Mutation Outburst

Sora crouched low, heart racing as he stared at the remains of the mutated dog-like creature before him. He had killed it, the beast now lying in a pool of its own blood, but something was different.

An insatiable hunger clawed at him, an urge he couldn't ignore. It wasn't just physical; it was primal. As he took a step closer, he could smell the warm, iron scent of its blood, the unmistakable aroma of life fading away.

Without fully understanding why, he knelt beside the carcass. He didn't think. He simply acted. He tore into the creature's flesh with a ferocity he didn't know he possessed, the taste of warm meat flooding his senses.

"It feels wrong... but it's so right," he murmured, his voice thick with the taste of blood. Each bite reminded him of the raw power thrumming through him, energy filling his veins like wildfire.

He chewed, swallowed, lost in the moment, consumed by an urge so deep it felt instinctual.

As the last remnants of the creature disappeared into his stomach, he felt a rush of energy. A strange, intoxicating power swirled within him, and he glanced down at his arms. They were beautiful, glinting ominously in the fading light.

But as the satisfaction of his meal washed over him, so too did the darkness. The moment of clarity slipped away, replaced by a mindless instinct to hunt, to consume, to destroy.

"Time to move," he muttered, shaking off the lingering effects of his meal. Sora moved through the desolation, feeling a deep connection to the earth beneath his feet, more attuned to the environment around him.

It wasn't just physical; something deeper was happening. Every time he encountered another mutated creature and devoured its flesh, something inside him evolved.

The giant snake came next. Five meters long, its scales shimmered in the weak daylight like metal armor. The first time Sora saw it, it was coiled around a wrecked bus, waiting, watching.

"Great, just what I needed," he muttered under his breath, eyeing the beast. "A giant snake."

When the fight began, he thought it would be over quickly—until its scales began growing like sleek metal plating, protecting it from his blows.

"Come on!" he shouted in frustration as he dodged its strikes. It was an intense battle, but in the end, Sora's bone blade found its mark.

As the snake's life ebbed away, Sora felt that primal hunger take over again. The need to consume. And so he did.

Soon after, scales began to spread across his body, sleek and metallic, covering his skin in patches like armor. It wasn't grotesque, like the creatures he had fought.

Instead, it felt perfect—an evolution, a balance between beauty and sheer power. He looked at his arms, now covered in the reflective scales, and felt invincible.

"Okay, this is getting out of hand," he said, shaking his head as he adjusted to his newfound strength.

The next encounter was with a variety of mutated creatures. Sora found himself surrounded by grotesque forms, their bodies twisted and misshapen, yet driven by a primal hunger similar to his own.

Each creature was a reflection of the chaos that had engulfed the world—each unique in its horror, but all equally dangerous.

He fought with everything he had, evading the snapping jaws and clawing limbs. "Damn it, stand still!" he yelled, frustration bubbling within him. The battles blurred together, but as with the others, Sora prevailed.

The moment he devoured one of the beasts, his movements became quicker, more fluid. The agility of the creatures became his own, his body a perfect combination of strength and speed.

But with each kill, with each meal, the dark veins in his eyes grew more pronounced. They were spreading, turning the whites of his eyes a deep, swirling black. He didn't notice. Or maybe, he chose not to.

And then, there was the fish. A walking fish. As it flopped awkwardly across the ground, Sora stared, bewildered. "What the fuck is that...?" he exclaimed, incredulous at the sight. The creature seemed so out of place amid the chaos.

"Seriously? A fish?" he chuckled, shaking his head. But he couldn't ignore the strange, almost ridiculous creature. Unlike the other battles, this one was over in seconds. The fish didn't stand a chance.

Afterward, Sora found himself near a body of water, and something inside him told him to test it. To go beneath the surface.

When he did, he realized he could breathe underwater. The fish had given him that—another gift, another step in his evolution. But something was wrong. By the time he resurfaced, the primal urges were growing stronger, harder to control. He felt himself slipping, losing the clarity that had guided him before.

Now, he wasn't just stronger, faster, or armored—he was becoming something else. Something more primal, more savage.

Every time he fed, the hunger grew worse, the pull of that primal instinct deepening.

And that's when he lost control.

Private Reika Akiyama crouched behind a half-collapsed building, her rifle trembling in her hands. Her squad had retreated hours ago, leaving her behind to cover their escape. They were evacuating civilians, and someone had to make sure the mutated creatures didn't reach them.

Reika had volunteered—foolishly, perhaps—but she couldn't bear the thought of leaving her comrades unprotected. Now, she was alone, her heartbeat the only sound louder than the occasional screech of the mutated creatures hunting her.

The bodies of the other soldiers who had stayed behind with her lay scattered around, remnants of the fight to protect the fleeing civilians.

She could still see the lifeless eyes of Corporal Hoshino, who had stood bravely by her side until the end. The sight of their sacrifices fueled her determination to survive, to honor their memory.

The mutated creatures gathered around her position, their grotesque forms shifting in the shadows. Reika could hear the snarls and growls of beasts prowling nearby, each one driven by an insatiable hunger. She'd faced these horrors before but never like this.

Never when she was so... alone.

Her team wasn't coming back.

Just as she accepted that she was about to die, something moved in the distance—a blur, faster than her eyes could follow.

A man... no, something that had once been a man, tearing through the creatures like they were nothing. His arms were covered in sleek, metallic scales, and from his elbow, a blade-like bone protruded, slicing through flesh and bone with terrifying ease.

The creatures fell before him, one after another, until none remained.

Reika watched in horror as the man—Sora—stood amidst the carnage, his chest heaving with heavy breaths. His eyes were black, completely overtaken by the dark veins that pulsed with every heartbeat.

And then, his gaze fell on her.

Sora moved toward her, his steps slow, deliberate. His eyes, empty of any recognition, locked onto her like prey. Reika's heart raced, her hands trembling as she fumbled for her rifle, but it was no use. He was too fast, too powerful. She wouldn't stand a chance.

But as he drew closer, something extraordinary happened. A sudden surge of energy crackled in the air between them, an electric tension that felt almost tangible.

As he approached, the darkness in his eyes flickered, and the air vibrated with an otherworldly force. For a moment, the primal hunger within him hesitated, as if recognizing a challenge, a barrier he couldn't cross.

Reika felt the atmosphere shift, an unexplainable connection forming in the air—a bond that transcended their dire situation.

The power radiating from Sora was almost suffocating, yet it pulsed with something else, something familiar. It was as if their fates were intertwined in that fleeting moment.

But the darkness surged back, the primal urges fighting against this newfound connection. Sora paused mid-stride, confusion crossing his features.

He blinked, his breath coming in ragged gasps as he shook his head, struggling against the pull of the primal instincts within him.

Then, just as abruptly as it had begun, Roper lunged forward, snapping him out of his trance and knocking him off balance. The weight of her presence brought him back, but Sora was still lost to the chaos inside him.

Reika could only watch as the battle between man and beast unfolded. It wasn't until the connection faded that Sora finally regained his senses. His body trembled as he stood in the aftermath of his rampage.

"I... I almost..." His voice was hoarse, barely above a whisper.

Reika could only watch as Sora stood before her, eyes wide with horror and shame, before turning away.