The forest was silent.
Even the wind seemed unwilling to pass through it, as a heavy, metallic smell hung in the air.
Broken corpses lay scattered across the ground, each of them missing a massive chunk of their flesh. Their lifeless eyes stared into the dim evening sky.
A faint scraping sound disturbed the stillness.
Broken devices and shattered equipment lay buried in the blood-soaked dirt. From the midst of the freshly torn corpses, a man slowly crawled forward.
His breathing was agonizing and shallow, every inhale almost seeming like the last. His body was littered with deep hole-sized wounds, wounds that should have killed him. Still he moved, his every movement leaving a trail of dark red behind him.
Just a few meters ahead, a river flowed quietly.
The dying man struggled and raised his head with great effort.
At the edge of the river stood someone.
A man.
His back faced the forest.
Blood covered him from head to toe, turning him less like a man and more like a figure carved from crimson.
The crawling survivor tried to speak; however, only a broken whisper escaped his lips.
"B-Bea…st…"
He stretched his hand forward one last time before falling limp against the ground.
His body stopped moving.
The man at the river let out a long, tired sigh. For a moment, he simply stared at the flowing water.
Then his legs gave out.
Without resistance, he fell forward.
Splash.
The river bloomed crimson for only a moment before the current carried it away. Slowly, the body sank beneath the surface.
The river swallowed the body and a deep silence returned to the forest.
…
Further downstream, where the river widened, a small wooden boat drifted gently on the water.
The sky had turned orange and purple as evening settled in.
Inside the boat sat a young couple holding fishing rods in their hands while a small lantern flickered beside them. The silence in the air was thick as they focused on the task at hand. Their next meal depended on it.
Then, the fishing rod of the man suddenly bent sharply.
"Lia!" The man jolted upright.
"Shut up!" The woman replied angrily.
"I got something!" He shouted.
"What!" Lia also jolted in response, shifting her focus instantly.
"Ah! There we go!" The boat rocked slightly as he struggled to keep hold.
The line tightened violently as something heavy pulled from below.
"This one's big!" he said excitedly.
The woman quickly grabbed the net. "Don't lose it, Malik!"
"Grrr…it's so heavy," Malik grunted as he pulled harder.
"Stop complaining and pull!" Lia shouted, staring intensely into the water, waiting for the fish to appear so she could throw in the net to assist.
"Hah!" Malik sighed in defeat and obeyed.
Whatever was on the hook fought fiercely, dragging the line deep beneath the water.
"Damn thing's strong!"
The struggle lasted several long seconds before, with a violent splash, their catch finally burst through the surface.
Their faces lit up for a moment as they witnessed their catch.
It was a huge fish, firmly caught on the hook. It was enormous—large enough to feed them both for at least two and a half days.
Their excitement didn't last long.
All of a sudden, the tension vanished from his wrist, and the line snapped loudly.
Malik nearly fell backward as the rod flew up.
"…You've got to be kidding me." Lia's excitement died down instantly as she watched the fish escape.
She raised her head and palmed her face, cursing loudly, "Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!" She pulled it down, went over to Malik, and shouted, "Why can't you just do one thing right, just one? You were the one who said this was the best spot."
"Well, it usually is," Malik replied, still not recovered.
"You lost it."
"I didn't lose it," he protested, trying to regain his balance. "The line snapped."
She rolled her eyes, not saying anything further, and she sat back. She was just too tired and hungry to argue further.
Seeing the development of the situation, the man grumbled to get up and fixed the line. Afterwards, he went over the edge and cast the hook once more into the river.
The boat drifted quietly for a few minutes.
Then suddenly—
The rod bent again, harder than before.
"Wait—!" the man shouted in response, forcing a tighter grip on the rod. The pull from below was massive, forcing him to brace himself against the side of the boat.
"This one's even bigger!"
Lia, previously dejected, suddenly jolted awake and grabbed the net again before rushing over.
"Careful this time!" She spoke in a low tone.
Malik slowly nodded and pulled the line upward. The water surface trembled as something dark moved beneath it.
"Almost there…" He said, "Throw in the net."
Lia acted immediately and threw the net around the trembling surface. Once the net settled in and gave her a firm grip, she and Malik made brief eye contact.
"Pull!"
The two roared in unison and pulled the line and net at the same time.
The line finally rose higher, breaking through the surface, and the net drew the catch closer.
Eventually, something pale broke through the surface.
Malik frowned. "...Lia."
"…What?" She leaned closer.
Water streamed from the catch as they hauled it into the boat. It didn't have scales, nor fins.
A human hand hung from the hook.
Lia's face drained of color.
"...Malik."
He swallowed.
"That's..."
"...an arm."