The rain outside the window never shouted.
It always came with long, melancholic whispers. Drop after drop tapping against the glass with the same rhythm every night.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTwgsAhICvv
Like invisible fingers knocking on a door, asking for permission to enter a warmth that had never existed inside this room.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLQfCelJDEy
The streetlights in this small town on the outskirts cast a dull orange glow through the misty rain, creating blurry circles that hung in the air like giant blind eyeballs, staring everywhere without truly seeing anything.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzkXm3t3DJY
The dormitory room sat on the third floor of an old red brick building that had stood for nearly two centuries.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVxgrS3fHid
Its walls were thick, painted a pale white, made of stone and plaster cracked in many places.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLRQQrT7l3l
In weather like this at the end of the year, cold that pierced the bone, the air inside the room felt colder than the air outside.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8sJUSSr5FZ
As if the ancient building deliberately trapped the cold, storing it in every pore of its bricks and every crack in its wooden floors, to torment its inhabitants who had never truly been wanted by anyone.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaZEnFpaDNs
The central heater in the corner of the room, a rusted metal box that hissed softly all night long, produced only a shallow warmth, not enough to drive away the cold that crept from the wooden floor into the bones of the feet.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjCJqDB9m69
Voltase Watt lay on his back on a bed far too large for his body.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfZpWs0o2eU
The body of a thin boy, shorter than the average of children his age, where his body lacked the nutrition and protein to grow any further.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0X9An8nqoh
His shoulders were narrow, so narrow that the navy striped flannel pajamas he wore kept slipping off his left shoulder.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0aaBWLEpCH
His arms were thin, with faint blue veins visible beneath pale skin that rarely saw sunlight.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqKsibNE4v6
His short legs could never reach the end of the bed, and every night he felt the tips of his cold toes touching the empty air beneath the blanket.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRISunhWk3F
He had bought those pajamas three years ago, and even then they had been too big for his small body.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVydTMWk8gT
Sometimes he thought that perhaps his body simply could not find a reason to grow, because growing required attention, nutrition, love, and he had never had enough of any of those.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsulQqilDlH
No one will notice whether you're here or not, he thought.
The thought felt ordinary in his head, not a piercing sadness, but a fact he had accepted long ago, ever since his mind was old enough to understand that he was a burden moved from one place to another.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0NwtbCURvm
Things do not grow.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcOLFLqTnGg
He never knew his biological parents.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXXpXWziOEb
Voltase was a baby found on the doorstep of an orphanage in South London on a cold winter morning, wrapped in a faded blue blanket with a piece of paper bearing his name and birthdate.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxBjZT4STqd
Nothing else.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO6wTpjr8CM
No letter, no message, no clue about who had left him there or why they had gone.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeC3GwJn6cD
He grew up in that orphanage for five years, changing caretakers and beds and faces that came and went.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq0Gq2BOJpG
Then a family came and chose him, a polite, well dressed couple who said the right things in front of the social worker.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyeM0hvY5OC
They took him to their home in the suburbs, gave him his own room, food, clothes.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi6Y84KSel9
But they never truly wanted him.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGapgMWEr99
He knew it from the way they looked at him, not with hatred, but with indifference.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjBbCpQTeHp
As if he were an obligation, a task to be completed.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXtbKfjY0cL
When he turned ten, they sent him to this boarding school.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyUbTAv845v
An elegant, polite way to get rid of a burden without appearing cruel.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcJ35cTqSGT
They paid his school fees.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBlSiev5QJT
They sent birthday cards, store bought cards with printed text identical for everyone.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaR2L8PfJSs
But they never visited.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj6E1FrpTqV
They never called.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgBmMYcpKK4
Voltase was a receipt already paid in full, an obligation fulfilled.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYXyYq3ilpR
Now he was left here, in this cold room, in a country that was supposedly his birthplace but never felt like his own.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLavW8ZePp5
You have no one, he thought, and he said it with lips that did not move, only inside his head.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX5LDpd2PjU
You have never had anyone.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcGpugm3VHY
And you will never have anyone.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdZTB9GrbbR
Voltase had counted those cracks on the ceiling every night for two years since he first arrived in this room.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaBxGM6nqgd
The number of main branches was always twenty three.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXBH1WgxrWy
Never changing.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Ex5JfqlPo
The small branches varied, depending on the humidity of the night air, the temperature, whether the rain fell harder than usual.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOLMVRaZbjx
Tonight he counted forty three small branches, counting with his thin right index finger, tracing the crack patterns in the air without actually touching the wood.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFmG0zC9qWu
If he touched it, he would feel the cold of the plaster and remember that he was still here.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhCI5VDN9Aa
In the distance, the bells of St. Mary's church at the end of the street began to ring.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Fc66bhQHb
The sound was old and heavy, with a slightly off key tone from age and dampness.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfFwrAEpGdu
Voltase counted each chime because there was nothing else he could do.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvX1PTRTep4
The bells stopped at the ninth chime, and silence returned, filled only by the patter of rain that never stopped here.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAvJbrCq3bR
Voltase reached his right hand toward the small table beside his bed.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjnpfrydSfw
The table was made of cheap wood, chipped in places, its surface covered with scratches from pens and pencils of children who had been here before him.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYGSXkNmW9y
On it lay the cheap phone given by his foster family when he left for boarding school, a symbolic gesture so they could still keep in touch, and a small desk lamp he never turned on.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbhtG1uu4yo
His long, thin fingers groped across the table's surface until they touched the phone.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNDgs9b6WNO
The screen lit up.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡevfjztBCVw
Pale blue light illuminated his face for a few seconds.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoZtCnvL2gv
The time showed 21:49 PM.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHw4aQGaIAL
He opened the game he was playing.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhhnKcnRuJC
The app was colorful and bright, with the main character's icon smiling widely, a boy with black hair and oversized onyx eyes, with a smile that never faded.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ21H4lJVaYP
Voltase almost hated that smile.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡueN8UYs3o8
That character never got tired, never got sad, never felt alone.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9wmwq6jvM0
He just ran, collected coins, dodged trains, and smiled the whole time.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzKKs3m19XZ
His right thumb swiped the screen, and the game began.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKlfu7zd96w
Cheerful electronic music flowed from the phone's speaker, trying to drown out the sound of rain, while the character started moving along the railway tracks with a synthetic sunset sky full of orange and purple gradients stretching behind him.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK0IMlcVIw8
Golden coins sparkled in the air, and every time the character collected them there was a satisfying ding sound.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO4sEwWggT6
Voltase played mechanically.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG3XWBDYnt5
His thumb swiped left, jumped, swiped right, ducked.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiGgqA7uS0k
The score in the upper right corner climbed, 240, 480, 710, 930.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqFeHdoNkP9
He did not care about the score or the character.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdnEZsAbZEh
The only thing he needed was the sound.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxkKIzRS3kL
The music was a thin curtain separating him from the silence of the room, from the patter of rain, from the awareness that he was truly alone in this world and no one would come to save him.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgHufj2xub7
On the right side of the screen, a second character appeared, a grown man in a white long sleeved shirt and a faded blue jacket, wearing a security guard's hat tilted back, and beside him a digital sheepdog ran at the same speed, its tongue lolling in a repeating animation.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq4R1MzZKOs
The three of them ran together.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjXRZBqa07T
A fake family in a fake world.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX6I3uCqIRy
They are not real, Voltase thought, just code, they can never feel anything.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCNyrP9IxJL
They are never alone because they never existed.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhoKFtNOjpQ
At 1,230 points, the obstacles increased.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZTV1uO3lzB
Train cars came faster and denser from both directions.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0gJlikzpA7
Voltase's small fingers began to sweat, making the touchscreen feel slippery and sticky.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRune6YPkC4
His main character stumbled, a repeated falling animation, got up, stumbled again, while the score stopped climbing and the music shifted into anxious, stretching notes.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDToUFMUZqn
A giant steel train car passed right in front of the character.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP97D9Z8ZnX
Bam!
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoFoj85jHxr
The screen turned blurry red, with a crimson gradient encircling the edges.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFgWrYRDCS3
Thick black ink pooled in the corners.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp0yroviAW9
White bold text appeared in the center.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcx4YfFklJu
GAME OVER.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiGX3MIHDSj
Voltase let out a breath.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFDgbI6a2eB
The breath left his small chest as a faint, almost inaudible sigh, like wind slipping through a crack in a door that did not close properly.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtRAadywjT9
He pressed the home button, and the phone screen dimmed to black, reflecting his own face, the face of a thin child with weary onyx eyes, cheekbones beginning to protrude, and messy black hair.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmavaDd03RA
He put the phone on the table with a slow, reluctant movement, as if letting go of the phone meant letting go of the only thing distracting him from the silence.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu4BA1b5yN6
Silence returned.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcEK4XiI0nU
Rain returned.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6YozkdBNLE
He was still here.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFJcIADiMzK
Still small and alone.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgJFq0VdvJX
Voltase closed his eyes.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡezSd60kooO
In the darkness behind his eyelids, he imagined another place.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXXVdOztGHf
A place where he had a big, strong body that did not need to be afraid of other children mocking him in the school hallways.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1c3zihAVWj
A place where he could become something, become someone meaningful, someone who could not be ignored.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl3RrSM0m3b
But the image was vague, like smoke vanishing before he could grasp it.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxcRT8jb2oY
He did not know what a big body looked like.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡausq4Ddmq0
He had never had one.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaNtjDatesl
He only knew that he wanted it, something more than this thin, weak, useless body.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9nEjTN8End
Slowly, exhaustion consumed him.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi6DsyvkBUg
His body curled up in the middle of the too large bed, knees drawn to his chest, arms hugging a pillow that had become dull and smelled of dormitory laundry soap, sharp and chemical.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvpJvB0U2gO
The rain kept tapping the window.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOI5CAoh77o
The wind moaned among the old oak trees in the schoolyard.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtPANeExp8o
His consciousness began to blur, sinking into a dark, warm abyss.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡombmNwbI2M
The clock showed 22:01 PM.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtRKA4SGJJK
Three minutes since he turned off the phone.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm01yCR5j0y
Voltase Watt, a twelve year old boy who did not know who his parents were, who had no home to return to, who had never been loved by anyone, began to fall into a dream.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYfL3LYkS1W
The first thing that registered through his sense of smell was the stench.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUvGfojo8xM
Not the musty, dusty smell of the dormitory room.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdMJORyzLr5
This was a completely different smell, one he had never smelled before, yet somehow felt old, as if he had smelled it in another life, in a memory that was not his.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc3kQ8ShQrU
The smell entered his nostrils like thick, heavy smoke.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ248EnvuoRo
It crept inside uninvited.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyu5pUBGz2S
Stabbed the back of his throat like swallowed glass shards.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp2NTKbL2DQ
Settled on the roof of his mouth, leaving a residue that felt like a layer of copper on his tongue, salty, metallic, and with a faint sweetness that was nauseating.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcNtvaRgYTS
Beneath it lay another layer: a sharp, fishy stench like fish left too long in the sun, and the smell of wet earth mixed with something darker, thicker.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc1y0ywMqTk
Blood, he thought, and the thought rose from the depths of an instinct he had not known he possessed.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSUJzMRArCY
The smell of blood.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiQNGcVELE5
A lot of blood and flesh.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjJ8AW4KPtg
Rotting flesh.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiwHzcNdP0L
Voltase opened his eyes.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6PQJsTVSvk
The darkness he saw was not the darkness of his dormitory room.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtoUyKx9HWz
This was total darkness, darkness that rejected light, darkness that felt solid like wet velvet pressed against his face.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTGlBLQHjnw
His eyes blinked, adjusting, but the adjustment was slow, as if his pupils had to relearn how to catch light.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsBIti3KgSf
Slowly, silhouettes began to emerge.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2CFEw99ddC
He saw a shape above him, very close, only inches from his own nose.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPIKPDkIbk7
A face.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9YiX639X4O
But not the face of a living human.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7x5D5u4suP
The skin of that face was ashen green, pale like dried clay beginning to crack.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsEYHzCQxaL
On its left cheek was a large tear exposing the tissue beneath, a layer of dark red that had begun to blacken at the edges, like beef left too long in the refrigerator, its fibers drying and shriveling.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4Bn0xcMzzw
On its chin was thin brown stubble, with flakes of dry earth clinging between the hair strands.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPj2h6Ax1WC
Its eyes, or what remained of them, were two dark hollows.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhl8n4CsSE2
No eyeballs.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk0jgEVFxDK
Just black holes filled with small, writhing movements.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfQMFR1LzbB
Voltase saw them clearly, maggots.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnbbr8TzpWy
Dozens, maybe hundreds of small pale yellowish bodies, segmented, with darker heads, writhing inside those eye sockets.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5yhFzIZNPt
They rose and fell like tiny waves that never stopped, eating the remaining tissue still clinging to the orbital bone.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ29iFgC9RCm
Some were larger than others, fatter and whiter, perhaps because they had been there longer and had eaten more.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9EBqSqOMbG
One of them crawled out of the left eye socket, across the corpse's cheekbone, and fell right onto Voltase's cheek.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUllD8YOK8V
He felt it.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1odXVbjLEk
Cold, Damp, and Writhing.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgNfG4gvpjB
That small soft body clung to his skin for a second, then began to crawl slowly downward toward his jaw.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYRemFbZp6r
Voltase felt every movement of that body, every small muscle contraction pushing it forward, every segment rubbing against his skin.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6QxUyVI8Me
At that moment, panic exploded inside him.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7FrSVCQad5
Pure, primal panic that recognized no logic or reason.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz0277VIrQi
He wanted to scream, but his voice was caught in his throat.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSDqBKlafbj
He wanted to push, but his hands felt foreign and heavy.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbA04IErkDP
Because he realized: his body had become different.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRQujHl1UkR
His hands pushing the corpse away felt longer and heavier.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRSlfXcZo7U
His fingers were no longer long and thin.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9GbOquMc18
He felt protruding knuckles, long and sturdy finger joints, a wide palm with blue veins clearly visible on the back.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgGdN5mLHMS
When he pushed the corpse away, the muscles in his arms, muscles he had never possessed in the real world, contracted with surprising strength.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW40hXBdXf0
He felt the stretch of muscle fibers, pressure in his shoulders, and the weight of the body he pushed felt lighter than it should have.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVlXT2csn71
The corpse rolled to the side with a wet, heavy plop, like a bag of wet meat falling onto mud.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzS4Hp7qd6z
Its head hit something hard, maybe a rock, maybe another skull, with a dull crack.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxbSlkinwQE
Voltase coughed, choked, and sat up straight with a jolting movement.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbB1cDC9JCI
He sat up, no need to crawl or roll. He just bent his body upward, and the body obeyed, while the maggot writhing on his cheek had fallen to the ground.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUkuCVl9qu2
His chest felt heavy, broad, and wide. His back felt solid.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4WMOnxGdv8
His shoulders were now thick and muscular.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYxvt66TAKd
He looked down and saw his own body.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ9GDurMB4o
A uniform.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjqZaqFNYUV
A long sleeved shirt in faded blue, made of thick wool fabric that was coarse and slightly damp from dew or blood.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7KAs3Uz55V
Small metal buttons lined up down the center of his chest. Some were undone, and beneath the undone buttons he saw an undershirt in wet gray.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKK2GAD5IKz
On his left shoulder was a patch bearing an emblem he did not recognize: an eagle with spread wings, its claws grasping something that looked like a snake.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡteMWZuDVHr
The patch was faded, its edges torn.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8ouCxmMgzD
Blue trousers tucked into tall dark brown boots that felt heavy on his feet.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTWbPYCvdSK
The boots were made of thick leather with hard soles. He felt small studs on the soles when he moved his feet over the ground.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2GXnBHNu4Q
Loose metal buckles on the tops of the boots swung gently as he moved.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuBrgqY8tQF
Voltase raised his right hand in front of his face.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJw6a7uj4MD
The hand trembled violently.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdxJ7zzk0Xq
He could see it clearly, and it was not his hand.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXPRwliF9SP
The hand was long, thin but muscular, with blue veins prominent on the back.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5BbJtBpJlW
The fingers were slender with prominent knuckles and short nails dirty with black earth drying beneath them.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzFGr45gy47
There was a small wound on his middle knuckle, a scrape still wet with fresh blood, perhaps from a fight that happened before he woke up.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs5had8chHp
His palm was wide with deep, clear lifelines.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡELDkJPLlKT
At the base of his thumb was a thick callus formed from years of holding something. It could be a weapon or a tool, he did not know.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ82PVo2rCbg
This was an adult man's hand.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPIMCyrKWtz
A strong hand.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUx2EvYvtez
A hand that could never belong to a weak, thin twelve year old boy.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqhh2uHWt0e
He pressed his palm to his chest.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡioQ6DJtZdZ
Beneath the thick wool fabric, he felt the contour of hard chest muscles, broad pectorals with wide ribs beneath them.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8bxlqNJQ1D
And beneath those muscles, he felt a heartbeat.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsdwXtCMpQg
Thump, thump.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPjXvYuLnRH
Thump, thump.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW2HFQAhvOC
A deeper, stronger, heavier heart.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRbogzQ69cV
Each beat felt like a hammer striking the wall of his chest from inside.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhywMulXM9u
This is not my body, he thought.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1khSC8aMhK
The thought sounded foreign in his head, deeper, heavier, with the resonance of an adult man he did not recognize.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT75NhgA2LH
This body is not mine.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcldEPuB3dY
I am inside someone else's body.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡORgU6fwnqF
I am trapped inside someone else's flesh.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfauUC4aKCg
How can this be?
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiwp4vbLeme
He wanted to scream, to call someone, to ask what was happening, but his voice only came out as a hoarse breath caught in his throat, like the voice of someone who had just woken from a long sleep and had not yet found his words.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuwOZBF7vBT
He straightened his body, rising from his current sitting position.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpaz8UkevCD
His knees wobbled at first. The long, strong leg muscles felt strange, unused to supporting this much weight, but he forced himself to stand.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSqlNPb7IRR
Eye level was now above the piles of corpses around him.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1yTypzIfAE
He could see far across the field, farther than he had ever seen in his short, narrow life.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGvNsYYq2ZQ
The body was now tall, a hundred and eighty centimeters or more.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKdDASubk2i
When he looked down, he saw the long distance between his chest and the ground, a distance he had never experienced before.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnDFmJ6b8YM
His long, sturdy legs felt foreign, like poles newly attached beneath his body.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4AOcM3Iz7g
Every step felt like walking on an unstable stage.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1qcnBCk8Ue
He felt his body's weight differently.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuC6lgm5Fmr
Gravity felt lighter on his bones, perhaps because his bones were now larger and stronger, but his muscles felt heavier and denser.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFWncMnCB4W
There was strength there, potential for movement he had never explored.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtSmSvkkz0j
He felt that this body could run faster, punch harder, endure longer than his thin, weak body.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMRQZ93hCZU
But that strength must have its price, something he was always aware of, that nothing in this world was free.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2ZlWlsR2Wf
Instead, he felt strange after obtaining this body.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa6QTExkp9n
Like a thief who had stolen something precious and did not know how to use it, where every movement felt like a violation.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFlpvexhIbt
Whose body is this? The question repeated in his head like a mantra.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwNUWhViyOn
Where is he?
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyogP1T40PZ
Is he dead?
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0DWqGTVYrB
Did I take his body?
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx0xYVXdt0w
Did I kill him?
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu5rE1YjMaB
He looked around.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIetVLHCkGn
Above him was not the cloudy gray English sky always ready to rain. The sky here was pitch black, blacker than the hollows in the corpse's eye sockets.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcOfI1ptdGT
No stars, moon, or glowing clouds.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVl0Db8HsC0
Just a black canvas stretching endlessly, as if someone had covered the entire world with thick velvet and forgotten it there, leaving it hanging without end.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBSjFLuSUyW
But beneath that gloomy sky, there was enough light.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5hIELqHYiq
Perhaps from reflections off puddles of liquid on the ground that cast a dim gleam.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQHWSVII5lE
Remnants of fires long dead in the distance, still emitting thin smoke and red sparks beneath the ash.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu0Uoxzmgom
The source of the light was unclear, but it was enough for Voltase to see the sight that would sear itself onto his retina forever, burned there like a photograph exposed to sunlight.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7WMzG91wAS
Around him, as far as he could see, there were only bodies.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4B5mrgdfU9
Hundreds, maybe thousands, impossible to count.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmnONYJNBPw
They lay in chaotic piles like rag dolls thrown by an angry giant and then forgotten.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKlNvmp8AHi
Some were stacked on top of each other, forming small hills reaching up to an adult's waist.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtEzQTjMdi0
Some piles were higher, reaching chest height.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1ZkoQ0zT7E
Voltase noticed that the piles moved.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzvJKSRrRWg
Not moving like living things, but moving because of the maggots and flies writhing inside them, creating small waves on the surface of the flesh.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkoCGs0lPMp
Some bodies lay alone, separated from the piles, with arms bent at impossible angles.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgpmvJm8ErJ
Elbows twisted the wrong way.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxR6uXVI7iZ
Fingers clutching empty earth as if they were still trying to crawl in death, still trying to escape something that had caught them.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuSjkwKTDJM
Some had intact faces with wide open eyes staring at the black sky, expressions of fear frozen forever in the rigid muscles of their faces.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡERnSo09asd
Some had no faces at all.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVa1FQDUuAh
Just red, glistening hollows inhabited by maggots and flies, with remnants of flesh clinging to skull bones like unraveling threads.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4NEfexhUVb
Their uniforms varied.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWIM6QgfoBb
Most wore faded blue, like Voltase.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2HNQeQTwyA
Many wore pale green, the color of dead moss, a faded, dull green gray like leaves already rotting in an autumn that lasted too long.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTiGIxq6BKy
Some others, fewer in number, wore ash, the color of gunpowder dust, or ash left after fire dies.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEkL4XObeTo
Those three colors mixed in this pile of death without pattern, without meaning, just chaotic horror.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBjlluuwydm
Often he saw blue bodies lying on top of green bodies, or gray bodies wedged between two blue bodies.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3IqTNLPbx4
Nothing was ordered.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzzwKukmxUr
Nothing was intentional.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHhBEZQTERd
They died where they fell, and they fell where they died.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEbAaqXPgfL
The ground beneath Voltase's feet felt soft, not like the hard earth of the school garden, not like the wooden floor of his room.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgh7dnTdb2t
He looked down and saw his boots sinking several centimeters into a brown black surface.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdJAVkdQJfo
It was mud, but not ordinary mud.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYSs8S3dklu
This mud was mixed with something darker, thicker, denser.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJk6zP26frU
Blood.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRHrTuEuKdq
This ground was not earth.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqFNFGFpXZA
It was a layer of flesh and bodily fluids that had soaked into the soil, mixed with mud, forming a new, horrific layer.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgly1Vw9BCA
When he moved his boots, there was a wet squelch, the sound of liquid squeezed out from the pores of the earth like water from an oversaturated sponge.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmGayfppa1a
He saw small white fragments among the black mud.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB69ArcXDzm
Bone fragments.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB1tRwMy3lY
Broken rib pieces with sharp ends.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMLCIT9hWKi
Severed finger joints still bearing remnants of flesh at the joints.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCXbe4GxhAU
Shattered skull fragments with pinkish inner surfaces from residual brain tissue.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmkkf4YCXU4
There were also torn fabric pieces, dull glinting metal buttons scattered among the mud, and undone shoelaces uncoiled like dead snakes.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPbJSi74VGW
The stench here was not uniform.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbdnAYAdbKg
It came in waves.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhxmh6S8yIh
Sometimes sharp and stinging like ammonia burning the nose.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7FpX06DujL
Sometimes sweet and nauseating like overripe flowers beginning to rot.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3v4jemQuRd
Sometimes like old iron scraped across the tongue, leaving a metallic taste he could not get rid of.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8FzMZuSp43
Every time the wind blew, cold, damp night wind, the smell changed, shifted, found new ways to torment his senses.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPokWvQilCH
Voltase covered his nose with the back of his new, long hand, but the smell entered through his mouth, through his skin, through every pore of his now large but still vulnerable body.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZN1xfVgq3O
He felt it behind his eyes, in his sinuses, at the back of his throat.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsXz2PTPMXH
The smell became part of the air he breathed. He could not separate himself from it.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhIImqSOirP
In the distance, he heard something.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5IuY9JW5XD
Not the sound of rain. The sound was a crack, like a twig snapping.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxuSDohh7m3
Voltase froze.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP8WVZ03d86
He held his breath, that deep, heavy breath from this adult man's lungs, and tried to listen more carefully.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5CNDOHLYbt
But his own heartbeat was too loud, too thunderous.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEa2rG6jvQ4
Thump, thump.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6aXdg2LbIc
Thump, thump.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxCYK6Mixk6
This heart was like a war drum inside his broad chest, and he could not stop it.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPeNTPUK3nQ
Then, he saw movement.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3DtlbiUYEd
Among the pile of corpses to his left, about ten meters away, the pile shook.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyMfjwelkx8
Not from the wind. The wind would not move a pile of flesh that heavy.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxDRGKYXUbi
Something inside it was moving.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeLZELpzcQe
An arm emerged.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvQj22wk01Q
An arm that still had intact skin, pale but not rotting, with muscles still tense beneath the skin's surface.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFzMo8QTO8M
The fingers of that hand grasped the air, then pulled, pushed the bodies above them.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9nix92vpX8
Those bodies shifted, rolled, fell aside with wet sounds.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbioCEAH661
From that pile, a man's figure emerged.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡATWbpJBr1M
He rose with stiff, mechanical movements, like a wooden puppet whose strings were pulled by an invisible hand.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsDU2c1V5BO
He brushed dust and dried flesh scraps from his uniform, pale green, the same green worn by many corpses around him.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuYTESgunEh
The fabric was torn in several places, and on his right shoulder was the same patch, the eagle or raven, but the colors were more faded, more worn, with threads beginning to unravel at the edges.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIVDh2J1EyR
On his left arm was a large tear exposing the skin beneath, pale skin with an old, dried wound.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRUV13oEqJT
The man was tall, almost as tall as Voltase.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNsEgxNjhZ4
His face was gaunt, with a firm jaw and prominent cheekbones.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0y7aTBUw89
His hair was dirty blond, short and unkempt, with sideburns slightly elongated beside his ears.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6KWOnaibqR
His dark eyes, dark like Voltase's eyes in the real world, stared directly at him.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2OGR787Zu0
The stare was unfriendly.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJQSTFSs8pz
Full of suspicion, confusion, and beneath it, a layer of fear trying to hide behind a tightening jaw and pursed lips.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1ODtiKHvsF
They faced each other.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqb2BaXTHeF
Two adult figures in the middle of a sea of death.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqNfUyf117N
Cold night wind blew between them, carrying the stench of rot and old gunpowder smoke.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4egFoCjegF
Voltase felt the wind hit his face, carrying his long, dirty hair dancing around his eyes.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdjjY5R2GuW
The man did not speak.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqszenmrskZ
He just stared, eyes narrowing, measuring whether Voltase was a threat or just another survivor.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe362MS3Tch
He examined Voltase's faded blue uniform, then examined his face.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9N1n5Q5MAu
Perhaps searching for recognition.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1MOqiceq2g
Trying to remember if he had ever seen this face before.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTCIcY8qOP5
But there was no recognition in his eyes.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv0To0bOOEQ
Only deepening suspicion.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡghi5yjsD9R
Slowly, he bent down.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoNq5LJjaoc
His dirty fingers, crusted with dried blood beneath the nails, groped among the pile of corpses.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtRtLoxBIKq
He pushed some bodies aside, shifted others, and finally pulled something from beneath the pile.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmdU5tN4APe
A long object.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8SxrMsqFtQ
Voltase recognized the shape even though he had never seen one directly outside the history books in the school library.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxMVas3bNkp
An old wooden stock, darkened by oil and covered with scratches and deep grooves from grips.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyIFIX7oMdt
The wood was worn, its fibers peeling in places but still solid. He could see that the stock had been used for years, perhaps decades, by people he would never know.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT7Q9KY9zaZ
A long, slender barrel of dark metal, gleaming dully under the dim light, with grooves along its surface to reduce weight.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ43AAHhblmA
Beneath it, just in front of the curved trigger made of the same metal with a finger groove, a small box magazine jutted out like a second jaw, loaded with ready to fire bullets.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1dqwsdY6gR
And at the end of the barrel, he saw a locking mechanism, small grooves and metal protrusions, designed to attach a bayonet.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2EZeFc6Vi1
It was a heavy, ancient, deadly rifle.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXys3cYQaZN
A rifle that had killed more people than he could imagine.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXVnOh2h6CJ
The man aimed the muzzle at Voltase's chest.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHYrqpLKiEP
Voltase's reflexes acted before his thoughts could formulate a strategy.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡABq7sly6t8
Both his hands, the long, sturdy hands of an adult man, rose up, palms open wide, in the universal gesture of surrender.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgxSityBHIU
His heart pounded in this new chest, and he felt its beat at his temples and at the tips of his trembling fingers.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi9bRLFYBRT
"Wait," he said, and his voice came out as a deep, hoarse baritone, a voice he had never heard before, a voice emerging from this chest.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdwnJr26IrA
"I do not know where this is."
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6cZye8Pf26
"I do not know what is happening."
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡajYLfSNszu
"I just woke up."
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRALMp4CU7P
The man did not answer.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡga07D0BBvU
His eyes narrowed further, examining Voltase's faded blue uniform, then his face, watching Voltase's lips move, hearing his words.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmtD4h6UfMs
But there was no response.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡswFrg4WBWc
Perhaps he did not believe him.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSY6OcTeihZ
Perhaps he had seen too many tricks in this place to trust anyone.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUYUuGCRppN
The man began to step forward.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRJYDgy29ua
One step.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvp34GgbMo2
Two steps.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM8pxCg2vJX
The muzzle stayed aimed exactly at Voltase's chest.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFeqeQveAtn
Each step the man took was torture.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQJro6i9s9x
Voltase heard the squeak of the man's boots on the bloody mud.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8zGKWp3rlK
He saw every scratch on the rifle's wooden stock, every peeling fiber, every deep groove.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpvHftn6C4v
He saw the man's finger on the trigger, a steady finger that did not tremble, a finger accustomed to the weight and pressure of pulling.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn2D4yUxEYV
The voice in his head whispered.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS9hvDUpeMc
If you do not move, you die.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJzNFROVrcB
You die here, in this place.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR8CiQR4Xh6
And you will never return to your dormitory room. No one will come looking for you.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwUXzJ0xPcy
No one will care.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqa4ToHoJqZ
You will just be another corpse in this pile.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡee23pODMyH
The thought of the world's indifference, about foster parents who never called, about teachers who did not know his name, about the empty room with only the cracks on the ceiling, gave Voltase a strange strength.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdFyu6ETdjq
He had nothing to lose in the real world.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOou6IX8t4O
No one would mourn him if he died.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDa0ymxI9nE
But here, in this strong body, he might survive.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡackTWEtaKb
He might become something.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWhHLFhBG68
And he moved.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjP6QVUczcv
His tall, powerful body shot forward, faster than he had imagined.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtosQt0WYBJ
The muscles in his legs, muscles he had never possessed, contracted with surprising strength, propelling him forward in an instant.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbwOXL8e75b
His long hand grabbed the end of the rifle's barrel before the man could react.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYPBoXIz6rD
The metal was cold, very cold, like ice burning his skin.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUc6XNu0DMq
He felt the texture of the metal beneath his fingers, smooth in some places, rough in others from rust, and he gripped it tightly.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUlJtmaeAse
He twisted the barrel aside, away from his chest.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHcL07dzoy9
His other hand formed a fist and swung it at the man's face.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaSlvCNJ2Q8
The punch landed.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4FtKXwEDWa
His knuckles struck the man's cheekbone with a dull thud.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlKekWB5DqG
Voltase felt the hard impact in his hand, pain spreading like waves from his knuckles to his wrist.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUkWcHZ5AfI
But there was a primal satisfaction that his punch had connected.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxibBATy2j5
This was the first time in his life, both in the real world and here, he had ever hit someone with full force.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDCEr2969Wk
The man stumbled back, his arm bending, but he did not fall.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMQeSBvlobl
His head snapped to the side, and from the corner of his mouth, a drop of blood began to flow.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI59MWrjbNU
He raised his hand to his face, touched his lip, looked at the blood on his fingertip.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzQ2oy2kvT9
Then he looked at Voltase with changed eyes.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHkwLpWadOV
Suspicion transformed into burning anger.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBalXtg6w7H
With reflexes faster than they looked, he blocked Voltase's attack with his forearm.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgA8p6l8vd5
His other hand grabbed Voltase's collar and pulled him forward.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRTPMWJPRal
At the same time, he bent his right knee and kicked forward.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbGnXnhwfmG
The knee struck Voltase's stomach, and the pain exploded in his solar plexus like a bomb.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkNyhXtk2sm
All the air in his lungs was forced out in one gasping exhale that sounded like a long, deep groan.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfXryMk2A5e
Saliva and bitter bile from his empty stomach spurted from his open mouth, wetting his chin and dripping onto the faded blue uniform.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ46rll5Ae20
For a moment, the world around him spun wildly, black sky, corpses, and the man's face all mixed into a nauseating vortex.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4D9jj0j97e
He tasted metal on his tongue because he had bitten his own tongue from the impact.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWKW1yRiNrn
Fresh blood began to flow in his mouth, mixing with the bile.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ65C4J1Ax4o
But Voltase did not fall.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaRwtzZYpuA
Unlike in the real world, where he always fell when pushed by other children at school, this body was stronger, heavier.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDgA6Zb23gm
His long legs planted in the bloody soil as he held his ground.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT39zAR6cZc
His hard, trained abdominal muscles absorbed part of the kick's impact.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNYeivQhcwh
Despite the overwhelming pain, he was still standing.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjvm5Lfiyhw
With clenched teeth, enduring the pain gnawing at his stomach like burning fire, he launched a counterattack.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTTK87M3AhT
His foot with the heavy boot and hard sole swung toward the man's shin.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyyRLqI5ujk
He swung his leg with all his strength.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG1NNTybORL
The kick landed with a harder thud than before.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUtcB0kvxwh
The man stumbled, losing balance.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb9fEIZsSZ8
His kicked leg buckled, and for a moment he seemed about to fall, grimacing in pain, his teeth clenched, his breath coming in a long hiss.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxRrPkSl6WX
Voltase seized the moment.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnUSKf1sGx8
He twisted his body, pulling the rifle barrel with all his strength.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEVvfDZqtoF
The wood and metal, an object weighing nearly four kilograms, tore from the man's grip.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd1uByusIlu
It flew, rolled across the pile of corpses, and fell among the rotting bodies on the other side, sinking beneath the pile of flesh.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLkg2YP2oPg
Now, without weapons, they faced each other equally.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYuvRr7i8Wl
The man swung a punch at Voltase's jaw, but Voltase ducked, feeling the wind of the fist brushing his long, dirty hair.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZCzq4OLMcA
He answered with a punch at the man's chin, but the man tilted his head with agile movement despite his large body.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4K4y4thQJT
They fought wildly, punches, kicks, elbows, and knees, in the middle of the sea of corpses.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkyFuIj4dYf
Dust and dried flesh scraps flew around them every time they stepped on or fell into the piles of bodies.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAn4d2FGvVY
Voltase felt blood, both the corpses' blood and his own, covering his face.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEZTkCY9SKS
His lower lip was split, and he tasted his own salty, metallic blood on his tongue, mixing with the copper taste from the air around him.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLfKYzkPfFW
This is not me, he thought between punches, but his thoughts were fragmented by pain and exhaustion.
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFwSTozIAfV
Why am I here?
ns216.73.216.217da2 
→ Request update
and then Add to home screen.