Once I got up, I felt my head pounding, the world around me felt colder and it spun around ever so slightly. Ravens croaked all around the tree.

  I tried to make sense of my 'dream', bits and pieces of it travel my mind, still I get the impression that it was something immensely important. A sense of strangeness washed over me, I could feel something foreign in my body, something that wasn't there before.

  I noticed one particular raven— it was immensely bigger than the others that were lfying around, it had feathers dark as night— it looked at me with interest. Neither one of us moved for a while, stuck in a daze I couldn't exactly move—it looked my body up and down, as if studying me—I kept having this staring contest with the bird.

  "Hey bird, what are doing there?" I asked with a dry and ragged voice, the sound seemed not to come from my lungs.

  The creature tilted its neck to the side.

  "Yeah so you need anything? Or are just going to keep staring at me? You creep..."

  It tilted its neck to the other side.

  "Right what should I expect, I'm talking to a fucking bird. Of course it's not going to answer me!" i spoke to myself, seething in annoyance to my own stupidity. "I'm going properly mad I am. And its not even been a day... That paints a grim prospect." I rambled to myself, totally focused on the sound of my voice, as I missed a glint in the eyes of the animal.

  I started to get up, in a weird way, the eyes of the Raven following my every movement. Starting to think this bird is a bit too creepy... its just staying there doing nothing.

  "Well, its been a great talk. Really productive... but as they say, 'ain't no rest for the wicked', so im going now." Indulging just a bit more in my own madness I said my goodbyes to the bird and walked to the edges of the 'crown' of branches. Seeing there was nothing moving down there, I just steped forward and let myself fall down. Not like I'm going to get my muscles bruised or anything, so why the hell not?

  The animal watched as I moved away, its beady eyes filled with intrigue. It extended its powerfull wings and set flight, towards its siblings who had already been airborne and circling for a while.

  My feet reached the ground explosively, rising a cloud of dust. Marks of my footprints now carved on the soil beneath them. I have to say that felt really cool...

  I strech my body, feeling my bone joints make a pleasurable pop, and it was about all i could feel. My flesh and nerves no longer producing any stimuli.

  I proceed to delve even deeper into the swamp, with any luck, I would be able to find a big and high enough patch of dry land. I'd make a little hut, and 'live' in this swamp for a while. Maybe try and figure out what provoked this, and what am I capable of now— as I seem to be a lot stronger now, what are my limitations and whatnot. As for trying to fix myself?

  'I have the impression that at this point I can't fix anything in this stage of things.' I think to myself as I gaze towards my forearm, that by this point is a sticky mess of gray skin, black muscles and white apparent bones.

  Looking a little further ahead into the mud, I notice trails of something. A print of what seems to be a weird foot. It's smaller than a adult footprint, strangely shaped as well. The mark on the mud was of a seemingly humanoid being, with its toes too far apart from one another. As if it was a childs amateurish drawing of a foot. Sweeping the surface of the mud, I notice several dozens of such traces all around the 'island' the tree I was, circling it. Seems like a group of things is quite interested in me.

  Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

  Getting up I see that creep of a bird perched in a dead branch—which was half sunken into the mud—once more looking at me.

  "Fuck off bird! You're starting to piss me off." I shout also waving my hands and arm agressively trying to shoo it away. Amidst my frantic movements, a good chunk of my left biceps falls off, leaving a large portion of my arm as pure bones.

  Ah...

  The raven croaks in amusement, watching me as if I'm the funniest shit in the world.

  I look at it in displeasure. Maybe the displeasure is also directed at me... but that bird annoys me for some reason. I don't enjoy the way it looks at me.

  "You know what?" The bird stands at attention to the sound of my voice, wondering what I was doing now. " I'm going to ignore you. That's what I'm going to do!" i finish speaking as I move towards the dream of a shitty cabin in the middle of this awful cesspit of unlikability.

  I have absolutely zero delusions that I'll be able to create anything half decent. I'm not a carpenter. Last time I worked with wood, it was to repair the fence in Roy's house, needless to say I had to endure Lissana's teasing for an entire month.

  Heck finding a cave and living in it would be infinitely better for my mental health. Buuut... no caves in this place, and if there are, most probably something nasty is going to be living in it. Not going to be having roommates for the forseable future, thank you very much! Last one ended badly for me. So I'll avoid company for a while. Besides... I've heard monsters make for piss poor conversationalists.

  While dreaming, or rather dreading the prospects of my decadent future hut, a shrill croak resounded in the surroundings.

  Guess what?

  It's that fucking raven again...

  Why won't you leave me alone you fuck?!

  Seeing it got my attention, the bird extended one of its wings, pointing it at a certain direction, or at least that's what it seemed to be doing. To be fair... I'm probably giving too much credit to an animal.

  Looking at the 'smart' bundle of feathers, I noticed it's gaze alternating between me and the direction it was pointing. Beckoning me to follow its instructions.

  But I refuse!

  Just because...

  I circle around it, proceeding in my own path. Hah! Take that you creep.

  It stares at me dumbfoundedly, as it caws in dissatisfaction at my stupidity. Or at least that's what I'm getting from it.

  Wait since when do I undertand Raven?

  It hoped in front of me, extending its wing in the same direction as before, croaking in dissatisfaction at me.

  "No, I go where I want. Leave me alone creepy bird." I say dismissively, continuing onwards.

  Seeing that it pecks forcefully on my exposed foot, though it actually doesn't hurt. Noticing that it tilts its own head in confusion, wandering why I hadn't shown any pain. I stuff my chest with misguided pride at that.

  Why the fuck am I feeling prideful for one uping a bird?

  Though I admit the bird is indeed annoying...

  Getting angry at its failed attempts of persuading me, it raises up and perches at my shoulder, slapping my face with its dark wings. They are kind of really soft and fluffy. I want to ruffle up its feathers...

  One thing though... How does this work? Sometimes I feel stuff and sometimes I do not, It makes no sense. Whatever my condition is, it is a mighty indecisive one, I got to say.

  The more I walk, the angrier and more desperate the Raven gets. It stopped slaping me, only to start pulling my hairs with its sleek beak.

  Seeing the strands of my hair flying around I shout angrily.

  "Oi! You motherfucker, my hair is alreafy falling by itself, and now you're even pulling it? Do you want to turn into roasted chicken?" I threaten the creature as I narrow my eyes. "Even if I can't eat, don't think I'm going to hesitate in turning you into soup."

  Hearing that the Raven stops its antics, but I see no trace of fear in it. It just looks at me as its dark beady eyes narrow, not being very fond of what I just said. But then again there's no chance it understood what I said right? Right?!

  "Please don't shit on my head later... That would be the worst." I say pleadingly.

  Again showing remarkable understanding skills, the animal hears what I said and scoffs dismissively.

  "Hey now... You're not going to hold a gru-" I stop middle sentence as I hear sounds in my surroundings.

  The feathers of the raven bristle, like the fur on a startled cat. it shivers slightly on my shoulders.

  I hear gurgles and muffled moans all around me. The creatures making those sounds were not far off.

  "Well shit... I seem to have gotten myself into a nasty pickle."

  The raven gazes at me as with a look that said, 'You think? You dumb fuck. I tried to warn you, but noooo you just had to keep on going'.

  Yeah I kind of deserve that not going to lie.

  The sounds grow nearer by the second, as I start to hear the squelches of their steps on the mud.

  This is not going to end well...