Leave The Monster Alone

Was the water really cold? It had seemed to be and everything suggested that it should be freezing but Mark could not feel anything even when he was submerged in it.

But when he tried to move his hands, they proved to be an obstacle. Not only did his body feel heavy and sluggish, but his clothes were another obstruction he was faced with. The water was already limiting his mobility and all the factors she combined together made for a miserable time.

It was only after he tried to move his leg to propel himself up did he notice that this stiffness was different from the one he had faced till now. It felt external rather than being an internal restriction.

Mark twisted the rest of his body, bringing it in an almost circle as he clutched his leg where he felt the restriction. He had to rely on his eyes rather than his hands to find the abnormality. Since he could not feel anything, his hands could not find the place that restricted him but he could see the sharp vine-like thing that restricted him.

The taser was useless and he had to exchange it with a knife to free himself. That exchange took a few precious minutes which made even his vision go a little hazy and breathing got even more difficult.

This was the time his brain caught up to the current situation to make him realize that he was drowning and he did need oxygen to keep alive. Since his lungs were rendered numb as well he did  ot realise it till that moment.

Sheer willpower kept him alive at this point, his brain fighting fighting kept him alive and his body finally regaining some feeling back to it which made him aware of the cold. The water really was freezing cold and it was rendering most of Mark's effort useless.

The first gulp of fresh air was an almost godsend causing Mark to take in the available air from around him in huge breaths. The shore was not too far off which was the best news Mark could have received in such a situation. The feeling of danger did not subside but the first priority in such a situation was to reach the shore. 

With the heaviness becoming more evident, Mark knew if he delayed this part any longer then he would likely sink so he focused all his energy on swimming toward the shore.

As soon as he pulled up his body, a small cough forced his way through his lungs. As more and more feeling returned to him, he finally became aware of the burning feeling in his chest and lungs.

The cough forced water out of him which really brought back the memory of those first aid lessons he had been forced to take so long ago. He had likely swallowed too much water while he was drowning. There was no doubting the fact that his lungs must have been damaged.

For a normal person this might as well be a death sentence but not for Mark who had a storage of emergency medicine. Bringing the bottle close to his mouth, Mark made sure he gulped it down in one go and then another type of cough started.

This time the burn was much more evident and the water could be felt coming up his windpipe and he coughed. The water was almost clear as it made its way out and the feeling of becoming light was much too pleasant.

Mark's closed eyes finally opened to have a look around, his senses much sharper than before. Whatever had been affecting him had been blown away in the river and which was very good news that potentially saved his life.

The human-like hand that was inches away from his face supported black claws one could only hope to find on a wolf but it was the face with the extended snout which painted the picture of what had attacked him.

The one who attacked him looked almost entirely mutated, both in shape and behaviors which could only mean that this was someone who had used the contact of the vail.

Since Mark had dodged the attack, the mutated person looked confused and his reflexes did not seem that sharp which gave Mark just enough time to zap the other.

Since the other still carried human parts, the taser did not cause any major harm but the costume did go down. But even so, Mark did not close in on the other.

These things were animalistic enough to attack on sight and it would not be a good idea to engage them head-on like this if the other resisted. 

Mark made small noises first, just to make sure that the other was actually knocked out fully before he approached any further. Since the body on the forest floor did not move, Mark took it as a sign to approach the other. Positioning himself in the blind spot of that creature was the approach Mark chose to take since it would allow him the brief window for a surprise attack should he need it.

He deliberately made a small noise by throwing a stone on the other side as he walked to warn the other and that turned out to be the right move. The mutated monster jumped at that noise, his body all but a blur and that was all Mark needed to io the dose on the taser and stun the other.

This time when the monster went down, he did not pretend to faint but rather tried to pick itself up again to attack. The taser was much more potent this time around which was no surprise to Mark at all. Even he could see that the other was mutating at a visible rate.

The awareness seemed to be eroding from its eyes every second that passed which was a testament to the potential that drug contained. It was far too dangerous to be allowed outright now.

"Give up, you cannot win"  Mark tried to reason with the other but it was obvious that his words fell on deaf ears. Perhaps the other had already passed the point of no return the second he took that drug but Mark could not be faulted for trying.

He did think about knocking the other unconscious but beforehand could proceed with that thought, he felt the beep from hiss system.

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System warning: danger detected - two abnormalities detected in the vicinity.

Danger level : updating

Action to take : eliminate the risk factor (reward) or ignore (chances of being attacked)

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Update complete

Danger level : Medium (lv2)

Course of action updated: eliminate the risk factor. 

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Warning: advice not to ignore 

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The war came no earlier than the vine-like thing that had attacked him in the start and Mark cursed his forgetfulness. The system had already warned him that there were two of these but he had forgotten once he was attacked.

He had to dodge the vines behind him which was a difficult task when he had to pay attention to the monster on the ground too. However, the vines did not leave him with an opening at all which was frustrating to him.

He also made a key observation once the relentless pursuit of those vines subsided in frequency which was an eye opener - he had been made to step away from the fallen monster and the assault on him just provided the other with enough time to pick itself up. 

The steps that the mutant took were unsteady but still faster than any human in the same situation could take. Mark made a motion to follow but once again, the veins obstructed his vision as well as his moment and he could not stop the other from fleeing.

But he could not stop them from fleeing but at least he could track him down on the map now.

They were fast and the obstacle did a marvelous job of slowing Mark down considerably but that was no longer a problem for him. With a short message to Liam explaining things, Mark made his way toward the marked position on the map. 

He followed it all the way to the clearing where several shadows could be seen. His current position made nothing visible to him and that was the point he decided that he needed to get to a higher point of view.

The trees were the best he could think of and climbing them was an easy enough task for someone who had as much experience as he did. 

From behind the canopy of the tree he observed the people down below but they could not be said to be any more human than the ones he had faced before.

That was a party of 3, one of them was still human, the oher in the middle stages of their mutation and the last one seemed to be almost mindless which indicated that he had lost his humanity.

The picture was not pretty and Mark clutched his taser tightly in his hand as he made plans to take the other by surprise. But then the one in the middle stages of the evolution looked up and their eyes met.

He had been caught.