Shakedown Part 3

Once again, a massive staredown for the history books laid out between me and the now muscle monster. I've was hoping that taking that much Rev would do my job for me, but it seems that even in this state, my opponent somehow managed to keep their wits about them. Even while conked out on drugs, MM knew better than to try a hostage situation with me.

Even at this distance, I effectively gamble on various abilities with more than enough tricks to keep him wary. As a result, Rev is effectively both the ultimate equalizer and game-changer, though I was more so. A couple of doses turned the Mutant Masters into city blockbusters, and he just downed freaking crate loads.

From there, milliseconds seemed to mentally stretch onto minutes as a short mental battle took place between us. Once that time passed, though, we both bit the bullet and let it all up for fate to decide!

With the same killer instinct displayed earlier, MM gave a defiant roar before throwing each of his comrades in various directions! Once again, I get forced to maintain flight mode as I swooped in at rapid speed. The first two were easy pickings as I grabbed both of them with my hands. The following two were even more complex as I saw both of my remaining hostages sail towards the nearby building!

Which meant I couldn't waste a single movement, circling back around to hook one of the men between my legs and even save the last one by the literal skin of my teeth! A hint of pride managed to escape my face, but it instantly vanished as Mm finally managed to jump in. Then, I entered full torque onsight, spinning fast enough to throw my hostages aside and meet his attack head-on.

And head-on, I did, as MM's right hand formed a heavy axe that he promptly swung down! The attack might as well have been a lightning bolt as before I knew it; we were both sent crashing into the earth! However, when my focus realigned, I found myself catching said fleshy axe with both hands, saving my own life by an inch.

But that quickly started to change its tune, as now, with the ground to level him; MM had the axe inch ever closer. I tried to switch into strength mode, but with this much pressure, it was no go. Which only managed to have my weakness creep up even more as the axe again inch even closer.

Like steam trapped in a pot, I tried to fly out, hoping my sheer speed alone would throttle me forward, but as MM still managed to keep up the pressure, my theory was proven correct. Only strength or laser mode could help me in this fight; this 20% wasn't enough. At that moment, fear and anxiety started to claim my body as I saw death get closer.

Yet instead of letting that cloud of doubt nearly overtaken, I instead got angry, livid even. Because if there was anything I learned from my fight with the Mutant Masters, all I do is fucking lose! I lost my powers, lost my friend, and lost my dream, so the least I can fucking do is not lose here!

So in the most desperate of all moves, I used this battle of strengths to my advantage, surrendering myself entirely and performing the mother of all side steps! I managed to escape in that minuscule opening with a steaming hot gash on my left shoulder! Horrifying pain meets horrifying numbness as I collected what little sense I had left to counterattack!

MM once again transformed his arms, aiming four giant tentacles at me with the speed of a bullwhip. But I managed to stay one step ahead of them, switching to laser mode at just the last second and heating the snow around me to create a sizeable dense smokescreen that blanketed everything in sight!

Any normal person would've been as blind as a bat, but with my sense mode experience, the dense cloud was no challenge at all as MM stumbled around in the thick steam as if he had lost his contacts. By the time he got clever, I had already won as I charged up the mother of all energy blasts with the full intent to kill!

With that decision, my lasers shot out like a volcanic eruption, hitting him dead on. The now superheated air upped the blast's concussive force multiple times over, forcing MM back right towards the metal building in a guttural fury! However, despite unleashing almost more power than I've ever wielded, MM, to the end, still evolved!

MM's veins darkened and hardened like stone using the same hardening method as before. Inch by Inch braving through the blast while facing kindled tissue and ashy scars. So with that, I decided to match him move for move, aiming my blast down to the ground and hurtling a full slavo worth of concrete right towards them!

The heat of conduction played its part to perfection as soon enough, the Muscle Monster started to fall back as my plan finally started to work. But, because this man was resistant to my heat, it didn't mean that everything else was. Soon enough, that fact became clear as day as, bit by bit, both metal and stone alike lost their solidity, gradually melting into a thick lava-like alloy that soon overtook them.

From there, another heaven-piercing scream took over all Krimo as if it kept on for any longer than prison would be a tomb. And I did think of it; his dead body presented for all the other like-minded monsters like him. But no, once again, mercy and humanity burned me just a little bit, leaving a sour taste in my mouth as I ceased my onslaught.

From there, I then switched quickly into flight mode and spent a good few minutes becoming a human snowplow, burying him in mounds of snow that promptly boiled over and hardened the alloy into a makeshift jail for a barely breathing MM! However, I didn't bother to pay him any future mind.

Instead, with my bloody arm still throbbing, my legs strained, and my body already feeling weaker than it's ever been, I walked towards what gets left of the ruined establishment. Because I didn't need any more realizations or introspections to know that's the only place where my power lies.