"Finally rid of that overgrown lizard."
Tyler Levison exhaled, his chest heaving as he stood atop the carcass of the giant alligator. He reached for the red dial on his chest, the interface glowing as he rotated the selection. With a splash of crimson light, he transformed into The Gore-Slinger.
He swung his thick, gelatinous arms, sending strands of viscous red fluid toward the tourists still trapped in the muck. The fluid acted like an organic pressurized seal, separating the survivors from the suffocating grip of the marsh. With a sharp tug, Tyler hauled three dazed and blood-slicked tourists onto the dry bank.
"Everyone's clear," he muttered, turning back toward the water.
He was met with a wall of serrated teeth.
BOOM!!
The alligator hadn't died. It lunged with a final, desperate burst of prehistoric reflex, snapping its jaws shut around Tyler's head and upper torso. The crowd screamed as the beast began to chew, the wet crunching sound echoing across the scenic area.
Instead of fighting the bite, Tyler's entire body went limp, sliding smoothly into the predator's gullet. The alligator tilted its head back, triumphantly swallowing the "demon" whole before turning its hungry gaze toward the terrified crowd.
Gwen gripped her staff, her knuckles white. "I'm going in! I have to save him!"
"Stay back!" Max barked, grabbing her arm while keeping a firm grip on Ben. "I know what Tyler's doing... and it's not going to be pretty."
The alligator took a heavy step toward the shore. Suddenly, its body locked up. It began to shake its head violently, its throat rippling as it let out a series of agonized, muffled growls.
PFFT!!
A jagged spear of hardened red fluid burst through the alligator's spine from the inside out. Then, a hand followed.
The Gore-Slinger crawled out of the beast's back, drenched in entrails and swamp water—a nightmare vision of crimson and rot.
"I didn't want to make this disgusting," Tyler's voice hissed through the gore. "But you didn't give me a choice."
The beast slumped, finally dead.
"Ugh, I'm filthy." Tyler wiped the foul-smelling ichor from his form. As he did, the Carnitrix dial on his chest spun of its own accord, clicking into the icon of the Four-Armed Brute.
Tyler froze. "Another one? Where?"
He scanned the marsh, but the water was still. The market was loud with panicking people, but nothing moved toward him. The forest...
BOOM!!
A giant mutant bullfrog erupted from the tree line like a green missile, crossing dozens of meters in a single leap. Tyler slammed his hand down on the dial just as the creature slammed into him.
Red light flared as a second giant alligator emerged from the reeds, whipping its tail toward Tyler's legs. Simultaneously, a two-meter-long chameleon, covered in jagged spikes, phased into reality near the market and lunged for his throat.
"How are there so many?!" Gwen shouted. "Is the marsh polluted?"
"It's not pollution," Ben noted, his hands twitching toward his watch. "Someone's playing Pokémon with these things."
BANG!!
The red light shattered. Tyler stood in the center of the mud, his four massive arms extended. Two hands held the bullfrog aloft, one gripped the second alligator's tail, and the last formed a hardened blade that blocked the chameleon's pounce.
He had stopped three apex mutants mid-ambush without breaking a sweat.
"Three on one? I like those odds!" Tyler's fangs glinted as he prepared to crush them.
WHOOSH!!
A long, prehensile tongue lashed out from the trees, wrapping around Tyler's elbow and yanking his arm back. He looked up, following the tongue to a second giant bullfrog—and the rider sitting atop it.
Wild, unkempt hair, sallow skin, and oversized, flashy sunglasses. Dr. Animo.
He wasn't wearing his usual mind-control helmet. Instead, his hands were encased in massive, hydraulic gorilla-themed gauntlets.
"Animo? How did you break out?" Tyler demanded.
"Heh heh." Animo's smile was manic. "There isn't a cage in this world built for a genius like me! I've been tracking your scent for weeks, alien freak. I've mapped your routes. I've analyzed your patterns. And now, I have you!"
Animo hopped down from his mount, the mechanical gorilla arms hissing with steam. Tyler struggled, but the four mutants held him pinned. He could break free, but it would take a moment—a moment Animo was already using to close the distance.
"Don't bother resisting," Animo sneered, raising a gauntlet. "This is going to hurt."
GRAWR!!
A small, rocky figure slammed into Animo's side, knocking the doctor off balance. It was Gwen's stone familiar, its runic patterns glowing as it tried to defend its masters.
"A little minion?" Animo snarled, regaining his footing. "I'll grind it into gravel!"
He swung a massive gorilla fist, the impact sending the stone monster tumbling across the dirt. It wailed, cracks spreading across its rocky torso. Animo loomed over it, raising both gauntlets for a killing blow. "Die."
"No!" Gwen's heart hammered. She raised her staff, ready to drop the masquerade and unleash her full power to save her familiar.
But she didn't have to.
Ben Tennyson sprinted past her, leaping high into the air. With a roar of effort, he delivered a crushing flying kick to Animo's chest.
"Oof!" Animo was sent sprawling, his sunglasses shattering against the mud.
"You want the kid?" Ben growled, standing over the wounded familiar. "You gotta go through me first."
Animo wiped blood from his lip, his eyes burning with fury. He raised the gorilla gauntlets, their engines roaring. "You're looking for a grave, brat? I'll dig one for you!!"
New Transformation Log
The Gore-Slinger (Carnitrix Wildmutt/Goop Variant)
Traits: A mass of semi-liquid, bloody muscle that can harden into weapons or seep through gaps.Ability: Internal Rupture. Can enter an opponent's body to destroy vital organs from within.Passive: Scent-Marker. Leaves a trail of thick fluid that allows Tyler to track anything it touches for miles.
The Four-Armed Brute (Four Arms Variant)
Traits: A hulking Tetramand with blackened skin and eyes that glow like burning coals.Ability: Quad-Clinch. Can exert enough pressure to crush reinforced steel with any combination of its four arms.