*Thud...* “Crush-crackle...”
*Thump.*
*Thump-thump.*
「Whe...re...am...I...??」
My eyes fluttered open, blurring into the dim surroundings. My ears latched onto the heavy, rhythmic crunch of footsteps—something massive, grinding rocks to dust beneath its weight.
「Ouou...」
A shiver coursed through me. My body was ice-cold, pain radiating from every nerve. Blood pooled in my mouth, bitter and metallic, dripping past my lips. My nose was blocked, making each breath a struggle.
The ground swayed unnaturally before my hazy sight, and I realized... I wasn’t on it.
I was hanging, suspended. My captor—a monstrous beast—held me clamped between its teeth. Each step it took jolted my broken body. With a casual flick of its head, it hurled me like trash, sending me crashing onto the cold stone beside its earlier prey—a carcass mangled beyond recognition.
It must have thought me dead, a fresh meal for later.
The beast lunged at the lifeless form, teeth ripping and tearing flesh with savage hunger, swallowing chunks whole. The wet, guttural sounds of feeding filled the cave, echoing in grotesque harmony.
My heart pounded as I lay there, paralyzed with dread. My fate was clear. I’d be next, devoured in a single bite.
Panic consumed me. Fear boiled into desperation.
「I... I don’t want to die yet...」
『I %@on’t wa&* to d@* ye#...』
A strange, distorted voice echoed in my head, unintelligible yet sharp as a blade. Flashes of blurred, alien images seared my mind, too fast to comprehend.
Then, in my despair, *something shifted.*
The air froze. The world dulled into silence. My heartbeat surged, hammering in my ears.
Colors fractured. The cave, the beast, even the very rocks dissolved into shimmering particles, scattering like a kaleidoscope of rainbows. I could see everything—every atom, every grain of sand—vibrating and suspended in this surreal stillness.
Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
Then, from beyond the veil of this distorted reality, a voice.
A faint, wordless call pulled my gaze to the corpse being devoured. A white, translucent cloud hovered over it, a strange ethereal glow radiating outward.
It was *alive.* It was *calling me.*
Hope ignited like a flame in my chest. My senses screamed at me—*that’s the key to survival.* If I could reach it, I could live.
I wasn’t ready to die. Not yet.
I clawed at the ground, dragging my dying body with the last remnants of my strength. Blood trailed behind me, painting a grim path across the cold stone.
Each agonizing pull felt eternal, but I was close—so close.
The slight scrape of my movement must have caught its attention. The beast, feasting moments ago, froze. Slowly, its massive head turned toward me, nostrils flaring.
It let out an ear-splitting roar, a sound of pure fury. It had realized its prey still clung to life—and worse, was reaching for *its* prize.
The cave trembled as it leapt toward me, its colossal form a shadow of death descending.
「I... have to move....」
Desperation surged through me. Summoning every ounce of strength left in my broken body, I lunged forward. Just one more step. Just... one...
*SWISSHHH... CRUSHHH—CRUMBLE!*
A blinding pain erupted through me as its scaled tail whipped around, striking like a hammer of stone. I was pinned to the ground, my body trapped under its crushing weight.
The world blurred again, but I couldn’t let go—not yet. The glowing cloud was right there,
[just beyond my reach.]
…………
*CLICK... CLACK...*
《Reload!!》
The battlefield roared with chaos—explosions tearing through the ground, bullets slicing the air, and the relentless symphony of death.
A lone soldier stood at the center of it all, calm amidst the storm. The embers of war reflected off his steely gaze, his movements deliberate as he loaded his weapon.
*Grrrrrrkjkkkk!* A radio crackled in the distance.
<"Heya, Captain!">
<"C01XXX2, Deva Ram Dharma, is on the front, sir!">
The captain, battle-scarred and weary, let out a sigh of relief, his sharp eyes glinting with hope.
[“Finally, you stupid drunkard!”] a comrade shouted over the roar of gunfire, half-laughing, half-cheering.
[“Deva, we’re counting on you!”]
Even as bullets rained down, the squad felt a surge of energy. The infamous Soul-Reaper was here, and the tides of battle were about to shift.
[“Give him cover, boys! The Reaper is on the hunt!”] the captain bellowed, his voice cutting through the chaos like a rallying cry.
The soldiers sprang into action, lobbing grenades with precision.
*BOOM-CRACK! FWOOSH!*
Explosions rippled across the enemy line, flames and smoke swallowing their positions. Confusion spread like wildfire. Disoriented, enemy forces scattered, their formation crumbling under the relentless barrage.
From the wall of fire and smoke, it began.
*BANG! BANG!*
Bullets tore through the enemy ranks with deadly accuracy. Soldiers fell before they could even locate the source of the attack. Another smokeshell hissed into their midst, thick clouds blotting out the battlefield.
Then came the whispers of death.
*Shhk! Thud! Bang!*
A figure moved within the smoke, swift and silent. Each step was calculated, each strike fatal. The enemy soldiers fired blindly into the haze, their panicked shouts filling the air. But it was futile.
Through the suffocating smoke, a shadow emerged—a figure barely human, more a force of nature than a man. Black as midnight, his sleek silhouette weaved through the carnage with inhuman grace.
And then, they saw them.
Two blood-red eyes glinted from the void, glowing with a predatory hunger. The sharp glint of a blade followed, slashing through throats and backs. Point-blank gunshots silenced screams before they could fully form.
*SHHKKK. CRACK. THUD.*
Bodies dropped one by one. The figure moved too fast to track, too deadly to stop. Every step left another lifeless body in its wake.
[“What the hell is that...?”] one enemy soldier whispered, his voice trembling. But no answer came. Only death.
[“He’s cruel as they say...”] a young comrade whispered in awe, his voice shaking as he watched from behind the smoke.
In mere minutes, Deva Ram Dharma had dismantled the enemy’s defenses, leaving nothing but bodies and silence. His blade dripped with blood, his eyes unblinking.
[“Soul-Reaper,”] they whispered, the name carrying through the battlefield like a chilling wind. It was the only name that could describe the man who turned war into a massacre.
………
**《 Bio-Ability: Soul-Reaper》**
*