I have learned somewhere that your brain constantly thinks about survival, even when it seems pointless.

Turns out, that’s true.

My mind kept spinning out paranoid theories, even as I tried to preserve my energy and not dwell on worst-case scenarios.

‘It’s all because of Spooky!’

It wasn't just the endless trudging…

There was something else that made a room in my mind.

‘If only Spooky hadn't mentioned it! Damn it!’

Spooky.

The voice in my head.

The ‘leftover’ of the dead kid whose body I was hijacking.

It claimed ‘we’ were left behind to die.

Left by whom?—The people whose footprints I was following.

Talk about scary…

If it hadn't said that, I might have had some peace of mind.

But now?

Now I couldn't help but wonder:

What if those who abandoned the kid were also responsible for his missing right eye?

My missing right eye now…I guess.

If that was true for some bullshit reason…Well, I don't know what I would do.

Then again, if I didn't follow these footprints and ended up as a frozen corpse in the middle of nowhere…

Shiver!

‘Let’s not think about that...’

Still, paranoid as I was, I felt somewhat confident that ‘they’ weren't behind the missing eye.

Why not?

Because Spooky, for all its non-stop rambling, had never once mentioned anything about losing an eye.

Like I said, it rambles a lot, and it does it continuously.

Yet, Spooky had never said something like “They took my eye”.

Even now, it was muttering away, clearly pissed off about something.

Its seemingly angry voice was directed at something.

Of course, I couldn't make out the words - thank god for makeshift earplugs - but I could tell Spooky was in a foul mood.

Its voice was loud enough to penetrate my DIY sound barriers.

Actually…

I had some idea of what it must be saying, the same stuff that it spouted when I first heard its voice.

Things like “They left us to rot”, “Did we not matter”, “Were we so much of a burden?” “Selfish pricks” and whatnot.

* * *

Huuhhh….

“....such unbearable cold.’

I took a deep sigh.

And halted in my steps.

Even more time had passed since then, yet there was no end to these damned tracks.

Well, I could understand that I had a turtle pace.

Nonetheless, I could confidently say that I have traveled a long way.

Shouldn't there be something by this point?

Mm…

Speaking of which…

‘Why hasn't the sun risen yet?’

The thought made me confused. It felt like fucking days had passed, trudging through this endless white hell.

But that couldn't be right, could it?

Of course not.

After all, even the sun hasn't shown its face yet.

‘What’s happening…?’

Time was slippery here, playing tricks on my fucked-up mind.

Even if not days of trudging, it should be well over half-a-day’s.

Definitely more than 12 hours.

But with that logic…

Shouldn't there be some hint of dawn by now?

‘Fuck if I know in this messed-up place. ‘

Maybe a day here lasts longer.

Or just the daylight lasts shorter than nightlight.

Or maybe… Just maybe…

‘What if there is no sun on this planet?'

The thought was depressing.

Too depressing.

I looked up, to divert my attention, though, in the back of my mind, I kept hoping to see something, anything different.

But no.

Still no sun in sight.

And that freakish green moon?

Still hanging in the sky like some cosmic middle finger, glowing with the same persistent 'fuck you' energy it had since I first laid my remaining eye on it.

‘Yeah… it’s just gonna rise late.’

I said in a self-hypnotizing tone.

It was definitely needed.

I was surrounded with too many questions.

I didn't want another one adding to my “Shit I don't know” list..

Aauhmm…

I stretched my body a bit.

Relaxing my muscles.

While doing so, I involuntarily looked at the sky.

Logic dictated that there would have been no change in such a short time, but hope knows no logic.

Just like a mischievous child.

‘Still nothing.’

Strangely enough… I found myself disappointed.

Maybe I really wanted to see the sun.

A bit too much.

I mean yeah… the soothing rays of the sun in my mind felt like they would reinvigorate my spirit.

...Or at least defrost my sorry ass.

No?

‘Ah wha—’

"..!?"

Just when I thought nothing would change, something did.

A light was rising on the horizon… or so I thought.

For a split second, hope flared up in my chest, but it dwindled… as soon as I saw a streak of light cutting across the sky.

‘The hell?’

It was beautiful, I will give it that.

Like a shooting star—if shooting stars decided to put on a show in broad daylight. Or whatever that passed for daylight in this messed-up world.

“...!”

It was a brilliant slash of brown-gray against the eerie glow of that persistent moon. It moved with a grace that seemed almost deliberate - too slow for a meteor - too fast for a comet.

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‘Whoah!’

As it arched overhead, I could see it wasn't just a formless blob of light. There was a structure to it, geometric patterns that shifted and morphed as it passed.

Swaa—

Together, with the sickly green light from the moon, made everything look like a scene from a B-grade alien invasion movie.

And then, out of nowhere, I heard Spooky’s excited ranting, it was hard to understand it all as Spooky usually said a lot, added the muffling of the earplugs—Still, I caught on a word it said, something that made my eyes quiver:

‘Moon Portal?”

I was sure it said something like that.

‘What does that mean, though?’

Moon Portal as in—gateway between moons? Some kind of interdimensional bullshit? Or just a fancy name for a phenomenon I had never seen before?

My Earth Knowledge was coming up short on this one.

Well… it came short in almost everything that involved this place.

Swaa—

The longer I stared at it, the more it seemed to defy logic. It wasn't just falling; it was… pulsing? Shifting? Like it couldn't decide whether to be solid or liquid or something in between.

‘Is this thing messing with gravity?’

I wondered, suddenly feeling lighter on my feet. Or maybe that was just the exhaustion talking.

Again, it was hard to tell in this nightmare-like place.

The other moons—yeah, all eleven of the bastards, plus that green monstrosity—now, they all dimmed in comparison to this new celestial freakshow.

I was curious… and anxious.

I couldn't shake the feeling that this wasn't some random space phenomenon.

So, in my attempt to know more, I did something slightly bold…

I removed the torn clothing that I had long since stuffed in my ears, to listen to what Spooky had to say.

[MEANIE! MEANIE! MEANIE!]

‘Jesus fucking Christ!’

As soon as I took off my makeshift earplugs, I heard it screaming. I was so shocked that I remembered a god I didn't pray to.

[YOU! YOU! YOU!]

Spooky was having a meltdown. Maybe, it was smart enough to catch on by this point about what happened.

‘Alright, alright! I’m sorry, okay?’

I felt a twinge of guilt. Maybe because deep down, I knew Spooky was all that was left of the kid whose body I was hijacking.

‘Hey, Spooky? You know what that shiny thing in the sky is?’

[Big Bad! Big Bad! Bi-! Huh?! Shiny thing? Oh! Oh! So pretty! Right! Right!]

As if I was successful at diverting its attention, Spooky started giggling, perhaps it also watched the Shooting star—Moon portal—or whatever it was…

….falling from the sky. Yup, it still was falling.

It almost lights up the surroundings as if it was day.

That's why I was so shocked.

[Moon portal! Moon portal! Pretty Portal!]

Spooky was in awe… or at least it sounded like that.

‘Yeah, you know what that is?’

[We don't know what a moon portal is?]

‘Apparently not.’

[Um! Moon portal can only be a moon portal!]

‘Aha… a moon portal can only be a moon portal.’

[Right! Right! Now we know! Now we know!]

It was a waste of time. I should have known.

[But… but… what does it do? Where does it go?]

‘If I knew that, we wouldn’t be having this conversation, would we?’

[Oh… Is it dangerous? Should we be scared?]

I snorted.

‘Shouldn’t I be asking that?’

I rolled my good eye, or at least I tried to.

‘And scared? Of a light in the sky? We have got plenty of real things to be scared of down here on the ground, no?’

[Like what? Like what?]

‘The fuc—You know what? Never mind. Let's just focus on not freezing to death, okay?’

[Okay! No freezing! Stay warm! Warm like the pretty light!]

I sighed.

Talking to Spooky was like trying to teach quantum physics to a goldfish.

Tch…

It wasn't even that important. That moon portal… or whatever, shouldn't be my concern.

And if it will be, it should be for the Future Me. It had nothing to do with the Present Me.

‘Future me will see through it…’

A rule I live by.

[Moon portal! Pretty Portal! La~ la~ la~]

I stuffed my ears back again with the torn clothing.

‘Finally peaceful…’

With that thought, I continued.

I still have a long way… I moved with that mindset.

…

..

.

‘Holy shit! I almost missed it!’

I was so lost in my own angsty inner monologue that I nearly walked past the faint orange glow in the distance.

FYI…It had been another hour or so of trudging…or at least it felt that long.

I blinked my one good eye, thinking I was hallucinating.

But no, it was real. And the footprints I had been following led straight to it.

‘So, I would have found myself here even if I had missed that orange glow.’

I didn't know why but that felt reassuring.

Really reassuring.

Hope surged in my chest.

‘I finally got somewhere….’

As I got closer, I could make out a small campfire. An awful lot of people surrounded it. Barely even letting the light escape.

‘Ah… scary business.’

To me, it looked like something out of a budget horror film about cults.

‘Please don't be cannibals. Please don't be cannibals.’

I prayed in my mind to any deity that might be listening and was interested in my prayers.

I didn't know how much longer I could last out here on my own.

‘Probably not much.’

I had no food. And the vegetation was too… hard to come by, and too scary for me to try.

‘Everything looked poisonous….’

I gulped as a few images flashed in my mind.

Even while knowing that, my steps paused at the edge of the firelight, suddenly very aware of how I must look. One eyed, dressed in rags, probably smelling like death warmed over.

But hey, I practically looked no less than a beggar, and beggars can't be choosers…

‘Okay. You can do this. Just… don't look too threatening. Or too pathetic. Is there a middle ground? Threateningly pathetic? Pathetically threatening?’

Fuck if I know.

My mind was fumbling.

Taking a deep breath that felt like inhaling liquid nitrogen. I steeled myself.

My legs trembled—partly from cold—partly from fear—and maybe a little from the sheer absurdity of it all.

Just as I was about to step forward, a muffled sound cut through the silence.

Even through the makeshift earplugs, I could make out the gruff voice that sounded surprised.

It said something that sounded like—“Another one?”

I froze, my foot hovering mid-step.

How the hell had they spotted me already?

Badump! Badump!

My heart, which I thought had been thoroughly frozen, suddenly decided to make up for the lost time by hammering against my ribcage.

Still, I tried to calm my nerves, and took out the makeshift earplugs with my fumbling, frozen fingers. I had forgotten to take it out before.

It was a rookie mistake.

‘Shit! Why are there so many handicaps?’

I felt frustrated. As if being stuck in a kid's body with one eye and a constantly chattering ghost wasn't enough, now I had to deal with this circus too.

Crackle! Crackle!

Murmur! Murmur!

The sudden rush of sound was like a slap to the face. The crackling of fires, the murmur of voices - it all hit me at once, making me slightly stagger.

The world suddenly seemed too loud, too real.

Of course, the reason I staggered was partly because of Spooky, that little shit was shouting in my mind.

[LOOK! LOOK! PEOPLE! SCARY PEOPLE! BUT PEOPLE!]

‘Shut up, you little shit. I am trying to concentrate.’

Ignoring Spooky, I refocused.

From my vantage point, I could make out a burly dude rising from the fire. The flames cast dancing shadows making him look even more menacing.

He gripped an axe in one hand like he was auditioning for a lumberjack calendar.

While, his other hand rested on a nasty-looking knife sheathed on his belt.

Gulp…

‘Fuck!’

I was scared.

Like really.

The burly dude looked like he gargles with barbed wire and flosses with cheese graters.

Ok. I know. I was judging the book by its cover. But now was the TIME to judge the book by its cover.

“Hey, you!”

The murmurs died at his intervention. His voice boomed across the clearing.

“Yeah, you in the shadows. Identity yourself.”

He sounded more annoyed than surprised.

His voice definitely contained an undertone of “Oh great, more bullshit to deal with.”

Still, now I could hear what he was saying clearly.

Spooky was noisy, sure, but it was bearable compared to this guy’s bark.

Though, he too went silent after that.

Maybe, he waited for an answer.

Crackle! Crackle!

Now, only the crackling fires could be heard. As now, both the burly dude, and others surrounding him were silent.

Actually, the silence from others was almost as intimidating as the man with the axe.

At that moment, I definitely felt like I became the main attraction at the world’s most fucked-up circus.

Rightfully so.

Every eye was turned to my shadowy figure, a collection of gazes that ranged from curious to hostile to ‘What the hell is that thing?’

I could almost feel their stares like physical touches, probing, questioning.

“...”

“...”

The silence was loud.

Definitely was.

And I stood there, quaking and probably looking like a half-frozen sewer rat doing an impression of a statue.

A very, very bad impression.

“Your silence makes me doubt if you are just another straggler.”

“...!”

“I will give you a chance. State your business!”

The burly dude growled.

His hand tightened on the axe.

He clearly ran out of patience.

“Still not talking? Then, we can only assume you are hostile.”

“...!”

Ah, no.

What?

Hostile? This little ME?

Hell no!

But… the tension in his voice made it clear - he wasn't joking. He was seconds away from rushing me if I didn't answer.

Ah, um…

I opened my mouth to answer, then remembered one tiny, crucial detail—something I forgot to mention in my little internal monologue of misery.

This body I was hijacking—couldn’t talk.

Gulp…

Yup, the kid had been mute. Because of course he was. Why make things easy?

‘Shit! Why am I so nerfed! Really!’

This was going to be… troublesome.

Ah, no.

Life-defining.