Rel had no time to think -- only to act.

  The scene before him was a grim tableau: Punjo, cornered, battered, running out of space to maneuver. The monstrous creation loomed over him, its grotesque, bulbous eyes twitching, its four arms poised to strike.

  Rel: "This one's for you..."

  With a pounding heart, Rel sprinted forward, his muscles coiling with raw adrenaline. He leaped onto a nearby table, using it as a springboard to propel himself toward the mutant.

  The dim light of the laboratory caught the metallic glint of his boot heels -- reminiscent of a particular fighter very dear to him.

  Rel: "Faya...!"

  Twisting mid-air, his body became a blur of motion. His right leg snapped forward, boot leading the charge.

  His steel heel smashed into the mutant's exposed skull.

  CRACK.

  A sickening crunch echoed through the chamber as the impact sent a spiderweb of fractures through the beast's already-ruptured cranium. Thick, black ichor sprayed outward as the abomination reeled, momentarily stunned by the devastating blow.

  Punjo: "REL?!"

  Rel landed in a crouch, flashing a triumphant grin.

  Rel: "I know, I know -- before you say anything... you're welcome!"

  Punjo's face twisted with anger -- but beneath it lay something else, a renewed surge of adrenaline.

  Rel shouldn't be here.

  This wasn't his fight.

  But now that he was...

  Punjo exhaled sharply, cracking his knuckles as he readied his fists.

  Punjo: "Plan?!"

  He scoffed, trying to hide an eager grin.

  Punjo:"Ye're in over yer head, kid. Plan's simple -- don't get in my way!"

  Before Rel could reply, Punjo surged forward.

  The mutant was still reeling, but not for long.

  Punjo lunged, aiming for a sweeping kick to bring the beast crashing down again.

  Dmitri: "FOOL! That won't work twice!"

  SPLURCH.

  A black tendril shot out from the monster's flesh, latching onto Punjo's leg mid-kick.

  Punjo gritted his teeth, his body jerking awkwardly to one side, losing balance.

  Punjo: "Tch...!"

  The monster steadied itself, its wounds already knitting together, its open skull seething with grotesque new growths.

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  Then, its entire body convulsed.

  Dozens of swollen, milky-white eyes began to burst forth from its head cavity, twitching in all directions, searching, calculating.

  With a guttural snarl, it raised two massive, ichor-dripping fists -- intent on crushing Punjo's skull between them.

  Rel: "PUNJO! Give me a leg up!"

  Punjo's eyes flicked toward him.

  For a split second, their gazes met.

  And that was enough.

  With lightning-fast reflexes, Punjo planted his free foot onto the mutant's thigh -- just sturdy enough to act as a stepping ledge.

  Rel was already moving.

  He sprinted toward Punjo, his body launching upward the second his boot made contact.

  Using Punjo's leg as leverage, Rel kicked off -- soaring toward the beast's exposed ribs.

  Rel: "TAKE THIS!"

  His steel-toed boot connected with sickening force.

  CRACK.

  The monster shrieked as its ribs caved inward, the fractures splitting through its grotesque frame.

  The tentacle wrapped around Punjo's leg shuddered -- then slithered back into the main body.

  Punjo didn't waste the opportunity. He charged, using the momentum of the beast's staggered movements to slam his entire weight against it.

  Punjo: "Nice boots ya got there..."

  The monster stumbled, its broken ribs shifting unnaturally beneath its skin.

  Punjo: "Might have ta' get myself a pair after this!"

  With a final, thunderous tackle, Punjo slammed the beast onto the ground once more.

  The laboratory trembled as its massive form crashed into the floor, tentacles writhing in agony.

  Punjo mounted the beast's chest, pinning it beneath his weight.

  Punjo: "Now... 'member what I said 'bout weak points?"

  With a fierce snarl, Punjo curled his fingers, leaving only his index and middle knuckles protruding. Bracing himself, he drove his fist into the shattered ribs Rel had broken moments before. Each strike sent tremors of agony through the monster's body, its grotesque wails reverberating through the lab. From beneath its skin, tentacles erupted wildly, writhing in all directions, desperate to fight back. Some lashed at Punjo, striking his shoulders and sides, but their chaotic flailing lacked the force to do any real damage.

  Dmitri: "Remember what I said about learning...?"

  Dmitri's voice rang out, smug even as his monstrous creation reeled.

  Rel: "Shut the fuck up already!"

  Rel, sick to death of Dmitri's arrogant prattle, drove a steel-toed boot directly into his chin. The force snapped his jaw shut with a sickening crunch, teeth cracking under the impact. The alchemist crumpled to the floor, unconscious.

  Punjo: "Shit...!"

  In an instant, Punjo leapt off the monster and stumbled back, eyes widening as its body began convulsing violently.

  Rel: "Now what?!"

  The beast's four arms twisted and snapped, breaking apart in grotesque angles as they were wrenched into its torso. Its entire form vibrated unnaturally, bones bursting from its lower body with sickening cracks. Black sinew coiled around the new limbs like tendrils, binding them together -- until finally, the monster settled into its new form.

  It had sprouted six legs.

  Gone were its arms, but the sheer alien grotesquery of its movements made it no less terrifying.

  Punjo: "That ain't good..."

  Without warning, the creature crouched.

  Punjo: "MOVE!"

  They barely reacted in time. The monster launched itself across the room like a bullet, its sharpened leg-bones poised to impale anything in its path. Punjo and Rel split in opposite directions, diving out of the way just in time.

  SHHRIP!

  Punjo gritted his teeth as a razor-sharp bone scraped across his upper arm, splitting the skin and leaving a thin trail of blood.

  Punjo: "Tch... too fuckin' fast!"

  Behind them, the lab shuddered. The creature had slammed into the back wall with such force that it left deep cracks in the stone. But it didn't drop.

  It clung to the wall.

  Rel: "What the hell...?"

  Suspended upside-down, the monster's numerous glossy eyes darted between them, glistening with predatory malice. With a slow, almost calculating movement, it wrenched its legs free from the stone and skittered upwards, clinging to the ceiling like a monstrous, skinless cockroach.

  Punjo followed its movement, then flicked his eyes toward the lab's open door -- Tyssa was nowhere to be seen.

  Punjo: "Rel... you're here, but where's the damn girl?!"

  Rel: "Don't worry about her -- can't imagine she's doin' any worse than we are!"

  His breath was heavy, his voice edged with frustration. He kept his eyes locked on the creature as it inched across the ceiling.

  Rel: "I'm way more worried about how the hell we're supposed to hit that thing...!"

  The two fighters were at a deadlock.

  Punjo was too slow to dodge effectively.

  Rel was too fast to be caught, but not strong enough to deal real damage.

  And their opponent? It had sacrificed brute force for terrifying speed.

  The balance of battle had shifted -- and not in their favor.