|Kris POV|
…
How long have I been here?
…
I can't say for sure.
But it feels like years.
…
I miss that time.
What time…?
My memories are blurred—tangled, unreliable.
…
I can still feel that hunger.
It's unbearable.
A pain that never kills me—only drags on, endlessly.
But it became routine.
My daily state.
My only proof of existence.
The only way I can tell that I'm alive.
…
Alive?
Is this what living is?
…
What a cruel irony of fate.
Heh.
Hahaha.
…
I just…
want to see her again.
But I can't.
I don't remember.
I can't recall her face.
I…
…
Is this really it?
Is this all that's left for me?
For how much longer?
Forever?
…
Why…
why me…?
…
There has to be something.
Something I'm missing.
Life can't exist without a reason.
There has to be something I need.
…
But what…?
…
Damn it.
It's hard to think with this cursed hunger gnawing at me.
I need to—clear my mind.
…
…
…?
…!
I felt something.
Shit—don't lose it.
Don't let the sensation fade.
…
Huh?
What is that?
I can see something…
and at the same time—
I can't.
…
It looks like a mass.
All of it is red.
Did it just move?
…
Wait…?
That…
Is that…
me…?
…
I'll try to move it.
Just as I thought, the mass responded—shifting exactly the way I wanted it to.
I see…
So this is it.
This is what I've become.
…
As I moved farther, I noticed two other shapes.
They glowed red, just like me.
But unlike me, they had form.
Something like… a body.
They seemed to be trapped beneath something.
When I got closer, they didn't react.
…
Being this close to that light, my hunger screamed even louder.
I…
…
I'm so hungry.
I…
…
I need to eat.
As I move closer to the figures, I envelop them with my body.
They react—just for a moment.
Then they fall completely still as they are absorbed into me.
The hunger finally quiets down.
For now.
…
What… did I just do?
I couldn't think clearly.
I was too hungry.
I…
…
I need to move.
The hunger will come back.
I can feel it.
…
Pulling myself away from where the figures had been,
I crawl through the rubble.
I notice something then—
after feeding, my detection range has expanded.
Only a few meters.
But it's there.
Now I can faintly sense the objects around me, each outlined by a weak blue glow.
After some time dragging myself forward, more red shapes enter that range.
As I approach, they don't react either.
…
Unlike before, these figures aren't trapped.
They're inert.
As if… waiting for something.
As I move closer, the hunger returns.
I feel the need to repeat it.
And so I do.
One of the figures reacts, struggling weakly.
I'm sorry.
In a single instant, it stops—allowing me to assimilate it.
…
After absorbing the others as well, I keep crawling.
Stopping again and again to take in more of them.
Little by little, the hunger dulls.
Enough to let me think.
Those figures… they're similar to me.
But not the same.
Could it be…
Were they human…?
I can't tell.
Right now, there's no way to know.
…
But if they have shape—
then I should be able to have one too.
Right…?
…
But how would I even do that?
And if I…
…
As I focus on the shape I want, my mass begins to move.
Shifting.
Molding itself.
Little by little, it takes form.
Until it suddenly collapses to the ground.
…
This is exhausting.
Mentally.
It feels like trying to control every single cell in my body.
Forcing it into a shape that isn't truly mine.
…
Well.
Practice makes perfect.
…
With that in mind, I drag myself into a more enclosed space.
Just in case my mental energy runs out.
After countless attempts—
failures piling on failures—
I try once more.
Despite how exhausted I already am.
In my "vision," my body begins to take shape.
Slowly.
Carefully.
Precisely.
Until my "vision" suddenly stops.
Hm?
What happened?
Am I out of energy?
—?!
What—
I open my eyes.
I…
I'm finally seeing.
"A—ah."
I can speak.
I can hear.
"A—ah. Ha. Haha."
What is this feeling in my chest?
Is this…
euphoria?
Year: 5 A.M.W.