It has been a long time. Two… maybe three years…
The world has fallen into chaos.
The parasites killed everyone.
I heard nuclear warheads explode, but even that couldn’t stop them. These creatures evolved. They grew stronger, adapted to high temperatures and radiation. It feels like they are simply impossible to kill.
But one detail still gave a sliver of hope.
Fire.
If the parasites aren’t of the elite level, they burn like matches.
But the elite ones… they don’t care. They don’t even feel pain.
And me…
All this time, I have been killing.
Killing the innocent.
Their blood is on my hands… Even if these weren’t my actions…
They died by my hand.
Today, as always, they send me on a raid.
First, they made me destroy my own country.
Then the neighboring ones.
Now we are entering Russia.
But among thousands of corpses, among the ruined cities, I have not found the bodies of my father and friends.
That means there’s a chance.
That means they might still be alive…
We are walking on foot.
It’s strange.
Why aren’t we being transported by the mothership?
Maybe they’re afraid Russia still has warheads?
Though, why am I even surprised… This is Russia. They always have warheads.
— Hey, Ghost, — one of the parasites from the group called out to me.
He had been trying to talk to me since the beginning of the march.
The body remained silent.
The other parasites chuckled.
— Seriously, dude? It’s been almost three years, and he hasn’t even whimpered in pain.
I don’t care.
After so many killings, I feel nothing.
Screams.
Crying.
Corpses.
I just want it all to end.
I just want to die.
Let this creature take my body…
But let me cease to exist.
I don’t want to feel this again…
How my hands kill a human…
We approach the Russian border.
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
And then—an explosion.
Loud.
Deafening.
The front row of weak parasites is blown to pieces.
— We’re under attack! — someone shouts.
Gunfire.
RPG rockets.
The parasites scurry around, trying to locate the enemy.
— Ghost! — Alagana commands. — Run! Now! Kill everyone with a weapon!
I wasn’t going to do it.
But my body decided for me.
I lunged forward.
Bullets flew toward me, but my body weaved between them as if it already knew their trajectory.
Boom! Another explosion, but I was already on the tower.
I saw them.
Humans.
They were afraid.
But my body did not hesitate.
I heard screams.
Felt warm blood on my hands.
And nothing.
Just emptiness.
I… I feel nothing anymore.
I lost my humanity.
When it was over, the parasites praised me.
— Excellent work, Ghost.
I always thought they were just puppets.
But now…
I realized they could feel emotions.
They could love.
They could get angry.
They could cry.
Some twisted joke.
As if the Earth created them not for anything else but one thing:
To destroy humanity.
We moved deeper into Russia.
— Stay alert, — said Alagana. — They might have called reinforcements.
We continued forward, but everything was empty.
Too empty.
— We split up.
She assigned everyone to groups.
They took me with them—in Alagana’s team, along with Malenia, Graham, and Karib.
We walked for a long time.
Day turned to night.
And then…
— A village.
Small houses, a fence, dim firelight.
— Ghost, scout the area, — ordered Alagana.
I didn’t care.
But my body obeyed.
I slid through the darkness.
Climbed over the fence.
Scaled the rooftop.
From above, I saw them.
Children playing.
Adults talking.
Caring for each other.
They were alive.
And I…
I counted.
129 people.
The body returned to the group.
My body reported everything with gestures.
— Perfect, — Alagana said. — Now’s the ideal moment. Their skin is too pale; they won’t see us.
She smiled.
— Begin.
They moved into the village silently, each taking position.
Deiv didn’t care.
He just closed his eyes, surrendering control to the body. Let that bastard do whatever he wanted.
Alagana gave the signal. Karib was the first to rush in, his claws tearing through an old man’s throat.
People screamed. Some grabbed their children and ran. Others burst out of houses with weapons.
The parasites charged. The slaughter began.
Deiv’s body walked through the chaos, ignoring the screams, the blood, and the gunpowder smoke.
It stopped near a child crying over his dead father.
Deiv needed only one look.
A memory hit him, flooding his mind—he once stood the same way, crying over his dead mother.
A GUNSHOT.
His body jerked but didn’t fall.
And then…
Voices.
“These… voices… No… No… NO! WHAT ARE THEY DOING HERE?!”
The child used the moment to get up and run.
Deiv’s body slowly turned.
Two men stood behind him.
His father.
Levan.
They froze.
Deiv stopped moving.
— D… Deiv… SON?! — his father’s voice trembled.
Levan stared at him, eyes wide.
Panic.
A panic he hadn’t felt in years.
“NO… NO… RUN… RUN!!!”
But they didn’t move.
Their bodies were paralyzed by fear.
His father couldn’t shoot.
Levan couldn’t shoot.
Deiv’s body took a step toward them.
“STOP!!! DON’T DO THIS!!! PLEASE!!!”
But the parasite didn’t listen.
The body grabbed Levan by the throat.
— Deiv… — his friend croaked but couldn’t say more.
Claws pierced his throat.
“NO!!! STOP!!! I’M BEGGING YOU!!!”
Levan choked, drowning in his own blood.
The body threw him aside like a broken doll.
His father watched, unable to believe what he saw.
His eyes filled with tears.
— Son… if you… can hear me… know… I lo…
Claws slashed his throat.
Blood gushed out.
His father fell.
The world stopped.
“Mom… Dad… Friends… They’re gone… I… I…”
“GHRAAAAAAAAH!!!!!!!”
Deiv screamed.
A fury he had never felt before.
A rage that burned his mind.
He felt it—where the creature was hiding.
It lurked inside his head.
Deiv seized control of his arm and yanked it back.
RIP IT OUT!!!
Claws plunged into the back of his skull.
The parasite twitched.
It tried to escape.
“You WON’T get away!!!”
Deiv gripped it, clenched his fingers, and through the unbearable pain—RIPPED IT OUT.
The creature writhed, screeched like a worm thrown into the sun.
Deiv stared into its soul.
And for the first time in years, he spoke aloud:
— Die.
CRACK.
The parasite’s head burst in his fist.
Silence.
He… was free.
Deiv stood, looking at the corpses.
He wanted to cry.
But he couldn’t.
— Ha-ha, what, admiring the corpses? — Graham’s voice broke the silence.
Deiv was silent.
— Hey, Ghost, what’s wro—
A lunge.
Graham’s throat was in Deiv’s grip.
— Ghost… What… are… you… doing…?
Deiv raised his head.
His eyes.
Pure, unbridled rage.
Graham trembled. The parasite squirmed. His eyes widened in horror.
— Die, scum.
CRACK.
The spine detached from the skull.
Deiv stood, holding Graham’s body in one hand, his head in the other.
He threw them aside.
From the darkness, Alagana, Malenia, and Karib stepped forward.
They froze.
— What… WHAT ARE YOU DOING, GHOST?! — Alagana stared at him in horror.
Deiv turned.
Their fear pierced the air.
In his eyes was pure, unrestrained rage.
He looked at them like a beast unleashed.
They knew—he would kill them.
But they couldn’t move.
They were afraid of him.
