贈り物
Care slowly turned around.
The outside of the hut had disappeared.
What was there was a black void that swallowed up all light.
My breath stops at my throat.
The floor beneath my feet disappeared.
he falls
There's no wind. There's no sound.
Just endless darkness.
wake up and ――
It was on the bus.
School bus.
Seats empty.
The engine is growling low.
Care slowly stands up.
outside the window――
Clouds.
Blue sky.
Nothing else.
The bus was running in the sky.
My heart hits hard.
And I found it.
A smartphone is falling near the seat in front of you.
Care ran up and grabbed it.
He tries to call for help with his trembling hands.
Out of range.
The screen flickers.
Still, the bus continues to run.
One day later
Care was fiddling with the pen in the office.
Kachi.
Kachi.
He understood his powers to some extent.
―― if you keep touching the object for more than 3 seconds
Absorb it.
And it is added to physical ability.
Power accumulates.
However, the increase attenuates over time.
You have to keep absorbing something.
That idea is ruminated on in my head.
"Object..."
"Until now, I've only tried objects."
"What if it's alive?"
4 hours later
Opposite the care, a bound subject was sitting in a laboratory chair.
The man's breathing is rough.
Care walks up quietly.
One step.
Another step.
Grab your neck.
1...
2...
3...
A man's body is distorted.
Like smoke sucked into a vacuum.
―― in an instant
Disappeared.
Absorbed into care.
A tremendous amount of energy travels through blood vessels.
Muscles tighten.
Vision is sharpened.
The heartbeat roars like thunder.
It was my first time to have such power.
And for the first time ――
he smiled.
Turn around to the wall.
Pull your fist ――
Slap.
A shock like a gunshot.
Concrete shatters.
Dust explodes.
After the weather cleared, a crater the size of a chair was carved into the wall.
Breathing faster.
"...I can't believe it."
But ――
I heard it.
A faint sound.
Close.
Too close.
Whisper.
In my ears.
Care freezes.
A low, distorted voice.
Sounds like we're talking underwater.
I don't understand the meaning.
But it continues.
Whisper.
Uninterrupted.
The smile disappears.
"Stop..."
The whisper becomes slightly stronger.
Is it the man who absorbed it?
Hold your fist.
"It's just my imagination."
―― after a few minutes
Silence.
"...It's a side effect."
I think so.
I didn't think about it any further.
Return to Carter.
Carter leaned in.
"Christopher, are you okay?"
Christopher blinks repeatedly.
"ah."
"What was it now?"
"I don't know...I felt like I was high."
Carter shuts up a little.
"...Who are you in the first place?"
Christopher looks at his hand.
"I don't know...I can't remember anything other than my name. What about you?”
Carter laughs weakly.
“He’s not a big guy. I'm barely alive with the minimum wage.”
"What about your family?"
“I am. But it's a few states away. I'm saving up money to go see you.”
Christopher stares forward.
"I...I don't even know if I have a family."
Carter's expression softens.
"...That's bad."
Care stands again in the center of the laboratory.
No more hesitation.
Start experimenting.
Alone.
Alone again.
One more person.
Three seconds.
Every time.
The body collapses inward and disappears like dust sucked by a storm.
Energy explodes.
Many times.
Many times.
Many times.
Time passes.
Absorbed dozens of people.
The face becomes vague.
The name has no meaning.
Before you know it ――
I had stopped counting.
Power accumulates more than ever.
muscles are constantly shaking,
Visibility is clearer than reality.
The heartbeat echoes like distant thunder.
But ――
The whisper never stops.
It won't disappear anymore.
Fill your head.
overlap,
entanglement,
It doesn't end.
Most make no sense.
Fragment.
Noise.
But sometimes ――
I can hear it clearly.
"Please..."
"Please let me out..."
"I don't want to disappear..."
The voice begs and cries.
Care holds the temple.
"shut up."
But it gets even bigger.
The room feels small.
Breathing is disturbed.
Dozens of consciousnesses creak within him.
Momentum ――
My knee is about to break.
Something cracks inside.
Limits.
Lines that should not be crossed.
But ――
I can't go back.
He slowly straightens his back.
My expression hardens.
I need enough strength.
I'll never feel helpless again.
So much so that you can control everything.
A whisper tries to tear him apart.
Hold your fist.
"More."
Screams echo.
"We need more power."
My eyes sink darkly.
"I...I want more power."
And ――
The experiment continued.
