“This almost feels like déjà vu,” Sam said.

It wasn’t just the sound of his steps disturbing the silence of the ruined passageway. There was this foreboding atmosphere all around him too.

It probably feels the same as that time I sent you into—

“Goodwill Asylum!” Sam realized. “It does feel exactly like that... down to the heart-pounding anxiety tightening on my chest...”

When Sam turned that final corner, he found Boar remains blocking the path. No, it hadn’t been cannibalized. The electrical burns on its hide suggested the horror had been charred by something other than fire.

“Godsdammit, she’s using way too much power,” Sam grumbled.

Then he felt the wind on his face and finally noticed what would have been obvious if the sight of a corpse hadn’t demanded his attention first.

“Wasn’t there a door there?” Sam wondered aloud.

I’d wager something extra-big smashed through it in a hurry, Chiron guessed.

All that remained of the back wall was the bits of metal and cement scattered on the floor. Beyond it was open air, giving Sam a clear view of the situation in the healing gardens.

“Styx! She’s got civilians out there with her,” Sam realized.

Stop dawdling and hurry, kid, Chiron urged. Can’t you hear the rumbling?

As if on cue, Sam heard the crackle of thunder from far above, and he ran forward just as a lightning bolt crashed down onto the healing gardens.

Krak-ka-boom!

The shockwave that came afterward forced Sam back a step. He hoped none of the civilians had been blown off the building by that explosive force.

She’s much weaker than I thought... Chiron commented.

“How is this weaker?” Sam asked.

The old Thunder would have blown a hole in the hospital with just a single lightning bolt, Chiron replied.

But Thunder hadn’t blown a hole in the hospital. She hadn’t even managed to destroy the gamma-level horror now towering over her.

She was on one knee with her hair clinging to the sweat on her flushed cheeks. She looked pale, gasping for breath, with one hand pressed to her chest. Behind her, patients and hospital staff cowered together at the other end of the garden as their only exit was being blocked by an eight-footed, red-skinned monster that was almost as thick as it was tall.

Sam recalled some of Chiron’s oldest words to him. Wait for your moment, and when it comes, don’t be afraid to leap!

“Herculean.”

It was little more than a whisper and yet people had turned in his direction almost like they suddenly sensed him— sensed the power that burst forth from him and caused his surroundings to rumble at his mere presence.

In the blink of an eye, Sam reached Thunder’s side and pulled her out of the way before the cannibal Boar could catch them.

“Hey, what’re you up to?” he asked.

“Oh... you know... just fighting off crazy bad guys... and their pet cannibals,” Thunder replied in a weak voice. “What took you so long, lame-brain?”

“The traffic today’s insane,” Sam answered. “Hold on.”

In a flash, he’d lifted Thunder off her feet and carried her over to the rear of the garden where the civilians cowered.

“Hey, you,” Sam called to a man clinging to his guitar like it was the most precious thing in the world, “you know how to use that thing?”

The bard, his frightened eyes flecked with tears, nodded his head.

“Play some healing tunes, will you?” Sam placed Thunder gently onto the cement floor. “My friend needs a pick me up...”

“Sam...” There was a hesitation in Thunder’s voice that Sam hadn’t heard since that night they met. “It’s a lot stronger than before...”

“I know,” Sam replied.

No, he wasn’t just humoring her. He could actually feel the energy leaking out of the horror. Strong and fiery, like the heat coming off a roaring bonfire.

“Dude’s got an upgrade,” Sam added.

The horror was bigger than yesterday. It was thicker around the chest and arms with a great round belly that could have fit Sam’s whole body inside it.

“It’s gotten uglier too,” Sam noted.

“Don’t joke...” Thunder snapped. “That thing shrugged off my lightning bolt.”

“Well, you’re not exactly on your a-game,” Sam reasoned.

Sam thought the cannibal Boar had looked quite damaged by Thunder’s last attack. The plumes of smoke drifting out of the burns across its red hide were proof enough. However, these wounds were quickly stitching themselves back together in the same way Sam’s injuries usually healed themselves.

“Styx,” Sam breathed.

Chiron had the same sentiment. Looks like it’s developed a healing factor, kid... this will be troublesome.

“Master... how much stronger are we talking about?” Sam asked.

Best guess, it’s become an upper-tier gamma power that’s bordering on beta territory, Chiron deduced. All those people it ate inside the hospital must have turned it into even more of a freaking monster...

Sam knew that Chiron’s assessment was probably correct. And yet the fear that often came with an increased sense of danger hadn’t appeared. Sam wasn’t quaking in his boots.

“I can take him,” Sam said.

“Yeah... I think you can,” Thunder answered.

The fingers of her hand intertwined with his.

“You’ve gotten stronger too, haven’t you?” Thunder guessed.

His gaze drifted over to hers. Their eyes locked.

“I’m level fifteen now,” Sam admitted.

“Level fifteen isn’t much, lame-brain...” she rolled her eyes at him. Then she squeezed his hand. “But I’m not just talking stats... what happened, Sam?”

You happened... Sam thought, but he didn’t say this incredibly embarrassing thought out loud.

The all-time greats, they found a reason to stand and fight, Chiron had said to him a while back. And more often than not, their reasons were simple... just like yours is.

Finally, he understood what Chiron meant. Sam’s reason was pretty simple. He wanted to save the girl, and that desire to protect Thunder was all he really needed for that next step.

“People need saving... that’s how I got stronger,” Sam insisted.

He heard the strumming of a guitar and knew it was his cue. Sam gave Thunder one final grin, and with a promise of, “I’ve got this,” he was gone.

Sam was a blur streaking across the garden at a speed that very few deltas could ever match.

Remember, kid... When challenging an opponent far more powerful than you, a single chance or two may be all you’ll get, these were his master’s words back then.

Sam pulled Cranium Smasher out of its holster.

But these kinds of odds are what will make your actions truly shine...

The cannibal Boar let out a monstrous grunt and then leaped forward to meet Sam’s charge.

So grit your teeth and unleash all the resolve hiding in your heart…

Sam drew his hammer back, his fingers tightening on its handle. And as if in mimicry of his actions, the horror drew back its enormous fist.

Go beyond...

“...even the extraordinary,” Sam recited.

He swung the hammer forward just as the cannibal Boar sent its own fist hurtling toward him.

“And become super!” Sam roared.

The force of Cranium Smasher colliding with the horror’s fist caused the very air around them to explode outward like a bomb exploding in midair.

Sam heard the cracking of metal before he felt his arm get blown back.

“Once more!” he yelled.

Sam dug his feet into the ground and pushed against the pressure threatening to blow him away. Then he swung his hammer forward a second time — glimpsing the crack that had appeared on its surface — and smashed it hard against the cannibal Boar’s other fist as it too came swinging toward him.

There was an audible “boom!” that came with their collision. The surrounding air crackled, exploding outward yet again and forcing Sam a step back.

Both of the cannibal Boar’s fists were a bloody mess. Dark ichor dripped from its fat fingers. Still, it drew them back to prepare for another attack.

“I’m not done yet either!” Sam growled.

He reclaimed his footing, took that dangerous step forward, and with both hands grasping the handle, swung his hammer forward for the third time.

The horror met his attack with one of its own, and despite hearing the crunching of bone against metal, Sam could tell he’d lost that round. For although he’d clearly broken the cannibal Boar’s fist and possibly even its entire arm with that last stroke, chunks of his hammer had broken off too.

A moment of doubt flitted across Sam’s face. It was quickly replaced by anger.

“I was super attached,” with his left hand, he took out the Thorn Axe from its side holster, “to that damn hammer!”

In one quick motion, Sam parried the cannibal Boar’s other fist, driving his axe deep into the monster’s wrist. Lightning crackled along the blade’s edge, momentarily increasing the weapon’s hacking power.

Sam put his back into it, and with a cry of “Herculean!” cut through the bone and all the way out to the other side.

Dark ichor sprayed out of the stump that only a moment ago had been attached to the hand that fell to the ground with a loud thud.

As the cannibal Boar unleashed a pain-filled roar, it glared back at Sam with murder in its eyes. It raised its other, still broken, fist high and would have smashed it down on Sam’s head if he was just a second slower.

Luckily, Sam was faster. He’d stepped into the horror’s range and then push-kicked the cannibal Boar in its fat belly and drove it back a good five feet away.

Sam pressed his advantage. He rushed forward with his axe raised — and was blown back by a bony fist that had just grown out of the bloody stump at the end of the horror’s left arm.

He hadn’t fallen over, but Sam’s legs suddenly felt like they were made of jelly. He’d definitely felt that hit in his bones.

I keep telling you that Herculean’s a double-edged sword, kid, Chiron said, sounding exasperated.

“That’s what you’re focusing on,” Sam wiped at the blood that dripped down the corner of his mouth, “and not the fact that this monster grew a new hand in seconds!?”

I told you it had a healing factor now, didn’t I? Chiron countered.

“Yeah, but,” Sam’s eyes widened at the sight before him, “I can’t even do that...”

Not only was the cannibal Boar’s hand regrowing — muscle fibers and skin wrapping around bone at record speed — but even its other arm had healed quickly.

A burst of shrill mocking laughter filled the air. From where it came from, Sam couldn’t tell for it sounded like it was coming from all around him.

“I took a page from your book, Mr. Healer!” The Trickster’s voice was like an echo reverberating in the air. “How do you like my little piggy now?”

Sam’s eyes darted left and then right, but there was no sign of the elusive villain anywhere.

“No, calling it little piggy would be sorely underestimating my favorite horror,” the Trickster admitted. “It deserves a name of far more renown... one I know you’ll get a kick out of!”

“I’d get a kick out of kicking your teeth in,” Sam countered. “Show your — Styx!”

Sam didn’t even see the swing until it was too late, and he’d raised his half-broken hammer up just in time to save him from the bulk of the backhanded slap that nearly tore his head off his shoulders.

Still, that hit rocked Sam back and nearly knocked him unconscious. It was only out of sheer stubbornness that he managed to stay on his feet.

His vision blurred. His ears rang. There was blood inside his mouth. And even with all that, Sam didn’t miss the Trickster’s next taunt.

“Strong, isn’t it?” the Trickster asked in a mocking tone. “My very own Erymanthian Boar!”