The city of Orikumo was humungous 'till this day. In fact, it's so huge, it has to be divided in sectors. The sector that the Titobi Skyscraper was in was, and still is, called the Eastern City Sector. There are five sectors in the city of Orikumo. Don't ask me why it has, it's always been like that. I was heading towards the outskirts of the Eastern City Sector, which lead to the border guards that protect the city from rebellion from the Moving Lands. Their name says it all. You could step outside the border walls and see snowy mountains. Step in and out again and you could've landed yourself in a barren plain. I changed into a cat to give the border guards the slip, then snuck outside. I was a forest, that was filled with mist that tangled around your ankles. I didn't really feel to confident in the woods, but at least I got some cover. The mist swirled around me, barely brushing my belly, as I strode deeper and deeper into the woods. My hearing, my sense of smell, they dulled and faded. I was pretty much blind at that time. It was then I knew that, somehow, I was being watched. Do you know what's fear? It can be many things, described by many people. To me, it was like a virus that couldn't be spread directly. It finds its way into your system. It invades your heart, making it panic and beat faster. The rest of your body knows that something is going on. Your senses dull, they corrode. Only your eyes and ears stay alert. It then creeps up to you, until it has overwhelmed you, swiftly and silently, like quicksand suffocating you. And that is it. Fear is truly a terrifying thing. I felt exactly what fear feels like. Silently, I was panicking. But one thing was certain. Whatever was stalking me, it knew what it was doing. I changed back into a person. Nothing was making noise. Suddenly, my ears picked up nothing more that leaves being disturbed. Nothing more indeed. Yeah right. Footsteps of nothing that I'd heard before scuffled towards me, twigs and leaves snapping and crackling. I swiftly dodged the movement of air whizzing towards me and started climbing up a tree. I examined the projectile that was flung towards me. It wasn't an arrow. It looked like some sort of spike or needle. Somehow, I thought of porcupines. I looked below me. Snarling and growling was all that I needed to know that the... Uh, thing wasn't coming to be friends. It was too dark to see exactly what the monster was, but I could just about make out a large, bushy, silhouette, red beady eyes and sharp, gleaming teeth. The teeth bothered me more. It arched its back and several thin needles like the one before hurtled towards me. It was hard navigating in the dark treetops, especially with those needles, but I managed to work my way out of the forest. I turned into a cat to sneak over the welcoming walls of the Eastern City Sector. Yells and shouts sounded below me as I bounded over. Seems like the monster followed. What's more, I heard more footsteps. It had invited its friends along for the chase. And they were ready to wage war on the gate guards. Tension was high as I silently watched. Actually... It was funny if it weren't the fact that everyone here could die. I jumped down (as a cat), and, in the shadows of the wall, changed into a person. Before running in between the two sides, I tried to cup my hands around the side of my head, trying to hear better. They weren't there. Turns out that they were on top of my head, as cat ears. After checking myself once more, I had magically grown cat ears, whiskers and a tail. Anyways, let's stop the topic. Somehow... I felt really dumb, you know what I mean, do you? In the distance, a crashing signalled that something was out there. I felt a little chill running down my spine. I shivered a little. The crashing became more louder with every passing second. Soon, even the guards (with weak hearing) couldn't deny that something indeed was coming towards us. A flock of birds fluttered into the air. The monster porcupine things were nervous and tense. They bolted off, forgetting any hostile threats that they were emitting just a few moments ago. I winced as the trees in front of them crashed down with a devastating crash. Branches and leaves floated down. It was silent for a few seconds. Instinct told me to run, to flee. But... On the other hand, I was also curious to what it was. So I stayed put. Nothing more that a small crack sounded in the air. Suddenly, the barrier of trees was broken through and a I saw a sight that would stay with me for weeks. A giant serpent was rearing its head above and underneath the ground. A name popped up in my head randomly. The Earth Devourer. Information started making itself known as soon as I repeated the name out loud. It's grade was 7, it was a being called a demon and it ate pretty much everything. When did I know these random facts? I didn't know or care at that time. I muttered to myself quietly, "Let's just beat the hell out of this fat snake. I'm hungry after all.". I rushed forward towards it, but a hand swiftly rushed out to stop me. It was the guard's arm. "Kids shouldn't be here! Run back into the city!" He shouted as the snake dove underground, causing huge, gaping crevices. I gritted my teeth as the ground shook and retorted, "But its clearly outnumbered you! You'll die if you try to stop it!". He looked firmly at me as his friend tried to fight against the beast with some flimsy looking arrows and guns. "If we don't, who will?" He shouted and pushed me towards the gates. Stunned, I watched as the world around me moved in slow motion. The snake burst out of the ground. Rocks and dirt flew everywhere as the other guard was gone in an instant. As the serpent dove into the ground once more, trees, branches and bushed flew through the air. I remembered the death of the gunsman, and how quickly I became useless. I felt numb again as the second guard, tried to stab the demon. I forced my body to move and ran towards it. So that was why people disappeared. People were killed by these demons, and it seems like they weren't stopping. He was barely hanging on the serpent's long, sharp fang as it dove down, towards the wall. My body moved without my mind having to react. I moved by instinct, as I used to in my days in the alleys. I followed commands that came to my mind. Jump, dodge, hit that log, slide. Pretty simple commands. Before long, I made my way directly in the path of the demon. It's amazing how quickly I can move. I thought quickly and leaped into the snake's mouth. The stink was horrible. Someone obviously needed to brush. Anyway, the guard was dangling by his arms, no, make that an arm, he couldn't hold on. I sighed. This sure was going to be such a bother. I moved towards a large spruce tree that was propped up on a oak tree. Just the perfect angle. I leaped onto the spruce log and, angling the distance and timing, jumped off the top. Just as the snake was going to dive into the ground again, I flew past the mouth, grabbing the cuff of the man's uniform, then landing on the ground. All noise was just sounds, aimless sounds. For a second, the whole world stilled. I was looking directly into the Earth Devourer's eyes, or should I say, eye. In the very centre of the pupil, if you looked very closely, there was another pixel. It was glitchy this time and moved around slightly with twitchy movements. I don't know what happened then, but the feeling that I got earlier disappeared and was replaced with a stunned feeling. I remember standing upright, then seeing my world swaying. It was then when I feel into one of those states, you know? Like, imagine being half asleep, half awake, but unable to do anything but stare sleepily. I remember... Waking up a few times, each time being short and quick. When I woke up the last time, I vaguely remember lying in a pool of blood. If I looked closely, I would've seen the Earth eater monster or whatever you call it lying on the ground. The pool of blood was leaking from it. I don't know really. It just seems that my memory was really messed up that day. Too bad about the forest and trees. Then I blacked out.