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You strike at the King with a vitriol only found by the deepest most depraved beasts in this world, in spite of how small you were. The king didn’t hold back however every movement you could make he matched it. No matter how much you exert yourself you would always fall on yourself, and be usurped through the heart, over, and over, and over. Yet it was strange how you never tired, no matter how many cycles you went through you had to do this, to prove yourself superior. You would not be wronged by these foul creatures again, and you would make sure of it.
But… there was a point where it felt like you weren’t making a dent in his skills. There was no progression, you were just repeating the same tactics at nauseum. It angered you beyond what your body could handle, sometimes exploding before you even reached the king. Even your persistence couldn’t handle an undertaking like this, and so you fled the city, a task in of itself with how deep you had gotten in. But you weren’t strong enough, you needed to go back, you needed to be better, for them.
…
Your journey back was not without aversion, these creatures were prone to attacking you on sight, but there was more fear in their eyes as you passed them. They didn’t treat you with the same hostility as before, they were far more defensive in their attack patterns. This satisfied you, they knew their place at the very least, as they should around you. They would not be in your way for much longer, at least that was your goal.
…
You had made your way out of the forsaken city, to be frank you were rather tired. But you did not falter, you came back here to get stronger right? To be ready to fight the king? What did getting stronger entail? Perhaps you should try practicing against stronger more agile creatures, such as vultures. With this in mind, you made your descent down the wall.
But about halfway down the climb you found… another slugcat? You eyed them at the top, struggling to climb the wall with some nearby spears. They were also a tad… rotund, to say the least. This was an amusing sight to behold, the way they kept failing the same jumps over and over. How did this creature even survive for this long without basic platforming abilities such as these? You scoff, perched from atop your spot on the wall.
This entertained you until you realized the rotund slugcat was about to be ambushed by some lizards, you saw its eyes fill with fear as it desperately began to lug spears at them, its stamina slowly draining as it tried to climb to safety. In any other situation you wouldn’t have cared, this was a natural part of the cycle. The weak are picked off to make way for the strong, but there was something about this that particularly disturbed you, the way it struggled and was trying to survive regardless of how small they were, when their fate was already sealed… It reminded you of someone.
You rushed down to the lizards, jamming a spear into one of them. This sent the other lizards into a panic frenzy, then lunging at you. Fortunately, you’ve trained yourself to be agile for situations such as these. You grabbed the rotund beast and propelled yourself up the wall with them in tow. They were rather heavy… but it was not much for you. You dropped them down when you reached the ledge, a job well done. You sat by the rotund creature, waiting for them to catch their breath.
It was a couple moments before the creature regained its composure, but when it did you were completely taken off guard. The creature lunged at you, completely crushing you with its body weight. You tried to fight back, but it was too late, you couldn’t move. You were completely tricked, how annoying. You were foolish to think a creature in this world would be innocent and in need of help. You closed your eyes, ready to wake up at your last shelter.
…
You weren’t back at your shelter, the large beast had not killed you, shockingly. It just wrapped you in its weight with a cheerful expression on its face. Was this… a sign of affection? A trap to lure you into a false comfort? This befuddled you, nothing like this has happened to you before. You would’ve fought back, but you wouldn’t lie, the warmth felt nice.
The beast finally got off you, that gleeful expression not being wiped off. You were very drained from the exchange, you didn’t understand why the beast did that. Why would anyone express affection toward you like this? Perhaps it was just an equivalent exchange, you saved their life so this is what they had in return, a fleeting bit of warmth for your cold decrepit body, metaphorically of course this world was very humid. Yes, that was it. You appreciated the gesture but needed to move on, you continued your descent down the wall.
But as you were about to leave, you felt something tugging on you. It was the beast again, what did they want now? Their transaction had been complete, it was time for you to move on to your mission. But they seemed attached to you, they wouldn’t let go. You gave them a cold glare to intimidate them but this didn’t seem affected by this. They just stared at you with the same eager expression. They looked out towards the top of the wall, and back at you, almost beckoning you to come. But you had a job to do, you needed to become stronger. Although you still didn't really know what that meant. However… The warmth you got from being close to them was a nice feeling, when you had been cold for so long. Perhaps if you stuck around this beast they would give you more warmth. It’s not like you were going anywhere right now anyway, you were completely directionless. So, you begrudgingly followed the buoyant creature up the wall with haste.
As you two made your ascent up the wall once more, you came across a group of camouflaging lizards. These ones were always the most annoying, you never had the best vision to be frank. But this was where your round acquaintance showed their unique strengths. They managed to sneak up on one of them, and pound them into the ground with their weight. This surprised you, but then they did something even more unbelievable. They rammed directly into another one of them and then speared them in the back, instantly killing them. This display of strength intimidated you greatly, that weight they had was not just fat going to waste, it was muscle as well. This rotund one was a remarkable fighter when focused on one on one combat. They kept their gleeful expression after slaughtering, greatly intimidating you. From this point on, you kept a safe distance from the beast.
…
When the two of you made it to the top of the wall you were both extremely drained. Having to account for each other while dealing with the wall’s creatures just made the journey far more tiring. You could barely maintain yourself, falling to the floor. Without hesitation, the round one picked you up and started taking you down the path. You hissed at them, flailing your arms around, but their grip was far too strong, you had to give up. Your new friend jollily jaunted down to that mysterious metal stronghold.
It was the dead of night, you could hear the rain downpouring from below the structure. You were on top of the world, you could almost hear the earth itself sleeping soundly. You looked at the city’s skyline, all of the scavenger’s asleep, so you had nothing to worry about. For a moment, you felt peace, nothing could wrong you up here. But as you glared at the city, you felt that seething hatred again. The way the scavengers slept soundly and peacefully, while you could never sleep again, because of them. They did this, didn’t they? They were the ones that stripped you of them, they deserved this. You desperately wanted to trudge over there and end this, usurp the king and complete your mission, but you aren’t strong enough.
The rotund one carried you through the iron’s clutches, that place where you met that strange pink creature. As you both floated down the brightly lit corridors, you could see the rounded creature having the time of their life. They waved their arms around excited, as they flailed around the cold steely void. You supposed not everyone was used to zero gravity, you were rather marveled by it on your first encounter, but the novelty faded quickly. This wasn’t the case for your friend though. They gleefully played for quite a long time, it was kind of amusing. You thought of joining at one moment but you refrained, you had things to do.
The two of you reached the entrance to the mysterious pink thing’s room. Your friend beckoned you to join them, but you weren't too interested. The pink creature was rather irritating and you didn’t feel like sitting through a lecture again. The buoyant one didn’t know what to expect and thus headed down to meet them. You were originally going to wait it out, but you recalled something the pink thing said, about not being able to hurt you despite wanting to. You were scared they would hurt your new friend in some capacity, so you followed them into the chamber.
“You again?”
You both floated around the chamber, the pink creature gave the both of you an irritated look, coming closer to study you.
“And you brought a friend too? How fun,”
The pink thing lifted your friend into the air, you attempted to jump at them to save them but you were also being held in place. You wanted to scream, you couldn’t lose them. But surprisingly enough, the pink thing let them live. They just gave them the same strange white light above them as you.
“Good, you should be able to understand me now,”
You were still firm in your disposition, you did not trust the being. You both stared at each other with distaste.
“What brings you to my chamber gluttonous beast? You don’t remind me of any messenger, You seem to be just a simple specimen,”
The rotund one just floated around aimlessly, seeming to be disconnected from whatever was happening.
“I might have been a tad hasty to place the mark of communication upon you, with all this traffic in my facility I wouldn’t be shocked if this isn’t the last encounter with your kind,”
Your friend exited the chamber through the left shaft, completely ignoring the pink thing’s words. The being looked annoyed by this.
“Well then, I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. I need to quit forgetting to turn on the gravity receptors in my chambers. Ignorant creatures, sometimes I wish for that blissful ignorance to be honest. But alas,”
The pink being now brought its attention to you. You froze in place.
“So now, why are you back? I saw you go all the way through the stronghold of my city, you made it to the king. The end of your mission was just within your grasp, so why did you turn away?”
You froze, the pink one was right. Why were you back? What were you doing here messing around, you had a job to do.
“It's not that I care much, the Scavengers on my city grounds are nothing but a mere inconvenience to me, I'm just surprised a simple-minded creature like you would make the conscious choice to return after all of that,”
An inconvenience? Were they mocking you? These creatures had broken you beyond repair, they have taken everything from you and to this being and they were just an inconvenience?
“I suppose I'll never understand you beasts, it's just in my nature. But this baffles me, I haven't took you for an empathetic one,”
You made an attempt to leave and fulfill your mission, but before you could your large friend had returned.
“Welcome back friend, would you care to not leave in the middle of my dialect now?”
They were carrying a mass of small little bug-like things that seemed to emit light.
“Ah, so that's why you're here, my neurons. I should’ve figured that's why you were here. Every creature that has accidentally stumbled in here seems to have a strange fascination with them…”
Your friend chomped away on the “neurons”, they seemed to be enjoying themselves. They squirmed around whenever they took a bite of them. It was amusing, their jolly demeanor contrasted by how sloppily they ate.
“They can’t taste that good, you creatures confuse me deeply,”
Your friend handed you one of the “neurons”, it eagerly waited for your feasting to see what you thought of it. You eyed the strange light bug in your hand, it looked kind of gross to be honest. You never were a fan of bugs, you prefer far meatier meals. They empowered you, made you feel stronger knowing you had the power to feast on your enemies at any moment, in spite of how small you were compared to them. But, if it made them happy then maybe you would give it a shot, who knows maybe you would enjoy it.
You immediately gagged upon taking a bite into it, it was the most disgusting little worm you’ve ever eaten. You could not stand it, it was abhorrent. But as you were gagging, you saw your rotund friend staring at you eagerly, awaiting your response. You tried to scrunch up your face to look pleased, nodding your head to show your approval. Your friend just looked at you confused and concerned at the way you were shifting your face, you immediately snapped back all frazzled.
“See? I told you they aren’t for eating you moronic creatures,”
As much as they disgusted you, you wanted to make your friend happy. You wanted to gain their trust, and to be honest you were kind of starving, you haven’t eaten since you got out of the city. So you inched closer to the rotund one, anxiously nibbling on the “neurons”, trying not to show how disgusted you were by them. You both just silently sat by and nibbled on the strange light bugs as the pink being just stared at you agitated.
“Great, well now that you’ve had your feast, I would greatly suggest the both of you leave this place immediately. In fact I would not like to see the two of you again ever, I find both of you rather irritating. So I will open an exit outside my facility for you two to leave, keep heading to the far left of them and you will find it,”
The pink thing waved its arms in motions telling them to go, you didn't really have anything left to do but as you were about to leave a mischievous thought struck your mind. You motioned your friend to do a spinning motion around the pink being. With your explosive powers it would be more than possible to annoy this pink thing to death, and personally you were feeling rather spiteful toward it at the moment. So the two of you began to twirl around the chamber while carrying your friend on your back. You wanted to disrupt what this thing was doing as much as you could.
“Just what do you think you’re doing…” They sounded very tired.
You didn’t pay attention though, you just kept blasting around the box without a care in the world, it felt freeing. Nothing in here could hurt you, it was just you and your friend, and that pink guy was there you guess. As you floated around aimlessly you felt a strange feeling, was this… love? No , you only used relationships for procreation, it couldn’t be that. But you’ve never felt this free before, holding them by your side just ethereally flying around. The scavenger bloodshed felt like a distant memory here, as much as it scratched at your head. It wasn’t anything about continuing your species, just being next to them felt nice, it was as simple as that.
“Yes, you creatures are so intelligent for meddling and inconveniencing the affairs of random gods you cannot comprehend. How extraordinary of you to put your time and energy into this, truly amazing,”
You did not care for what the pink thing said, you just zoned out as the both of you took in this experience like no other, the experience of being free for once in this unforgiving world, free to fly, free to laze, free to frolic, to do anything. It was far more limited than that obviously, but you felt so free in the moment, more than you ever have. And when you looked back at them, you saw a gleeful expression painted on their face, unwavering. Why were they so happy, had they not lived in the same cruel world as you? Perhaps they had a better life than you maybe, but that didn’t excuse how demanding this life was, the constant struggle to survive. It was a cycle that perpetuated itself over and over, never truly finding peace. We all shared the same pain didn’t we, so why was your friend so ignorant? Maybe that’s why you were so drawn to them, you yearned for that same ignorance, for that same whimsy you’ve never had.
…
The two of you had left the chamber by now. Listening to that pink being incoherently babble about ancients and solutions was getting irritating, and you needed your rest. You camped out in the shelter just by the inside of the metal stronghold, and it was very hard to sleep. The both of you were barely able to fit in together due to how small shelters were, you were practically squeezed together, not that you minded… It was just hard to sleep, especially with how loud they snored, it felt like they were right up in your ear.
As your new rotund friend soundly slept, you pulled a half-eaten neuron out of your stomach, you couldn’t fully eat the last one they gave you. It was too disgusting for you, you just swallowed it. It flickered a fading light that slowly drained from it as you held it out in your hand. It even squirmed around in your hands desperately clinging to life, being torn away from its kind. A creature such as this was not nearly as lucky as someone such as yourself, not given the natural ability to survive. You felt a little bad for tearing this creature from their home as you stared at its cold fleeting form, it’s strange. You had caused so much violence and catastrophe yet you felt sympathy for a single struggling worm. But you did not waver, this singular worm was just a smaller piece of the bigger picture, and so were you. You needed to prove yourself as larger than life, prove yourself as something to be feared, and nobody would ever try to wrong you again. That’s why… that’s… why…
…
You needed to complete your mission.
You eyed your friend again, the way they lazily rested around angered you. How could they be so foolish, so deluded in their fantasies? To be so enamoured by this world that had beat you down over and over and over, it was so insulting. When the next cycle drew near, you would leave this wretched place, and you would finish the job. You would slay the king once and for all, free yourself and finally know closure. You angrily slummed yourself into sleep as you drifted off into something far worse…
…
You awoke, expecting to hear the opening of the shelter gate, but you heard nothing. You attempted to get out, but the gate was locked tight. But this should be the start of the cycle, why wasn’t it opening? You tried to wake up your friend but that's when it all struck you. They turned around and your eyes sank when you saw their brown dirty fur, their putrid bright yellow eyes, their long twisting horns. They approached you the instant you came into their vision. You had nowhere to go in the tight shelter though, your back was against the wall with nothing to defend yourself. But it did not attack you or anything of the sort, it just stared at you, pushing you closer to the wall. It kept judgingly staring at you, it wouldn’t stop. You tried exploding but you would always burn out and just be left with that furry beast once more, the one that caused all of this. They caused all of this, they were the ones that took them away from you.
But why did they glare so deeply, you had done nothing to be judged of. You were simply delivering the wrath they deserved for what they had done, this was all a natural part of the cycle, violence perpetuates violence, and you were just… abiding by that.
That sounded terrible saying that in your head, but it was all you could do! These creatures had it coming, they started this first after all. They killed them, it was their fault, not yours.
The walls and ground started to morph into this furry texture as hands clawed at you from every side, pulling you in. You could not escape, the thousands of scavengers pulled you into their mass, each and every one you’ve slain on your mission, they all came to claim you all at once. All of these creatures you’ve killed, forced to endure the repeating pattern once more. All because you set yourself on this impossible mission to become stronger? What did that even mean? Was it to make your children proud? The ones you left to die?
Face it, it was never in a sense that you weren’t strong enough to protect them, you simply did not care, did not pay enough attention until it was too late. You let them wander off on their own and now you suddenly act like you care because what else can you do? If you couldn’t save them now, you sure as hell would do something, some arbitrary way to prove yourself, to prove you truly did care about them. That’s why you needed to prove yourself over the scavengers, the meaning of your mission.
You towered over the sea of scavengers that had tried to take you down as they desperately clawed at you for life, dawning the king’s mask you would finally at last prove yourself as the apex, the strongest in this world, for the ones you lost, you will overpower the king.
…
You woke up once more, it was time to finish the job. The fat one still slept soundly as you fled the shelter. How ignorant they were, not that you didn’t appreciate your time with them but you could not be this stupid, you were trying to search for that same feeling you felt all back then, you didn’t want to be alone, you needed someone to be beside you or to take care of. But you couldn't be chasing these fleeting feelings, when slaying the king will give you everything you’ve ever ever wanted. You can finally make your children proud.
As you reached the apex of the wall, the city in sight, you saw a tribe as Scavengers trekking the steely ground, typical. They were probably up here to scrounge up more of the pink thing’s parts. No matter, you would make quick work of them. You jumped atop one of the cliffs and propelled yourself over the scavengers, catching them off guard. You immediately casted a spear upon one of them, piercing them into the cliffside. The three other scavengers immediately took a fighting stance and backed away from you, trying to gain distance. You wouldn’t let them get enough distance to aim, you sprinted towards them with a malice in your heart.
It was very tough to fight the Scavengers here, the terrain was almost completely flat, not giving you a vantage point to dodge their spears. You had one even pierced through you at one point, but you tanked it. Two down now, this was getting tiring though you had to exert yourself far more in this kind of battle. But you had to do this, you had to prove yourself, otherwise what the hell had you been doing for all these cycles? This had to be worth something, you couldn’t just back out now after all of this. It was for them it always was! It’s what your kids would’ve wanted. They would want you to prove yourself as strong, strong enough to protect them at their weakest moments, from these wretched beasts that had caused them so much pain! You loved them didn’t you? So finish it! Prove your worth as a creature in these hellish cycles by making everything fear you! FINISH THE JOB-
…
Someone stepped in front of you, it was your friend in an attempt to protect you. You had dissociated and realized you had multiple spears through you, your bruised battered body bled all over as the seething pain started to overwhelm you. Must've gotten really lucky to tank all of those spear throws, but it hurt like hell. You couldn’t even move, you just stared at your rotund friend as they blocked you with their entire body.
But you could slightly see the scavenger’s confused stares at your friend. One of them even raised their spear at them but the other scavenger motioned them to lower it. Was your friend acquainted with the scavengers? Why? As far as you were aware most scavengers were aggressive towards your kind, not just you. How could they be friends with such disgusting creatures? After a long standoff the scavengers eventually got frustrated and left, angrily carrying the corpses of their fallen brethren behind them.
Your friend carried your broken and torn up body to the cliff of the wall, setting you down to breathe. Out of its stomach it pulled out this substance that seemed to be made of plant leaves, they wrapped them around your wounds for some reason, you didn’t really understand it. Though now that you thought about it, you supposed this stops anything from getting in your wounds, smart. You could still barely move though, you felt so weak here, lying on the ground, having to be saved by someone else. How pitiful, is this what your kids would’ve wanted? A mother who could barely even take a group of scavengers because of her own emotions? Maybe you weren’t worth anything.
…
The rotund one inched closer to you, ensuring you had their warmth at your lowest moment. It was a brief respite from your unfathomable pain at the moment as you both stared out at the sky, the gigantic steel monoliths jutting up above the clouds, you started to think of where you came from. You didn’t really remember your origin, you just showed up in this strange metallic hellscape one day, fending for your life. Was there anything before that, was your life always like this? It couldn’t have been, there was a point in your life where you were happy, you had children that you loved and protected with your life, or at least you thought you did, but at some point you were sent on a one way trip here, and you were never the same. Forced to live in an industrial hellscape where everything struggled to survive, every cycle started to blur together, you became far more apathetic, killing everything in sight, proving yourself as something to be feared. But as time went on, you became far less receptive towards others, forgetting your children in shelters occasionally, starting to care less and less about them as the world grew harsher towards you, and that’s when it happened, you forgot everything, and there was nothing but the urge to hurt in your heart.
…
Your friend motioned their arm over the sky, beyond the giant wall this place created. Was the life you forgot beyond them? Was your friend trying to return there? There was a slight bit of curiosity as to what living beyond the walls would be like, but you had already accustomed yourself to a life of bloodshed. But it almost seemed like… they wanted you to come with them.
But you questioned why they even liked you in the first place, what they saw in you. All this place left of you was a decrepit soul in a repeating pattern of violence, what good was there in you? Maybe they just wanted someone to protect them from this world’s horrors, but it felt like more than that. The way you both twirled around in the pink thing’s chamber, how they eagerly awaited you to eat the food they gave you, the way they protected you from the scavengers. It felt so sweet and innocent, almost sickeningly. But maybe that naive belief of companionship was something to cling on to, your kind rarely inhabited these walls after all. The concept of having someone to fall back on in these endless cycles was just pleasant to us.
You peered back at the city, which you could barely see above the wall, you still had a job to finish, but you couldn’t do it in this state, not a chance. But as you sat here, barely holding onto life, your desire to slay the king was a lot less potent. Did you really want to keep perpetuating this cycle of violence over and over? It was growing tiresome, constantly exerting yourself for a sense of false closure, when you were probably never going to have that. But in spite of all that, the thought still scratched your mind, you still needed to prove yourself as worth something, that’s why you set out on this quest in the first place. But… maybe there were other ways to prove yourself after all of this, to prove yourself to your new friend instead of fighting battles for beings long gone. You still felt hate in your heart, but perhaps you should rest for a moment, see what life is like beyond these walls, and if it does not satisfy you, you will come back to this very wall and find the closure you so desperately desire.
The Gourmand carried your tired and writhing body down the wall, unflinching and completely attentive of any danger that might pursue them on their descent. This would not be the end of your turmoil, but at the very least this was the start of something new, rather than perpetuating a cycle of violence. You would make your children proud, you would make the Gourmand proud, you would live on for them, whatever path you may take. Even if those intrusive thoughts of finding that sacred closure still rotted your mind, and you simply could not control them. You supposed you would see what happened, there’s no telling what path you might take. But for now, you left the job unfinished.