"Well, obviously I want to create a variant that allows the subject to retain their human appearance. But at the same time a fully-bestial transformation might be handy to create since your current facial appearance would easily defeat Mugshot or Armsmaster's own facial recognition devices." She gently traced a finger in an open rent in Taylor's skin, "Hmm, it's strange how there's so little blood from your skin opening in places."
"Figure it out later," Taylor growled as she scratched under her arm, before rubbing at the base of her spine, "Right now I just want to go ou-owowowoOW!" She fell to all fours, growling fiercely as the skin under her arms and just above her butt began to bulge grotesquely in time with sharp cracks, snaps and wet tearing sounds as Noriko watched with wide eyes.
With a moan and a powerful orgasm, the skin tore open with only a small trickle of blood to reveal bulging vestigial lumps that quickly began swelling and lengthening, bones cracking apart to reveal fingers that lengthened before long talons formed and burst out of the flesh in brief spurts of blood.
At Taylor's rear, Noriko watched as the quivering lump of muscle and bone continued to lengthen and flex, thickening at the base to support the supple, whip-like length as it shivered before coiling and twitching. As it flexed, Noriko watched the tip begin to bulge as muscle split and swelled to allow a long bladed spur to sprout from the flesh above a muscular sphincter.
She was about to try and grab the newly-grown tail when the muscle flexed and with a slight hiss something slammed into the concrete wall. Walking over, Noriko studied the long, sharp barb that was oozing a clear, pale-yellow liquid.
'Okay, she can shoot venom-filled, hollow barbs. I definitely should be studying this further, but I can't. Fucking ABB, fucking E88, can't let a scientist study in piece.'
Turning away, Noriko watched as Taylor staggered to her feet, two newly-grown and swelling arms flexing and shifting underneath her originals as the mutated girl turned to look at her tail before staring with a deadpan expression at Noriko as she rumbled, "Any other surprises I should expect?"
Noriko shrugged, "Unless those bulges on your back burst open to reveal biological factories that let you make your own freakish insects, I'd say you're done." She glanced at a screen, "Listen, if you're going to do this, you need to go now. Your face and body is going to make you unidentifiable and I don't want the fight between the ABB and E88 to start attracting attention from the Full Moon Army."
Taylor grimaced, "Shit, I forgot. We're right on the edge of their territory, aren't we?" She had forgotten about the Full Moon Army, and if she knew what that gang of transforming monsters was like, they wouldn't take any combat near their territory lightly, especially their leader Luna and her lieutenants the Cerberus Triplets.
Their territory ended near Highpoint Street and was unofficially regarded as theirs. If Lung and Iron Rain tried to grab this stretch of road containing a number of classy stores and restaurants, there was a good chance Luna would get involved as well. And if that happened...Taylor's tail whipped down, the bone spur cutting into the concrete, "What should I do? There's not many insects in the area I can gather and use, and my power still feels weird."
Noriko shrugged helplessly, "Well, I think your multi-tasking ability is proving itself useful. I mean, you're controlling those new arms and that tail like you were born with them. So all I can recommend is that you move fast and hit hard, knock them out of action before they get really started. The normals you could take down with a punch or two, but don't be afraid to use those claws on the Capes, especially Lung."
Taylor flexed all four of her hands, staring down at the long talons at the ends of her fingers, "Don't worry, I won't hold back. If Lung gets too powerful he could wreck the entire place. But why is he doing this alone?"
Noriko snorted, "Easy. It's because he got wrecked by Luna and the Cerberus Triplets two weeks ago. He's doing this out of pride. I'd say Iron Rain is here just for the territory, her projectile generation makes her perfect for taking on the FMA." She turned to Taylor, "There's a secret tunnel you can use to exit. The code for the door is 7756."
"Got it," Taylor growled with a grim smile as she thumped off towards the door in question, "Keep an eye on them, and tell me if the Full Moon starts to move. Don't want to face off against Luna without knowing what I can do with this body."
"Understood. Good luck Taylor, and I'll have the Reversion Serum ready for you when you get back. Kick their asses."
Nodding at Noriko's words, Taylor quickly tapped the code into the door and entered the secret tunnel. As she stomped through the slightly-tight space she snorted at the fact she was in a secret escape tunnel. Probably one of several.
'My best friend's family is so paranoid they have multiple escape tunnels. She also mutated me and I'm going to fight parahumans including the parahuman who fought Leviathan to a standstill alongside Amaterasu and Empress Himiko. When did my life get so weird?'
She exited into the backyard of the large property owned by the Ida family and groaned in relief as she stood to her full nine-foot height, flexing her massive muscles as she stared out into the late afternoon light before turning in the direction of Highpoint Street, "Okay, time to see what I can do."
Flexing her legs, feeling muscles bunch up and swell in preparation, her tail swishing in anticipation, the mutated teenage girl launched off the ground, flying through the air with nothing but pure muscle-power as she crossed several blocks before landing with a crunching of pavement, eyes wide and breathing heavily in shock.
"H-holy shit!" Looking around to get her bearings, Taylor felt her tail actually wagging at how far she had managed to travel with just a single jump, "Did you get all that Noriko?"
"Affirmative, that was impressive." Noriko's voice smoothly sounded in her ear, "A few more jumps and you should be able to land right in the middle of the fight. Better hurry, they're noticing each other."
"Got it." Taylor flexed her legs, gathering bugs, before she paused, "Woah...Noriko, my range has increased!"
"How far?"
"I could only manage two blocks before...but now I can feel bugs nearly all the way to Highpoint Street!" Taylor's mind swept across the insects she could detect and she began gathering a swarm near the brewing fight out of the field of view of the Empire and ABB. She ignored the way the bulges on her back were twitching and pulsing.
With her luck, they'd turn into a pair of wings or something, so Taylor tried to ignore the strangely pleasant sensations on her back as she flexed her legs and jumped again.
As she rocketed into the air, Taylor considered the extent of the mutations she had undergone and spoke quietly into the communicator burrowed under her skin, "So do you think I'll mutate further if I keep fighting? Like some kinda freak mix of Lung and Crawler?" She named the only survivor of the Ellisburg Massacre; a woman who only appeared to hunt someone only she knew of, although her powers meant she was barely human any more.
"Probably not. I'd say that the bulges on your back are the last, but I have no idea if they'll manifest or how they will."
"I think it's related to my bug control. They go crazy when I start controlling insects and the like." That was true, even now the large bulges were actually growing, she could feel them, so whatever she was doing by controlling insects was encouraging the mutation, "I'm nearly at Highpoint Street, coming into land."
"Hit them as hard as you can from the start, I think-"
Whatever Noriko was about to say was drowned out by a sonic boom as Taylor's enhanced eyesight showed a dark shape forming out of thin air and launching towards one end of Highpoint Street as she descended for landing. Iron Rain, it had to be, and she wasn't playing casual if she was launching one of her distinctive Black Spears at Mach speeds.
'She must want to take Highpoint Street quickly as well, so she's going to take down the ABB and then fight off Luna and the FMA. Gotta do this fast!'
She landed on the street before Highpoint with another crunch of shattering pavement and she growled loudly, trying to psych herself for the fight to come as she fell on all six limbs and prepared for a sprint, tail waving menacingly, "Okay, you can do this Taylor. Hit them hard, hit them fast. Don't stop until they're all taken out."
She smiled toothily, "Let's do this." She charged, kicking up pavement, towards the fight that was now just starting. Her feet thundered across the pavement and road as her eyes focused on a group of E88 gang members readying their weapons and preparing to fire. A rumbling growl started in her chest as she spotted who was directing them.
Taylor didn't attempt to suppress the animal roar that escaped her bestial lips before mounting a car to leap forward with a spin that sent her tail lashing forward towards the E88 gangmembers and the Cape just behind them.
The gangers didn't even have time to do more than turn in her direction and shout before the muscular, whip-like tail slammed into them to send the three men and one woman flying down the street as the bladed bone spur flew towards Freya's neck as Taylor roared like an animal with murder in her eyes.
'I'll kill you!'
The armoured female cape's hands flashed and a glowing sword struck the bone and deflected it with a spray of sparks as Taylor roared again, halting the fighting as she drew her naked nine-foot body fully upright, growling all the while as she felt her muscles pulsing from the adrenaline running through her.
"What the hell is this freak?" An ABB gangmember asked out loud and Taylor's head snapped in his direct with a feral snarl that was easily heard across the street. The man gulped as he raised his assault rifle.
Tail lashing, Taylor studied the situation and began forming a plan as her body snarled and growled at the various opponents she was facing. Her main focus however, was on Freya as the woman made another glowing sword and expertly flourished them as if sensing Taylor's intent.
"Hookwolf! Schnell!" Taylor's head twisted towards Hookwolf as the Changer shifted into a lupine mass of blades and hooks, laughing madly as he charged, clearly intent on shredding her exposed flesh. As he charged closer, Freya lashed out with her swords to try and distract this new monster that had shown up.
One arm lashed out and grabbed Freya, the other rearing back for a bunch as Taylor grabbed and tore out a light-pole with her other two arms as Hookwolf laughed, "What the fuck do you think that is going to do?"
Taylor didn't speak, only roared again as her fist smashed into Freya's face, knocking it back in a spray of blood. The lightpole came down in a sweeping strike caught Hookwolf on the side, the power of Taylor's enhanced musculature lifting him off the road and sending him flying as Iron Rain launched another one of her spears just as Taylor flashed her talons and went to decapitate the comatose Freya.
The projectile struck with a boom as Taylor roared in agony; the impact had torn away her upper left arm, forcing her to let go of Freya from the pain, seconds before another one slammed into her chest, long spines on the spear shredding flesh as it over-penetrated and impaled itself on a wall. Reeling with pain, Taylor's vision went red as she first felt no heartbeat, then felt it again as flesh twisted and grew into a replacement heart before skin, bone and fat grew over the massive hole.
'Shit. If I take any more...'
Taylor roared again, making sure to keep up the charade that she was some feral creature before grabbing a wrecked car. Muscles bulged in all four of her arms as she hefted the vehicle and with another roar she threw it towards Iron Rain, who promptly slammed spears into it.
Flesh twisting and swelling as her arms finished regenerating, Taylor unleashed her secret weapon as insects swarmed in from the side-alleys and engulfed the remaining E88 gangmembers as she charged Iron Rain. The woman took one look at the monster heading towards her, saw her troops fighting off a swarm of insects that had to be under the beast's control, and knew she had lost the fight.
A rain of spears slammed into Taylor's chest from above as Iron Rain waved with her hand, "Fall back! Fall back now!"
"But what about Freya?" One of the men swatting at flies and other insects shouted, "That freak is between us and her!"
Hookwolf charged out of the storefront he had been knocked into, tackling Taylor into another building, before he bounded over to Freya and grabbed her gently. Seeing the rescue done, Iron Rain sent another deluge of projectiles, now in the form of arrows, towards where Taylor was struggling to recover and gave the order, "Go! Now!"
As the Empire 88 fled, Taylor managed to stumble out of the store, angrily growling; her body was covered in arrows and spears as her four arms and tail worked them loose and began tearing them out in sprays of blood and shredded flesh. Nearby, several ABB turned green at the gory display while Lung crossed his arms, before striding forward.
"You fight well girl," Lung's address caused Taylor's head to snap towards him and half-blinded with adrenaline and blood-lust the girl could only snarl and growl, tail whipping behind her. She registered a voice telling her to drive Lung away, and instinct told her to trust the voice as she lowered her body for a charge.
"I respect your power, but you will not win against me." Silvery scales began to push through Lung's skin but Taylor ignored it in favour of the way her back was pulsing with intense heat. Before Lung could continue, Taylor screamed as pleasure and agony ripped through her back and hunched over, exposing the pulsing and bulging sacs on her back.
Before anyone could say anything or react the skin holding them in split apart; fleshy membranous masses pushed outwards, pulsing furiously as
Taylor registered a flood of instinctive information and concentrated. Within seconds a series of bumps began to move along the surface of the membranes before Lung saw something pierce through as Taylor groaned.
Pushing through the membranes, driven onwards by her powers, large winged insects with dagger-like heads and pulsing abdomens emerged to skitter along Taylor's back before taking flight, circling the mutated girl in an ever-increasing swarm.
Breathing heavily, pushing this new-found aspect of her powers further, Taylor shifted her arms and flexed, causing the membranes to expand like a pair of malformed balloons before, with what could only be described as a wet pop, they exploded in a spray of blood and other, unidentifiable fluids to send hundreds of the twisted insects into the air.
