It had big hands with even bigger claws. No sign of eyes. A wide smile literally spread from ear to ear, revealing razor-sharp teeth.
Bones were visible throughout its body, the structure eerily resembling a human, only the skin had been turned inside out.
Grrr!
It let out a low groan, as if in pain.
My breath hitched
What is this... thing?
My mind was in a complete mess, but the survival instinct kicked in fast.
I continued to look at it, my body completely tense.
Kreeee...
It dragged its sharp claw on the ground, screeching on the floor, and moved slowly.
I, following its movement, also stood slowly, creating some safe distance.
Gulp!
I gulped, feeling a strange dryness in my throat.
GrrrrAHHH...
The creature, as if sensing something, staggered, slashing the nearby wall, leaving deep claw marks.
I shivered, the cold wind sipping into my bones through my bare skin.
But I didn't move carelessly.
Fortunately, the creature seemed blind and... weak, like it had been starving for days.
A starving beast is more dangerous.
The situation might be sudden, but I forced my mind to be calm.
I need to think.
I looked around at the cell I was in and found nothing of use. My only option was now to get out of here quietly.
No matter how weak it seemed, I doubted that I could defeat it with my bare hands.
Grr...
Slowly, the creature entered the cell.
Now having a close look, the creature was small, at least a head smaller than me.
A strange fluid is dripped from its skin.
I frowned at the damp smell of that. As the creature continued to move, I circled it.
GrAH...
The creature slashed again on the spot where I was a minute ago.
GRHHHHH...
Then, it let out a heart-wrenching shriek.
It didn't seem to know what it was doing.
If I had to describe its action, it would be that of a toddler.
It also doesn't seem to be developed fully.
Soon, the creature was standing where I was lying, and I was standing where it was.
Taking one last look at the creature, I casually exited the cell.
The corridor outside the cell was silent.
The kind that felt rotted.
I stepped out slowly, my bare feet touching the cold metallic floor. The moment I crossed the threshold, I realized something strange,
The cell I had woken up in wasn't a cell at all.
It was an egg.
A massive, broken shell of pale flesh-like material hung behind me, split open like a flower forced to bloom. Thick strands of translucent fluid still dripped from its inner walls.
So… I came out of that.
I swallowed and forced my eyes away. Only then did I notice the same fluid hanging on my body.
Yikes.
My stomach twisted, but I held myself back.
The hallway stretched far into darkness, illuminated by rows of flickering neon lights embedded in the ceiling.
Their pale blue glow washed over the place, revealing a facility that had clearly been destroyed.
Walls were cracked.
Metal panels hung loose.
Pipes burst from the ceiling like exposed veins, dripping dark liquid that echoed faintly against the floor.
It looked like something had torn this place apart from the inside.
I turned around instinctively.
And my heart sank.
There were rows.
Hundreds of them.
Gigantic pods lined the walls and ceiling like grotesque fruit growing from a dying tree. Some were intact, their surfaces pulsating faintly.
Others were cracked open.
From many of them hung creatures identical to the one inside my cell, skin peeled inside out, bones pressing through the red surface, mouths stretched into unnatural smiles.
Some dangled limply, unmoving.
Others twitched.
A few had already fallen to the floor, crawling awkwardly across the ground like newborn animals.
Kree…
Krrr…
Soft squeaks and wet dragging sounds echoed through the corridor.
My chest tightened.
There are… hundreds.
Then,
RUSSHH!
A sudden headache attacked me again. "ARghh..."
Groaning, I clenched my head.
Why again?
Different images appeared again. After being sold to the shadow-like figure, the rest of my memories were blurry.
But this place.
I have been to this place before.
Clenching my head, I took a few steps back. A strange current is coursing through the silver circuit across my whole body.
Stop!
Crush!
Subconsciously, I punched the wall beside me.
But the impact was stronger, I imagined, leaving a huge dent in the steel wall.
And the sound, to my dismay, was not small.
In the suffocating silence, it sounded like a gunshot.
I froze.
For a moment, nothing happened.
Then,
Kreeeeeeee!
One of the creatures lifted its head sharply.
Though it had no eyes, its face turned directly toward me.
Then another.
And another.
Dozens of twisted bodies stiffened as if a string had been pulled.
The corridor was filled with a chorus of low growls.
My blood ran cold.
Ah! Shit.
The creature closest to me twitched violently.
Then it screamed.
GRRAAAAAAH!
The sound ripped through the corridor like tearing metal.
And suddenly,
We all moved.
Without any hesitation, I turned over my heels and ran.
My bare feet slapped against the cold metal floor as the corridor erupted behind me.
Kreeeeee!
GRRRRAAAH!
Wet claws scraped the ground. Bodies slammed into the floor as more creatures dropped from their hanging shells.
The sound of hundreds of limbs chasing me filled the hallway.
I didn't dare look back.
My lungs burned almost instantly, but something inside me kept pushing my body forward.
Think… think!
The corridor branched ahead.
Then suddenly, a memory flashed.
A room filled with monitors and control panels.
My steps faltered for a split second.
The control room.
I had seen it before.
Or… someone had.
The memory felt like it belonged to me and yet not me.
But right now, it was the only thing my mind could grab onto.
I turned sharply left.
My shoulder slammed into the wall as I took the corner too fast. Leaving another dent.
Behind me,
THUD!
One of the creatures leapt, crashing into the wall where I had just been.
Claws tore through metal like paper.
"Shit!"
I ran harder.
The corridor here was narrower, filled with broken pipes and fallen panels.
A creature crawled out from a cracked pod ahead of me.
Kree…
It turned toward the vibration of my steps.
I looked around frantically.
Then I saw a rusted pipe lying across the floor.
I grabbed it instinctively.
The moment my hand wrapped around the cold metal, something strange happened.
A faint silver glow flickered beneath the skin of my arm.
Thin lines, like circuits, lit up across my forearm, spreading all the way to the pipe.
A strange current surged through me.
The whole structure of the pipe was imprinted into my head as its tip started to glow in silver light.
What…?
There was no time to question it.
The creature lunged.
I swung the pipe like a baseball bat.
CRASH!
The pipe struck its skull with explosive force.
The creature slammed into the ground so hard the metal floor dented beneath it.
It stopped moving instantly.
I stared for half a second.
That was… stronger than it should have been.
Another shriek snapped me back.
Two creatures leapt from opposite sides.
I ducked.
One claw barely missed my head.
I drove my knee upward.
CRACK!
The creature folded as my knee crushed its ribs.
Before it could recover,
BAM!
The pipe came down again, smashing its head into the floor.
The second creature lunged.
I twisted sideways and kicked it straight in the chest.
It flew backward like it had been hit by a truck, slamming into the wall.
My body moved almost instinctively.
Every strike was enhanced by those glowing circuits spreading faintly across my skin.
But it didn't matter. There were too many.
More creatures flooded the hallway behind me.
Their screeches echoed like a swarm of broken alarms.
I ran again.
The control room door finally appeared ahead, thick reinforced steel, slightly ajar.
There!
I dashed through and turned immediately.
The creatures were already closing in.
I grabbed the door handle and pulled.
Creal!
The heavy door refused to move.
I looked at the control panel beside it.
"No power…?"
A creature slammed into the doorframe.
Claws scraped toward my face.
I shoved it back with the pipe and slammed my shoulder against the door again.
Still nothing.
Another creature reached through the gap.
Then another.
My heart pounded.
The silver circuits across my arm pulsed faintly again.
The same strange current surged through my body.
My eyes flicked toward the dead control panel.
A thought surfaced, pure instinct.
Power it.
"I… can do that?"
Another creature lunged.
There was no time.
I slammed my palm against the panel.
The circuits across my arm flared bright silver.
A violent surge of energy shot from my body.
BZZZZT!
The control panel exploded with light.
The door mechanisms roared to life.
CLANG!
The massive steel door slammed shut just as claws scraped inches from my face.
BOOM!
Something crashed into the other side immediately.
Then another.
Then dozens.
The door shook violently under the impact of the swarm.
But it held.
The control room fell silent except for the muffled shrieks outside
My legs finally gave out.
I collapsed against the wall, breathing heavily.
The faint silver circuits slowly faded from my skin.
My eyes drifted toward the door as the creatures continued to slam into it from the other side.
Then I looked at my hand.
"…What the hell am I?"
Outside,
The creatures kept screaming.