The Hive Alpha's leap tore through the air like a cannonball.
Marcus barely had time to react. He rolled aside just as the creature's claws shattered the ground where he'd been standing, sending up a shockwave of splinters and bone fragments. The Hive's breath was a mix of rot and static—like electricity buzzing through death.
[Danger Level: Critical][Engage Emergency Reflex Protocol? Y/N]
"Yes!" Marcus shouted.
[Protocol Engaged: Time Perception Boost – 30 Seconds]
The world slowed.
Suddenly, every droplet of sweat, every flicker of muscle on the Hive Alpha's towering frame became visible. Marcus darted in, his axe low. The weapon gleamed in the red light as he slashed for the Alpha's exposed flank.
A screech of steel met his swing. The blade skidded off bone-plated armor.
The Alpha turned with impossible speed and backhanded him into a tree.
Marcus's ribs cracked again.
[Injury Detected: Rib Fracture – Severity: Moderate][Regeneration Engaged – Estimated Recovery: 41 seconds]
Marcus coughed blood. Staggered. Then grinned through it.
"Okay," he wheezed. "Round two."
The Alpha charged again, jaws wide. But this time, Marcus didn't retreat. He focused—hard—on the pipes running into its chest. That's the core, he thought. That glow… it's more than just light.
[Analyzing Target… Mutation Core Identified: Synth-Bioplasmic Regulator][New Objective: Core Extraction]
"Gonna carve that right out of you."
Marcus ran forward, ducking a swing, sliding between the Alpha's legs. He drove the axe upward, striking one of the tubes along the spine. It hissed. Fluid sprayed, sizzling against his arm like acid. He bit back a scream and kept moving.
The Alpha howled and twisted, trying to grab him.
Too slow.
Marcus jumped and grabbed onto a protruding bone ridge on the creature's back. He climbed like a man possessed, dragging himself higher as the monster bucked beneath him.
At the top, just beneath the base of the neck, he saw it—an opening. The chest membrane pulsed, clear and fragile. Beneath it: a glowing core the size of a grapefruit, swirling with light.
"Found you," he whispered—and plunged the axe into it.
The world exploded.
A burst of red energy knocked Marcus clear off the monster. He hit the ground hard, tumbling across dead leaves and black soil. For a moment, he couldn't breathe. Couldn't see.
Then came silence.
He opened his eyes slowly.
The Hive Alpha stood—shaking, gasping—its chest torn open. The glow inside dimmed, flickered… and went out.
Then, with one final shriek that seemed to shake the roots of the forest, it collapsed.
Dead.
[Core Acquired: Alpha-Grade Evolution Catalyst][New Ability Branch Unlocked: Hybrid Integration][Warning: Mutation Path Now Diverging From Human Baseline][Do You Wish to Proceed?]
Marcus stared at the glowing core shard in his hand.
It throbbed like a heartbeat.
Behind him, in the shadows, other mutants began to emerge. They didn't attack.
They bowed.
Marcus blinked, chest heaving. "What the hell am I becoming?"
[Answer: More Than Human]