Try exhaling through both your mouth and nose at the same time. That's right. The same amount of air should come out of both your mouth and nose. It's a weird sensation, isn't it? Kind of difficult, right? But possible. You can do it if you focus.
Now, do the same thing when you inhale. Breathe in through both your mouth and nose simultaneously. Feel the air filling your lungs from both directions. It's even harder than exhaling, right? But you can still manage it.
Then, create a cycle of exhaling and inhaling. Go on, just feel it. Feel the rhythm of your breathing and how it affects your body. Now, look at yourself in the mirror. What do you see?
Congratulations! You have unlocked an achievement: you now look creepy. But don't do it in public. (wink) People might think you are a weirdo or a monster. You don't want that, do you?
Gotcha! I tricked you into doing something silly and pointless. Did you enjoy it? Did you laugh at yourself? I hope you did.
Kukuku. That's my evil laugh.
Kazu, out.
◇
Have you ever poked a pile of stinky poop before? You haven't? I guess it's very rare, huh. Anyway, even if it's disgusting, if something very important is inside it, you have no choice. Yeah, you are in deep shit.
Well, actually, I was.
I once dropped my identification ring in a mound of foul-smelling poop, and I had to do what I had to do. So I did the deed, but I missed and made too many attempts. Dammit! Sigh, good thing they now made the identification ring into a bracelet. It was a special device that allowed me to access my bank account and personal data. Without it, I would be in big trouble.
But here I am about to do it again, poking some disgusting thing. Things really repeat, huh. The environment changed almost unrecognizably but still looped in a cycle.
"Just wow…"
Pulling out my phone from my pocket, I stare at it and whisper, 'Sorry I doubted you.'
The mountain range that used to dominate the landscape has been reduced to a gaping sinkhole. The hole is so wide that it could swallow three mountains whole, devouring part of the dense forest on the other side of the range. I stand still in disbelief, mesmerized by the power of the blast.
But even with its length, the mountain range now has a gap that mars its beauty. I cough as I breathe in the dust and smoke that still linger in the air. Debris is everywhere, rocks of different sizes. Some are as big as a car, some are as small as a pebble. The ground is littered with them, making it hard to walk.
However, when I turn to the opposite direction, I search for any signs of life. There he is, Frederick. Lying on his back, he looks relaxed and peaceful. Sunbathing as if he is on vacation.
With the help of the scorching sun, his massive physique is now clearly visible. Truly massive. Amazing. His body is a masterpiece of muscle and strength, worthy of a Greek god or a superhero. That is… if his face is not ugly.
Is he dead? He is not moving at all. But his body seems to have no damages. I am about a kilometer away from him, his right side facing me.
I decide to walk towards him, curious if I killed him. As I do, I can see some parts of the ground are overturned, there are even deep craters over there.
◇
I stand beside Frederick, who is lying down on the ground making him now one-third of the height of the mountain. 'Still high though' He towers over me like a skyscraper, no, he is taller than any average skyscraper, maybe two buildings of 25 floors each. He has a strange pattern all over his skin, like a fingerprint. It looks like some kind of mark or tattoo. His skin is slightly darker than my armpit. His chest is moving up and down. 'So, still alive, huh', but why are you sleeping here? We're supposed to be fighting, remember?
Come on, come on, let's fight. I kick his arm, but receive no response at all. He doesn't even flinch or groan. He is completely unconscious. Is he in a coma or something? Well, my kick is not that powerful.
Hmm, I don't feel like winning without a real battle. So far we only tested each other's strength, I can't even call this a fight.
"Come on Frederick! If you don't wake up I'll do an explosion again. With this distance you won't survive." I threaten him, but I hesitate as I look at my newly crafted knife. 'Explosion means losing this knife too…' It's a precious weapon that I made with my own body. I don't want to lose it so soon. Let's just postpone that explosion. "Eh, you're quite lucky Frederick"
What now?
Ah! Hehehe. I suddenly get an idea. I will rob his precious magic stone out of his body while he is sleeping, kukuku. Robbing a robber ain't a robbery, right? He stole mine, so I'm just taking it back. It's fair and square.
I wonder how big it is. Wait, can I even take it out? I wonder how I can take out his magic stone if it's really big. Nah, let's see it first, maybe I can break it into pieces.
I climb through his clawed hands, 'Shush, he smells like shit, just take a bath man even once in a while'. He is filthy and stinky. This dude doesn't care about hygiene or appearance.
◇
I stand beneath his chest, overlooking his entire body, and wonder why he has pants on. Isn't it strange for a monster to wear clothes? They have a dark red color, and a design like a skirt with no splits. They also have some kind of alloy on each side of his waist, like an armor. Well, they are full of holes and in tattered condition, maybe because of my explosion earlier.
Is he a warrior or something? I wonder. I thought he was just a mindless beast. Does he have a home then? Heh, that's interesting. I'll think about that later.
I look at his head, he looks really creepy even from this viewpoint. Those chins are disgusting to look at, they have some sort of liquid on them.
I estimate the possible location of the magic stone based on my experience. I stab it with my knife, ughh, but no matter how hard I push it won't sink. Even slicing doesn't work.
"You're too sturdy." I'm not surprised that your body is intact despite my explosion.
Sigh.
"Fine," I say as I cut between my armpit and snap my arm. Crack! It makes a sound, much easier to remove with the help of a knife. Am I a chicken or something? I feel like crying.
I align my armless shoulder and restart. A hole has been formed, but it looks so small and shallow. This is still his skin, should I continue? This is going to be hard labor.
I continue the process and I make a hole with a radius of one meter, enough for me to fit in. But it's quite hard to make it even deeper. "What the…"
I quickly exit the hole. 'That was close.' I almost got trapped inside. The surface of his skin starts to heal, it's slow but it's noticeable.
Are you kidding me? On top of his sturdy body he has a regeneration skill? Damn man, how powerful can you get?
I'm considering if I should just explode everything. If he is this tough, his magic stone might survive. No, let's do that after more digging. I'll change my pace.
◇
As I dig deeper into the flesh and muscle, I encounter a squishy substance in my arm. I pull my hand out and see a viscous fluid or mud on it. It has a dark yellow color. "Blurrggghh…" I gag and clutch my stomach. I sniff it but it has no smell, hmmm, weird stuff. It reminds me of mashed potatoes, should I taste it? No, that's gross and insane. But no one is watching. Why do I feel this urge? No, something is wrong here.
I leap out of the wound and shake off the temptation. And I wonder, why?
I grimace and decide to end this madness, to blow up this thing and forget everything that happened. Even though I feel reluctant after all the trouble, a cold shiver runs down my spine as I sense something evil inside him.
"Goodbye, Frederick. You've been a good neighbor." I say.
I'm about to twist my phone when something emerges from the hole I made.
As I fall back and scramble away, the potato-like substance crawls out and moves towards me.
"No way that shit can move!" I exclaim.
I try to twist my phone in a panic but I can't reach into my pocket, damn it! "Stay away from me! Don't. Don't come any closer!"
Hiikk!
It flings a chunk at me. But I stop in my crawling when I see a human face on the potato-thing, I can even see a hand stretching out to me. Then, it suddenly becomes still.
A human? My eyes widen and my heart races as I see another human for the first time. He looks so similar to me, with his pale skin, round eyes, and hairless body. He is like a long-lost brother to me. But I never expected to meet one in this kind of situation. Is he after the magic stone too? He is in deeper shit than me.