1 Prelude

Waking up to the sounds of a dozen screaming voices is not something I would wish on anyone.

Opening my eyes, I realised two things. First, I had no eyes. That alone was weird, as I am pretty sure you need eyes to see. The second thing I noticed was that I was standing over what looked like a toy town. If the toy had little monsters running around in it, that is.

"What the..." is what I would've said if my mouth—do I have a mouth?—moved. Instead, I just stood unmoving. Suddenly, I had the distinct feeling of being dragged away from a computer screen, and my vision vanished.

The sudden blindness startled me, resulting in my trying to resist. It was then that I realised that I wasn't the only one there. In fact, it felt like there were quite a few people around, all trying to move the same body I was in.

I stopped struggling and began to pay attention. The shouting around me sounded weird. It wasn't sound; it was more like intent or emotion. I just 'knew' what they were thinking. Or something along those lines. I could also feel that I wasn't the only one doing this, as there were a few people seemingly staying on the sidelines.

I tried to talk to them, and, just like all the noise around me, instead of sound coming out, it was my intent. A few stayed silent, while the remaining responded.

[Query] ("What is happening?") I asked.

[Unknown] ("No idea") Most of them responded.

[Theory] [Query] ("I think I have an idea, but I need to ask a few questions first.") One answered.

I raised my eyebrow, or whatever the equivalent was here, at that. Nonetheless, I agreed to answer a few questions, as did a few of the others.

[Query] ("What is the last thing you remember?")

I frowned slightly and thought about it. The last thing I remember was playing around on my PC. Although I am pretty sure I wasn't playing any games, I can't remember what I was doing on the TV.

[Response] ("using my PC")

[Answer] ("Filling out something on my PC")

[Answer] [Uncertainty] ("I'm playing a game, I think.")

[Response] ("A CYOA")

[Answer] ("I was sitting behind my desk in my room.")

Hmm? All the answers are quite similar, which gives me deja vu.

As we answered, the shouting around us slowly decreased as people paid attention to what we were saying. A few even gave their own answers. Despite that, I can still feel the constant attempts to control the body.

The One Who Asked—I am calling him that now—sounded deep in thought after hearing our responses.

[Caution] [Dread] ("I see, I think I understand our situation, and it doesn't look good.")

I frown; that doesn't sound good at all. A few others seemed to think so as well, as some of the more violent ones began throwing around threats. The one who asked got annoyed and told him to shut up, and a few backed him up.

[Theory] [Connection] [Transfer]

Suddenly, I felt sick. like if someone threw my head into a blender. From the shouting around me, I can tell I am not the only one.

The headache subsided quickly, and what remained was a set of memories. How did I know it was memories? Because I can remember it now more clearly than before. The last thing we did before we appeared here

Yes, we. All of us realised that at that moment. We realise we were fucked.

The noise of questions and simple screaming could be heard all around me. Even the one who asked couldn't stop it. The only reason I didn't break down alongside everyone else was simply because I felt an annoying itch at my feet that wouldn't go away. It's even more annoying since I don't have feet.

I loudly groan. Ok, so I seemed to wake up with the power set I chose from a CYOA. Fine, I can handle that. Of course, my luck would choose the most broken, in various ways, one of them all.

I can't remember the specifics; I'm pretty sure that's due to me picking to forget the plot for extra points, but I can remember enough of both the perks and drawbacks I chose for this one. A monster that can gain dozens of powers at once in exchange for a fragmented mind that goes Alien X on the body. Damn it all, and damn that itch!

[Anger] [Demand] [Nuisance] ("Can we all shut the hell up? This itch is getting painfully irritating, and you all aren't helping!") I shouted at the others. A few went quiet, a few others fired back, and the remaining ignored me.

A few minutes passed before everyone had become quiet, all of them feeling the same amount of irritation I felt.

[Annoyance] was the easiest way to sum up our collection thoughts.

The body seemed to move. We turned our heads and faced the source. Not the small man, but what was connected to him. A being that gave the man his power. A connection was formed. It tried to communicate; a few wanted to respond, but the majority ignored it and attacked.

The being tried to combat us, but it couldn't use most of its powers, while on the other hand, it was in a whole different dimension, allowing it to evade our attacks.

We learned and adapted. We aimed for the connection. We seized it, tore into it, and took control. The small man was on the ground, his creations unmoving like statues. We decided, we prepared, and new abilities were gained. New plans were formed. We commanded, the creatures obeyed, and they came. We analyzed them, absorbing the new data.

We analysed it, learned it, and understood it. We felt [disgust/indifference/amusement]. We swapped, shaped, and rebuilt.

We continued working, with a few problems appearing as we focused. We didn't even notice the hours passing.

As the last one was fixed, it was then that we fully took note of our actions, our coordination, our fluidity, and how we became one. And as we realised that, we slept.