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Sunny is in the woods inside the park. He couldn’t quite grasp why, but something deep inside urged him to head toward the lake. He just left without saying a word to his friends. Despite suffering from starvation for an entire week, he hasn’t forgotten the route to that secret location. Sunny appreciates having such a sharp memory. He soon remembers that the locals have been talking about a terrible stench emanating from the forest and a fearsome beast that lives there.
As he walked by the source of the foul odor, a wave of disgust washed over him, yet something remarkable caught his eye. Near the lake, there are a lot of colorful flowers of different colors. They are beautiful. Sunny remembered that it looked like a natural place or a fairy tale. There used to be beautiful flowers when spring and autumn came. Yet there was one aspect that troubled him—the foul stench. How could a place that seemed so beautiful to him give rise to something so sinister?
He has two choices: go or leave. He must enter the secret place to discover something that caught his attention. As much as he wanted to go, a whisper stopped him from coming to his senses. Despite his coldness, listening to this voice can calm him down when he is in a hopeless mood.
“Explain what you are doing.”
“I want to go to the lake. I don’t have a reason, but I want to go there.”
“You’ve abandoned your friends for reasons that are hard to understand. Something is compelling you to leave. I can’t quite explain it, but its eyes have a strange light.”
“Yeah, Omori. I feel this powerful pull to go there. I don’t want to cause trouble. Just a small look around and get back to Kel and Aubrey.”
“No. You smelled something rotten and you know that you shouldn’t be here. Get out now.”
“… I can’t.”
“… That thing is making you go there.”
“Yeah.”
“Then ignore it. That thing is controlling your will.”
“Omori. There is more to it than that. Just let me go there.”
“…”
“… Please”
“… Ok. Finish it quick.”
Sunny exhales deeply, a sign of relief and appreciation, before strolling off to the flower field. Every time he gets closer, the smell turns his stomach, his eyes sting, and his consciousness weakens. He leans in to inspect the first flower near his foot. A white tulip. He has never encountered this flower alongside others, nor has he seen it in this place. Is someone using the site as his personal garden? Whatever it is, he has to leave now. Sunny coughs and his saliva drips into the flower.
He has become dizzy. His insecurities are overcoming his odd curiosity and fear of worrying about his friends. Sunny hurries off and hears a growl that doesn’t sound like an animal he knows. One might describe it as intense, akin to the growl of a tiger, yet it was intertwined with the sibilant hiss of a snake.
His heart beats like that disastrous day that ruined his life. Sunny desperately tries to run away, but the reason he came became strong, forcing him to stay. He turns around and notices something glistening on the water. He doesn’t know what it is. A rock? With gems? Upon surfacing, he quickly realizes that its enormous physique tells a different story than he initially thought. It’s big, strong, and scary, but Sunny is most terrified of seeing the multiple eyes on its face. A massive lizard-like creature, sporting a razor-sharp jaw and finned limbs, slithers toward the boy, hissing ominously. Things weren’t going well for Sunny.
“Run.”
Sunny wants to, but his legs won’t move.
“Idiot! Run!”
He takes small steps towards the creature, raising his hand to its snout. Loud sniffs provoke his small jump. Whatever Sunny was doing, some idea seemed to emerge from his mind.
The lizard grows softly. It doesn’t seem to have any hostility toward the boy. It sniffs the hand, then moves to the arm. The creature opens its mouth, and Sunny pushes it away. He hears a low humming sound.
“You’re not… bad?”
“Run, now.”
“C-calm down. I’m not going to hurt you…”
Sunny covers his temple when the whisper shouts at him. “IDIOT! YOU’RE GIVING HIM TO THAT SHADOW!”
“Huh? W-wait, it’s doing this?”
“Move away! NOW!”
“Y-yeah!”
As Sunny pivots, the lizard halts him by scooping him up and directing him toward the shimmering lake. He punches the monster in an attempt to flee, but it stands its ground without flinching. He sees the lizard enter the lake, and Sunny inadvertently scratches his eyes, releasing him from the drag.
The lizard’s piercing screech sends a jolt through Sunny, but everything shifts when he catches the furious roar. A sense of primal rage invades his mind, telling him he has to survive.
There is no point in fighting something furious. Sunny feels the urge to depart but stays put, determined to see things through to the end first. Most troubling of all, he understands the inner turmoil that accompanies the struggle to survive. He calls out for help. He cries out for Omori but doesn’t hear his voice. Instead, he is consumed by a rage for being misled and betrayed.
Sunny roars. His fingers hurt and his heart burns. He wants to yell at the lizard that it deserves to burn.
The lizard roars and lunges towards Sunny to bite him, but Sunny stops its lunging. The creature lifts him into the air, but it does him no favors, as Sunny, growling fiercely, sinks his claws into its eyes. That doesn’t hold it back, and it knocks him down to the floor.
It lets out a loud roar before leaping at Sunny, intent on crushing the boy. Sunny grunts and jumps quickly, narrowly dodging the stomp. The lizard lets out another fierce roar before lunging at the boy. Sunny leaps into the air and seizes the fin-like appendages atop its head.
The beast thrashes, casting the boy off with a desperate cry that resonates with its suffering. Sunny stretched out the fins to tear them off. He hears a groan, forcing him to see what’s going on. It aims to make its way to the lake. He grunts. He doesn’t want to go near the water.
Sunny releases from the grip as it swings its tail and slams the boy to the ground.
The lizard wades into the lake like a madman. Sunny stands up in silence, captivated by the turbulent water that follows the splash. He dares not go into the lake out of distrust and uneasiness. One idea suggests that it might be best to depart now that he has managed to fend off the monster, yet this decision leaves him feeling unfulfilled. Rage continues to bubble within him, and he feels an intense urge to incinerate the source of his frustration.
Sunny lets out a frustrated growl, unable to find his composure as his anger drives him to continue the battle. The boy falls to his knees, panting. He can’t help but be enchanted by the vibrant flowers. Despite the chaos caused by him and the beast, they maintain their form and integrity. Their beauty remains untouched, as droplets of dew cascade from their delicate petals. A certain flower causes his heart to shrink. A lily of the valley.
The flower’s pure white hue drives away any harmful worries that come close to it. Sunny notices something extraordinary about that flower. He can’t understand why it’s situated right in the thick of the fight and is anxious that he or the lizard might end up stepping on it. He reaches over to pull out his roots, and then a roar hits his ears.
The monster leaps out of the lake and hits Sunny’s smaller body again with its tail. Sunny screams in agony as his body is thrown against the tree. The boy is barely able to maintain consciousness. When the lizard notices him, it lunges at Sunny with its mouth wide open, ready to bite down on his smaller body.
Sunny inhales deeply and exhales, transforming the air into flames. The fire breath causes his head to burn, blinding him. Sunny quickly runs towards the monster and tears at its paws with her claws, making it screech.
Burn in hell! You deserve it!
The beast lets out a deafening roar, its head engulfed in flames, as it desperately attempts to crush him. Sunny runs away. Once again, Sunny shoots fire from its mouth at the monster, pushing it back. Sunny keeps going.
The monster shrieks loudly in pain as it runs into the lake. Sunny leaps onto the creature’s back, sinking his claws into its neck, causing the lizard to tumble into the flower field, writhing in agony.
Sunny slides off the monster’s back, feeling utterly drained, and collapses to his knees on the ground, his adrenaline completely spent. The boy can barely see straight. Unfortunately, that thing is still alive. Its head, which was once on fire, was underwater.
“W… what just happened…?”
Sunny looks around, awake from a long trance. The foul smell brought his feet back to reality. Initially, he was determined to leave the area after spotting that terrifying creature, but now he’s found himself alongside it. His stomach growls from hunger. He has to look for Kel.
“Omori…?”
“Sunny, you idiot! That thing took over!”
“Eh? Y-yeah… I think that thing is knocked down…”
“Whatever, you let it to control you.”
“I’m sorry… but it saved me.”
Omori grunts in his head. “Can’t believe it… Don’t thank it. It followed its nature to track that thing down.”
Sunny finds himself questioning if the force inside him is driven by the need to survive or if it signifies something greater. If it was instinct, he would thank it for saving him. It may not be the right thing to do, but he’s still standing today.
The weakened boy struggles to get to his feet. If there is one piece of good news, it is that the monster seems barely moving.
“I wonder what that feeling was... It felt like it was calling me. After that, all I could feel was pure rage. At something?”
The monster’s body slowly trembled at Sunny, who could only stare at it in fright. The giant lizard stands up and sticks its head out before suddenly lying on the ground and starting to whimper. Sunny blinks and swallows saliva at the monster’s sudden change. Gazing at the charred and singed visage of the creature, tears flow from its eyes. It was crying.
“You’re... hurt...” says Sunny sadly. He doesn’t know what to do. If it appears to grasp the situation, comfort it, or look for his friends to come to its aid.
Sunny knows that this creature hurt him, but can he really put all the blame on it? The creature was evidently acting on pure survival instinct, but ultimately, it was overcome. Sunny notices the tears glistening in its eyes, a clear sign that it is desperately seeking help to escape its overwhelming sorrow. The boy slowly approaches the weakened monster. It emits sorrowful noises that strangely resemble words.
“S… U… N… N… Y…”
“Sunny...” Sunny stops as he hears what sounds like his friend’s voice whispering in his ear.
Sunny falls to the ground and realizes what he is going through. None of this makes any sense. That thing is his friend. He sensed a deep yearning for help within himself, yet the only action he could take was to wound it further. He hated this feeling of déjà vu, but one thing he didn’t understand was that he took satisfaction in burning it.
The lizard lay there, still crying. Unable to let go of his findings, the thoughts that swirled around in his head consumed Sunny. Soon footsteps are heard.
“SUNNY!” Sunny hears his friend’s voice.
“My god, what the hell is that smell and… whatever it is!”
The sad child feels strong, firm, yet gentle hands wrap around him as he is being held. Sunny mentions that his friend is enduring a curse similar to his own.
“What, what do you mean that thing is Basil?”
“I feel like he went through the same stuff I did.” The boy shakes his head. “He needs help.”
Kel notices the creature and then shifts his attention to Aubrey, who looks as if she’s mesmerized by the burning head. She frowns because this is getting ridiculous, but accepts reality and what Sunny says.
“Sunny? What made you and Basil become like that?” asks Aubrey, worried about her friend.
“Um… I think it was that night, you know... uh... when everything happened. I was setting the pot Basil gave me on the study table when, out of nowhere, I got hit with a wave of hunger and I was losing my mind because I felt so lost. And you know the rest.” The summary he gave her was just as he remembered. He remains clueless about its origin and is eager to ask Basil once he returns to his usual self.
“Right, the hamburger,” Aubrey says. She looks over at Kel, waiting for him to pull out a burger or go buy one. Kel looks across, blushing. Aubrey grunts, nudging him in the kidney.
“OOOOOOOOOOWWWW!” whines the tall boy as he sinks to the ground in pain. “But why are you hitting me?! It wasn’t necessary...”
“Shut up and shoulder deep, Kel! Don’t even think about asking us for 20 bucks just to grab a burger! Do your thing now!”
Kel sighs, still feeling the ache as he recalls that they just finished eating a few moments ago. “Uh... Sunny, was Basil a vegetarian or something?”
Sunny nods.
“Damnit.”
“I’m broke, so ask your parents for money,” Aubrey says.
“Uh...” Kel remembers that he found 20 dollars behind the fountain. “Lucky thing I found this angel!”
Aubrey looks at him with a smirk on her face. “Well, in case you don’t have it, I’ll have to ask my friends for money, but you’ll have to pay for it. You know Kim and Vance love candy and the lady doesn’t like you.”
“Yes. You’re right,” Kel says with a look down from not wanting to go down that road. “I think there’s a recipe for vegetarians, but I don’t know... I don’t consider it hamburger without the meat and ketchup.”
“JUST HELP BASIL!” With that shout of demand, Kel runs off, searching for the antidote.
Five minutes later, Kel returns with a special burger for vegetarians. It contains lettuce, garlic, tomato, and tofu. A combination that Sunny thinks is absurd and an insult to existence itself. What drives a person to develop something for those kinds of people? Anyway, Sunny is thankful that his friend is the kind of consumer to be saved.
“So, here’s the story of how I saved Sunny from starving, and I really hope I don’t get nauseous because I can’t stand being here,” Kel suggests, but Aubrey hits him.
“When Basil recovers, we move him away from the site! Just do it!”
“Okay, okay! Here it comes the plaaaaneee…” Kel carefully opens the beast’s jaw, places the food in its mouth, and dashes his hand away.
With a gulping sound, the three see the lizard nibbling on the bread. They wait, hoping for a response that will confirm it’s Basil speaking to them.
“Gah… Urgh…”
“Basil? Are you Basil?” Says Kel.
“… Gah… Grr… S…u…n… n… y…”
“No, I’m Kel. Sunny is here.”
“Basil? Can you hear me?”
“… S… u… n… n… y… Help me…”
Again, that fiery fury surged inside him. He struggles to comprehend why there’s a desire to reject him and inflict pain once more when he intends to offer support. Sunny ignores the intrusive feeling and puts his hand over his face.
“I’m sorry for hurting you.”
“… Gah…” The lizard sighs, still in pain.
Sunny and Aubrey look at Kel. “Can Hero take a look and help him?”
Kel nods. “Mhm! I’m thinking the same! I’ll be there and hang in there, Basil! Hero is coming!” He ran off.
The warmth of the day is increasing, surpassing the chill he felt before. It has indeed been two hours since they ate breakfast. Kel arrives home and rings the doorbell, waiting for Hero to open the door.
The warmth of the day is increasing, surpassing the chill we felt before. It has indeed been two hours since they ate breakfast. Kel arrives home and rings the doorbell, waiting for Hero to open the door. Nothing. He checks to make sure it’s locked and turns the doorknob.
The door isn’t locked.
“Eh? Did Hero forget to close the door?” Murmurs Kel, before going to his house.
The moment he steps inside the house, a wave of discomfort washes over him, as if the place has been abandoned for ages. He doesn’t understand why it matters, especially since he and Hero had a time at Sunny’s, but something is gnawing at him, making him feel uneasy.
In the living room, there is no sign of his older brother. He isn’t in the kitchen, a place where he often busied himself with food preparation. Kel scratches his head, thinking he must be in the bathroom or his room. He’s probably doing his business or sleeping after that.
He goes up the stairs and the first thing he did was go to the bathroom. He isn’t there either.
“Okay, he’s still sleeping.” He sighs, leaving him with no choice but to wake him up. “Hero, we need your help.”
Kel pushes the door aside, urgently calling for Hero to get up and help Basil. But as soon as he sees him, his words get stuck in his throat and are silenced instantly.
He watches him intently, but there’s not a hint of emotion on Hero’s face. He doesn’t bother with a “hi” or a “what’s going on,” merely maintaining a stony silence while observing the person who stands in the doorway.
What most disturbs Kel is his brother’s lack of clothing and expressionless expression, as if he’s turned into a walking dead figure. He swallows saliva, wanting to ask about it but changing the subject to ask for help.
“Hero…”
Silence replies to him.
“Hero, please! I need your help!”
He says nothing. His face lacks any emotion.
“Basil needs your help. His face is burned!”
Hero says nothing.
“… I want to know what happened to you, but Basil needs you now… Let’s go.”