CRASH—CRASH—the ceiling collapsed right before my eyes. Everything around me was chaos. Smoke and fire filled the air, and streaks of dark red blood were scattered across the floor. Where the hell am I? I looked down at my hands—they were covered in blood. But I wasn't hurt, didn't feel a thing. So… this isn't my blood? What the hell is going on?
From the thick, swirling smoke ahead came a hoarse, broken voice:
"This time… not… again? I could… feel it… here…"
I squinted toward the sound. Through the dense haze, a very tall figure gradually emerged. Almost human—except for its arms. They were absurdly long, grotesque, stretching down to the floor. In its hands, it held two round objects… like balls, I thought at first. I was still trying to figure out what they were when the smoke cleared a bit more. And then I saw them clearly.
"…What the hell is that?" I blurted out.
The thing standing before me wasn't human. Not even close. Its form flickered like a TV screen full of static, jagged lines overlapping—but somehow they forced themselves into a humanoid shape, with arms that hung all the way down to its legs. And then I saw what it was holding. My throat went dry—two human heads. Blood dripped steadily from them, drop by drop.
"…No."
"No, no, no—" I screamed, charging at it without thinking.
"You bastard!! What did you do to them!!??"
Those two heads… were my parents.
At that moment, it turned toward me. From its unrecognizable face, a crooked mouth opened—a crescent-moon grin.
"I've… found… you."
"The Fragment."
It lunged at me at a speed my eyes couldn't track.
"Ahhh!!!"
I woke up. Breath ragged, heart racing, sweat soaking my shirt. I looked at my hands—empty. Then at the person standing beside me.
"Ah, Mr. Dion. Looks like you had a nasty nightmare. But you know what's worse than that? My special lecture after class. Lucky for you, it's tomorrow, not today."
The classroom erupted in laughter.
"Damn it… not again," I muttered.
"Excuse me? What did you just say?" the professor asked, genuinely confused.
"I just meant… I understand, Professor Clayment" I replied.
"Good. Now, go splash some water on your face and wake up a bit," Professor Clayment said.
"Yes, sir" I said, standing and heading for the restroom.
I splashed water on my face, staring at my reflection in the mirror, fixing my messy hair. Even after all these years, I still dreamed of those damn nightmares. Logically, I couldn't even remember my parents' faces clearly—they had died in a car accident when I was ten, or at least that's what I was told. Now I lived with my cousin. He was often away on business and rarely home, so honestly, it was basically like living alone. But this time…it felt more real than usual. Could dreams really be memories? Had I forgotten something?
Back in class, Professor Clayment's history lecture was unbearably boring. But my mind was still tangled in that nightmare. After class, I checked my pen case, slung my bag over my shoulder, and headed out.
"I hope next time you take my class more seriously, Mr. Dion" Professor Clayment said as I approached the door.
I gave a small bow.
Lost in thought about the nightmare—and whether I should grab some donuts on the way —I suddenly heard a whisper in my ear:
"Disasters… wait for no one, Claudius."
Startled, I realized only one person would speak like that. I smirked.
"Then all we need to do is deal with whatever caused the disaster" I said.
"So… if the ice caps melt because of global warming, will you deal with humans—since they caused it?" she replied.
"That would make you a serial killer" Hinilia Hyvatia said, still whispering.
"Then… you'd have to deal with the one responsible for the mass killings—yourself" she added.
"Haah… seriously" I sighed.
Ah, right. The girl who always talks about creepy stuff—apocalypse, disasters, pandemics, demons… That's Hinilia. I have no idea how anyone could be friends with someone who mixes science and superstition in the same sentence. Maybe because we've known each other since childhood, I got used to her way of thinking. Thanks to her and her family, I survived a lot, especially after my parents passed away, I owed them more than I could ever say. I was truly grateful.
And me? Well, as she just called me… I'm Claudius—Claudius Dion, an ordinary guy with vague dreams. Right now, we study at Minavas University in Liorenne, Verdantia—Land of Green.
Even though I had top grades back in high school, I still chose to study h…
"Hey"
A voice cut through my self-indulgent thoughts.
"Lost in another reality again, Clau?" She asked, tilting her head slightly, a teasing smile playing on her lips.
"No, just thinking about donuts" I replied.
"Here…" she said, handing me a chocolate donut from her jacket. "If you're hungry, eat it."
"Thanks, I'll take it" I said, biting into it.
"What were you thinking just now? You looked serious" she asked.
"How to sleep through history class again without getting caught by Professor Clayment," I said seriously, like a detective solving a case.
"Haizzz… at this rate, you'll fail his class" she muttered.
"Well, seriously, why would anyone force IT students to study history? We need to look forward, not back" I retorted.
"But still… be serious enough that he doesn't hate and fail you" she reminded me.
We reached a fork in the road. I had to work at a convenience store after class to cover living expenses, so I went my separate way.
As I passed a dark alley behind the store—where the local punks often hung out—I heard a women scream. My instincts screamed "don't go"—mainly because every straw-hero in movies ends up dead in situations like this—but something told me I had to check.
"What the…"
A giant frog, as big as a lion, was gnawing on the upper half of a human body, its legs dangling. My mind went blank.