System, what exactly is Killer Mode? Cian's mind raced as he scanned the alleyways for any trace of Animo's scent.
[Ding! Killer Mode is a specialized combat sub-routine of the Glitch Watch. While a transformation is active, the Host can rotate the dial on their chest to instantly swap into a different alien form without reverting to human state.]
"Like a quick-switch?" Cian's eyes widened. He looked down at the badge on his mummified chest and gave it a firm twist.
As the dial clicked, the silhouette of Heatblast flickered into view. He could cycle through his entire arsenal on the fly—a true Master Control for a corrupted age.
"If I'm going to track Animo, I need a hunter..."
Cian twisted the dial again and again until a specific beastly icon appeared. "This one!"
Voom!
The alley was bathed in a nauseating, rhythmic red strobe light. Cian's spine cracked and arched, his posture dropping into a low, predatory crouch. Orange fur erupted from his skin like needle-shards, and his muscles swelled with raw, bestial power.
But where the standard Wildmutt had a smooth, eyeless face, this Glitch Wildmutt was a nightmare. A massive, cross-shaped seam split his head horizontally and vertically. When he snarled, the entire front of his face peeled open into a four-way maw of serrated ivory.
"ROAAR!!"
The sound was a guttural, wet vibration that rattled the windows of the nearby buildings.
"Every one of Cian's forms is a walking horror show," Max muttered from the street, clutching a bag of groceries. Even a veteran Plumber like him felt a cold sweat breaking out.
Back in the supermarket, the shoppers who had just regained consciousness from the "Mummy" incident heard the roar. They saw the orange shadow of the Glitch Vulpimancer through the windows and promptly fainted again. It was a rough day for the citizens of D.C.
"What was that? Another roar?"
Animo was sprinting through the backstreets, his breath coming in ragged gasps. "What kind of shadow-government organization did I stumble into? I didn't sign up for this!"
Whoosh!
A sudden, violent downdraft swept through the alley. Animo clutched his horn-helmet, his white hair whipping wildly. He looked up, expecting a drone or a helicopter.
Nothing.
"Just my imagination... Gasp! AAAHHHHH!!"
Animo clutched his chest, exhaling in relief, only to look forward and see a face that was 90% teeth. The cross-shaped mouth was inches from his nose, dripping with acidic saliva. He collapsed instantly, sliding backward on his backside, tears of pure terror pricking his eyes.
"Gotcha," Cian thought, baring his fangs as he lunged forward, snagging Animo's collar with a heavy claw.
In a fit of desperate panic, Animo slammed the controller on his chest, activating the transmodulator on his head. A beam of unstable genetic energy shot out toward Cian.
With a surge of "Peak Human" boosted reflex, Cian leaped nearly twenty feet into the air, the laser passing harmlessly beneath his paws.
"Is that a beast of this Earth? Nothing has moved like that for a thousand years!" Animo stammered, his scientific mind struggling to categorize the predator.
Cian didn't give him time to think. He twisted in mid-air, bringing his massive weight down directly toward the doctor.
"What did I ever do to you?!" Animo shrieked, scrambling away like a frantic insect. He didn't escape the shockwave; the sheer force of Cian's landing sent the doctor flying into a brick wall, knocking him unconscious instantly.
Seconds later, sirens wailed. A fleet of police cruisers swarmed the alley. Officers jumped out, guns raised—pointing at the unconscious doctor, but mostly at the hulking orange monster standing over him. Their hands were visibly shaking.
The plot difficulty is spiking, Cian mused. Even taking out Animo early didn't give me a progress boost. The system wants more.
He gave his chest-dial another twist. The silhouette of the "Terror Star" (Glitch XLR8) flashed. In a blur of red light, he vanished before the police could pull their triggers.
"Thank god it's gone," one officer whispered, holstering his weapon with a trembling hand. "If that thing had fought back... we'd be body bags."
As they hauled the limp Dr. Animo away, none of them noticed the small patch of ground where Animo's laser had struck. Tiny, microscopic insects began to swell and twitch, their carapaces hardening and growing at an impossible rate.
By the time Cian returned to the supermarket, Max and Ben were packed and ready.
"I figured you'd handled it," Max said with a shrug and a knowing smile. "Let's finish our shopping. We're still on vacation, after all."
They spent the rest of the day as tourists, enjoying a D.C. that was unusually quiet—mostly because half the shoppers were still in the hospital for "unexplained shock." By sunset, they returned to the Rustbucket.
Inside, Max was frying up some "fresh" insect sliders, Ben was obsessing over his new gold-edition Sumo card, and Gwen was buried in her laptop.
System, Cian asked, leaning back against the seat. What exactly was that 'Critical Milestone' you mentioned?
[Ding! Once the Host unlocks enough DNA samples and reaches a specific threshold of power, the Glitch Watch begins to grant administrative authorities—like Killer Mode—to ensure the Host can survive the increasingly corrupted timeline.]
Cian nodded. It was logical. The system was building his foundation before handing him the keys to the kingdom.
"I just hope the next authority is worth it," Cian muttered. "Animo barely gave me any progress. I should have let him cook a few more mutants first."
[Ding! Dr. Animo has successfully initiated a jailbreak. Driven by a primal fear of the Host, he has used mutated insects to overrun the police and has occupied the Natural History Museum. He is currently resurrecting an army of prehistoric monsters. Plot deviation: MASSIVE. Progress +1!]
"What?!" Cian sat bolt upright. "He escaped that fast just to give me a progress point?"
He must be terrified of me. He's overcompensating by building a Jurassic army.
"This is bad," Gwen said, turning her laptop screen toward them. "The D.C. police were just overrun by giant beetles. Animo has taken over the museum and he's bringing back the dinosaurs! He's turning the capital into the Stone Age!"
Unlike Gwen, Cian had a massive, hungry grin on his face. He cracked his knuckles. "Then let's go put those dinosaurs back in the ground."
"I was waiting for you to say that!" Ben shouted, slamming his fist into his palm. "I'm not letting you have all the fun this time!"
The two "cousins" stood side-by-side, their eyes burning with a competitive, battle-hungry fire. The museum was no longer a disaster site—it was a buffet.
[Template Progress: 6/100. Unlocking: Glitch Frankenstrike (The Lightning Giant)!]