Hunger… it’s an interesting feeling. One would try to avoid it. We, humans, stuff our bellies over and over again in the hope of never feeling it. We fight, we work… and we die so that others won’t feel it. But once we do feel it, it drives us to act. It pushes us to survive, to find food, to continue living. The body’s automatic reaction stimulates our brain, our emotions. Hunger also could be a useful tool. It could be used to manipulate others or even drive someone insane… ARE YOU LISTENING? Albert!

  Sparks flew in my direction as I had been watching the birds in the sky. I immediately turned back to the man delivering this speech.

  — Sorry, Mayster. I am listening and writing it down. I demonstratively dipped the quill into the ink and kept writing.

  — Tsk. Hunger. As a future lord, you should know how to ensure your peasants have enough food — but not too much, so they keep working. And not too little, or they will eat you instead… figuratively speaking….

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  My stomach rumbled loudly. I’m so scared… but I can’t stay here… it’s definitely not a dream. But even if it were one, I wouldn’t know how to get outside of this dream. I was waiting and waiting for someone to help me, but it became apparent that no one was going to save me. And I don’t even understand who I was waiting for. I don’t want to, but my body tells me to move. To find something to eat, to do, to survive.

  I can’t see, so I start to crawl. I can feel mud and rocks under my hands. Sometimes there is something soft, but I don’t want to know what it is. Maybe it’s for the best that I can’t see. If I can’t see it, it doesn’t exist… it doesn’t exist… EW.

  I felt something slimy and pulsating.

  — Eeeeek!

  It was the first time I used my voice… unintentionally. So loud. My ears are ringing now. Wait… what was that slimy thing? I moved my hands to touch it again… okay, it’s slimy… pulsating, and somehow, I don’t feel disgust. I try to understand its shape by touching it, and it seems that it’s some sort of giant slug. Probably twice the size of my arm.

  My stomach rumbles again.

  No, no… I shook my head to get rid of intrusive thoughts. I’m not even trying to eat it. That’s gross. Maybe I can find something else.

  But before moving forward, all of a sudden, I felt fear emanating from this pulsating slimy creature. How do I know? It started to move really fast — as fast as a slug could move!

  The earth started to shake under me more and more.

  — Arghh, no!

  I felt like I was sinking down, so I followed the direction of the slug’s movement. I crawled after it, trying to keep in contact with the slug, but whatever was chasing us was getting closer and closer. I could feel it.

  — Aaaaaaaa! I screamed. Something bit me! Me and the slug.

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  With the side of my body, I felt something cold and solid with tiny little hairs. It was like some giant insect. I tried to push it away, but to no result. I could hear the clicking sound of tiny little legs… or maybe it was sound of mandibles. This is so scary. I can’t bring myself to move.

  — AAAAAAAAAAGH!

  I can feel sharp pain in my right arm again. I have never felt anything like that. I have to move, I have to… fight. Fucking monster. No, I won’t let you eat me. I start fighting it with all the strength I have. I try to grab it with my right hand, but I can’t. Suddenly, a dark realization comes to me. I have no hand. This thing — it ate my hand!

  — I hate you, I hate you! It’s my hand! Give it back! You monster! Tears are streaming down my face as I punch it with whatever is left of my right arm.

  I feel that the slug has repositioned itself behind me, so now I’m in between the monster and its prey.

  I try my best to kick in the general direction of the monster, but I can only feel its solid, chitinous surface. My heels are hurting; I clearly can’t do anything to that...that…thing. At least now I know the shape of what will eat me. It’s a giant moving cylinder with no soft spots.

  I hear an angry screech coming from it. The monster lunges toward the slug, and for whatever reason I instinctively put my left arm out for protection. The insect-like cylinder starts biting my left arm.

  — NO, STOP IT! STOP IT! DAMN YOU!

  With these words, I shove my arm deeper into the creature’s maw… and I feel that it’s soft inside. I start scratching, trying to deal any sort of damage. Meanwhile, the creature is already chewing on my shoulder.

  Screaming louder and louder, I try to fight the monster in complete darkness. I can feel warm liquid pouring over me from the area of my shoulder. Is that my blood? No, no, no.

  Furiously, I try to find any weak spot, anything that would repel that thing. And in this moment, I feel something with my left arm. There is something inside this monster that I can hold on to. I grab it and try to pull it out, despite the agonizing pain in my shoulder.

  — Aaaerghhhh!

  I heard it…Realization hit me. Now the insect’s sound was not anger; it was clearly pain — and something else.

  Another high-pitched scream came from my mouth. I grabbed whatever I was holding and pulled it out as hard as I could with whatever strength I had left. I felt the monster’s teeth tearing chunks of flesh from my left shoulder and then my arm… and then I felt something tear off.

  It was whatever organ I had been holding in my hand.

  Warm liquid started flowing all over me, coming from the maw of that monster.

  With that, the monster fell.

  I… I’m alive. I tried to touch my left shoulder, but my right hand was already gone.

  I tried to move my left hand… but I couldn’t. I’m losing blood. I instantly remember that someone once taught me you can’t lose too much blood, or you… will… die…

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  I see someone. It is so bright here, I can’t make out the shape of what I’m seeing. It feels so warm and sunny. I found myself running toward the shape of the human in front of me. Who are you? I want to be with you. I… I think I always wanted to. I thought that we would always be together. But the vision is slowly fading away. Don’t leave me, please. No, don’t leave me. Please don’t let me go. I run as fast as I can toward the fleeting vision, but my body doesn’t move fast enough. Not even close. It’s like I’m moving through dough. It’s not fair… not fair. Tears are running down my cheeks again. But I still feel the warmth. I feel the warmth on my shoulder.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Can’t say how much time passed. Not that I was trying to keep track. My brain is waking up from sleep. It’s so nice and cozy here. But it feels so weird. So slimy. I open my eyes and see a faint glow. In regular circumstances, I would scream and run away as fast as I can, but I do not have enough strength to even move my finger.

  — Slug… it’s you. I cough up blood. You saved me somehow?

  A faint green glow is emanating from dozens of slugs that surround me. They are moving all around me. I am covered in slime, and it feels like I’m a piece of cheese inside a pot of melted butter. But I feel warmth. I can’t turn my head, but I move my eyeballs and faintly see the red corpse of the insect-thing in a puddle of blue liquid. That horrible creature was almost my size. I faint again.