Monstered Away

Move

"This was your single worst idea." Azrael said. The four Hunters chased him, jumping from wall to wall, gaining on him.

"Could you shut up!?" Tenn shouted back. He barely outran a Hunter before escaping the alleyway. He turned around swung his sword downward to slice at the Hunter. The Hunter dodged and tackled Tenn. Tenn stabbed the Hunter in the back a few times before they hit the ground. Tenn pushed it aside. It probably wasn't dead yet, but it would barely be able to fight. The three other Hunters ran at him.

"This is gonna be rough." He said. Tenn back peddled to dodge one of the Hunter's claws. He ducked the other two and stabbed the one in the middle in the chest. He quickly pulled it out as he pushed the Hunter down and turned to the other two standing. He made the first move and ran at the one to his left. He swung the sword as the Hunter tried to block it.

"Azrael." Tenn called out. The sword he was holding seemed to deform at the center of it, completely moving past the Hunter's hand. The sword became solid again as it slashed though it's throat. He turned to the other one as it jumped at him. Tenn sidestepped and pushed it to the ground using its momentum, then finished it off. He stared at the three bodies on the ground.

"Well, that was fun." Tenn said, rubbing the back of his head.

"Yeah. You did great." Azrael replied. Tenn looked around at the bodies again. Three. Three bodies.

"Wait. Azrael. One is gone." He said.

"Can you do something right today?" Azrael asked. Tenn ran around, looking for it.

"It'll be harder to spot now. I don't know what direction it went and we're not up on any buildings. We have to get moving." He said. Azrael wrapped around his arm again as Tenn sprinted back home.

"We've gotta move again. They're probably tracking us as we speak." Azrael explained. The two made their way to the building they were based in. As they got to their door, they quickly ran in and gathered what they needed.

"Where's your main body?" Tenn asked, not seeing the rest of Azrael.

"I've already hidden so I'm not found. When we get a new place, I'll come to it." Azrael explained. Tenn grabbed what he needed and started running.

"Hunters. Two of them and a Hound." Azrael said. Tenn turned his head to see two hunters and a bigger creature. This creature, a Hound, is like a four-legged animal. It is big, big enough to crush a human. The head, shaped like a wolf's, has one eye. The eye doesn't blink. It always watches. Unless you kill it, you can't escape it's gaze. It's tongue always flopped around out of its mouth.

"That's all there is? The rest are probably on their way." Tenn said. They kept running as the two Hunters and the Hound followed.

"You're gonna have to kill them." Azrael said.

"Yeah yeah, I know. I'm just getting far away for now." Tenn replied. As he said that, he felt his muscles tense up again. He completely froze. He was mid jump as he froze, and ended up crashing through an opening of a wall. The building was pretty abandoned.

"Tenn! Get up!" Azrael shouted. Tenn sluggishly tried to get up. His left arm went numb as he fell back down.

"It's happening... again." He said, struggling to do anything. The Hunters and the Hound were getting close. Azrael turned back to Tenn.

"Could he be..." He began thinking. Suddenly, the Hound leapt from several buildings away towards them. Tenn, still on the ground, looked as the Hound  got closer and closer. Azrael got out of the way.

"Tenn!" He shouted. As he did, a black sludge built up from around him as his main body built up. However, it was too late. The Hound seemed to have landed on him as dust picked up everywhere. Azrael just watched in shock.

"It was later than ever, but was his transformation on time?" He asked himself. He just watched the dust. The grin usually on his round head was just straight and curious. The dust began settling.

"What..." Tenn said, his voice strained like he was holding something heavy. Azrael's grin appeared again, bigger than ever.

"...the hell." Tenn finished as the dust cleared. The Hound was trying to claw at him as Tenn stood under it, holding it up with his left hand. Speaking of which, his left arm was different. Much different. His hand had claws instead of fingers, and his entire arm was covered in black scales with red streaks down the sides. The scales reached to his chest, where they stopped.

He could barely hold the Hound any longer as he dropped him and jumped back. The two Hunters arrived at the scene. Azrael backed away, watching from a distance and not to be seen. Tenn was just confused but completely attentive.

"What is happening?" He asked himself, staring at his arm. A Hunter jumped at him. He quickly swung his arm without thinking and completely shred through the Hunter. Tenn blinked a few times, trying to take in what he just did.

"What the— did I do that!?" He shouted to himself. His body moved on its own. The Hound jumped at Tenn again as Tenn held out his hand and grabbed it by the snout. The other Hunter went to attack as well. Tenn sidestepped and let go of the Hound. He then swiped his hand again to take out the Hunter. It withstood one of his swipes, so Tenn swung again to make sure it was finished.

"I don't know what this is, but it saved me, so I'm not gonna complain." He thought to himself. He was now facing the Hound again. The Hound rushed at him. Tenn jumped upward and stabbed it in the eye. The Hound quickly backed up and screeched, swinging all over the place. Tenn landed back onto the ground. He ran and slid under the Hound, sliding his hand across it's stomach. The Hound once again screeched, being blinded and having its stomach sliced. Tenn finished it off with a strong kick, knocking it to its side. It stopped making a noise. Tenn took a few deep breaths. He held his shoulder, which still had the scales.

"Wow." Azrael said. Tenn turned to him, seeing his full form again.

"What just happened?" He asked.

"I don't know. If I were to guess, it seems that eating us for seven years has granted you this ability." Azrael explained. Tenn looked back at his arm.

"Is it permanent?" He asked.

"Probably not. It'll probably go away after your adrenaline dies out. Let's get moving again before more show up." Azrael replied. Tenn nodded in response as the two ran away. There was no point in collecting bodies. Tenn stared at his arm the entire time. This was the first time it had happened. It was strange. He didn't understand, yet Azrael seemed to know. He would question him later...