His lungs burned, his legs burned and his arms were useless. Mark was running but his mind was blanking out. He was moving fast or he thought he was moving fast.
But he could feel the creatures right on his heels. He was moving through the city, his feet making contact with the concrete floor. He could still feel the fear inside his mind as the creature had transformed.
At that moment, the phrase - curiosity killed the cat had never sounded truer. His body had stopped even breathing once that happened and his mind had blanked.
And then the second one had transformed which snapped the mind out of his daze and his body had reacted all of a sudden.
His moments were fast but not fast enough to outrun the monsters right on his heels. They were chasing him and only him. The city felt deserted and his feet took him through it. Why was there no human in sight?
Was he doomed to die alone? What could he use to defend himself? Could he even do it?
He had a gun but he did not have it on him. Where was his bag? Back at the park? What about his phone? Inside his bag - also back at the park.
He was going to die and he would never be found. Why had he let his curiosity lead him this way? What should he do?
His lungs felt as if they would give out at any moment and it was only a timely turn that saved him from the monster. His smaller, much smaller body made the turn but the larger mass of the dog could not react in time to do the same.
It gave him a few precious moments of space to breathe. Ones which did not feel enough as Mark could still hear the bark of those monsters, now twisted into something horrible.
He needed out of here and he needed it fast. Thankfully he was not in a closed alley but a junction. He needed to make his way back toward the park somehow.
His ability to think was slowly coming back now that he could not see the monsters any longer, but he could still hear them. He wanted to hide but now his much more rational mind pointed out a certain fact.
Those monsters evolved from animals so wasn't it likely that they could still sniff him out. It wasn't worth the risk.
But perhaps, if he could mask his scent somehow - then it would work. His current location evaded his mind but it felt familiar. Familiar enough that he could recall a supermarket nearby.
He needed perfume or a scent - anything to mask his natural smell. But he had no money and no phone. And there seemed to be no people around.
He would have to make do with his current conditions. Mark could feel his body break out into a run toward the nearest shop.
The door was closed. Why was the door closed? The area was a habitable space, why was the shop closed?
Mark pushed the door but it did not give way. It was a glass door, transparent and the store was a 24-hour store. It was not supposed to do that. Its sensor was supposed to see Mark and open up.
He had to try another shop before the monsters found him but the results were the same - there was just no opening the door. He could not even break the glass for he had nothing to do with it.
Now he was sure that this was not natural but nothing made sense at all. It felt more fantasy than real life at this point.
But hadn't he guessed it already? Liam had said that this world was a video game under development. The area was in his memory and he recognised it but he could not remember even visiting it before.
Why? Was it not important enough to fully develop? Then, what should he do now?
Mark could hear the growls coming near and the panic was rising inside his mind. His body made the unconscious play of running toward the alley. It was thin and small - a dead end for him if he were to get caught.
Just pass by. Please just pass by without looking, his mind chanted it all the while and his eyes shut down. He could feel the monsters coming close.
There were steps in his vicinity, but Mark could not make himself small enough. His mind was in a constant chant and the steps were right at his side.
And then they passed his place which made him let out a sigh of relief. He had survived somehow this time.
Once the steps faded the tension in his body left. It felt weightless now and lighter too. He could breathe again.
He needed to retrieve his bag somehow. Either then or somehow make his way to a safer spot. But his bag was the safer option because it had the gun from Liam inside it.
He would need it and he could feel that he would need it. But how would he get back? Those monsters could be anywhere right now and he would have no idea.
He could feel his mind racing and he needed help. He needed a map of the whole place. Time was ticking and he needed to leave as soon as he could.
There was just something in the air which didn't feel right. He felt like if he stayed here then he would die.
He ducked out of his alley and quickly made his way toward the one on the other side of the street. He could see the water tower a few blocks away which gave him a pretty good idea of where he was.
The park was a few blocks away and he could reach it if he was careful enough. But the feeling of doom was not gone at all. It was still very much there inside his mind.
He started to move as soon as he could. His eyes tracked the water tower as he moved, his ears out on alert for any noise he could hear. He needed to be careful and there were still no people around.
And then he saw it, his saving grace. The entrance to the park without any sound in his ear.
He made his way toward the fence and thankfully the wall was low enough for him to climb up. Now he was inside the park.
He made his way toward the place he had left his phone at, the place he had created the monster and spotted his bag right away. It laid there - untouched and he breathed a sigh of relief.
He picked it up and pulled his phone out at once. His hands hit the dial at the first contact he found.
"Mark, where are you? The system can't track you at all" Liam. It was Liam. Mark felt his breath come back to him now.
"The park that is a few blocks away from the station. There are monsters chasing me and there are two of them. They were ordinary dogs I was feeding and then they turned into monsters when I turned around. What is going on?" Mark could feel his voice leave him in a rush.
Liam let out a sigh, his voice suddenly sounding much more tired than before.
"It's that time already? Listen, Mark, you need to survive today. Just today will do. Even the next 3 hours will do. Just live that long. I'll send En and try to get Luna's body there too. Whatever you have to do - just live" Liam's sound sounded grave in his ear.
The fear that was leaving him came rushing back.
"You can't come yourself? Why? I'll die if those monsters catch me. And why today?" Mark could feel the hestia in his voice but he could not control it at all.
"Calm down. You were supposed to die right there in the park but you are still alive which is good. Things are changing already so don't worry and live. It'll be alright" Mark did not feel reassured.
Those words just terrified him more and his feet carried him away from the park. The park he was supposed to die in.
"What should I do now? There is no one around and all the shops have closed doors. Should I break the glass and enter?" Mark asked as he looked around. The area was deserted.
"Don't bother. That area was never developed fully so you won't be able to access the inside of any shop there. Just run around for now and do not let the monsters catch you. Set traps if you can to confuse them" That was easy for Laim to say.
Mark was the one in trouble and Liam was not helping. He was just feeding his fears now and it did not feel good at all.
"Please hurry" Mark pleaded as he rushed. Liam just hummed in confirmation before the call ended. Now it was a waiting game from here whether he would survive or not. He had to do something for he was not sure he was ready to die.
Just knowing that you were supposed to die right at a moment and having to live through it was terrifying, to say the least. Mark could feel his mind revolt against the idea. He did not want to die such a death.
He wanted to live and for that, he had to do something for himself
What should he do now?