She stares, speechless, from the massive shock and pain.


    Astrid’s legs from the knee down are suddenly covered in a shiny, yellow liquid—like gasoline. Deeply soaked over her dress and tights.


    Her legs are liquefying, the skin is dissolving right before our eyes and so does the flesh and bones.


    “Astrid!” I scream.


    “Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!” Mike holds his hands up in panic.


    With a horrifying expression, Harald cocks his gun, ready to tackle the thing.


    I’m staggered by the fact her flesh is slowly melting down, yet she doesn’t scream or react.


    Is she still in shock? Why hasn’t she fainted?


    Flathead closes its mouth right after the burp and seems to be preparing for another one.


    I act quickly.


    *Swoosh*


    *Blunt blow*


    My next swing lands on the top of its flat head. The health bar barely changes since I miss the same spot as before.


    Timing my next attack to be as precise as possible, I act in a rush, focusing only on one of the three holes, not fully realizing how dangerous the foe in front of me is.


    If I die, what would they do? Run? They wouldn’t be able to use my hammer.


    Shotgun again? I ask myself. Harald needs to find a quick supply of ammo or some other solution.


    I focus only on the second spot, that’s the one I''ve hit hardest.


    The thing is starting to open its mouth again. Another deadly burp of acid that melts flesh is the last thing I need.


    Rappelling myself in the air, I hit the spot with, luckily, surgical precision.


    *Bonk*


    It squelches a bit; I must’ve hit some tissue that seems to be underneath the rock solid armor.


    A quick peek at the health bar proves me right.


    It shrinks a good amount. Yes!


    Completely ignorant of the fact that this might be the deadliest encounter yet, as it can literally melt flesh in mere seconds I celebrate my strike.


    But do I need to go deeper?


    My glock! Suddenly, victory is within my grasp.


    *Blurp*


    The thing pukes another round of acid, but mostly underneath itself, as it’s somehow stunned by the hit.


    Bright yellow liquid soaks into the sand, and a few droplets spurt outwards.


    “Aargh.”


    I start to feel terrible pain in my left hand, but I must ignore it! I don’t even glance at it.


    Whatever happened, it’s not important now.


    Mike is trying to pull the poor girl out of this mess; her shoes are lying in the sand, covered in goo, where she was hit first.


    The trail of blood and acid mixed with sand is all that’s left after the dragging.


    I''m yelling.


    Mike screams at her in panic and drags her away through the sand.


    <hr>


    The only one who isn’t making a sound now is the victim herself.


    Harald shouts to us while sprinting around. The creature makes gulping, unpleasant insect noises.


    Mike talks to Astrid loudly.


    I scream in the heat of battle, grasping my flexible sledgehammer tightly.


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    The thing is prepping for the next attack.


    I’ve learned the sound and the pose it makes from the last one.


    This is my chance.


    Mike’s sword puncturing one of the holes isn’t viable right now.


    “Inventory!” I growl through my teeth.


    My glock is out—time to switch the safety off and shoot it before it moves again. I look the old man in the eye while releasing the tiny handle.


    I quickly reposition near the flathead, while it seems still stunned and tries to aim.


    My heavy bonk must have resonated for quite a while inside its body.


    It swirls away with its tentacle legs and starts zig-zagging, burying itself in and out of the sand.


    Terrified by how fast and uneasy the movement is I decide that the shooting option is off the table.


    Quickly stashing the glock I prepare for another hammer blow.


    “Don’t even get close! This thing spits acid that dissolves flesh. Go help Astrid!” I yell at Harald, who’s running with his shotgun in hand.


    What?!” he asks loudly. “I’ll be back up, at least!


    “No! Stay out of this. If I die, retrieve my hammer somehow—or maybe don’t!” I order him.


    He nods quickly and starts to jog backward, trying to gain at least some control of the situation.


    The Acid Flathead circles around me like a vulture stalking prey.


    I follow it, turning in place.


    It seems that this is going nowhere.


    “You know what, bastard?” I mutter through gritted teeth.


    “I’ll camp here!”


    I plant my feet firmly, getting solid footing. Time to power up.


    I grip the handle of my sledgehammer with both hands, but something feels off.


    A small part of my left palm is missing, along with my pinky finger. It looks like it melted, leaving only burnt black scar tissue.


    I don’t feel any pain.


    Strange.


    I’ll have to analyze this later—after the battle. Whatever the result may be.


    My power surges from my core again, and I can see my arms bulking up once more.


    I glance at my arm. The skin is nearly bursting.


    Wait! What the hell!


    It’s never been this thick!


    I still don’t feel anything. Blood starts dripping from under my fingernails.


    Oh, shit!


    So I get it now.


    I stop channeling and hold my current state.


    “Come on, fucker!”


    The Flathead circling tightens. I hear the bubbling sound before the burp.


    Now! It’s going to attack!


    It’s now or never. I gamble on a dodge and hit.


    Just before it opens its mouth again, I leap to the right.


    Luck is in my favor!


    The flat surface of its head is perfectly aligned for my strike.


    This is a miraculously lucky shot—I can’t risk prolonging this fight.


    I release more power into my arms. The flesh in other parts of my body shrinks and shifts mostly to my triceps and forearms. I grip the hammer handle so tightly I see it getting squeezed.


    Blood starts flowing out from under my fingernails, but I don’t care about the pain as it is non-existent.


    My concentration is godlike, compared to the constant pain that used to accompany overextending my power.


    "Aaaaaaaargh!"


    *Bang*


    The hammer smashes into the creature’s head. Due to enchantment it must''ve been so heavy, the handle bends almost sixty degrees.


    The hammer’s head and handle tear right through the solid, rocky armored piece, ripping part of the monster off.


    The health bar depletes instantly.


    *Ding*


    "I got the kill!" I yell out loud!


    The dent left behind is filled with what looks like intestines—tubes and deflating parts, all the same color as the creature’s exterior.


    Surprisingly, not a single drop of acid leaks from the wound.


    <hr>


    Harald cheers victoriously and jogs toward me.


    “Boy, you went over your limit, didn’t you? Are you okay?” He checks my bloody arms and missing finger.


    I nod, feeling strangely calm.


    “You were never that big before. Are you in shock? The blood spurting from your fingertips was uncomfortable to watch.” He looks worried.


    “I don’t feel any pain. Just like Astrid.” I raise my eyebrows.


    “Her legs melted off, Harald,” I say, my voice grim.


    His worried expression deepens, his face wrinkling with concern.


    “Check on Astrid. I’ll be waiting by your car, okay?” I order him.


    He nods but stops as he sees my face with a hint of fear.


    “There’s no one else in the car, right?” I ask, my mouth trembles.


    “Of course not,” he replies instantly.


    <hr>


    I exhale in relief and begin to examine the damage.


    My skin is stretched tight; my arms are bruised, nearly purple.


    I touch the wound on my left hand and poke the dangling burnt flesh.


    “Yuck!”


    Still, no pain, so I decide to clean the wound, at least the part that’s bothering me most—the dangling flesh.


    Maybe my nerve endings are fried?


    What if I feel it when I pull it off?


    I take a deep breath. There’s only one way to find out


    *Pluck*


    I tear off the barely-attached flesh, and my head spins for a moment.


    "Phew."


    "Dear god, that’s insane."


    <hr>


    I sit there in the heat, though I don’t feel it.


    My energy levels are stable, and all the discomfort that had distracted me is gone.


    An extreme sense of joy fills me.


    This substance is overpowered.


    I need to analyze what happened, but I see Harald returning, holding Astrid in his arms. Her dress is folded over her stumps.


    Mike stops by to pick up her shoes and socks.


    I need to harvest the acid—it’s precious.


    Opening my inventory, I take out one of the two water bottles, and approach the creature.


    That big sack hanging out of the crevice is my best bet.


    I take out the lid of one of the meat containers Harald gave me and position it underneath.


    *Stab*


    One precise stab, and the acid starts to pour into the shallow lid.


    I carefully crouch by and try to drain it into the bottle.