2 What Lies Beyond Death
"Day" 1
*Silence*
She woke up dazed, confused about what had happened to her prior as she tried to look at her surroundings for any clues on her whereabouts. Blinking her eyes, everything was dark, yet she couldn't see the stars or even the walls of the alley she slept in- she had a sneaking suspicion that something was wrong, but couldn't really concentrate on the issue.
...
I tried moving around but I couldn't feel my arms and feet. "Strange..." I whispered under my breath and pushed the odd feeling aside, thinking that I was just numb all over after sleeping in a cold and stinky alley...
*skre*
It was strange... I couldn't feel my limbs, but I could somewhat feel my body; curved in what seemed like a fetal position.
What was even stranger was my neck- or the lack thereof... It felt like my head and body were one, with no neck connecting them together...
'...Weird... I wonder if this is how that guy in that particular dating show felt like...'
Setting aside those silly thoughts, she focused on her other senses. It felt warm and soft, like being in a warm hug. Although I couldn't feel my limbs, I could still feel my body, so I wriggled my body, feeling something... I was enveloped by something. I tried pushing against the 'casing' with my skin; ...it felt... soft and smooth yet elastic and tough. The sensation reminded me kind of like the membrane I would remove whenever I cooked ribs...
I stopped prodding on the membrane-like casing I was in and gathered my thoughts. 'What is this place?... the last thing I remember was being homeless and sleeping in a dirty alley while holding a- ... a larva...'
I felt something click as I recalled all the things I had observed and felt thus far. '...Is it really possible...?' I questioned as I made a mental image of my body shape; round, plump, and... elongated. I couldn't say much about my head or face at that.
'I can still feel that I have eyes... maybe with an extra pair... I think... as for my mouth...' I pondered as I tried moving my mouth: 'up~ yosh, down~ naruhudo, sideways~ -... ' I stopped... 'That's weird... I'm sure that I must be imagining things, calm down me' After calming myself down and doing some breathing exercises, I tried again: 'Up and down seems to open normally...'
*SIGH*
'...sadly... it seems I can ALSO open my mouth on either side...' I sighed as I came to this conclusion. I don't know what happened, but I'm certainly no longer human from the feels of it...
'Anyways~ I'm pretty sure I'm also a larva now, being human sucks anyways~' I thought giving myself some clarity and assurance which was much needed~ It wasn't every day that you discover being able to open your mouth... or maw, to open up into four mouth-part pieces~
Shifting my thoughts, I couldn't help but look at the membrane-like thing encasing me, which must be my egg... but that's beside the point. It seemed like it was changing color; from its previously indistinguishable color, it seemed to be slightly transparent as the light slowly shone through it, 'I can see the outside from here!' I thought surprised, but really, at best, I could only make out blurry silhouettes of green leaves and that I could hear the shuffling of leaves in the wind 'How relaxing~.'
I wanted to go outside so badly, but I'm afraid of my egg... "What if I break through my egg and was born premature..." I exclaimed to myself.
"AH! Oh boy, it would be so useful if I had a system right now!~" I said dramatically to no one in particular, hoping some voice would appear...
...
*silence*
...
Welp! That was disappointing...
'Whatever... it's warm and cozy here in my egg anyway, I'll just sleep things out...' I thought as I closed my eyes, the sound of wind shuffling across the canopy becoming a relaxing background music.
...
-----------------------------
[Day 2]
...
I opened my eyes after a long sleep. There was nothing much to do in this egg, so cozy and warm, that's why to sleep all day- I did~.
I looked at the previously blurry transparent egg case I was in and saw that it had become much clearer and slightly more cramped. I didn't really know if it meant I was ready to hatch...but I didn't want to take my chances on being a premature baby larva so I waited...
-----------------------------
[Day 3]
...
I woke up. None were the times of dazed waking...
"Agh! fuck!" I yelled. It felt like I was being squeezed slim, it reminded me of the times I had to wear a corset for a play, it was a good thing that I wasn't claustrophobic, but it still did feel uncomfortable, so~ I decided to put my mouth to use~ Opening my maws widely I bit on the egg case, creating a slit big enough for me to fit my head.
"I'm free!" I exclaimed in euphoria as I took in the view, my head poking out of the egg. I was on top of a small tree in what seemed like a clearing inside of a forest.
*whoosh*
A gust of wind shuffled the canopies as rays of light pierced through them, shining upon my face, 'It feels... nice~' I thought as I looked back to my egg. My mouth felt sweet from earlier when I bit my egg case...
"Most larvae eat their eggshells, right?" I questioned, but didn't really care much since it tasted delicious! It was crispy and smooth, but as soon as you ate it, it would melt in your mouth~ Without second thoughts, I began eating my egg casing as I slowly freed the rest of my body...
I lay on my back, satisfied, as I raised my upper body slightly, observing my new form. "I must say, for something most humans are disgusted by, I look rather cute~ " I said, puffing my imaginary chest in pride.
I looked plump and long. My cream-colored body was thick and beautiful, shining in an iridescent sheen in the light of the sun, though in normal lighting and the shade I look more peach-colored with a tint of blue.
"But best of all-" I shook my upper body proudly as three pairs of limp, soft limbs dangled with my movements. "-I have limbs!" I said in excitement, feeling giddy.
AN: Pic here for reference pic <3< p>
"Granted, they're still soft since I just got out of my egg but its nice to know I can grab on to things~" I mumbled to myself as I lay on my back gently, making sure I don't bend or stretch my still soft limbs so I don't become deformed as my exoskeleton in my limbs hardens.
>>A few moments later<<
*gReEwLcK*
My stomach rumbled, seemingly finished digesting my egg casing.
...
[Notice! Initializing system rights...]
[Loading...]
"Eh...?!" I exclaim surprised, but still not moving an inch, worried about damaging my precious limbs that were still in the process of hardening.
[Loading...]
...
[Loading...]
...
>>5 minutes later<<
"...Damn, it's taking its time. My excitement already died down..." I stared at the air, deadpanned.
[ERROR! Otherworldly soul detected]
[ERROR! Aberrant lifeform detected!]
...
[Adjusting Universal System. Granting access for 『Reincarnator』. Success!]
[Granting Gift: Unique skill 『Relentless』. Success]
...
[Adjusting Universal System. Granting access for a new {branch of lifeform} 『Void Beast』. FAILED!]
...
[Re-executing...]
...
[FAILED!]
[Re-executing...]
[FAILED!]
...
.....
>>69th Failure<<
.....
...
[Sacrificing Unique skill 『Relentless』. Requesting alternative reiteration... Success!]
...
[Executing...]
[Adjusting Universal System. Granting access for the new {individual lifeform} 『Void Beast』. Success!]
I nodded, satisfied, as I looked at the air blankly, listening to the reports and the switching panels for every announcement in my line of sight.
[Granting Gift: Unique skill 『Oviparous』]
...
"...Fuck..." I paled.
