Chapter Five

Whuh? Whe-what's happening?

The nameless' human's vision was blurred- foggy and grey, even—disoriented, nauseated, and delirious; simply put, the human was completely unaware of his surroundings. His perception was quite similar to the grogginess one would feel after passing out from alcohol and finding themselves with a broken nose in the morning.

He did not know what was even going on around him as his eyes remained affixed to the pale grey sky above him, the long clouds obscuring even a hint of the atmosphere around him. His limbs refused to give any response, but considering how his brain felt weightless and empty, perhaps the extra burden of bodily sensation being absent was a good thing.

He couldn't feel a single thing going on around him, nor could he hear anything; his sight was practically the only sense he had left. The only reason why he even thought he had that was that he noticed a pile of sand building up around his eyes. Even then, he was only half aware of that then, even when the course grains started to 'tickle' his tear ducts. I... can't move my arms. What could be... pushing..?

His lethargic thoughts came slowly, but when all of a sudden more of the sand fell into his opened, dull eyes, slightly covering his irritated pupils, he knew exactly what was happening. I'm... being dragged. But... by who?

It was at slow intervals, and each time he was pulled, he could feel SOMETHING straining with all its might. Whatever it was moving him along was clearly not built for dragging along heavy things like the tall human. More importantly... why am I being dragged... and to where..?

For what felt like forever, he would not know the answer to that. Slowly but surely, an extremely familiar cold sensation soaked into his skin, and with it, his already dulled senses weakened further. Oddly enough, when he felt something slacken in his eyes which made it feel like he was given permission to blink, it was like the time between where he was then and now was scraped from existence. It felt like naught, but a heartbeat's worth of time had passed and yet he could not deny the fact that he was indeed being moved by someone... or something. And indeed, a heartbeat had passed.

Rivalling even the strongest of Earth's thunderstorms, his entire being shook and trembled with each beat of his might organ. With each tremble, he found his sight and current position dipping and changing.

Where he was probably still lying in the alcove, the next time his moistened eyes opened, freed from the crusty alien sand, he was staring up a familiar, completely flat cliff face. If he could feel his body, let alone his face, his eyebrows would've shot open in growing anxiety, and his breath would've been racing. Wait... a second... No, this... can't be! Is th... the-...

His thoughts finally faded away, and with it, his ability to perceive the world around him. His glossed eyes stayed open, but nothing made it through the fog that wrapped over him. Passing out once more with a thunderous heartbeat making his skull feel like it was in the middle of a thunderstorm, his world of grey clouds and scattered grains scratching his eye... it all went dark.

And so this in-and-out state of delirium and dreary confusion proceeded without interruption. The human felt and saw not a thing as his body passed by the stone threshold he fought so hard to escape before.

And yet his heart still went on.

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Plip...

Plipplop...

A small droplet of water, steadily dropping from a spike hidden somewhere in the darkness, hit the bridge of the human's nose. He was obviously still unconscious, which was pretty noticeable due to him aimlessly clawing the air, but that would soon change when a particularly large one descended from... wherever he was. "Hmm... Hmmm...?"

The human's eyes were beginning to flutter open, though because of just how dark his surroundings, his fatigued mind just assumed he was still in the void-like sleep he fell into. Indeed, not even his thoughts were returning to him; it was simply his body reacting to stimuli.

But then it happened again, and not a moment too soon. Splashing hard onto the human's face, both he and his body had no choice in his reaction. "HmmmMM?! Wh-wha-where!?" The total culmination of his tension sent him onto his feet, which turned out to be a bad choice when he hit his head off a hard roof of sorts. "Gah!"

He started rubbing the back of his head while he groaned in discomfort, his heart rate maintaining its unusually high speed as he attempted to figure the main question on his mind. What in the FUCK happened now?! Wait... No..! As he 'looked' around and saw only the suffocating atmosphere of deep black again, realization began to set in. As if the distant trickle of water droplets and him were connected, his breath grew louder and louder with every passing second. With each drop increasing in volume, so too did the despair within him grow.

Unable to even see his hands and body, he could only rely on the intense shaking that infested them to confirm nothing had happened to him. And while he wouldn't admit, not even to himself, his body was actually feeling quite rejuvenated.

But one could not say the same for his mental health. Oh, God... Oh, fuck, no, this can't be happening! I just got OUT, man! His heart hammered in his ears, and his breath became so hoarse from the intensity in which he breathed the water droplets faded into nothingness. His eyes, despite fighting off the feeling to maintain SOME semblance of composure, grew heavy with liquid weight, and soon, his own fearful tears joined the subterranean symphony. "I can't be back here! I-I-I just g-got out..."

He could've sworn he heard some sort of... animal nearby, but that was quickly pressed to the back of his mind as he recollected on the events that happened before this, desperately searching for some reason that would explain his current situation. In the end, that only made things worse as he remembered the... companion that had ever so pleasantly made itself at home.

At this point, the shock both he and his body felt was enough to drag out any intelligible words he wanted to say into primal groans and feral moans. At that moment, he didn't even want to move his own body anymore in fear of triggering whatever it was to move again. Oh fuck... Shit, shit, shit, fuck, is... Is it still in me? Please, no... Tentative fingers managed to uncurl themselves from pressing into his bleeding palms as they were issued their most important task yet: touch his ribcage.

His exposed chest was heaving in and out as his lungs attempted to keep him from passing out again, and yet, for just a moment, he managed to calm down enough to tense up his body, like he was attempting to cauterize a deep wound. Whimpering in apprehension, he shut his eyes and clenched his fixed-up teeth hard enough to make them feel like they were broken again. "PLEASE!"

Five-starring himself hard, the sudden pain he felt snapped him out of his mania-riddled mind, if only for a moment. Tuning out the drops of water and a distant sound that sounded something between a snarl and rock scrapping, he concentrated solely on the vibrations of his beating heart. The clearest and disturbing memory he had about his 'guest' was when he felt its slimy tendrils wrap around and into his arteries, so with quick thinking, he tried to feel ANY irregularities. If there is anywhere that bastard might be, it's here! Please, let it just be me, let it just be me, let it just be m-!

Bum Bum... BumBum Bum... BUMWUBBUM... WUBBUM... BUMBUMBUMBUMBUMBUMWUBBUMBUM...

Amidst his racing heart, the distinct sensation of something and very clearly... not human: slow, lethargic, calm; the very opposite of what the human felt now. If he hadn't puked out all his food twice over, the contents of his stomach would've emptied themselves onto the floor, here and there. His face flushed all the blood out of it as he looked up, completely zoned out in his environment. In a moment of clarity, and as all his dilemmas stacked on one another, he only came to one conclusion that made the most sense.

I want to scream.

But just like all the human's other hopes and desires, that too... did not come true. Just as soon as he felt the air beginning to come up from his throat, he had to pause when his unwanted tenet finally act. Once again, the petrifying feeling of just how comfortably and quick the tendrils inside moved shocked him into silence as they began to gather around his windpipe. Without hesitation, they tightened around his throat, gagging him more efficiently and with more strength than any bodybuilder that was back on his homeworld.

His eyes shot open as his muscles were pressed together tightly, his throat no longer a method for relief but just another way for this cruel, cruel planet to torture him. "GHRN! Hern! AaCK!" While they sounded loud to him, the choked gasps were barely even whispered as his lips and teeth smacked together futilely. Are you KIDDING ME!? Not even this?! N-no! No, fuck you, bastard! Y-y-you, don't get to do this; I am TIRED OF THIS SHIT.

Anger and fury rose up in him, and his lips peeled back in the dark just as fast as his determination to claw at his neck came. Though he knew it was ultimately useless, knowing deep down that to kill the thing inside of him, the human too would need to die- such was the depth their connection went. But he would not relinquish control over his body as easily as it might've thought.

His nails primed and ready, he was just about to start clawing where he felt a prominent bulge in his surprisingly thick neck when his ears finally started to hear something EXTREMELY close by. What the..? Just then, a light flashed by him, taking him off guard when it illuminated his dreary black world by revealing the finer details of his dirty, dusty environment.

It was then that he finally was able to get some bearings on his surroundings. He didn't know HOW it happened, but he... or maybe even IT had managed to get him sandwiched in a shallow, square hole in an unknown wall, just barely hidden from sight, let alone the new light that appeared at the same time as the voice.

In fact, the voice came just around the corner he apparently was hiding by. "It... has been... TWO DAYS, GWARMI-BAIT! We don't have an' food, and I'm 'UNGRY! Why in da Great Heap are we STILL chasing this bastard down?!"

The human immediately stopped, just about to tear down when the unfortunately familiar voice rang right by his ear. Unable to suck in even a breath, the human only opened his eyes fast enough he could've sworn he pulled something in his face. Holy fuck!

He desperately wanted to poke his head around the corner, its edge now illuminated by two other bouncing lights that came running up to the voice. Instead, he chose life and kept himself inside the little hole that he was apparently in. Even without 'assistance,' his breath would've caught in his throat hearing the unpleasant drawls once more. Though I wouldn't have been able to stop in time...

Gritting his teeth in anger, the human instead just put his hands gently onto his neck, starting to piece things together. Oh, God, damn it. You SOMEHOW fucking heard them, didn't you? Bastard... Putting aside his combined emotions of anger, fear and rage against the thing that was still suffocating him, he instead put his full care into maintaining his illusion. Listening in, he eavesdropped into the harsh, unfriendly banter between the ugly rats.

The other two finally caught up, heaving and on their knees. The main one, the one literally inches away from finding the human, turned around with a displeased snarl to the one who spoke. "Are you kidding me? That little shit killed some of us AND Big Boss, and you want to RUN AGAIN? Mother was right in not feeding you as much as the rest of us!"

Typical to this dysfunctional family, they were about to break into another fight if the growing growls of aggression were anything to go by. But the small coughs of the most little one, the one responsible for uppercutting and taunting him not so long ago, snapped them out of their feral circling of one another. "W-W-Wait, wait... Big Boss is dead?"

The human winced at that, feeling SLIGHTLY pitiful when he heard that whimper in the midget's voice, learning that their leader was most likely dead. It wasn't my fault...

But hearing that, the hungry rat seemed to turn around, breaking up before anything could escalate. "No shit, you midget! Those two drops down an' only one comes up!? Use ya fuckin' brain! Now, where were we..?" A quick slash of air was heard, and a bothered groan from the two closest to him meant that one probably and stupidly raised his hand in question. "Wait! Big Boss is DEAD?! I didn't know that!"

The one hellbent on finding the human shuffled on his feet, letting out a disappointed sigh. "Yea, we have made it CLEAR: Big Boss is NO FUCKING MORE! Now can ya's all just shut up for a second and let us-"

"Wait!"

The human did want to snicker at the growing frustration in the two that wanted to duel, but of course, his throat was not of his own anymore, so he just continued to hold his breath. "What FUCKIN' NOW?!"

From the way he sounded, another one of the less recognizable two raised his hand. "If Big Boss is dead... who's da boss now?"

The four rats went silent, the weight of the question obviously striking them all at once. The silence was nearly killing the human, and the lack of air was most definitely not helping. Thankfully, whatever it was that was inside of him now probably felt the same way, as it opened up his airway JUST enough that he could comfortably breathe again but still not speak. Thanks... I guess. Shaking off the growing anger being reminded of its presence, he instead just started to slightly lean in, the curiosity in him yearning to hear what came next.

Stuttering slightly, the hellbent one took a loud step forward and seemingly hit his barely-armoured chest with his confident fist. "I-it's gots to be me, of course! I'm the biggest one here, after all."

A rock was thrown in the air by the hungry one, barely missing the cocky one's head. The self-proclaimed leader of the group let out an angered growl that spoke volumes about his displeasure. "Are ya stupid or somethin'? I'M the smartest one here, if anything! If it weren't for ME activating all those old fackin' lights back there-- which I still don't remember seeing when we chased him through that old ass facilaity back there-- we would be LOST right now!"

The hellbent one stomped his foot hard enough to shock the others into silence, obviously growing angrier the longer they stood still, something the human could agree on. "Oh, shut up about it! I'm Big Boss, and that's THAT! Big Boss should be someone who actually has guts, not you little bitches. So dat means what I say GOES! Now split up: the little bastard oughta be just around dis here corna'."

The human's breath would've got caught again as the hellbent one began to just put his hand around the corner when it stopped. His frustrated growl grew louder again at the same time the human's relief grew higher. The rat's hand slipped back to the side of its owner as he stomped away. "Well?! Get da fuck movin', boys!"

Holy fuck, that was a close one. Despite the human not really having much water left in his system, he still managed to be able to sweat profusely as the others muttered bitterly as the search began. Thankfully, because of having to go back and slap some sense into his kin, the hellbent one seemed to stay over there.

Sounds of walls being tapped and unknown objects being tossed open frustratedly, like they were tired of searching for as long as they had. The human felt the exact same way, though it was just his body that was tired as his mind was simply too stressed to comprehend what fatigue even meant. He carelessly wanted to poke his head out and look for a way of escape, but alas, no such opportunity presented itself. Every time he was about to, it was only due to the keen reflexes that he could duck back under wherever he was. Crap! I'm stuck like a damn mouse, and I ain't even the fucking rodent here!

Minutes felt like hours, and the human's blood was rushing at insane speeds like it was readying itself to bolt at the closest sign of being discovered. But just as the human thought that he was time had come, for the rats had been becoming closer and more aggressive with their searching, the voice that he was sure had belonged to the midget started chuckling. Everyone in the dark, cramped room had the same thought though only the self-appointed Big Boss spoke it aloud. "The fuck are you on about? Get back to searching! Da bastard is 'round here somewhere!"

Snorting slightly, the midget did get back to throwing the unknown objects he must've passed by in his 'sleep.' However, he did indulge in what he found so amusing. "Don't this seem familiar to you boys? The last time we searched like this was when we got hired to take out that family, yeah? I'm just excited for when we find the prick, is all."

The other three went silent and still, which did give the human some much-needed comfort. Though that brief respite from the stress of being unveiled was ruined, the group let out a sadistic guffaw as they remembered whatever they did all at once.

"Oooooh, yes! Shit, you've a good memory! Nyaahhaha! But- ehehe- even then, we didn't NEARLY have as much fun as those Unkes did, rememba? Fucking kid didn't stand a chance! What in the Great Heap was dat little shit thinkin', anyways, trying to fight that fuckin' giant? Nyahahahhaha!"

The concealed human couldn't help how his lips were starting to tense up as he tried keeping his cool, the implications beginning to feel the harsh breeze of the brewing emotional whirlwind inside him. They... Did they just forget about me? Man, that just confirms it: these idiots really are dumb. But what the fuck is a "Unke"? Despite wanting to take advantage of their sheer idiocy and barbaric nature and escape, he couldn't help but lean in to learn more about this race despite how the rather disgusting topic it was brought up in. You can't be serious that there are MORE like these fucks out there?

Sucking in a breath, his stomach nearly escaped his body when the one most determined to find him fell over, his head just in front of where he was crouched. The blood ran from the human's face, and he shut his eyes, preparing himself to bolt. Maybe I'll even stomp on your fucking face-! Wait...

Thankfully, in a moment of patience and self-restraint, he managed to overcome his instincts telling him to bolt. It seemed, due to the lack of light, the rat simply could not see him in the darkness. He... He can't see me. Holy fuck, but his breath certainly found me! Christ Almighty..! Regardless of the physical torture that was the rat's awful breath, his breath had all but stopped, and he was immensely grateful for the water droplets from above masking the sound of the forming pool of sweat below him.

The human heard a knee being slapped while the raucous laughter hit all new peaks. The human had to ignore the chills of disgust that kept coming up if he wanted to fully concentrate on satisfying his curiosity. Still, he was beginning to fail.

The midget spat a disgusting glob of... something before chuckling darkly. "Not as stupid as you were, Recumi. Remember dose fuckin'... Ah... Fuck, boys, what were dose weird bone collectors called again? The ones with the fucking manes and scaly skin and shi'? Bah, it don't matta much."

A gasp of embarrassment erupted from this Recumi's mouth, and not soon after, the sound of a blade being drawn was heard. That stopped all the laughter of everyone except the one who just spoke. "Not anotha' fuckin' word, prick! You promised me-!"

His laughter, full of debauchery and ridicule, sent a wave of something indistinguishable from anger and disgust down the human's spine as he continued to learn about the worlds around him. "Ah, but she took yours, ain't dat, right? Afta' you tried sneaking up on her while she was busy rumaging around in that boys stomach for whatever fucking reason! Didn't turn out so well for YOUS, now did it?!"

The two closest to the human spoke in a collective murmur of curiosity, shuffling away from the human and closer to the arguing trio. Despite the growing revulsion being the human's primary emotion, the human couldn't help but feel immense relief as the putrid breath of the 'leader' finally went away as he got up from his hysteria. He sunk down against the wall behind him. His breath was heavy yet quiet. Thank God...

The 'smart one' spoke, the warble in his voice clearly showing signs of preparing himself for some taunting. "What did ya do now, ya dumb fuck?" Before Recumi could defend himself, the midget just let out a squeaky, repugnant laugh at his brother's expense. "Dis dumb-gert thought he could take a fuckin'... Uum... Oh! Yea, a fucking YAKGRA!"

As soon as the midget remembered that species name, the other two let out a sound that the human REFUSED to call laughter: that racket held no joviality or happiness, just pure wickedness against their own kin. "A fucking Yakgra!? Fuck, and you want to be Big Boss! Not even a Unke would try getting with one of those fuckin' things!"

The 'strongest one' could barely breathe as he fell onto his rear. "How in da FUCK are you still alive?!"

The midget took this chance to claim the spotlight once more, the cacophony of horrible jeers over the embarrassed, pleading whimper of Recumi making the human sick to the bone. "Fucka just stood still, dat's how. The fuckin' Unsance WISH their slaves were as bitchy as he was! She, a fucking Yakgra, actually got BORED with him! HAHAHAHAHAHAH!"

Not soon after that, Recumi tried speaking, but what came out was a puff of disgrace, which only made the fiends 'laugh' harder. But amidst the final parts of their depraved laughter and horrifying recollections of the deeds the other, equally horrible races committed, the human saw hope... at least for himself.

He took in as deep of a breath as he possibly could've, considering the thing inside of him still saw fit to keep his throat shut-- which in a way the human was grateful for because if it wasn't for it... the human didn't know if he would've been able to resist scaring one of the putrid rats to death.

The human got onto his hands and knees as he started to crawl out of his little cubby. He didn't know how to explain it, but there WAS a part of him that wanted to stay and fight the brutes, fight for his own lost honour. But the human knew better than to act on those bizarre instincts. The memory of the weakest one, the midget, practically breaking his jaw was still clear in his mind. Those bastards are distracted! Holy crap, holy shit, go go go! This might be my chan-

CLICK.

The human looked to the right of himself, where his right palm was grabbing the edge of the hole he was in to drag himself out. "Hmm?" Feeling around, he felt nothing at first, but after a chance encounter with one of his fingers, he soon felt a small indent in the wall. What the?

Rubbing over it again, it took him but a second to realize what it was. A button? A button. Oh, what the hell did I just do? Shit, it certainly can't be good, whatever the hell I just did. Buttons NEVER lead to anything good. I'm fucking leaving. With that thought, he was just about to leave the hole when his knee scraped over a small line on the floor below him. Spinning in a circle, he realized that the line went around him and made a square shape. Unlike most of everything else, this line was not of natural occurrence: it was simply far too straight to be natural. And is that... ticking? So that button did do something!

When he paused to put his head to the floor after hearing a ticking sound, he couldn't resist putting his ear to the floor and knocking, attempting to hear if there was anything on the other side. And when he heard nothing but a hollow echo below him... He had already sealed his Fate. Not even a moment after he put the button, the ticking and the lines around him made sense. I'm about to drop... aren't I?

...

"Shi-!" Attempting a mad dash forward, all he could do was push off the wall behind him and jump face-first into the other. He just fell down, the shock and confusion of the sudden drop taking him way off guard. Why do I keep fucking FALLING on this damn planet?!

Silent as a ghost, there he fell deep and deeper into the hole, plunging him back into the darkness. The hole was JUST large enough for him to straighten himself into a pencil dive of sorts, though the sensation of his free fall combining with the fear of not knowing when or where the ground was made his legs quiver in fear.

And the very last thing he heard before the trap door shut close was the cruel laughter. And as he fell and the revolting sounds echoed off the surprisingly straight walls around him, the human couldn't help but feel that it was as if existence itself had just made him its newest joke.

And the last words of the rats didn't help that. "Did y'all hear somethin'?"

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"Gaah! Ugh! Hrnf. Uck! GraaaaaAAA-UUF!"

No matter how expertly made the trapdoor he just fell down was designed, the same could not be said for the vertical tunnel he was falling down. Dull and pointy rocks alike jabbed into the grunting human. Pain erupted in various spots as his descent was slowed by creations of natural erosion. Every time he tried grabbing onto the walls, his fingers could do nothing but grow raw as they futile attempted to grab onto the slippery wall. Ah, come ON! "Buuuguyeeeeaaaah!"

The wind ran past his ears in one particular portion of the dark tunnel where it was a straight fall and not like the pseudo-ramp. "God, damn iiiiit!" But just when he was about to gain back his terminal velocity, he unexpectedly reached his destination: a random and surprisingly smooth ramp caught him. Thankfully landing on his broad shoulders first, he only continued to grunt and moan in slight agony the longer he uncontrollably rolled down. "Arghahaurn! BuddedededdeeGAH!"

Due to the lack of light and constantly blacking in-and-out, the human genuinely had no idea how long his time on this planet had been, let alone being chased and falling down. The only time he really knew was when he was back on the surface, and that was taken away from him far too soon. Thankfully, time was not a slave to the misery of this planet like he was. For it still went on its relentless march forward, dragging the human along without his permission.

And because of that, his descent could not and would not forever. And that time couldn't soon enough. Without warning, the slope gave way to one last minor drop. The human didn't even know he had stopped spinning until what FELT like an hour passed by, thanks to the overwhelming feeling of lightheadedness. It was only by a masterstroke of luck that he was able to roll onto his hands and knees, his head spinning faster than his body was just a moment ago. "Hooooooh, ma Goooood!"

Somehow, despite being completely empty, his stomach finally saw fit to relieve itself on the small number of contents it still had left, mostly being water. "HOROULULU." Upchucking it all, somehow even the water in his stomach felt dry, leaving his mouth. The feeling of nausea was so familiar to him that he didn't even register the sensation anymore. I'm just glad it's pitch-fucking-black. Now I can't tell just how bad the dizziness actually is.

There was something different about this wave of nausea, however. Unlike the other times where the adrenaline was coursing through his veins, he didn't feel any relief. None whatsoever. In fact, it seemed like he had now swallowed a swarm of hornets; his own stomach felt like it was eating away at himself.

Needless to say, he did not feel the least bit ashamed when he let out a moan of despair and slow pain. Oh, God... It-it fucking hurts. W-Woah! To add insult to his numerous injuries, it wasn't even his stomach that was betraying him now. Without warning, his arms and legs, tired from their harsh treatment and extreme wear-and-tear, gave out and nearly dropped him into the dry pile below him. "F-Fuck!"

Using the last vestiges of his rapidly dwindling strength, the drained human threw himself as far away from the last remains of nourishment he possibly had left. He laid bare to the possibly hostile void around him, though, for the first time, he heard not a single noise, not even the distant sound of a raindrop.

It seemed, for the very first time since he woke up from that damnable mist at the back of his mind... he was completely alone. And that spiked just a little hope if it meant his recent companion had finally left. Oh. Wait. Should probably fucking check or some dumb shit. "Hrrn..." Mustering all his strength, he flopped his hand atop his ribs once more.

Still there, quite unlike any trace of hope he had left. Oh, for fucks sake. Oh, today has not been my DAY, MAN! His throat was extremely parched, and his stomach did not help the general state of his affairs. "Fffff-fuck!"

He attempted to use momentum for sitting up, just if there was something just EXTREMELY quiet around him, but alas, not even his core worked. It was like his body was simply beginning to give up, the will and absolute power it demonstrated not too long ago diminishing faster than the human could keep up with. Come on, body! Stay... with me...

But in a brief lapse of weakness, the human faltered. And that was all it took for his straining to cease. Why should it, though? Oh, God... Falling right onto his back, he only felt a faint stirring within his bosom, almost like he had somehow surprised the entity in him before it went silent once more. His body was demanding air, and yet no matter how hard he tried, it was like his wearied body was subconsciously forcing itself to take small intakes like it was forcing itself to go back to the one place that felt safe anymore: the void from whence he came.

Groaning in despair, mostly from the strain the recent events have put on his mind and partly from the distress signals his body was emitting, he writhed slowly on the cold, bumpy ground below as he felt the energy to do even that was waning. His body slowly affected his mind, effectively putting him in a state of mad delirium, anything to keep him awake for just a moment longer. Oh, this is too much, man! It's just too FUCKING MUCH! "Gargh." Flopping helplessly, he couldn't even scream anymore: just tiredly gargle as his breaths became more and more shallow.

His eyes rolled back as he continued the futile fight against the void both around him... and the growing one inside of him: the void of hopelessness. It's just been the same day thing OVER and OVER again: fight, lose, run, repeat! The fucking rats, the stairs, and just when I think I'm free, I just get SENT straight fucking back! I can't fucking DO this anymore.

The words of the vile rat-men flashed through his mind. Fucking rats, Unkes, these Unsance folk and... Yakgra? Different names, different people, and yet all the DAMN same: fucking horrible from the sounds of it. Do I... He hesitated for a second, like something in him was trying not to think what he wanted to think; even the thing inside of writhed uncomfortably, like it could understand his upcoming and present woe.

But then the dams broke down. Just when the human thought the weary body didn't have any more reserves left, tears began to trickle down the sides of the filthy cheeks, the human's overworked mind finally unable to maintain its composure. Do I even want to live? Eve-even if I got off this planet somehow, it-it would just be the same thing again and again! I-I-I-I can't do this every day, can I?! That's even if I can get off this planet in the first place! If I show myself, I'll die to those fucking animals; if I don't, then they'll probably leave me here! I hate them! I hate, hate those fucking bastards! Damn it, damn it, damn it!

He wanted to bring his knees to his side, managing to bring himself onto his shoulders, but instead, his limbs flopped aimlessly. He felt positively lost in his own resentment and fear in a strange galaxy that hasn't shown a single sign of compassion without it being turned around on him almost immediately. I... I just can't do it anymore... The creature inside of him seemed to be tossing and turning in its own way, almost like it was a fretting mother pacing back and forth.

The human moaned uncomfortably at the sensation, his incoming 'nap' being continuously interrupted every time a tendon or bone was forced to move around the alien's mass. The human would've tiredly batted away if it weren't for the fact he would have to hit his own body to do so. Oh, would you fucking stop already?

But it would not stop; in fact, it actually jolted like it suddenly remembered something. What did I just SAAA-HEEEY! "Oooow..." He felt it: a quick stabbing sensation, though this time it wasn't directed at the inside of his skull but rather OUTSIDE of his body. What in the hell are you doing now? Please... Just stop. Eat me, fucking mind control me; I don't care what the hell you do.

It did not do any of those. The human found it odd how quickly he started getting used to his body hosting something, though he certainly didn't like how it just made itself at home. Just then, the silence was ruined by a particularly repulsive sound.

Tentacles and tendrils somehow left his back through entrances and exits that he was lucky he wasn't able to see. He felt them continue to push out and out until they went taught, almost like they were able to grab something in the dark. Like it... remembers where we are-HEY! Without warning, he felt himself being pulled on the ground towards... somewhere. It pulled on him fast, and his limp body felt like a ghost was pulling on him.

It took a few minutes-- it was obvious that whatever it was inside him did not regularly work out-- for him to reach their destination. Still, once they did, it shook after doing so, just like how someone's hands would shake after a particularly heavy set of weights. He would've made a joke about himself being too heavy if it weren't for the fact that he still felt defeated: moved-- both literally and symbolically-- but defeated.

What are you doing? Inquisitive as to the purpose of this was, the human felt his despair lift its veil. But when that happened, it was surprising just how vulnerable he felt at that time. Even if it was just him and the worm now, even the slightest chance that he might be taken off guard again was a chance he could not take. Not again...

Hoisting him up just slightly, the tentacles seemed to be pulling upward for something. It seemed to be struggling, considering the weak creature had to lift up his entire back to get wherever it wanted, but the human was beyond caring. There was even a small part of him that liked making the alien work for it. But of course, he was also too tired to care to do that, so he just continued to hang in that perfect balance of apathy.

But as determined as he was, the worm pushed through the struggle, and when it did, the human heard another click: quiet but compared to the straining, the wet sound produced by the tentacles, easily the loudest sound within the confines of the black room they were stuck in. What no-OOW!

Searing lights erupted from the darkness. Out of nowhere, the dreadful black was expelled from existence and, with it, unwanted transparency. The stinging rays hurt the human's eyes so much that he found an unknown strength within himself to exclaim and cover his eyes, though his body and voice were still weak. "ARGH! Wh-What the hell?!"

As he felt the taunt tendrils slacken and retreat back into his body, falling from wherever they were reaching up to, his instincts forced his eyes open. Through the holes in his fingers, he saw the ground below him being brightened up. Though that wasn't what took him off guard the most. No, indeed. What took him off guard the most... was the puddle right next to him. I...

I look pathetic.

Slowly taking off his hands from his face, the human saw only half of his face as he remained on his side. But for the first time since he woke up, his face was revealed. And what he saw didn't even feel like it belonged to himself. And yet... it is...

Wet grains of alien sand and chunks of food he fell into were scattered along his face, all held together as they stuck to the dried blood strewn all over his face from the various injuries of past and present. His strangely long hair, tangled and mixed in with so much of the various bodily fluids that his body let loose, meant that he couldn't even tell what its natural colour was. The blood caked over his face was like a thick layer of make-up hiding away almost all his face's natural features.

But there was one thing that he could see; one thing spared the torment of abuse and disgusting filth.

It was his eye: small dark blue orbs that had lines of red connecting to his cornea. His slanted sockets were practically wrinkled close from both pain and the mental distress, the magnitude and emotion he still showed taking him off guard. Since only half of his face was visible from where he laid, as well as the size of the puddle itself, he was only given half of a picture. But from the wrinkles on his face and his overall appearance, he found it nearly impossible to believe that this filthy animal, this absolute mess of a person... was him. What he saw wasn't any illusion: it simply was an unabashedly, no-holds-barred, honest to God mirror to what he was and looked like.

But overall, he just looked like a scared, hurt human being. The human reached out with trembling fingers, going to touch the surface of the water. H-hey, you... It was sort of therapeutic... in a way. This is the first face I've seen... who hasn't tried to kill me...

As his fingers gently rippled the water, the speed at which his face curled up due to the sudden wave of emotion he felt was exponential. Almost like he was nudged onto his knees and forearms, he found himself staring straight down into the puddle as he picked up the speed. Soon, the comforting visage of someone who looked as equally scared as he was was distorted into an almost nightmarish version of himself with how the waves churred all the disgusting features on his face into one blob. No tears left his eyes but yet he still sobbed, unable to help himself as he took one weak fist and weakly punched the puddle below him. "Damn..."

He punched it a few more times, the motion feeling oddly comforting. But what felt even more refreshing was the fact that some large splashes from the puddle hit his face. Ah! Ah... The soothing sensation took him off guard at first, but as he kept hitting the puddle over and over-- whether it was himself or his body that made him do so, it wasn't known--, he began to lean into each incoming wave.

It wasn't much-- barely enough to shed the chunks of puked-up food from his face, in fact-- but the tranquillity that came with such a quiet, warm moment was something he didn't know he desperately needed. Soon, the puddle that was once there was all but gone as he 'washed' his face clean with the weak, pitiful strikes.

It didn't ease him as much as he would've liked as the thick stains of the combined sweat and blood still infested his face. But the fact that when he looked into the remnants of the puddle and saw that his face was slightly more appealing to look at than before was just enough for him to grin satisfactorily.

But no soon after, a forlorn gaze appeared once the serenity of the moment passed by. The human sighed wistfully as his hair hung down his face, too tired about how they slightly tickled his nose with their tangled length. What happens now?

sssSZZZzzTTTCHHHHH...

Despite his body still protesting, the combination of the water and the mysterious blinding lights and the sound that sounded like distant static was all that he needed to wake him from his despair-riddled stupor. And as he escaped that, his natural curiosity came back, leading him to start looking up. What... is that?

"I... neHHHZSSCCCTTCCCHHHH... Fou-ZZZsccTCHHH!"

His senses slowly started to come back around as the ominous static feeling put him on edge. He knew full well that if it was some demon or monster of the dark that had come for him, he wouldn't be able to survive for a second. But then that foolhardy desire to stand, to fight, came back once more, which was one of the most perplexing things for the human at the moment. Guess I shouldn't try ignoring it. Let's get on UP! Struggling to his knees, nearly falling face down from the endeavour, he kept an ear open to listen to the static that seemed to be stabilizing itself.

"I... FrSTTCHHHZZ... have fou-SSTTTTZZXXCHHH! Hahaha!"

The voice had an echo that made it sound like it was coming down an aisle somewhere. Kind of hard to concenTRATE! "Bah!" With one last measure, the human finally stood back on his two legs, barely balancing. It didn't help that, for whatever reason, the alien found cause to celebrate to do so, moving around as rambunctiously inside of him as it was. His shudders of uneasiness seemed to stop it, but even then, he could still feel its energy. Gah, I'll never get used to this. The moment I get you out, the better...

He looked around the admittedly boring grey room and winced, accidentally staring right into a rectangular light hung from some decaying wires. Surprisingly, despite the over battered appearance of it, it did not flicker even once. This doesn't... FEEL alien to me. What is this place?

His eyes arched when the answer to that came not soon after. "The Auditorium of the-TZZZTCHHHZZ! Even the Ancients only TALKED about this place!" Well, HE sounds excited. The eager, perky voice continued to echo as it went on a celebratory tangent by itself. Turning around, he gulped in suspense when he saw that the boring, square room he was in was the only place that was lit up. As he was staring at the wall before, he neglected to think of the possibility that only his space was lit up. Still around him was the void that was there before, threatening and trying to reach back and claim him. Well, that's fucked. I think I'll just... stay right-HERE, WOAH!

The human wanted to sit down, but before he could react, the thing around his heart pushed forward, nearly knocking him down. Feeling it bounce into his ribcage forward, he was just about to fall out of the stinging embrace of the lights above him when suddenly, multiple lights turned on above him. "Asshole! What are... you... doing?" Swinging his arms a few times to stabilize, when he got back up and before he could lay into the alien in him, his voice trailed off.

There was a reason why the little patch of life was so bland. He wasn't in a small room but rather a small portion of what seemed to be a giant hall. A cascade of lights erupted in the dark and, with it, a reveal that would reveal where he had to go.

For within the chain reaction of revelations, not only was the sheer magnitude of the hall around him revealed... but a singular hallway at the end of the hall. Gulping down a spitball that had somehow formed, the human still hesitated. I... can't go down there. What if-what if there-?! The alien knocked him forward again, though this time he was better prepared. No matter how hard he tried to convince himself otherwise... his very soul wanted... needed to go down that way: it was like something down there... was calling to him.

Looking down at his wobbly legs and back to the hallway, he was at a standstill with himself.

That was until he heard a clear message unhindered by static.

"This place..! It holds... so much! The history of the Gate Makers, these... TRANSCENDENTS! It's all here! But..."

The shuddering in the voice's tone was not caused by horror or apprehension but the very spirit of discovery. "But I don't know what these 'humans' have to do with ANY of them! I've... never even heard of these creatures in ANY of the other texts, and yet..!"

A steadfast, determined breath of air was all the dumbfounded human heard, and he couldn't help but mimic it with his own. "I will not REST until I decode what these are! If the Transcendents had ANY reason to write and dedicate SO MUCH about these 'humans', then I WILL know what it is!"

"End of Log 1, Day 1."

The human stared straight ahead with wide eyes, feeling something he just swore to never feel again. Hope... No tears pricked his eyes, and yet he couldn't keep a straight posture anymore, the various emotions of disbelief, confusion, and most importantly, HOPE forcing him to hunch over to get back his breath.

Yet again, the alien inside nudged him forward, though this time, he felt not a trace of anger. Instead, he only looked down at his chest in wonder. "Why do you care so much? Are you..?"

There was no answer. Indeed, it was like it was giving the human an ultimatum with its silence. The human knew that the only way to get those answers... was by pressing forward. And for just a moment, as he stood back up, chest out and lips tight in overwhelming determination once again, he saw a single faint white rune from before-- from when he broke free from the confines and punched the door down-- begin to float towards the door.

I... can't...

I...

No.

Not yet!

I... can't stop now!

I have to find out... what lies ahead!

If only...

If only one more time!

Taking in one more deep breath, he stepped forward, the sound of his bare, raw foot echoing clearly over the din of the untold hundreds of lights above him. And through the waves of agony, through the weight of hopelessness and desperation, the human continued to go forward...

Even if he didn't really know why.