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I leap to my feet and take two running steps, tensing my wiry muscles like springs before leaping clean over the helicopter. I glare down at the pilot through the deadly blades of the helicopter, before rolling in midair as I land on the wall of the building behind the chopper. Gripping the concrete with my claws, I launched a two-footed kick that shatters the window just below me; as I dive through, I nick my shoulder on a shard of broken glass.
That, I soon realise, is the least of my worries.
I look over my shoulder as the attack chopper turns like a giant predatory bird, and the air soon comes alive with a devastating storm of tracer rounds. The bullets tear up the floor at my heels as I barge through the door and emerge into a red-carpeted hallway, a line of bullets strafing the wall in front of me as I dive to one side and flatten myself on the floor. The helicopter continues firing, punching fist-sized holes in the wall above me as it strafes the building, the pilot assuming I’d keep running at full pelt.
When the holes were appearing at the far end of the hallway, I stand up and calmly walk in the opposite direction...
“AAARRRGHH!!!”
I make it three steps, before I give a choked cry as a searing bolt of pain shoots straight through my brain, burning up through the tissue until I feel like my entire skull is on fire.
I collapse onto my knees, screaming and howling as I clasp my head in my clawed hands. The spikes and ridges that my hair had become were growing more pronounced, and as I clutched at the back of my skull I felt my hands being pushed back; my skull was growing longer!
The sudden onset of adrenaline must’ve prompted another mutation. The hormones and chemicals had been introduced directly into my bloodstream; the faster my pulse, the faster the chemicals would reach my heart and prompt another stage of my change.
The acrid smell of burning fabric reached my nostrils, and I turned to see blood seeping from the tiny scratch on my shoulder. The entire right shoulder of my orange jumpsuit been melted by the potent acid in my veins, and it stank to high heaven; snarling, I grab a fistful of the orange cloth and tear it away, exposing my chest.
I hadn’t looked at my body under the jumpsuit, and I cry out in fright when I see the thick black bands that had formed over my chest, like a demented ribcage grown around my organs. It was made of the same matte-black chitin that the rest of my growing exoskeleton was, but it seemed just as flexible as my old skin had been.
Thump.
I freeze, instinctively crouching. The darkness hides me, and my breathing slowed as I put my hand on the floor...
Thump! I feel another tremor shudder through the floor, like the deep beat of a giant drum. Then another followed, and another...
Footsteps.
The hallway in front of me is suddenly bathed in yellow light. I creep forward and peek around the corner, hissing at the powerful spotlight shining through the window. Just as I shied back out of sight, a shadow appeared.
“Sweeping level three, over,” a male voice said. His shadow on the wall bore a curiously-shaped head; he seemed bulkier than normal...
I heard a metallic slide; the pumping of a shotgun.
A Colonial Marine, I realised. The company had hired a battalion of them to guard the facility I had, until recently, been imprisoned in.
“No movement yet; advancing. Over,” the Marine continued. He was moving closer and closer, creeping up cautiously with his gun at the ready.
Again, I felt my empathy and fear drain away. Everything came into greater focus, and my vision warped slightly at the edges...
NO! I bite down on my tongue, flooding my mouth with my acidic blood. The meagre pain brought me back in control, forcing my instincts to retreat. I wasn’t just battling to survive, I was battling to stay in control of my own goddamn body...
The tip of the gun appeared around the corner.
And I realised, just as a green tint descended over my eyes, that it was a battle of wills that I was losing. Badly.
When half of the gun was around the corner and I could see the tip of the marine’s nose, I brought my tail scything down; the sharp blade sliced the gun in two, and opened a shallow cut in the man’s left arm.
The marine responded quickly, backhanding me across the face. My tail whipped around me as I recoiled, striking the marine in the midsection; he went flying and landed on his ass, hard.
I turned and zeroed in on him, making my anger known through a serpentine hiss. He picked himself up and drew his pistol, a red dot appearing on my chest.
He squeezed the trigger.
I jumped to one side, dodging the bullet with ease.
After a moment of shock, he fired again. I jumped, watching it bend the air as it passed underneath me before I twist around in midair, adhering myself to the ceiling.
The marine’s curses and swears were lost in a hail of gunfire as he turned his sidearm onto full-automatic. The spray of bullets was so easy to dodge, I almost let a laugh of contempt escape my lips.
In a few seconds, it was over; the gun clicked repeatedly in his grasp, empty. He threw it away in disgust, and stood.
“Are you going to take your death like a man or on your knees, begging for mercy like some fragile woman?” I spat. I frowned inwardly; I’d said the words, but they came from elsewhere. From a far greater being than...
The marine drew his combat knife, with the chilling hiss of steel on leather.
“Come and find out, you motherfucker!” the marine snarled. I cocked my head to one side.
“As you wish.”
I released my grip on the ceiling and flipped in midair, landing easily on my feet. I didn’t rush at him, stalking forward slowly like a predatory cat.
My eye instinctively twitched as I walked into the light; I hesitate briefly but, for whatever reason, the pilot held his fire for the moment.
I could see every bead of sweat racing down the marine’s face, smell every gasp of breath he expelled. His pulse was like a dozen beating drums to my ears; I could almost read the mind of this man, this man who knew he was about to die.
I re-entered the darkness; the marine was now only a few metres away. I raised my tail, pointing the deadly blade between his eyes. With a cry of desperation, the soldier lunged at me.
I ducked beside his blow before snaring his wrist in my hand. With one twist I broke his wrist; his knife clattered to the ground as he howled in pain. I kicked him in the shin, putting him on his knees as I crushed his broken wrist in my hand. He screamed again, louder.
I released his hand, glaring down at the pathetic sight. My tail curved around my body, and I gently stroked his cheek with the bladed tip, opening a small cut just below his eye.
“Why do you fight? Surely you know this is a hopeless battle!” I sneer at him. By now there is no fight; the words are natural to me. I no longer care about avoiding conflict; all I care for now is protecting the...
I started as the marine spat blood on my leg, glaring up at me defiantly.
“Why do I fight? Why don’t you?” he asked. I frowned, and my lips curled away from my teeth in a snarl of anger. He continued to speak.
“You’re not this; I knew you, Twelve! You might’ve been a bit raucous in the cells, and you sure didn’t like us guards ordering you around; but you were a good kid, a real fighter. You’re not this!”
I simply laugh at him.
“Fight, damn it! You’re better than this; you don’t have to..!”
My fist strikes him in the throat, stunning him for a second. He chokes, rendered mute for a few seconds.
“You speak only of the past; I care for the future, which has no place for you!” I spit at him.
I finish the marine, ending him with a single sweep of my bladed tail that sends his head rolling across the floor. I look at his gaping mouth, watching as the last hints of life fade from his eyes. His microphone buzzes, as a pool of blood flows from his decapitated torso.
...I fight? Why don’t you?
His voice still rings in my ears, and I gnash my teeth in anger.
You’re better than this...
You don’t have to...
I growl angrily, and punch the wall. But it brings a moment of clarity and, for a brief second, I’m left to my shock and grief.
Fight, damn it..!
A cool presence appears in the deep tissue of my brain, radiating outwards like a fresh breeze wafting by on a hot summer’s day. My emotions are brushed away, and I instinctively croon at the calm it brings. A voice in my head whispers to me; it is a soothing female voice, with a motherly tone that instantly entrances me. It says only one word:
“Return.”
Without question, I obey.

To be continued.
Hand-drawn, then scanned in Photoshop.
The picture of the marine is not my work; graciously allowed me to use it. The original image can be found here: [link]
Enjoy, comment and have a nice day

Description
I leap to my feet and take two running steps, tensing my wiry muscles like springs before leaping clean over the helicopter. I glare down at the pilot through the deadly blades of the helicopter, before rolling in midair as I land on the wall of the building behind the chopper. Gripping the concrete with my claws, I launched a two-footed kick that shatters the window just below me; as I dive through, I nick my shoulder on a shard of broken glass.
That, I soon realise, is the least of my worries.
I look over my shoulder as the attack chopper turns like a giant predatory bird, and the air soon comes alive with a devastating storm of tracer rounds. The bullets tear up the floor at my heels as I barge through the door and emerge into a red-carpeted hallway, a line of bullets strafing the wall in front of me as I dive to one side and flatten myself on the floor. The helicopter continues firing, punching fist-sized holes in the wall above me as it strafes the building, the pilot assuming I’d keep running at full pelt.
When the holes were appearing at the far end of the hallway, I stand up and calmly walk in the opposite direction...
“AAARRRGHH!!!”
I make it three steps, before I give a choked cry as a searing bolt of pain shoots straight through my brain, burning up through the tissue until I feel like my entire skull is on fire.
I collapse onto my knees, screaming and howling as I clasp my head in my clawed hands. The spikes and ridges that my hair had become were growing more pronounced, and as I clutched at the back of my skull I felt my hands being pushed back; my skull was growing longer!
The sudden onset of adrenaline must’ve prompted another mutation. The hormones and chemicals had been introduced directly into my bloodstream; the faster my pulse, the faster the chemicals would reach my heart and prompt another stage of my change.
The acrid smell of burning fabric reached my nostrils, and I turned to see blood seeping from the tiny scratch on my shoulder. The entire right shoulder of my orange jumpsuit been melted by the potent acid in my veins, and it stank to high heaven; snarling, I grab a fistful of the orange cloth and tear it away, exposing my chest.
I hadn’t looked at my body under the jumpsuit, and I cry out in fright when I see the thick black bands that had formed over my chest, like a demented ribcage grown around my organs. It was made of the same matte-black chitin that the rest of my growing exoskeleton was, but it seemed just as flexible as my old skin had been.
Thump.
I freeze, instinctively crouching. The darkness hides me, and my breathing slowed as I put my hand on the floor...
Thump! I feel another tremor shudder through the floor, like the deep beat of a giant drum. Then another followed, and another...
Footsteps.
The hallway in front of me is suddenly bathed in yellow light. I creep forward and peek around the corner, hissing at the powerful spotlight shining through the window. Just as I shied back out of sight, a shadow appeared.
“Sweeping level three, over,” a male voice said. His shadow on the wall bore a curiously-shaped head; he seemed bulkier than normal...
I heard a metallic slide; the pumping of a shotgun.
A Colonial Marine, I realised. The company had hired a battalion of them to guard the facility I had, until recently, been imprisoned in.
“No movement yet; advancing. Over,” the Marine continued. He was moving closer and closer, creeping up cautiously with his gun at the ready.
Again, I felt my empathy and fear drain away. Everything came into greater focus, and my vision warped slightly at the edges...
NO! I bite down on my tongue, flooding my mouth with my acidic blood. The meagre pain brought me back in control, forcing my instincts to retreat. I wasn’t just battling to survive, I was battling to stay in control of my own goddamn body...
The tip of the gun appeared around the corner.
And I realised, just as a green tint descended over my eyes, that it was a battle of wills that I was losing. Badly.
When half of the gun was around the corner and I could see the tip of the marine’s nose, I brought my tail scything down; the sharp blade sliced the gun in two, and opened a shallow cut in the man’s left arm.
The marine responded quickly, backhanding me across the face. My tail whipped around me as I recoiled, striking the marine in the midsection; he went flying and landed on his ass, hard.
I turned and zeroed in on him, making my anger known through a serpentine hiss. He picked himself up and drew his pistol, a red dot appearing on my chest.
He squeezed the trigger.
I jumped to one side, dodging the bullet with ease.
After a moment of shock, he fired again. I jumped, watching it bend the air as it passed underneath me before I twist around in midair, adhering myself to the ceiling.
The marine’s curses and swears were lost in a hail of gunfire as he turned his sidearm onto full-automatic. The spray of bullets was so easy to dodge, I almost let a laugh of contempt escape my lips.
In a few seconds, it was over; the gun clicked repeatedly in his grasp, empty. He threw it away in disgust, and stood.
“Are you going to take your death like a man or on your knees, begging for mercy like some fragile woman?” I spat. I frowned inwardly; I’d said the words, but they came from elsewhere. From a far greater being than...
The marine drew his combat knife, with the chilling hiss of steel on leather.
“Come and find out, you motherfucker!” the marine snarled. I cocked my head to one side.
“As you wish.”
I released my grip on the ceiling and flipped in midair, landing easily on my feet. I didn’t rush at him, stalking forward slowly like a predatory cat.
My eye instinctively twitched as I walked into the light; I hesitate briefly but, for whatever reason, the pilot held his fire for the moment.
I could see every bead of sweat racing down the marine’s face, smell every gasp of breath he expelled. His pulse was like a dozen beating drums to my ears; I could almost read the mind of this man, this man who knew he was about to die.
I re-entered the darkness; the marine was now only a few metres away. I raised my tail, pointing the deadly blade between his eyes. With a cry of desperation, the soldier lunged at me.
I ducked beside his blow before snaring his wrist in my hand. With one twist I broke his wrist; his knife clattered to the ground as he howled in pain. I kicked him in the shin, putting him on his knees as I crushed his broken wrist in my hand. He screamed again, louder.
I released his hand, glaring down at the pathetic sight. My tail curved around my body, and I gently stroked his cheek with the bladed tip, opening a small cut just below his eye.
“Why do you fight? Surely you know this is a hopeless battle!” I sneer at him. By now there is no fight; the words are natural to me. I no longer care about avoiding conflict; all I care for now is protecting the...
I started as the marine spat blood on my leg, glaring up at me defiantly.
“Why do I fight? Why don’t you?” he asked. I frowned, and my lips curled away from my teeth in a snarl of anger. He continued to speak.
“You’re not this; I knew you, Twelve! You might’ve been a bit raucous in the cells, and you sure didn’t like us guards ordering you around; but you were a good kid, a real fighter. You’re not this!”
I simply laugh at him.
“Fight, damn it! You’re better than this; you don’t have to..!”
My fist strikes him in the throat, stunning him for a second. He chokes, rendered mute for a few seconds.
“You speak only of the past; I care for the future, which has no place for you!” I spit at him.
I finish the marine, ending him with a single sweep of my bladed tail that sends his head rolling across the floor. I look at his gaping mouth, watching as the last hints of life fade from his eyes. His microphone buzzes, as a pool of blood flows from his decapitated torso.
...I fight? Why don’t you?
His voice still rings in my ears, and I gnash my teeth in anger.
You’re better than this...
You don’t have to...
I growl angrily, and punch the wall. But it brings a moment of clarity and, for a brief second, I’m left to my shock and grief.
Fight, damn it..!
A cool presence appears in the deep tissue of my brain, radiating outwards like a fresh breeze wafting by on a hot summer’s day. My emotions are brushed away, and I instinctively croon at the calm it brings. A voice in my head whispers to me; it is a soothing female voice, with a motherly tone that instantly entrances me. It says only one word:
“Return.”
Without question, I obey.

To be continued.
Hand-drawn, then scanned in Photoshop.
The picture of the marine is not my work; graciously allowed me to use it. The original image can be found here: [link]
Enjoy, comment and have a nice day