I grabbed the severed arm – the grotesquely severed arm that had been my own – the flesh still warm and grotesquely twitching in my grasp. Blood dripped from the mangled limb, painting the floor a macabre crimson. Bone protruded from the point of separation, jagged and sharp, a weapon born of desperation. With a surge of adrenaline and a chilling, almost clinical detachment, I plunged it towards its chest, the gesture grotesque and driven by a need to end its life. Blindly stabbing, desperate to find its heart, to strike a killing blow and end its life.
I didn't know where its heart was, didn't know the anatomy of this grotesque creature. It could be anywhere in its mangled body. The description that was given was little to none so all I could do was follow my gut. I just stabbed and stabbed, driven by a primal need to destroy, to obliterate the monster that stood before me, challenging my very existence. It was a simple gesture but it was something that needed to be done and it was my responsibility.
Finding no vital organ, only cold, unyielding flesh that felt more like stone than meat, I abandoned the futile stabbing. Clearly there were no organs. This thing was a monster and the rules didn't apply to it. I switched to a more visceral approach, a more personal violation of its existence. I used both of my fingers on my right hand, digging deep into the creature's eye sockets, a squelching, sickening sound filling the air. The eyeballs popped like bursting grapes beneath my touch, the juice exploding across my hand. The sensation was revolting but there was no time to stop. I can hear pencil in my head reminding me that there was no time to waste. I am sure that those weren't the thoughts but that's the only voice I could imagine. and then with a surge of power, I flicked my wrist, sending the gooey projectiles flying back across the room, splattering against the walls and ceiling, a grotesque Jackson Pollock painting created with the ichor of a nightmare. The scene was more than just gross it was a message and that I was declaring that all will fail.
The monster roared, a deafening bellow of pain and rage that shook the very foundations of the building. It was a sound that promised pain and destruction and for once I was not afraid of what was going to come next. I watched with morbid fascination as it staggered backward, blindly flailing its arms. The blood was everywhere, dripping from its face, coating its claws. Every inch of this facility was now covered in crimson. You were wrong for this I said.
But then, something extraordinary happened. Like a scene ripped from a B-grade horror film, the beast stood back up, its movements fluid, almost graceful. A feeling of despair then crept into my mind as I saw the empty area. This must be the end. All of that torture and pain just for me to have to die here? My mind can only picture grandma in front of me and that I have failed to protect her again.
It was as if nothing has happened to it. Its empty eye sockets healed with unnatural speed, flesh knitting together, bone reforming with grotesque efficiency. In a matter of seconds, it was as good as new, the horrific injuries erased as if they had never occurred. There I was reminded that maybe this was not going to be easy and that maybe there was another method. What happened?! I could still barely believe.
The realization hit me like a physical blow that took all of the breath from my lungs: I was completely outmatched, a lamb being sent to slaughter. I wasn't cut out for killing a Mileena; I lacked the skill, the experience, and the sheer ruthlessness required.
I was a novice playing a game of experts, a pawn caught in a conflict far beyond my comprehension. Yet, despite the fear gnawing at my insides, a strange sense of exhilaration surged through me. It was a dark and twisted thrill, the perverse pleasure of facing certain death, I didn't even hesitate to get hit. My soul, consumed by the Okhuomo-Gekido, had seen this as a playground, a twisted game to be played with reckless abandon, and it was me giving in to the sensation.
"It sees you as a plaything," I could almost hear Grandma's voice, her words a gentle warning echoing in my mind.
I lunged at my "play toy," a crazed smile plastered across my face, my movements erratic, almost manic. This was no longer a fight; it was a dance with death, a macabre ballet of violence and despair. This monster does not have a brain, it cannot think the way I do, I must always think steps in front.
The world spun into a blur of motion, a chaotic ballet of violence and desperation. I focused on what I needed to do and that was to stop what was happening. It was something that I had to do and with my powers that came close. But I knew that there was much more that was at stake. I am not the only person here but others are. What's even the goal, anyway? Is there even a point to what I am going to do or is there something more. Is there nothing else that matters.
Then, everything changed. The monster seemed to sense my recklessness, my lack of strategy. A look of focused determination replaced its earlier rage, as if it had finally realized the seriousness of the situation. I could hear its thoughts, a dark and twisted symphony of malice and hate. Something like, "This is getting too intense, I need to end this," echoed and surrounded the area with despair.
It released the other two eyes it was concealing, hidden beneath layers of flesh and bone. They snapped open with a sickening click, the lids retracting to reveal pupils that glowed with an eerie, inner light. The pupils are not the same either, the color shifts and seems to create a dark void that swallowed everything. As the last part of my life gets sucked in with it. A dark force was suddenly present.
And then he called out something, the words resonating with power, filling the room with an unnatural force. It was a language that was very familiar and something that I could probably not understand.
"Kouken No'tàté!"
The words echoed through the cavernous space, a chilling incantation that sent shivers down my spine. It was as if the very air crackled with energy, the darkness growing deeper, more oppressive, more consuming. An ancient force had been awakened, an power that I was certainly not able to handle. From that point on, I could now only rely on myself, and the realization terrified me.
The monster's frame began to shift, its features twisting and contorting into a horrifying new form. Flesh melted into bone, claws elongated into razor-sharp blades, and the air shimmered with an invisible energy. A presence that was all around. He was more than I thought and there's absolutely nothing that I can do.
I didn't understand what happened. One moment, I was engaged in a frenzied battle, fueled by adrenaline and rage. The next, I was paralyzed, frozen in place like a statue, a puppet with its strings severed. I was stuck, unable to move, unable to even twitch a muscle, my mind racing but my body refusing to obey. It was as if I had been encased in stone, trapped within my own body, a prisoner in my own mind.
The room transformed, reality itself warping around me. The lights dimmed, fading into an oppressive darkness that swallowed everything whole. The red aura vanished, replaced by an absolute void, an all-consuming emptiness that pressed in on me from all sides, threatening to suffocate me. Was this what hell felt like? I want to escape and I want to never think about anything like this again.
It was a better home for me, a familiar embrace that offered solace and oblivion. The world was now only limited to me and not a single thing more. All I can do is lie down and maybe take a good nap. I wasn't scared. Not anymore. I had accepted my fate. So, I smiled harder, staring into the void with my green eyes, piercing the darkness, waiting for something unknown. I would wait for what comes next and there's nothing else.
I felt a cold air, a chilling breeze that whispered against my skin, a familiar sensation that tugged at my memories, pulling me back to a life that seemed both distant and impossibly precious. It was the same air that swept through the village streets every evening, the air that carried the scent of burning wood and freshly baked bread, the air that smelled of Grandma's love and laughter. Was this what I wanted all along? A feeling of sadness that I might not be able to make her feel that warmth anymore.
The coldness was comforting at first, a gentle reminder of a life that was now beyond my reach. But as time passed, boredom set in. I was getting impatient, restless, the void not so great as I initially thought. Waiting was not my strength; I was a creature of action, a force that thrived on chaos. If that's all I will ever be, I should at least take pride in what I am going to do.
Then, something, or someone, showed up. It appeared as a shadowy figure, a grotesque silhouette that moved with impossible speed, circling its hands in a strange, almost ritualistic manner. What is it doing?! Why is it doing all of these weird gestures what is to come?! All four were something that I did not want to be around with.
The figure leapt from pillar to pillar, a fleeting glimpse of darkness against the all-consuming void. It moved with grace and precision, a predator stalking its prey, and that play thing was me. I had to change that as soon as possible and if I ever survived from all of this.
It came directly towards me, a dark purple energy shrouding all four of its arms, swirling around them like a living storm. This was its Yami Ebhi, its ultimate expression of power, a force that promised annihilation, and it was all directed at me. It will erase me from existence but I can't let that happen I am going to win here.
I smiled in wait, a defiant grin spreading across my face. I would not break. I would not yield. I would not let fear control me. As long as I remember her face and smile, it will be okay.
Then, the figure struck, its movements too fast to track.
It burst through me, through the very center of my being, with the force of a supernova. It was an agonizing, all-consuming pain, a searing inferno that obliterated everything in its path. My body, my mind, my emotions – all were vaporized in an instant, leaving only my soul, a flickering ember in the face of absolute destruction, a tiny spark struggling to survive in the infinite darkness. It was all over and I had fallen into the abyss and darkness that had surrounded me.
And then, nothing.
…
I woke, gasping for air, my body drenched in sweat, my muscles aching as if I had run a marathon. The familiar scent of antiseptic filled my nostrils, a sterile smell that did little to soothe my frayed nerves. The sounds of the room swarmed me, disorienting me, overwhelming my senses. Everything has changed, I don't even know where I am what is going on! I am not in the battlefield anymore.
The first thing I saw was Koji, his face inches from mine, his expression a mixture of concern and… amusement? The same grin I've always known. He looked at my face to see if I were all there
It was Koji's cheeky face, framed by that infuriating, asymmetrical haircut, his eyes sparkling with a familiar mischief. That grin of his stretched from ear to ear, a triumphant smirk that said, "I told you so," a statement that I knew would haunt me for weeks to come.
My stomach dropped. My heart sank. A wave of nausea washed over me, threatening to send me spiraling into oblivion. This is it, maybe I am not able to do what I want to do and just need to accept fate as is. I was tired.
I knew immediately: I had lost. It was not something that was in the hands of fate I knew that was the case. I knew it from the start.