1 Birth of a Roach

I was just a small creature trapped in an egg. A yellow fluid surrounded my body. Such a warm, comfortable feeling. But then my skin felt like it was seething with hot wires. My eyes opened to the sight of yellow. And then a crack. I fell right onto the ground covered in viscous, yellow juice. It suddenly became so cold. I shivered as my skin hardened. Brown bones pierced outside of my body. They covered me head-to-toe. It felt unnatural, yet it soothed my body. When it was done, I looked at my own reflection in the juice. My eyes were completely yellow. My skin covered in a plate of bones - an exoskeleton. My face covered in a mask and helmet, yet I could see my own expressions. My face revealed a sharp set of teeth outside. I picked myself up, but my legs were so weak. I tried again. And again. Until I finally did.

I smelled the wet air. I looked around and saw yellow eggs covering every inch of the walls. Each egg contained another like me floating in liquid. When I touched one, a slimy substance attached to my hand. I pulled away in fear, but the slime was harmless and quickly broke apart. I wiped it away curious as to where I was and what.

It was quiet. Just the occasional sounds of splashing inside the egg sacs.

As I sniffed the air, there was an alluring aroma. I followed it out of the birthing chamber and deeper into the cavern systems. I followed the scent further as if it had taken a hold over me.

It was a dark and dank cave, but the moss and fungi glowed bright blue. And my eyes were well-adjusted to the dark. The cave was tremendous. And the amount of eggs was uncountable.

Then, as I walked, my stomach began to feel an intense pain. I was hungry and needed food. I looked at one of the egg sacs, and thought about eating that. But as I stared inside the semi-transparent egg, I couldn't bring myself to eat him. He didn't have the exoskeleton, but I felt a strange connection to him. But as my hunger grew, I had no time to ponder such questions. I saw a small rat crawling in the corner, and my first instinct was to grab it. It was quick, but I was quicker. It tried to bite my hand, but my armor protected me. At most, it tickled. Then, I opened my mouth and consumed the whole rat in one bite. It was scrumptious and juicy. I spit out the tail and continued following the scent.

However, as I went further in, the number of eggs had decreased until eventually I was met upon a large room full of skeletons and swords. Some exoskeletal plating laid bare. Some skeletons were completely different than my own. However, most of what was left were the remains of my own kind.

I felt danger as I walked through this room. The sound of crunching as I stepped on a half-chewed bone was all I could hear. Suddenly without warning, a giant spider four times my own size dropped down in front of me. It was chewing on the same kind of creatures as myself. I froze without any idea of what to do. My whole body felt adrenaline rush in. But I couldn't move. My heart beat faster and faster. But I couldn't move. My pupils dilated watching the spider.

And as it chewed, the creature spoke to me, "More cowards for food?"

The spider slowly approached me. My legs shook. But as quickly as it had dropped down, it ran into a sprint towards me.

I had to rely purely on instinct. I wanted to run away, but I saw the creature's speed. I wouldn't be able to match it. I took a step back but tripped on a sword. As the creature jumped above me to sink its fangs into me, I picked up the sword.

I took the sword and planned to plunge it deep into the spider's mouth. When I looked at the monster, I felt death coming towards me. I made a battle cry as it was about to drop onto me, and right before the creature fell atop my blade, it stopped. The spider stared into my unwavering eyes. It looked at my arms not shaking in the face of death. The sword was steady. I had already accepted death at that time. I knew I couldn't run. So, I had to fight. I did feel fear, but that was dragged down by my willingness to not go down without taking the monster with me.

The spider spoke once more, "I see no cowardice in you. You will make a fine roach."

"Ro...ach," I said. My first words. The creature that I was called - roach.