Mummy Evolution

Then he saw the horn.

Jagged and cruel, it jutted forward from its forehead, long enough to impale, thick enough to tear. Dried filth clung to its ridges, the evidence of its grotesque purpose written in every inch of it.

The beast grinned, wide and leering, its breath thick with something cloying, something wrong. It didn't just hunt. It didn't just kill.

It defiled.

It took another step forward, shoulders rolling, the storm shifting around it like it belonged to the dust and wind. Its mouth parted, breath hot and heavy, lips peeling back into something that wasn't quite a snarl. Not anger. Not hunger.

Something worse.

Lust.

Sett and Gold felt their buttholes ache as the creature swayed towards them.

"What the fuck is that?" Gold asked.

"Don't show it any holes," Sett said, then began running around the creature as if he had gone mad. "It's the Horny Hyena!"

The creature's eyes focused on Gold, and for a second, Gold was just baffled. Horny Hyena? What kind of name was that?

That brief distraction was deadly in a battle with a Tier 2 High-tier Horny Hyena.

Gold barely had time to react before the Horny Hyena lunged. Its jagged horn cut through the air like a spear, aiming straight for his organ.

He twisted, barely avoiding the thrust, but the beast pivoted with unnatural agility, muscles rolling under its filthy hide. Its grin widened.

Gold felt something primal in his gut—a warning, old and deep.

This thing didn't just want to kill him.

It wanted to ruin him.

Oh no. Why do I find that hot?

"Armor of Gold!"

He activated the armor instead of using it for passive defense.

A golden sheen snapped into place over his armor, a barely perceptible glow clinging to his body as a whole. Just in time. The Hyena struck, its horn scraping across his shoulder. The armor held, but Gold felt the impact like a hammer blow. The force sent him skidding backward, body burying head first into sand.

Sett, meanwhile, had taken to running literal circles around the beast, moving erratically, kicking up dust, yelling nonsense.

"You can't catch me! I'm your father! No holes for you, demon beast!"

The Hyena's eyes flicked toward him—then dismissed him.

It wanted Gold.

"Shit," Gold muttered. Then he moved.

His sword, which had been lost at some point, shimmered back into existence, forming in his grip like molten metal hardening into shape. The Sword of Gold.

A weapon sharp enough to carve through diamond.

The Hyena snarled, this time in annoyance.

It came at him again.

Gold met it head-on. His blade whistled, cutting a golden arc through the air. The beast dodged—not easily, but instinctually, twisting its body like a storm-swept tree. The sword scraped across its thick hide, leaving a line of blood, but not deep enough to stop it.

It struck back, lunging low, aiming for his legs. Gold leapt, flipping over its back, landing with a roll. Before he could turn, it twisted again—unnatural, grotesque—spinning on one hand, its horn lancing toward his butt.

Too fast.

He wouldn't dodge in time.

"Metallic Gaze!"

Gold locked eyes with the beast.

This was an ability he had hidden from Sett, but he no longer cared about that.

For two seconds, the Hyena's charge faltered. Its body stiffened, as if lead filled its veins, weighing down its limbs.

Two seconds was all he needed.

Gold drove his sword forward.

The Sword of Gold punched through its ribs, sinking to the hilt. The beast shrieked, a sound part pain, part frustration, part something infinitely more vile.

But it didn't die.

Instead, it grinned again.

Then it swung a claw at his face.

Gold barely wrenched his sword free in time to block. The impact sent him flying, his golden armor shattering, the protection spent. He hit the ground hard, rolling twice before landing on his knees.

The rest of it's body is weaker, almost equal to a human Tomb Raider. But its horns are much stronger, at least 10 tons of force!

Gold could barely deliver punches of 3 tons, so the horns were deadly things for him. Especially considering the fact that the concentrated power of the horn had the chance to break his body that was as tough as a diamond.

The Hyena took a slow, measured step forward. Its wound was bleeding. Badly. But it wasn't done.

Gold panted, gripping his sword, but his limbs felt slow—Metallic Gaze had a thirty-second cooldown, and he had nothing to slow its next charge. Would he have to use his final ability?

Then Sett did something insane.

"The sword!" Sett shouted.

Gold didn't think. He just threw it.

WHOOSH!

The Sword of Gold spun through the air, a golden arc flashing in the moonlight.

Sett caught it—mid-spin, mid-sprint—then twisted, his arm a blur.

FWUMP!

The sword plunged deep into the Hyena's butt.

A wretched, soul-ripping shriek tore through the battlefield.

REEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!

The beast's body convulsed. Its pupils dilated.

Then it just… collapsed.

Sett wiped his forehead. "Now that's a fatal penetration."

Gold panted. Then sighed.

"Next time, just stab it normally."

Sett smiled. "Sure." But then his focus shifted. Hyenas never hunted alone, and he didn't want to be ambushed by a group of these horny little shits. Sett had seen more than a few miserable souls who died that way in his past life.

They would be filled with holes.

But him moving to escape didn't make the energy from the creature stop pulsing into him.

[Limitless Evolution Art: 1/6 Unlocked (Neutral Energy 100/1000)]

The screen blinked.

[Limitless Evolution Art: 1/6 Unlocked (Neutral Energy 600/1000)]

That damn hyena had'd five Tomb Hearts in its hand!

[Tomb Raider progress: +5 Tomb Heart]

["Low" Tier 2 Tomb Raider evolution requirements met]

["Mid" Tier 2 Tomb Raider evolution requirements met]

Sett absorbed the creature's body into his Tomb even as he and Gold began running away. He didn't want to let Gold see how the creature began decomposing right after death. That was a common trait for people who die by mummy hands.

As he ran, though, Sett noticed the puzzle inside his body click even more, reaching further towards completion.