Anomaly

Have you ever had a strong feeling of déjà vu? Like when it seems like you’ve been somewhere before, but you’ve never actually been there? It’s a strange sensation that can happen quite often. Curiously, I’m experiencing it right now, but I’ve never felt such an intense déjà vu as I am at this moment.

In the complete darkness of the night, the moon shines brightly in the sky. In front of me, there’s nothing but trees. I’m in a forest, sitting on a tree branch, swinging my feet while one finger is close to my mouth.

My eyes wander around, trying to find some kind of path. Honestly, I don’t know why I’m doing something as childish as swinging my feet while sitting. By the time I realized it, I was already doing it.

Looking at the tree leaves, it’s probably windy right now. And since it’s night, it should be quite cold. I say “probably” because I can’t feel anything. I don’t feel cold, heat, or hunger. I’ve been in this forest for four hours, and I don’t even feel the need to drink water.

Moreover, I am a bright white spot glowing in the dark forest, but not as bright as my golden eyes. My body is strangely transparent, but not to the point of looking like a ghost.

I didn’t need to look in a mirror or the reflection in the water to know my appearance. My way of seeing is not normal; in short, I don’t see through my eyes alone.

Although I have eyes, I’m not seeing only through them. At this very moment, I can also see what’s behind me. I won’t go into details as I don’t fully understand how it works and don’t think I could explain it clearly.

Anyway, the point is that I’ve been in this forest for hours and can’t find a way out. No matter how long I walk or which path I take; the forest seems endless.

If that were the only problem, maybe I wouldn’t complain so much. However, the real issue is those little guys down there, who are making things even more complicated.

On a nearby tree where I was, a small creature was peeking out from behind the trunk. At first glance, it looked like an ordinary puppy.

However, when I approached to investigate, the result was shocking: now, that thing has my arm inside its stomach.

I was stunned to see the cute puppy suddenly grow arms and stand up, while its belly opened, revealing a multitude of sharp teeth.

With this information, you’re probably wondering how I can stay so calm while my arm is being torn off. Honestly, I don’t even know why.

To be honest, I didn’t feel any pain when my arm was torn off. Besides, my body is strangely limp, but not to the point of being compared to jelly. I think the more fitting term would be “soft” — something like that.

(How should I proceed from here?)

Honestly, I have no idea what to do. I’m afraid of being devoured until nothing is left. These monsters also don’t seem intelligent enough to communicate. In the end, it seems like I’ll have to wait for them to leave on their own. This is going to be quite tiring.

Sitting on the tree branch, I was almost resigning myself to my fate. From any angle I looked at it, it seemed impossible for my thin arms to inflict any damage on the monster, even if I tried to attack it. Moreover, its appearance was honestly quite frightening.

A few minutes passed while I distracted myself by observing the monsters. Honestly, I thought I would be stuck in this situation for a long time, but suddenly, something changed. The monsters turned their heads towards some point in the forest. I didn’t know exactly what they were looking at. Although my vision is special, it’s not like I can see long distances or anything like that.

Additionally, my other senses also seem quite sharp, but nothing extraordinary. If I had to describe myself, I would say I’m a cute figure resembling a girl, but without any notable strength or special abilities.

But back to the matter at hand, the monsters around the tree where I was sheltering suddenly started to run — all of them, without exception, dashed in the same direction.

That would definitely be a good time to run, but honestly, where would I go if I just ran aimlessly? I was starting to doubt I would ever get out of this forest. The more I walked, the more it seemed like I was getting lost. That’s why I decided to follow those monsters.

Jumping from branch to branch, I began to follow the monsters running quickly. Although I was sure they knew I was following them, they seemed determined to ignore me. It’s worth mentioning that I was physically quite strong and apparently incapable of feeling pain. I confirmed this when I hit a tree with all my might, creating a small hole in the trunk, and still felt nothing from the impact.

As I approached, a loud noise echoed through the forest. I wasn’t sure what it was, but it sounded vaguely like gunshots. However, although I recognized the sound, I didn’t have a clear understanding of what a tree was. It was like my memory recalled the shape of the object, but at the same time, I had no concrete information about it.

The loud noise echoed again, and again, repeatedly. As I got closer, the sound became increasingly intense and constant. Additionally, I began to notice that there were several of those monsters around. Were they gathering up ahead? With this thought, I continued jumping between branches until I finally reached the area where the monsters were concentrated.

It was a relatively open area where the moonlight could penetrate. Of course, I could see in the dark, so it didn’t make much difference to me. What really surprised me was seeing other forms of life besides the monsters — there were humans in the forest. Moreover, the loud noises from before were coming from them. However, no matter how I analyzed the situation, they seemed to be at a complete disadvantage against the monsters.