Adam prepared for battle, Lyra drawing her weapon. Surrounded, Adam thought quickly. Grabbing Lyra, he created a jetpack, using some fuel to propel them upward into the sky. The variants failed to catch them, some attempting to shoot them down. Adam swerved towards the forest.
As he descended, he reshaped the jetpack into a tentacle, which grabbed the ground to cushion their impact. Adam swiftly merged and refueled the plane with the universal tool as Lyra, seeing the open door, rushed in.
"Azrael is gone!" Lyra's voice echoed through the neuro-link. She frantically scanned the area, unable to find Azrael. Using her mana vision, she traced Azrael's mana signature, pointing directly towards the airport's outskirts, where she saw him crawling.
Adam, having finished refueling, told Lyra they needed to get him now and took off. Both rushed towards Azrael's location. As they moved, Lyra detected evolved variants closing in on them.
Azrael's Transformation and a New Ally
Adam's universal tool, now a tentacle arm, grabbed Lyra, lifting both of them over the fence. Adam told Lyra to grab Azrael as he switched to his projectile system, barraging the chasing evolved variants with bullets, breaking their limbs and distracting them.
Adam then aimed at an evolved variant's head and sniped it. From behind, another evolved variant tried to slash Adam, but Lyra's scan pinpointed its location on Adam's mental map. Adam's projectile system used a tentacle from its back to grab the variant by its arms and legs, tearing it apart. Adam then pointed the projectile system at its face, destroying its head completely.
Adam turned to face other charging evolved variants, barraging them with bullets. Some leaped high into the sky, shooting spikes towards Adam. Adam switched his projectile system to a shield, blocking the spikes, but one variant got close and punched the shield with tremendous force, sending Adam flying into the fence.
Adam gasped, his mana regenerating his body, before another evolved variant repeatedly stabbed him in the legs. Lyra, holding back an evolved variant close to Azrael, sliced its legs before stabbing its head.
Seeing Adam's dire situation, Lyra grabbed Azrael, running towards Adam. Azrael, his mouth bloody from munching on mana cores, saw Adam being continuously stabbed. His eyes turned red, and his body suddenly grew into a hulking beast. Lyra's hold was released as Azrael transformed into a giant beast, charging faster and knocking all the evolved variants away with one swing.
Azrael continued his assault, smashing the nearest evolved variant to the ground, pulling out its mana core, and devouring it. Other evolved variants shot spikes that shattered upon touching Azrael's skin. Another variant sliced Azrael with its claws, but Azrael seemed impervious to pain, swinging the variant down to the ground, smashing its head, and eating its mana core.
Lyra, seeing Adam's bloodied state, urged him to breathe and regenerate. Lyra's scan showed Adam's breathing was cut off, and he was unable to regenerate properly, gurgling blood. Through their neuro-link, Adam managed to say, "Azrael can heal me."
Lyra turned, seeing Azrael in a berserk state, and rushed towards him. "Azrael, heal Adam!" Lyra shouted, trying to get his attention.
Lyra was hurled away by Azrael's wild arm swing. Tears welled in Lyra's eyes, knowing that if she couldn't bring Azrael back to his senses, Adam would die. Lyra moved closer again, slicing the head of an evolved variant that was distracted by Azrael.
"AZRAEL, PLEASE SAVE ADAM!" Lyra screamed at the top of her lungs, dodging Azrael's relentless attacks.
The evolved variant on the rooftop giggled, watching everything unfold. Before Lyra could shout again, the giggling variant suddenly appeared in front of Azrael and flicked its finger, sending Azrael flying back near Adam.
The other evolved variants stood shocked by this display of power. The giggling variant slowly walked towards Azrael. Lyra, fearing for Azrael's safety, swung her spear, trying to slice off the variant's head. The giggling variant disappeared and reappeared on top of Azrael, emitting a powerful bloodlust that froze everyone in place. Azrael's heart sank, turning to despair as his life hung in the balance, and he instantly reverted to his child form.
The giggling variant then commanded Azrael, "Heal your master." Azrael looked behind him, saw Adam's bloodied state, and quickly rushed over to heal him. "Dad, please don't leave me," Azrael cried as he healed Adam.
Lyra, stunned by the unfolding events, almost got pierced by another evolved variant's blade. Lyra instinctively blocked the blade with her machete and swiftly sliced its neck before stabbing the detached head.
The giggling variant turned its head. "Didn't I tell everyone that this is my territory!" it snarled menacingly at the other evolved variants. "You got 10 seconds to get out of the airport if you're not human."
It smiled, looking at the other evolved variants as prey. A countdown began, and the other evolved variants scrambled to flee the airport. The unlucky few became bloody stains on the ground in a blink.
Adam's airway wounds healed, and he focused on breathing to regenerate as Azrael continued to heal his other wounds. The giggling variant appeared in front of Adam, extending a hand. "I'm Johan," he introduced himself. "It seems you need my help, stranger."