With a powerful leap, enhanced by his symbiote's muscular augmentation, Ethan shot out from the tunnel opening and landed directly on the central platform—right in front of the Lizard.
The claws on his hands glinted with a sinister, metallic sheen under the dim underground lights. Had they landed as intended, they would have torn a deep gouge into the Lizard's scaled hide.
But Dr. Connors—transformed and now nearly consumed by his reptilian alter ego—reacted with terrifying reflexes. He whipped his massive, spiked tail through the air, intercepting Ethan mid-flight while simultaneously sliding the genetic recombination device away with practiced care. His movements, though beastly, showed remarkable precision—he clearly feared damaging the equipment.
The tail struck with a sonic boom-like whoosh, hurtling toward Ethan at breakneck speed.
Unfazed, Ethan adjusted his landing mid-air, dropped down with a feline lightness, and met the strike head-on. With a blur of motion, he slashed his claws in a horizontal arc, cleaving the muscular tail into several thick, steaming chunks.
The Lizard let out a guttural, enraged howl. His reptilian eyes flared, and the pain triggered a feral frenzy—but even as he roared, the severed tail segments began to twitch. In a matter of seconds, under the influence of hyperactive cell regeneration, a new tail began to grow in its place.
"His regenerative ability… it's accelerating," Ethan thought grimly, observing the rapid cellular reconstruction. "The reptilian DNA has pushed further—he's becoming less Curt Connors and more Lizard by the second. There may be no turning back."
"Persistent freak! Why do you keep showing up!?" the Lizard snarled, his voice hoarse yet eerily articulate—more human than it should be at this stage.
Startled by the clarity in the Lizard's speech, Venom muttered into Ethan's mind, "I thought he'd be all snarls and growls by now. The guy's vocabulary's expanding while his DNA's regressing—that's irony for you."
"Yeah," Ethan replied through clenched teeth. "His body's gone full monster, but his mind? Still sharp as ever. Look around—he's got all the right equipment prepped. He knew exactly what he was doing."
Indeed, the surrounding tech confirmed this. Connors hadn't just mutated—he had adapted, applying his scientific knowledge even in his monstrous state. Every console, serum vial, and recombination chamber was functional and deliberately placed.
Realizing Ethan stood between him and the continuation of his experiment, the Lizard let out another roar and charged. His bulk slammed into the ground with seismic force, claws extended, fangs bared.
The battle that followed pushed Ethan to his limits. Blow after blow was exchanged at high speed. Yet with each strike Ethan landed, the Lizard's tissues regenerated—no matter how deep the wounds.
"I don't get it," Ethan growled internally. "Even with Venom's healing factor, I'm struggling to keep up. How is he regenerating so fast?"
"That serum must've bonded too deeply," Venom replied. "He's not just transformed—he's evolved. This is beyond our expectations."
As the fight intensified, the Lizard suddenly twisted his hips and lashed out with his regrown tail. The strike caught Ethan square in the ribs, launching him into a stone wall. The impact shattered part of the structure, leaving a crater around his embedded form.
But before the dust settled, Ethan shot out from the debris. His feet landed against the wall and he kicked off, propelling himself forward. This time, black tendrils extended from his back—six in total—each shimmering with the armor-like sheen of symbiote steel.
Until now, Ethan had been holding back, out of respect for the man Connors once was. He had tried to restrain the Lizard, not destroy him.
But the current situation made it clear: Connors was now a true threat. And given his healing factor, Ethan realized he might not even be capable of killing him in one blow—assuming he wanted to.
With grim determination, he prepared to escalate the fight.
"I'm sorry, Doctor—but it looks like we're out of places to poke holes in you!" Ethan shouted as he lunged forward with brutal precision.
His symbiote-clad claws raked across the Lizard's scaly hide, leaving jagged gashes that hissed with steam as reptilian blood spilled. The relentless flurry of strikes kept the Lizard off balance, unable to properly counter. Behind Ethan, multiple tendrils writhed like predatory serpents, poised to impale.
With a sharp flick, twin black tendrils darted forth—one piercing deep into the Lizard's left forearm, the other driving through his right thigh with a sickening crunch. The creature shrieked, his muscular frame convulsing as his limbs were pinned. Several other tendrils lashed across his torso and back, gouging furrows so deep they exposed glistening bone.
The Lizard's anguished roar reverberated across the cavernous sewer. Yet even in agony, Connors retained his cunning. With a final burst of strength, he slammed his still-free right arm onto the reinforced control panel beside the operating table.
A flashing red button depressed under his claw—and with a loud clang, every cage embedded in the cavern wall suddenly sprang open.
Ethan blinked in confusion for a moment, processing the sudden change. But reality didn't wait.
From the gaping holes, dozens of crimson, reptilian eyes lit up like flares in the dark. An eerie chorus of snarling and growling soon followed, echoing off the grimy stone walls.
"He's already turned the hostages…" Venom's voice rumbled darkly in Ethan's mind.
Ethan gritted his teeth, slicing through a claw aimed for his face. "I thought he was preparing to mutate them. I didn't think the process was already complete…"
One after another, humanoid reptilian figures dropped from the wall niches—mutated victims of Connors' twisted genetic recombination. The splash of water beneath their claws echoed with heavy dread as they converged on the central platform like predators drawn to blood.
Although smaller and less developed than Connors himself, each lizard-like creature still stood taller and bulkier than any average human, their musculature warped by the serum. Some bore signs of incomplete transformation—limbs partially scaled, eyes unevenly glowing, tails still sprouting.
The faster ones—likely further along in the mutation process—leapt onto the platform with guttural screeches. They lunged at Ethan, claws slashing, jaws stretching wide enough to engulf a man's head.
Still locked in combat with Connors, Ethan found himself rapidly overwhelmed. He had the upper hand: three of the Lizard's limbs were still skewered by his tendrils, rendering the scientist-turned-monster immobile. Only the right leg and that monstrous tail remained free.
But now, with the swarm of mutated hostages rushing in, Ethan's focus had to split. He lashed out with his remaining tendrils, slamming back the incoming lizard minions with bone-breaking force, striking in sync with defensive kicks and swipes of his claws.
The numbers grew.
More and more lizard hybrids climbed onto the platform. A dozen, then two dozen. Half encircled Ethan in a flurry of rabid shrieks and claws. The others, bizarrely, turned away—and charged directly at the Lizard himself.
Ethan hesitated. "Wait—what?"
The second wave of minions descended upon Connors with unrelenting fury. They tore into him—jaws clamping down on his shoulder, claws rending his back, blood spraying across the equipment in hot, violent arcs.
For a moment, Ethan was stunned, uncertain of what he was witnessing.
"Why are they attacking him? He created them…" he muttered.
Venom's voice, for once, echoed with uncertainty. "This doesn't make sense. They're supposed to be under his control… unless—"
The answer came, horrific and ingenious.
Before Ethan could react, Connors roared—and with a violent surge of will, tore free from Ethan's impaling tendrils by ripping off his own limbs. The severed arm and leg fell away with bloody splashes as sinew and bone snapped audibly.
The lizard minions had not turned on him out of rebellion—they had followed his command.
Their attack had provided the distraction he needed. By allowing them to maul him, Connors avoided further entanglement by Ethan's tendrils, sacrificing limbs to regain his mobility.
The moment he was free, he darted from the central platform like a scaled blur, leaping into the shadows. A trail of blood followed behind him, but even now, his regeneration was already at work.
"Smart bastard," Ethan spat.
From his new position, Connors let out a low-pitched growl—something between a hiss and a command. Instantly, every lizard minion turned their head toward Ethan, as if receiving a silent signal.
With his limbs regrowing and his mind still sharp, Connors had not just mutated into a monster—he had evolved into a pack leader.
And now, the entire den of twisted, half-human creatures surged at Ethan as one, claws outstretched and bloodlust in their glowing red eyes.
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