Re: Tales of the Rune-Tech Sage-Chapter 540: Berserk Human Transformations
CH540 Berserk Human Transformations
***
When Alex first heard about berserk humans, he honestly hadn’t known what to picture.
But one thing was certain— this was not it.
Most of the berserk humans looked and moved like infection victims from a low-budget zombie horror movie. Except here, each one bore terrifying fangs or elongated claws born from their berserk mutation.
Many of them felt... generic.
Some were large, tall and heavily muscled—clear examples of strength-oriented mutations.
Others were smaller and leaner, their frames wiry and compact, obviously emphasising speed or agility.
The third common type was also large—around two metres tall—but instead of muscle, their bodies were grotesquely bloated. Even simple movement seemed to strain their frames, splitting skin and tearing flesh—
only for the wounds to seal moments later.
This was clearly a vitality-type mutation.
’Great. We’ve got strength-types, agility-types, and regeneration-types,’ Alex thought dryly. ’The classic horror roster is fully represented.’
But no horror setting was complete with just a standard mob.
There were always aberrations, outliers... unique fiends.
And sure enough, such creatures were present as well.
One of them—judging by the exposed mammillary glands—had once been female. Now, her skin bristled with long, hardened needles protruding from her sweat pores, giving her the appearance of a grotesque porcupine.
’Forget a kiss of death,’ Alex thought darkly. ’That thing can give you a hug of death.’
Another stood even taller.
This one dwarfed the regular vitality-types, easily reaching three metres in height. Its stomach and arms were grotesquely bloated. Its head, in contrast, was almost too small.
Save for the mouth, there were no eyes, no nose... only a massive, jagged maw splitting across its face, packed with serrated, piranha-like teeth layered in chaotic rows.
As if that wasn’t enough, its hyper-regeneration left behind swollen, spore-like pores across its body. From those pores oozed thick, acidic pus that hissed and ate into the ground with every sluggish step it took.
’A walking biohazard,’ Alex muttered inwardly. ’I’m almost afraid to imagine what’s underneath those bloats if even the skin pores are leaking acid.’
There was another unique berserk human whose legs and fingers had morphed into pointed, blade-like protrusions. One even jutted straight out from its forehead like a grotesque horn.
Each bone blade glinted sharply under the desert sun, their edges catching the light with an almost metallic sheen.
’I can’t believe I’m saying this,’ Alex thought dryly, ’but you’re actually the best-looking of the bunch.’
He paused.
’Granted, that’s not a high bar... considering the competition.’
These were only the ones that had left a strong impression on him.
Sweeping his gaze across the gathering, Alex counted at least twenty such unique variants among the horde.
Amongst them, there was one that radiated the greatest sense of dread stood apart from the rest. 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢
It positioned near what appeared to be the entrance of the mountain toward which all the berserk humans were converging.
It stood just under two metres tall.
Unlike the others, its proportions were symmetrical, balanced and uniform.
But somehow, that made it more terrifying.
Its skin resembled hardened reptilian leather. A crocodile-like jaw extended from its face, lined with serrated teeth that interlocked with gleaming predatory edge.
Compared to the grotesque, swollen and malformed mutations around it, this one looked almost... refined.
More monster than aberration.
Like a perfected mutation rather than a chaotic accident.
It look like a were-crocodile, if such a thing existed.
’Clearly, it won the genetic lottery in this cursed randomised draw.’ Alex thought grimly.
Once he finished assessing the berserk humans, Alex finally turned his attention to his surroundings.
Only then did he notice the state of his party.
Many looked pale and ashen.
Some had eyes wide with barely concealed horror.
A few—especially the Pangeans—were visibly trembling.
They had never seen anything like this before.
Sure, nature could produce strange and even disturbing creatures. But even the most unusual beasts possessed a certain... internal logic. A sense of order.
They might not be beautiful. But they were ’natural’.
These things were... not.
Beyond the grotesque asymmetry, beyond the deformities and unnatural, abominable proportions, there was something fundamentally wrong about them.
Something that scraped against one’s psyche.
It wasn’t just visual revulsion, it was instead instinctual. Primal, even.
Their very presence invoked disgust at a foundational level.
Alex narrowed his eyes.
’Beings born of chaos...’ he mused inwardly. ’So they are instinctively repulsive to beings born of order. Is that what this is?’
The only reason Alex was handling the sight better was because he had long since been desensitised to horror and gore from the countless films, games and grim media he had consumed in his previous life.
He was so unbothered that if Fen cooked him a meal right now, he would probably eat it with relish while watching the berserk humans below.
Conversely, the rest of his party were barely holding down their breakfast.
Even some of the veterans looked pale.
And on top of that, the sheer number of berserk humans gathered in one place was suffocating.
"We’ll hold here for a while," Alex said calmly. "Take this moment to acclimatise yourselves to the sight. Chances are, we’ll be facing creatures like these again in the future. The earlier you get used to it, the better."
He paused.
"Let this also serve as a warning. Never underestimate the berserk property."
His gaze sharpened.
"Look at them carefully. Look at their eyes. They’re still in there."
"You can see it. The people who became these things are still alive somewhere inside... watching... unable to stop themselves from becoming these abominations before our very eyes."
"Their souls are trapped. Forced to watch. Forced to live on in bodies they no longer control... all because they were contaminated."
Silence descended over the party.
"I can’t say for certain whether every single one of them deserves this fate," Alex continued evenly. "But I can say that most of them don’t."
"They were just people, like you and me, trying to survive in this damned world we’ve found ourselves in."
His voice lowered.
"If you don’t want to become grotesque abominations like those... if you don’t want to be trapped inside a body you cannot even recognise... Then never let your guard down."
"Not ever."
Alex turned back towards the berserk horde.
"Now open your eyes and look. Let this image burn into your minds."
After a moment, he faced his party once more.
"I understand your disgust... I understand the fear. But I know the men and women I have fought beside. You are braves."
"To be brave is not the absence of fear, it is actually finding your courage in spite of it."
"That is what I ask of you now."
"Find your courage."
"So that when the time comes to confront such abominations... you will not falter."
Alex’s pep talk didn’t instantly restore the team’s morale to its peak, but it planted a seed.
’They’ll get used to the sight soon enough,’ he thought.
He stepped aside and moved toward the back of the group.
"How are you so calm in front of this?" Eleanore suddenly asked, catching him off-guard.
He couldn’t exactly say he had seen worse—far worse—in horror films and games from his previous life, could he?
As he pondered his response, he noticed several nearby party members subtly perk up, clearly waiting for his answer.
Alex chuckled softly.
"Back during the battle for Northern Dankrot Fort," he began, "my father killed a Legend right in front of me."
A few of the Pangeans straightened at that.
"But he didn’t just kill him."
"He deliberately killed him in such a way that the Legend’s blood splattered all over my face and body."
"As a lesson."
He paused.
Then asked, "Can you guess what he was trying to teach me?"
Eleanore frowned slightly, then shook her head.
Alex glanced at Udara and Zora. Neither answered. They simply watched him.
The rest of the party remained silent as well.
He had no choice but to answer himself.
"A phrase from my family’s creed," Alex said evenly. "Sanguine Honorem— Honour in Blood."
"At first glance, it sounds simple. Find honour in the blood you shed—whether it is yours or another’s."
"But there is another meaning."
He looked toward the berserk humans again.
"The truth, often times, reveals itself in blood."
"That day, my father showed me that even Legends bleed. And their blood is just as red."
He turned back to the group.
"The truth in that is simple."
"If something bleeds—blue, green, crimson, or any other colour—then it can die."
"And if it can die..." His ruby-red eyes gleamed a faint crimson. "Then I have no reason to fear it."
"Because in death... we are equals."
Silence lingered after his words.
Below them, one of the grotesque berserk humans let out a distorted howl.
Alex’s gaze hardened.
"Remember this, whatever those things are or will become..." he said quietly. "They still bleed."
"And that means... They can be killed."
***
