I don't know exactly when I woke up.
Actually, I don't even know if "woke up" is the right word.
I opened my eyes because some part of me decided I'd been out for too long — unconscious, dead, or whatever the hell I was before.
The first thing I felt wasn't pain, or fear — it was the damn smell.
A dense, humid, heavy odor that clung to the back of my throat like a small animal trying to crawl back inside me.
It smelled like moldy flesh mixed with old blood. Not exactly delightful.
When I finally managed to focus my vision, I saw the destroyed ceiling above me — if that could still be called a ceiling. Hanging stones, twisted beams, cracks revealing a gray sky that looked sick.
It was the kind of scene that makes any normal person think "#@$%&!¨*#@."
I wasn't that lucky. My head was still buzzing. I just stared, trying to understand how the hell I'd ended up there.
It took me a few seconds to realize where I was.
Broken pews, a crooked aisle leading to an altar covered by a torn, stained purple cloth. Dust and mold — way too much mold — along with candles melted down to nubs. Everything screamed "no one's stepped here in years and honestly, they should keep it that way."
It was a church.
And I had… the impression that I knew the place.
But it was just a feeling, like a word stuck on the tip of your tongue that never comes out. I tried to pull anything from my mind and nothing came. No name, no memory.
I took a deep breath automatically — and that was a big mistake.
The air came loaded with dust and death, and I started coughing like I'd swallowed sawdust. My eyes watered — probably my soul too.
At least I'm still breathing.
Yeah, I'd decided it was time to start lying to myself.
When I tried to stand, my legs reacted like they belonged to someone else… someone very old, or very drunk. I put a hand on the ground, and that's when I realized things could always get worse.
The altar and walls were cracked, the columns warped. Everything felt… wrong. Not abandoned — violated. If you looked closely, you'd see someone had tried to destroy this place. Judging by the size of the cracks, they'd been furious.
Have I been here before?
The question hammered at my skull, but no answer came.
I needed to get out.
The door — or what was left of it — was just ahead. The wood was so rotten I could see it falling apart piece by piece under the wind. The hinges creaked, and if I hadn't seen them, I would've sworn it was a scream. The leaning columns looked like they were trying to run before the whole thing collapsed.
I started limping forward. Every part of my body screamed like it was being used for the first time. When I reached the step, things got worse.
My foot slipped. Just like that. My weight pitched forward, I tried to catch myself — and the universe paid me back with interest.
A hot, sharp pain tore through my wrist as if shards of glass had been shoved under my skin.
"Aaagh— shit…"
Even with the throbbing fire crawling up my whole arm, I realized something stupid:
I didn't even recognize my own voice.
Is that… my voice?
I didn't recognize it.
I didn't recognize anything.
I clutched my wrist as tears filled my eyes. It was swelling fast… probably broken.
As if things weren't bad enough, one more item got added to the long list of "problems I didn't ask for."
"Where… am I?"
I was relieved no one answered — and worried for the same reason. Still, I kept moving toward the exit.
And when I looked outside… I wish I hadn't.
"Holy shit…"
What I saw wasn't a city — it was a corpse of one.
Tilted skyscrapers, buildings snapped in half like giant hands had crushed them in a panic. Exposed steel beams like unearthed bones.
Cars melted together on the streets into shapes that made no sense.
The asphalt was ripped open, deep wounds across the ground.
Farther away, a river — or something that used to be one — was now a thick, dark mass with a tar-like shine.
The fallen bridge looked like it had been bitten.
And the silence… God, the silence…
It was uncomfortable, broken only by the wind howling through shattered buildings, sounding like something mourning.
I swear… I know this place.
The question came back with a wave of déjà vu. Like seeing a dream I'd never had.
Then I smelled the rot rising up the stairs again, stronger this time.
I looked.
My mind stuttered. My sanity almost collapsed along with my knees.
Bodies.
The staircase was covered in bodies. Men, women… pieces.
Some intact, frozen mid-scream with empty eyes and open mouths. Others melted and fused into the concrete, twisted into shapes that no longer resembled humans — as if something had pressed multiple people into one pulsating slab of meat. Some were just red lumps with no form at all.
I vomited instantly. The bile burned my throat, and the smell made everything worse.
I need to get out of here…
But my legs trembled and refused. Every time I looked again, I felt like the bodies were closer.
It's just my imagination… of course it is… probably…
Somehow I dragged myself back toward the church, taking deep breaths to avoid passing out — even though the stale, moldy air only worsened the nausea. My eyes burned, and I couldn't tell if I was trembling from fear or pain.
"Shit… shit…"
Then the sound appeared.
A deep, distorted wail — something between a whale's call and a human scream stretched until it tore.
The vibration didn't enter through my ears — it crawled straight into my bones.
I turned toward the city.
And I saw it.
A colossal creature rising between the ruined buildings. My brain tried to deny it — something like that couldn't exist — but my eyes refused to lie.
It was a mass of living flesh, pulsing in red and brown. Veins thick as cables bulged across its surface. Parts moved slowly, crushing buildings like tin cans.
What the fuck is that thing?
With every step it took, the ground trembled, and the buildings groaned.
I covered my mouth to keep from screaming.
Then the worst happened — and I hadn't thought "worse" was still an option.
Cracks split open across the church floor.
Yellowish bubbles swelled, inflating fast before bursting with a stench of blood and sulfur.
My eyes burned as yellow mist spread rapidly.
Through the blur, I saw… eyes.
Round, black eyes blinking slowly.
Hundreds appeared — no… thousands.
A cold shiver crawled up my spine like invisible fingers. I scrambled backward, desperate, into the church.
The things didn't leave the mist, but a humanoid shape began forming — made of melting yellow flesh, rebuilding itself slowly. Too tall. Too wrong. Too alive.
At first they didn't notice me — until the giant one stepped closer.
Then it saw me.
My mind said run, but my legs didn't listen. Worse — the floor seemed to cling to me.
And then… a purple light appeared.
Geometric lines formed in the air, glowing like symbols drawn in nothingness. The light intensified until it almost burned my eyes, and everything distorted.
Then everything vanished.
The smell, the wind… everything.
I don't know if I fell or was ripped out of there. All I know is that, some time later, I was lying on a destroyed street.
Shattered storefronts. Broken signs. Windows reduced to shards. A low fog crawling along the ground.
I had no idea where I was — but honestly, that wasn't new.
I tried to stand — and I did. My legs trembled, but they were steadier. When I stepped forward, though, I tripped and landed on something soft.
The impact wasn't painful. It made a wet sound — something giving way under me.
Slowly, I looked down.
Worse than I expected.
A body. Or what was left of one.
Its chest was open, organs missing, and the face…
Where the face should've been, there was only raw flesh — smooth in some places, torn in others, as if someone had peeled every piece away.
I tried to scream, but nothing came out.
This isn't real…
I'm going to lose my mind…
Or maybe I already did — maybe that's why I'm here…
Then everything froze.
The world fell silent.
The fog stopped moving.
Papers on the ground froze mid-flutter.
Even the dust in the air seemed suspended — like someone had pressed a "pause" button on reality.
And that was only the start of the weirdness.
The purple light returned.
This time, right in front of me — lines forming in the air.
In seconds, a floating screen appeared, like a hologram.
Letters appeared slowly, trembling:
SURVIVE
"What… the fuck… is this?"
No answer.
The screen vanished, and time snapped back.
My heart hammered against my ribs.
Before I could process anything, a metallic noise echoed somewhere far away. I turned, startled.
Shadows moved through the fog.
Three, maybe four figures emerged, dark silhouettes advancing slowly. Worn clothes, cloaks, scraps of leather and patched fabric. Some had masks or scarves covering their faces.
At the front, a woman.
She wasn't any less dangerous for showing her face.
Sun-bronzed skin smeared with dirt. Hair tied back carelessly. And her eyes—
Cold.
So cold I felt like she was dissecting me without touching me.
She stopped a few steps away. Studied me in silence. If I breathed too loud, I felt she might kill me.
When she finally spoke, her voice cut through the silence:
"Who are you?"
I opened my mouth.
Nothing came out.
My throat closed. My chest tightened.
Who am I?