It was like a strong jolt of current had zapped me back into consciousness. How long have I been in the dark for? As my body rebooted and regained some of its capacity to process my surroundings, a flurry of messages came online and scrolled in my retina, the central chip was thankfully mostly intact. Cautionary signals alerted me to the damage that my titanium cast had suffered: wrecked antennas that probably erased my existence from radar and several dents in my reinforced frame.
I was quickly distracted by a devilish glow of a cloud of mystical particles swirling purposefully like spores of poisonous fungi, reaching far to gain territories. They disappeared before me, only to reappear in pulses. The menacing ripple seemed ready to wipe out the existence of anything that did not belong here. Except, the energetic wave had revived me. Where am I?
Each time the particles glistened, they revealed a soft metallic glint of bluish-gray beyond its supernatural veil. I was starting to make out the horrifying details of this colossal chamber. The walls and the floor had a skeletal nature but of oxidised aluminium. Then, the darkness would consume everything. Another look saw the walls curve towards a point where the ceiling would be, making it a half-dome. There were strange etchings and designs all over the metal chamber. Maybe an alien language?
For some reason, the particles became more languid, the intermission between each buzz became longer. But make no mistake, the thin air was just as charged, and I just started noticing a whirring. The juggernaut seemed to be persuading me that it meant no harm. Of course, I knew, it was taunting me. Like a calculating predator slowly pacing just a few steps away, its eyes fixed on the prey yet it never took home its victory.
All of a sudden, my mind was hijacked and flooded with strobing scenes of what had happened to me.
As I processed the conspiracy that this thing was revealing to me, I felt another surge in me. This intelligent life form had sunk its claws into my mind and turned me red in the eyes. As this thing fed off my growing rage, the mist of particles took on a more sinister hue and gathered strength as it put up a victory dance for its audience.
Written by: Ms Mel Ng
Inspired by: Rude Boy’s NFT by Trym Ruud
https://opensea.io/collection/rude-boys
