"What a lovely name." Alma responded in a condescending tone of voice. "Are the letters in there both Dragon and Tiger? Or are you named after a gemstone?"

I did not respond. My consciousness was fading, I could barely hold on. Flashes of lights seem to flicker in my eyes as my body, badly torn apart, twitched weakly. I couldn't feel anything anymore. I was only awaiting death.

"I was hoping we get to know each other better. It has been a long time since I had talked to anyone still human. What a shame." Alma let out a dry chuckle. "Now then,"

As Alma floated closer to me, the monsters immediately backed away. They poised to strike but cowered at the mere presence of this person.

"Know your place, worthless creatures."

With a single wave of their hand, the monsters were sent flying backward. They smashed into the surrounding buildings with great force but immediately got back up and roared. However, they kept their distanc as Alma then turn to my dying body with a disturbing smile.

A sudden feeling of coldness enveloped me as I was carefully picked up. It was a coldness that somehow sent chills down even my paralyzed body. I felt their left hand softly caressed my head from behind, propping me up and watched blankly as in their right hand, what appeared a glowing ball of light. The shape of it was strangely reminiscent of...an apple?

It was dazzling, like a miniature sun.

"Do not cry, Takatora Ryuuko; for you are sinless. You are but an unfortunate victim of fools calling themselves' saviors. I shall grant to you a piece of knowledge of this broken, forsaken world they dare to deem a paradise."

An indescribable taste and warmth filled my mouth as Alma gently fed me the strange ball of light.

"From this moment on, you are no longer a mere doll of cruel fate. Take revenge on those who lied to you. Fight back against those that cause you such suffering. And destroy those who dared brought such hell upon this innocent world. For you shall be free; no longer blinded by an illusion. My virus… my scourge…"

I could feel the ball smoothly going down my throat.

"My Eve…"

My paralyzed body suddenly sprung back to life, as an unbearable intense pain erupted throughout my entire being. I screamed at the top of my lungs, my every nerve felt like it was being directly attacked as my body arching backwards, writhing and contorting in horrible agony.

From the tip of my fingers to my toes I felt a burning, freezing and shocking sensation all happening simultaneously, creating a terrible anguish unlike anything ever felt before. The feeling of being immolated, of getting severe frostbite and electrocuted all at once.

My blood was running backwards, gushing out of my every orifice. My throat was choking on blood and in my ears rang the terrible sound of every vein in my body popping and bursting apart.

I screamed and screamed and screamed.

The excruciating pain would knock me out only to immediately wake me up again in what felt like a never-ending cycle of torture, shattering my mind as it begged for all of this to end. Begging for death.

Then…it all stopped.

Slowly, the pain subsided and instead, I began to feel a strange sensation of pleasure. I suddenly found myself smiling as my body, as if possessed, slowly got up. My vision was red, as I turned towards to face the waiting monsters. I heard them growl and snarl at me but..., I felt no fear.

Instead, I was filled with a rush of excitement.

"Heh…ha…heh heh… AHAHAHHAHAHAHAHA!" A maniacal laugh flew from my mouth as I slowly rubbed my left hand across my body. A feeling of unbelievable euphoria washed over me and wrapped around every centimeter of my being.

Ah…it felt so good…

The monsters roared as one of them leapt towards me. My left arm immediately shot out, in blinding speed, as I grabbed the creature by its throat and mercilessly slammed it into a wall.

WHAM

I could feel it wriggling and struggling to break free, but my monstrous grip only tightened.

"Heh heh heh…let's feel really good."

Still grabbing hold of it, I smashed it into the ground with all my might. The impact shattered the pavement beneath us and a shockwave shook the entire land.

BOOM

The monster squirmed weakly, as I the smashed it again.

And again.

And again.

I kept going until it could only twitch. But that wasn't enough.

Not yet.

The stump where my right arm used to be began to enlarge and bubble. Blood burst out and thickened as it formed crimson tentacles that coiled together. It transformed into the shape of an arm as veins burst out, latching itself to my shoulder and burrowed through my skin. I could feel it crawling up my neck to my mouth as it wrapped and stitched around my lips. A surge of energy began to pump into my body.

The new arm feels amazing. It was better and stronger than before, moving so well it felt like a natural part of my body. I could feel so much power emulating from it, but I knew there was more I could do. I drove my new arm into the ground and released the tentacles as they grabbed onto the pipes and metals underneath.

Ripping out a chunk of the earth, my arm started to wrap and compressed it into a weapon. It formed a giant blade, twice my size, with edges that hummed like a high frequency chainsaw the moment the veins attached to it. It felt weightless, almost like an extension of my arm.

I giggled as I admire my handiwork. It was beautiful. It was luscious. It was perfect.

With a single stroke, I shredded the monster in my hand. Bursting like a balloon, its blood rained down on my body. Every drop exhilarated me, as I turned to the rest of the monsters that charged towards me.

"More…more! I want more!" I yelled as I leapt straight at them, my blade flowing seamlessly as I cut them apart.

It was such a rush. I was intoxicated. Every kill brought about a wave of inexplicable pleasure. It was the same feeling I get when I write; when the ideas flowed fluidly from my head to my pen as I transcribe them on paper.

The blade, my pen.

The blood, my ink.

And their death, my story.

It was the ultimate feeling of bliss.