The cat continues to advance through the city, passing through destroyed stores and houses, when suddenly it hears a sound—a rustling sound like a crawling sound mixed with strong piercing thuds—rhythmically.
The cat suddenly gains attention, walks towards the house, and pushes open the door. The door starts to make a noise as it starts to open.
CREAK....CREAK...
The cat continues to walk inside the house despite its senses telling it not to, as it may have dangers unforeseen by itself. The cat, not minding the warnings its senses are telling it, continues to advance into the house.
The cat suddenly pauses, bending down to pick up a storybook near its feet. The cat opens the book... and suddenly falls to its knees, holding its head in pain, and starts to scream.
MEOW...MEOW....
Memories long buried rose to the surface. The cat saw itself as a kitten, nestled among its littermates, being tenderly groomed by a giant cat. Warmth and safety radiated from the memory.
Another image emerged: a giant hand, clad in gloves, lifting the cat from its haven. The cat felt the rush of warm water, followed by the gentle touch of cleaning. Later, it found itself confined to a cage alongside its family.
The cat's screams subsided, replaced by ragged breathing. Its eyes, once bright with curiosity, are now brimmed with tears. Memories of love and loss, abandonment and survival, swirled in its mind. Emotions unfamiliar to its newly developed brain.
As the visions faded, the cat stumbled backward, its legs scrambling for balance. The storybook slipped from its grasp, pages fluttering to the floor. The cat's mind reeled, struggling to comprehend the memories that had resurfaced and knowledge it never knew. Languages uttered by two legged creatures that it knew now were humans, the way their world worked when the city was still populated, and its name...
CAT: I am... Nexus!!! I got a name, Nexus!!! Nexus!!!
Suddenly, the cat's ears perked up. The rustling sound grew louder, closer. Whatever made it was now inside the house. The cat's survival instincts kicked in. It arched its back, fur standing on end, and let out a defiant hiss, still not used to its evolved form. The noise halted, and an unsettling silence fell.
Suddenly, out of the ground comes a giant centipede clad in dark armor-like scale that glowed darkly in the light escaping from the fractured roof. Seeing the centipede, Nexus stands firm, its glowing eyes locked on Khet. The air thickens with tension.
Centipede: I am...Khet creature...you have entered my territory.
NEXUS: I shall leave... then.
KHET: I shall decide what would happen to you; now kneel before me.
Nexus: (thinking) A prey...
Nexus remains standing...
KHET: (raising its body, threateningly) You dare defy me?
NEXUS: (voice steady) I will not back down.
Khet's antennae twitch wildly, sensing Nexus's determination.
KHET:(sneering)Foolish creature. You think you can survive here.
Nexus's tail twitches, a spark of fury igniting within.
NEXUS: (voice dropping to a growl) I've survived worse.
Khet's segments bristle, its legs trembling with rage.
KHET:(shrieking)Attack!
A swarm of smaller, venomous centipedes bursts from the shadows, descending upon Nexus. Nexus unsheathes its claws, ready to face the onslaught.
NEXUS:(roaring)Come!
The centipedes strike, their jaws snapping wildly. Nexus swings its claws, slicing through the horde. Khet charges forward, its massive body careening toward Nexus. The two collide, claws clashing, mandibles snapping.
Nexus crouched, ears flat against his skull.
The air vibrated with the eerie rustling of scales, signaling the approach of the centipede horse.
"Lets begin," Nexus whispered, drawing his claws.
The first centipede burst forth from the shadows, its segmented body writhing like a living whip. Nexus leapt, claws flashing in the dim light. The claws sliced through the creature's core, but its momentum carried it forward, crashing into Nexus.
He recoiled, dodging snapping mandibles. More centipedes poured in, their collective hiss deafening. Nexus danced through the melee, sword weaving precise arcs. Each strike downed multiple foes, but the horde seemed endless.
A centipede wrapped around Nexus's leg, its venomous claws digging deep. He yowled, prying the creature loose with his free hand. As he flung it aside, another centipede struck from behind. Nexus spun, claws raised. The centipede's jaws are trying to close around his claw, its body thrashing wildly.
He held fast, wrenching the creature and breaking its head. The creature's severed head tumbled to the ground. The battle raged on, Nexus's breath burning in his lungs. Just when the centipedes seemed to be faltering, a giant centipede emerged. Its body stretched like a dark, segmented serpent, jaws agape.
"Khet," Nexus whispered, steeling himself for the battle he was about to face.
Nexus charged forward, claws flashing with deadly precision. Khet's jaws snapped shut inches from her face, its venomous fangs gleaming. He dodged, weaving between the centipede's writhing segments. Each strike of his claws bit deep into Khet's flesh, but the creature's sheer size and strength kept it coming. Nexus's breathing grew ragged, her muscles burning.
As he leapt between Khet's snapping jaws, Nexus spotted a vulnerable joint. With a swift, precise strike, he severed the connecting tissue. The centipede's rear segments thrashed wildly, separated from its controlling head.
Khet's body coiled, forming a choking circle around Nexus. He sprinted forward, sword raised. The blade sliced through the centipede's neck, beheading the beast.
The house fell silent, except for Nexus's heavy breathing. Centipede corpses carpeted the ground, their twitching bodies slowly stilling.
Nexus stood victorious, but his triumph was shortlived. A low rumble shook the house, growing louder. The ground trembled beneath his paws.
"Aftershocks... " Nexus wondered; his ears perked.
Suddenly the walls burst apart, unleashing a torrent of scorching sand and debris. Nexus shielded his eyes, stumbling backward. He starts to run out of the house, now falling before his eyes. He enters the ruins to salvage any useful supplies for his journey forward out of the wastelands.
He finds the severed body of Khet and drags it out of the ruins...
He breaks off the legs of Khet, intending to use them as swords, as they are sharper and sturdier than his claws and have length to them that is unmatched by his short claws.
The legs of Khet shine under the sun with a dark color, the same as when he first saw him, and before their battle, the leg now had a dried blade. He uses a piece of bone from a corpse of another animal to make a handle and attaches it to the leg.
When he was about to start, he saw a dark cloth hanging on a dried skeleton—a dark trench coat. He used it to cover his body and continued his journey.
To be Continued!!!