RECOMMENDATION: IMMEDIATE TACTICAL WITHDRAWAL]
Holy – Jin-woo stepped back as the transformation ended. He adjusted his grip on his warped spear. The metal felt slick with sweat despite the cloth wrapping.
He searched for what could be his out. Would his current plan even work anymore? How much damage would it require for it to fall down dead before it snapped his spine with an ax kick?
There was no choice but to hope his plan would work. Escape, lead the raging behemoth into solid walls and cages, and cover him in sizzling chemical waste that covered the ground or were in vials at the edges of the room.
The transformed Rat Lord moved with impossible speed for its size. Jin-woo activated another ‘Quick Strike’ to escape, the expected feeling of emptiness as mana left his body kept him awake. He ran for his life towards the most well bolted cages. Jin-woo turned the corner and dove for the thick metal bars. The metal rod hurt to land on, his bruised body was taking too much damage already just from escaping the monster.
Its fist tore through the reinforced and bolted cage like paper. The metal rods ripped at the meat off its arms. Right above Jin-woo’s head. He cursed, jumping into a lounge and kept running. He could feel his teeth rattle with every fist and swipe the monstrous thing attempted. His legs burned for the first time since coming into this world in what could only be lactic acid. Even his lungs had begun to burn and side hurting.
Metal screamed as it twisted and shattered as the Rat Lord tore up the cage behind him. It then launched metal rods it ripped out of the concrete ground, with nothing but brute strength, like javelins. Each one left an impact that sent shockwaves through the floor. They shrieked in the air like demented beings.
Only a stark lack of accuracy kept Jin-woo from being peppered with metal rods like a porcupine.
Even in the urgent scramble to escape, his mind still noticed weaknesses and oddities. The Mutated Rat Lord favored its right leg, limping every other step. The damage to its left leg from the chemical hazardous vials melting its muscle and mostly stayed. Even if it had slightly healed, allowing it the bare minimum to keep after him. It wasn’t much, but it was a weakness he could take advantage of and finish this as soon as possible.
"Promised..." the creature bellowed. "Evolution... Gave... Pain!" It charged him again with renewed rage.
The words struck something in Jin-woo. It was a theory he had since entering this place. Before it had turned into a dungeon. The surgical scars on all the rats, the surgical staples on the rat lord. The twisted experiment tables and cages.
This was someone's creation, someone's victim. This wasn’t just a mindless creature, but rather an abomination of science that had forced its hand into hatred and suffering. A look back showed a different light to the Rat Lord’s eerily intelligent eyes. They burned with betrayal and sacrifice.
Had this been another situation, maybe they wouldn’t have had to resort to killing each other. Maybe even–
Jin-woo dove to the right, grabbing his short spear. He had already circled around the room again to where he had thrown it as a distraction. The Rat Lord charged after him, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake.
Philosophical musings would have to wait. Mostly until either one of them was dead.
The Rat Lord's new form moved with terrifying grace, each blow carrying enough force to turn him into paste. Jin-woo activated ‘Quick Strike’ again. It burned precious mana to dart past a sweeping arm and lead it towards the hazardous waste puddles on the ground. He slashed at its legs as he escaped it.
[MANA STATUS: 612/1600]
[WARNING: RESERVES CRITICALLY LOW]
The Rat Lord's roar carried notes of grief now. "They... Take... Everything!"
The chamber had become a maze of twisted metal and chemical hazards. The Rat Lord bulldozed through everything, ripping its body apart in the process. It hadn’t gained enough resistance or vitality to counteract the significant amount of strength it received. Jin-woo used the terrain to his advantage, leading the rampaging creature through pools of caustic liquid while conserving his dwindling mana, into massive walls and mounted and well bolted cages.
Each step had to be calculated, each strike precise. One mistake, one moment of hesitation, and all the stat points in the world wouldn't save him from being turned into a smear on the wall.