Why is the sky red? If you answered because the atmosphere of the landscape somehow forces red light to travel in shorter waves than the other colors, your heart is in the right place but the answer is still wrong. It’s a simple question, really. Soul energy is red, soul energy permeates the atmosphere all around us in varying potency, therefore the sky is red.

Red skies, pink clouds, crimson oceans…the damned color is everywhere. Around us, inside our own bodies, high up in the skies, deep in the caverns below…even at night, the shadows are tinged with faint red It grants us boons more addicting than alcohol, so we cannot help but use it. My friends have reported seeing their dreams through a red filter. One even woke up screaming at a dream of his old family being swallowed up by that soul energy.

If soul energy is a product of our humanity, then is this world is the most human one in existence? I opnce heard a professor say that humans are own worst enemies, thought he was an idiot at the time, but it’s might be true. We could be in hell, forced to watch our humanity rise up to kill us.

You couldn’t reach the top of the pyramid. Whether it because you were too slow a climber, or didn’t start early enough, or wasted time helping your fellow world residents…it doesn’t matter. You didn’t reach the golden light and could only stare as someone else reached for its sweet, brilliant magnificence, shrouding them like the robes of a great emperor.

The great darkness shook. Below you, the red pool receded, taking away those who had fallen into it. A voice echoed in your brain, neither male nor female yet loud and horrifying all the same.

YOU ARE AN EXILE.

Before you could wonder what that meant, the pyramid crumbled and toppled all who were clinging onto it. Falling, deeper and faster, into the abyss until you were flung back up out of unconsciousness and into reality.

You look up. Your head spins. You’re hungry, thirsty and so exhausted. The sky is red. Your home is in chaos. Friends, family members, strangers and enemies, all trapped in this pit of absolution, as a cherry-red sky watches in apathy.

Hot. A burning sensation. It snakes up your arms. It’s a boiling kettle about to explode with steam. Holding it back is impossible. You scream as a noxious miracle bursts from your hands into the surrounding.

Dear person, what kind of miracle was it? In what way did the soul energy resonate with your befuddled, fatigued soul? Flames shooting out of your fist? X-ray vision? Flight, breathing underwater or the power to throw cars without suffering heavy muscle damage?

No, this isn’t magic. Magic doesn’t have rules—though sometimes people think they do. The closest analogy would be superpowers. But really, there is not much super with them. Your body has been transformed against your will. Look at how sloppy your control over your newfound ability is! See how it’s damaging that poor person over there. Were they close to you? You better get used to this quickly. You were one of the lucky ones. Your fellow residents are transforming into monsters this very moment.

No, that isn’t a joke! Look over there! That poor postman. Watch as how his skin stretches like rubber, his bones crack and reform on the spot, a crimson shroud ripping away his skin until nothing but muscle and sinew is exposed to the world.

Tens—no, hundreds of thousands of human beings are undergoing the same process right now. We can’t all be survivors.

████ was a good man. Our home wouldn’t be standing if it weren’t for him.

After the migration, our island nation fell into chaos. The half I lived in was suddenly displaced onto dry land. Centuries of speculating and storytelling about the time the world wasn’t 80% ocean, only for us to receive that wish in the worst possible way. Our fishing routes, sky charts, boats and other techniques suddenly fell irrelevant overnight. To make matters worse, the displacement had brought the ocean water with it, flooding the ground and turning it into a marshy swamp.

████ was a scholar. Before, we laughed at him for obsessing over a past that would never come. He proved himself to be the most knowledgeable of us all. He helped us construct dwellings suitable for the wetlands we found ourself in. He wrote up plans for us to forage bush tucker. He acted as our representative when other communities from the west came over to investigation.

When ████ awakened to his Talent—the ability to manipulate the earth itself—his first intent was to protect others with it. These outer walls were formed by his strength alone. He stood there for weeks channelling his energies, sweating pouring down his back, his face shrivelled up like a prune from exhaustion. By the gods, it was a miracle when he finally succeeded.

You’ve guessed by now, haven’t you? I can see it in your face. ████ no longer stands with us right now.

Let me explain.

You know how after killing the monsters, soul energy leaks out of their body, ripe for the taking? It’s a fact we learned quickly after arriving here. ████ had the most kills in the beginning, therefore he grew to be the strongest.

He taught others, built up a little army to protect us, embarked on exploratory missions as the leader and so on. He drew the attention of others. One, in particular, was a group of rogues living in an old castle. Dunno what ████ did to anger them, but they took issue with us and decided to attack our village.

The first battle was a disaster. I was there on the frontlines, watching as the leader of the rogues utilized his Talent to mind control monsters into attacking us. Horde after horde charged at us across the fields, ripping our army to shreds. We were forced to retreat. ████ screamed at us not to, but what choice did we have?

████ changed then. His obsession with the land transformed into the drive to kill that leader. He went after the monsters around our village and devoured the red from their bodies. He hunted down the rogues and tore out their red too. He pored over books regarding war, strategy and battle tactics. He only ate the sufficient amount to keep him going and rarely slept. It was as if the trauma had turned his body into a machine.

He kept at it across the months, culminating leading the raid onto the castle until all that was standing left was the leader himself.

The fight wasn’t even a contest anymore. The red had boosted immense levels. Have you seen a man’s head fly clean off its body? Or seen a rainfall of flesh chunks, blood vessels and bone shards?

After that, ████ fell to his knees. He mentioned he was happy the job was done. He followed it up by saying his body felt burning hot. Felt like his ribs were about to explode from their cage. The red leaked out of his flesh like oil from a drum.

That’s right. He had absorbed too much soul energy. And because his goal had been reached, there was nothing left to hold it back. I still hear his howling in my dreams. I wonder if I should have been more persistent in holding him back. It might not have been possible, but we should have tried harder.

What happened to ████? He transformed into a great snake-like entity, over fifty metres in length, merging with the rock and mud around him. Our leader, our friend…he died in that moment. The beast thrashed around the place, collapsing it like a house of cards. We fled the scene with our pyrrhic victory.

And that is how ████ met his end. It is why we tell children not to approach the ruins, as the beast still slumbers there. It is why we constantly check our community for signs of overconsumption of the red. It is the reason why the punishment for not detoxifying after meals is so severe.

Child, we will never let ████’s fate happen again.

With authorization from Director ██████, production of grain crops using SE-infused fertilizer shall commence.

Entry #1: Placed the fertilizer around the potato field. No change as of yet.

Entry #2: Saplings are growing out of the soil. Appearance was faster than expected.

Entry #3: Flowers are blooming on the plant. It’s only been 25 days! Back home, I’d expect at least another month.

Entry #4: Red aura of the soul energy is covering the plants. Tried touching one of them. Was able to extract it into myself.

Entry #5: Plant growth has grown out of control. Trimming was needed. Stray branches and leaves were burned to prevent red congestion.

Entry #6: Harvesting time. Potatoes were the size of bowling bowls! This yield was much better than we expected—imagine if those starving countries back home had access to these. Then Jack bit into one and nearly mutated from the sheer concentration of the red alone. Guess our next task is to figure out how to detox these.

Entry #10: Hey, what if we fed the red to livestock? Could we get mega-chickens? Or monster chickens? It’s worth a shot.

Tested the effects of overconsumption and withdrawal soul energy has on humans.

[OVERCONSUMPTION]

Subject felt energized.

Subject’s bodily temperature greatly increased, but did not show the typical signs of heat exhaustion. Was active and possibly fit, despite the circumstances.

Subject showed signs of unease, increased blood pressure and heart rate.

Subject grew violent, attempting to use its Talents to escape the containment chamber. They broke through the hardened glass and killed one researcher. Subject was restrained and relocated.

Subject mutated into ██████. Experiments halted.

[WITHDRAWAL]

Subject felt fatigued. Loss of appetite and interrupted sleep.

Subject became desperate. Begged us for a piece of soul energy. Looked despaired when their requests were repeatedly declined.

Subject tried to break free from containment chamber, but failed due to the lack of energy in their body.

Subject remained inert in the corner of the room, mumbling to self. Seemed to be undergoing hallucinations. Noticed a grey trail of particles emanating from their body, before fading into nothingness.

Subject became comatose.

Subject expired. Very little soul energy was detected in body. Body was cremated regardless.