The risks of the untested mutagen weren't worth it, Gleb decided. He had no idea what it would really do to him, and he needed something he could depend on if he was going to survive here. Instead, he reached for a vial from the insectoid section, not caring which one. Any of them would do. Popping off the cork with one hand, he made a "cheers" action with his hand, then tipped his head back and downed the liquid in one go. Grimacing a bit when he was finished, he carefully replaced the empty vial into his case. It had sort of an iron aftertaste that coated his mouth.
Gleb sat, waiting for any changes. There was always a chance nothing would happen, in which case he would be dead soon--he could hear the ones who had been chasing him scouting through the trees not far from where he sat against the tree. A small sigh escaped his lips; perhaps he should have tried the experimental mutagen. He ran his hands through his hair, admitting defeat, and then realized that large clumps of his hair had detached when he touched it. Immediately, he grabbed more, becoming aware of a small headache behind his eyes as he did so.
The headache increased, becoming unbearable, and Gleb moaned in pain as his view of the world fractured, his eyes becoming compound and actually moving further apart. The pain was incredible, but so to was Gleb's new sight. He felt like he could see almost completely around him, and every tiny thing that moved caught his attention.
He began to smile, but his mouth froze as his face contorted wildly, orifices rearranging and dissolving as a single long and massive proboscis extended from the center of his face. His newly compound eyes widened in horror--for the last time, as his eyelids dissolved into his rapidly forming exoskeleton--and he tried to scream, but all that came out was a series of needle-like protrusions from the tip of his new proboscis.
This had been a mistake. He scrambled for the vials--surely there was something else he could take that could stop this? But before he could open the box again he doubled over in pain. From his neck to his waist, Gleb swelled, bulging unnaturally into almost a round ball, making his head seem quite small, and then he felt what used to be his buttocks lengthen and grow, becoming easily twice as long as his upper body. With an extremely painful pinch, his body segmented into three pieces: his head, abdomen, and thorax. And then wings erupted from his back. He tried to scream again and met with the same silent proboscis extension he had before.
His pursuers were upon him and watched in horror as his legs and arms thinned impossibly and a third leg on either side burst from his upper body, lengthening to match his other limbs. Trying out his new wings, Gleb discovered it was quite easy to lift himself high above those who wanted to kill him. He could simply run away--they were stunned, after all. But as a newly-minted giant mosquito, he found he had a taste for blood.