Siegwick glanced back at the commotion, sensing the strange new Kyyr mixed in with the rest. A shudder ran down his spine, but he forced himself to focus, shaking off his curiosity. As he approached the rangers at the northern front, their attention fixed on the flashes of azure light bursting from the Fulgurjaw.

  “S-sir, what’s happening back there?” Calli asked nervously.

  “That’s for the southern squad to deal with for now.” Siegwick replied sternly. He pointed toward the garage under the northeast tower. “The anomaly has added a new monster to its collection,” he said, scowling. “The boy’s pet has been infected.”

  Sey sighed, “That doesn’t sound that bad. I mean—it’s probably a lot less scary than the Rak’da.”

  “Wrong.” Siegwick corrected sharply. “Pelamüs are kyyatrophs, which means they can use Kyyr. If the Anomaly has altered its Kyyr consumption to feed off abyssal condensation, that thing in there is going to be stronger than anything else out here.” His gaze remained fixed on the building. The rangers tensed up. “That building is a trap,” Siegwick continued. “The Anomaly is watching us right now. Don’t look for it. Hopefully, it still thinks it hasn’t been spotted.”

  “Where is it, sir?" Rowan asked.

  “It’s on the 4th floor of the tower watching us from behind the smoke,” Siegwick explained. “Our only hope is to set up a trap of our own. But—there’s a lot of unknown factors to consider: One, we don’t have a sure method of killing the infected. Two, the Anomaly's abilities are unknown. Three, we can’t gauge the intelligence of the infected Pelamüs. Four, the anomaly’s goal is unclear. Five, the connection between the Anomaly and the abyssal storm. We have a which came first situation, the dragon or the egg.” He paused and let the information sink in. “The most logical course for us would be to retreat to the northwest tower and set our own trap, but we don’t know if the abyssal condensation might worsen if that thing stays alive for much longer.”

  “S-sir!” Calli squeaked from behind the tall man.

  “Yes?” Siegwick responded, turning to her.

  “We could use Morotov and my ability to burn the building down. Forcing the two into the open,” Calli suggested.

  Siegwick considered the idea. There were too many variables he was unsure of, but as far as plans went, it wasn’t the worst. He glanced over at the ongoing fight with the Fulgurjaw.

  “We’ll give the other squad 10 minutes to finish off the Rak’da Primer. If they don’t, we’ll move forward with your plan,” he decided.

  “Yes sir!” They responded.

  “Let’s reposition near the main entrance in the event the other squad needs help. But keep an eye on the tower.” Siegwick commanded.

  As the Fulgurjaw slammed down toward Gira, the rangers kept their distance, confused by the strange new figure that had appeared. Unsure of what he was, they watched with anxious caution.

  Gira dodged each strike, feeling the dread of death with every blow but trusting his body’s instincts. He weaved around the Fulgurjaw’s strikes as it roared.

  Frustrated, the Fulgurjaw shifted its attention to the beat-down Will that was still recovering. Shifting its weight upward, it poised its arm to strike. Gira saw his chance and lunged in for another bite—only to be instantly struck by the Fulgurjaw’s tail. The whole ruse had been a trap. But to everyone’s surprise, when the tail rose from the ground, Gira was nowhere to be seen.

  They looked up to find the strange boy clinging to the Fulgurjaw’s tail, hungrily eating away.

  The Fulgurjaw let out a thunderous roar, its tail whipping around with precision, launching Gira through the air with immense force. As Gira flew skyward, the Fulgurjaw surprisingly didn’t follow through with an attack. Rather, it dove for the diced corpse of the other still-living Rak’da that had been incapacitated. The spiraling tendril emerged from the Fulgurjaw’s wounds and mouth as it began to assimilate the body of the Rak’da into its own.

  Serfet moved in swiftly, slicing through as many tendrils as he could. Meanwhile, Radomir, in an animalistic stance, flew under the sea of waving tendrils and charged his limbs with Kyyr. Diving under the Fulgurjaw, he sprung upwards, kicking the Fulgurjaw’s stomach, forcing it to vomit out chunks of the other Rak’da it had consumed, along with parts of the mangled lower half of Jett.

  Zoya recoiled in horror as the half-digested body sprawled across the gravel ground. Seeing the body enraged Radomir, who twisted with momentum and slammed his fist deep into the Fulgurjaw’s stomach, tearing it open with the force of the blow.

  The Fulgurjaw recoiled in pain, its body surging with a violent burst of chimeric blue Kyyr. In an instant, lightning erupted around it; the bolts wildly tore through the ground and walls, sending debris flying in all directions. The air hissed with energy as sparks of lightning ripped apart its surroundings.

  Serfet covered his face as the surge of light ruptured through the air. Squinting his eyes, he narrowly sliced through the incoming barrage, barely avoiding the deadly arcs. But Radomir wasn’t as fortunate—he was struck full force, electricity coursing through his body, sending him crashing backwards.

  The Fulgurjaw roared in pain, its agonized wails catching the attention of the Anomaly that watched from the shadows of the northeast tower. Its pale eyes widened as it watched its fellow monster thrash in pain. Unexpectedly, something stirred within the Anomaly—a feeling unfamiliar but unmistakable. Rage. Cracking its neck violently, the Anomaly slithered down the tower. The Anomaly slipped into the darkness of the garage, where the Pelamüs Shredder waited in the shadows.

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  Shredder clung to the ceiling of the garage, its form grotesquely altered. The creature had doubled in height; its body stretched unnaturally long, with bulging muscles now rippling under its darkened skin. Most of its fur had fallen away, leaving its hide exposed. The creatures once timid eyes had transformed into exaggerated, hollow orbs—devoid of eyelids or irises, staring blankly into the void as if they were there only for show. It’s small mouth had morphed into a vile, rounded snouth that now housed rows of sharp teeth that served the single purpose: shredding flesh.

  Shredder cracked its malformed body as the Anomaly approached it. The Anomaly’s face peeled back, revealing that its head was mostly composed of a fanged snout that seemed to blossom like a twisted bouquet of spiraling tendrils. Shredder opened its mouth and vomited out a vast network of the same tendrils that connected with the Anomaly’s, intertwining grotesquely. As the Anomaly performed its sick adjustments, Shredder’s body began to glow, exposing the darkened tendrils pulsing beneath its skin.

  From Shredder’s engorged paws, a rippling mess of tendrils erupted, flicking violently as they began to reshape. Shredder’s paws contorted into gross, human-like hands tipped with claws resembling the Anomaly’s own. Tears streamed from Shredder's soulless eyes as its mouth curled into a semblance of a smile. Its body rippled violently, bones and muscles shifting and snapping into place as his form became more humanoid. Now standing on two feet, though still capable of dropping on all fours, Shredder had in essence transformed into a monstrous, werewolf-like being.

  Finally releasing Shredder, the Anomaly gave Shredder a knowing look. Without hesitation, the transformed Pelamüs smashed through the wall, the impact echoing through the area. The sound jolted the rangers who had been watching the tower, their attention snapping towards the sudden destruction.

  Siegwick's comms crackled with Saul’s voice: “Sir, something has emerged from the northeast tower!”

  Without another word, Siewick swung past the other rangers, using his Kyyr, to leap onto the roof of Trant Station. He sprinted toward the tower, calling back, “Stay back!” as he disappeared over the edge.

  Inside Trant Station’s systems room, Lucas and Lena stared at the monitors, horrified, as their family pet emerged from the building. Lucas began to shake, the sight overwhelming him. The urge to vomit took over, and he wobbled away from the monitor, retching into a nearby trashcan.

  “Dear Symbols...” Lena muttered as the beastly Shredder sped past the camera. She stared at the scratchy monitor, lingering on the horrific beast their dear pet had become. Turning to check on Lucas, she realized he was gone. “Lucas!?” she shouted, frantically searching for her brother.

  On the southern front, the Fulgurjaw keeled over in pain, revealing a scorched Radomir. Serfet immediately swooped in and retrieved his fallen comrade. The Fulgurjaw moaned as it seemed to melt onto the other Rak'da, assimilating it into its body. But as it seemed to relax, the Fulgurjaw felt a burning pain.

  Ripping into it was Gira. His arm bent at an unnatural angle, tears streaming from his eyes. Driven by an uncontrollable hunger, he ravaged the Fulgurjaw’s flesh, sinking his fangs deep into the bloody amalgamation of flesh and bone. Crimson scales erupted from beneath his skin as his arm snapped back into place, healing with each bite.

  Seeing an opening, Serfet handed Radomir to Carmela. “Get him out of here!” he screamed.

  Carmela nodded and gestured for Zoya to join her. Together, they moved quickly, hoping to reach the unconscious Ribbon and the downed Will.

  Serfet stayed behind, watching in horror as Gira’s Kyyr skin burst. The resounding sound of rhythmic clapping emanating from around the carnage. The aura of his Kyyr shaking violently, spiraling into a horrid form.

  Gira froze. “We need more Kyyr,” the voice of Savagrios echoed in his mind.

  Where do I get more of that? Gira asked Savagrios in his head.

  “Those people are carrying little flasks. Take one…” Savagrios urged him.

  Gira turned to face Serfet and tried speaking, “ey ken yuh lease gie e…ah.”

  I CAN’T TALK PROPERLY WITHOUT LIPS! He screamed internally, realizing his stupid dilemma.

  Serfet readied his blades, eyes locked on Gira. Panicking, Gira put his hands up and waved to him in an attempt to communicate, but the message wasn’t coming across. Serfet, gripped with terror, stared at the half-monster aberration that Gira had become.

  Gira continued his poor attempts to communicate with Serfet when, suddenly, a new Rak’da slammed into the fence behind Serfet. This was the unfortunate Rak’da that had been ripped to shreds by the traps at the forest's edge. Its lower legs had been poorly reconstructed as it crawled using its front arms to drag its body. Serfet instinctively backed away from both Gira and the fence as the Rak’da changed its target from Serfet to Gira.

  “Ohh neeuh..” Gira mouthed as the Rak’da pounced onto him and the still-writhing Fulgurjaw. Gira jumped off the mangled mess of flesh as the new Rak’da seemed to merge with the dismembered pile of Fulgurjaw.

  In a horrific fusion, the Fulgurjaw and the smaller Rak’da melded together, their limbs and tendrils twisting as the Fulgurjaw now had a split jaw, tendrils spilling from the gaping maw, while its joints cracked loudly with each movement as it let out an ear-piercing roar. From the remaining scraps, a smaller Rak’da emerged. Unlike the hulking Fulgurjaw, which now stood an imposing four meters tall, this other Rak’da was only half the size. But it had a four-way split jaw that was a mix of the two smaller Rak’da skulls.

  “Fuck!” Serfet shouted, immediately dropping back into a fighting stance.

  Gira, on the other hand, looked over toward Zoya and Carmela. They had regrouped with Sey, who was administering first aid to Ribbon. Gira had landed near Will, who was now back on his feet. Will’s gaze locked onto Gira, the shadow’s of the Rak’da shifting behind him in a dance of flesh and lightning.

  Will recoiled. “What the hell are you?” he muttered, changing his stance.

  Gira noticed a light blue flask hanging from Will’s belt. He frowned, giving up on trying to talk; he focused on the flask.

  Sorry, Mr. Ranger-Guy.

  Charging some Kyyr into his legs, Gira rushed Will, who quickly shifted to a defensive stance. Gira tried grabbing at the flask, but despite having broken ribs, Will blasted him with his Kyyr, causing Gira’s body to bounce away, cracking his brittle scales. Regaining his footing, Gira charged again, this time conscious of Will’s attack. He feigned a basic charge, which caused Will to whiff his Kyyr blast as Gira dug his foot into the ground, using gravity to swing his body forwards again and snatching the flask of his belt. Gira’s claws snagged Will’s uniform, and with an unfortunate rip, the fabric gave way. Will lost his balance and tumbled awkwardly to his side.

  Sorry!

  “Inject it!” Savagrios hissed from the recesses of his mind. Gira awkwardly fumbled with the flask for a second, his new claws making it surprisingly hard to grab a hold of the ampule properly. But before he could inject himself, a brutal strike from below sent him flying across the crimson night.

  Will had unleashed his full fury, blasting Gira with all his strength.

  Gira felt his body lift off into the air, Will’s lingering rage stabbing at his ribs as they cracked under the impact. Soaring through the gloom of the night sky, he crashed outside the perimeter. Smashing onto the wet grass of a hill at the abyssal forest’s edge.

  Coughing up blood, he winced in pain. “I ish I cou talk ropherly, ugh.” he said, letting his arms loosely fall to his sides.