6 Shattered

I sat there staring at it. It sat there staring at me.

And this went on for a while.

But since nothing seemed to change I lifted it up to my shoulder onto which it promptly climbed. I hoisted the barrel back on my back and as I started walked the crab, crawled ontop the barrel and fixated itself there, by grasping onto the kelpen ropes.

And after searching for a little while longer I finally explored the entire forest.

And so I wandered on again, along the cliff over dunes and rocks.

I started to hum the tune again while walking, but I never seemed to be able to get it right again, since it didn't have a broken tune to fix.

I hummed on and on, wandering along, together with my little friend.

Like a fish streaking along my side, I felt a current pass me by, which wouldn't be unusual if the currents along the cliff wouldn't all be going towards the direction I came from, while this one came from that direction. I froze and started to turn, but before I could even start to turn, I was thrown forward.

Something big and heavy rammed me around my left shoulder.....

which was gone. I looked to where it was supposed to be but I only saw crunched bone and a few pieces of shredded skin.

I scan my surroundings frantically for my attacker. And I see something large moving, almost perfectly camouflaged in the deep blue background.

And it took a sudden sharp turn towards me, diving in for another attack. I panicked again and pointed my harpoon towards it, realizing too late that without my left arm the stance I was trying to take, by shoving my left foot back and grasping the harpoon with both hands was impossible. The thing was approached far faster than I could adjust to.

Its large head now right in front of my face I could see a gaping teethed abyss in front of me, my only weapon harmlessly pointing towards the floor.

....

Crunch

...

Only darkness surrounded me now. I could hear a faint tune in the background, but I couldn't move any limb. Which is where I realized that I, right now, am only a head in some sharklike creatures belly. And as it was moving I felt my friends tune turn fainter by the moment.

...think, think, Think. THINK.

And then I heard it. Another quiet tune, deep and confident, ravenously hungry and utterly disappointed.

In desperation and anger, I sang.

Not to heal a broken tune but to break a tune.

I shrieked the most abysmal tunes I could muster.

And even when I felt something stab at me, scratching and tearing, I sang louder.

...

...

...

Like glass shattering and chalk screeching, it broke.

Harmony became Dissonance.

What was whole became empty.

And my world became black again, soft, forgiving oblivion.

...

A feeling of bliss and comfort seeped into my very being.

Like an embrace, longing and caring.

...

Time became truly nonexistent.

...

Suddenly.

Pain.

Everwhere.

Neverending.

Pain.

...

I couldn't scream nor move.

Nothing eased the pain.

...

It felt like something clawed into me and wouldn't let go.

It dragged me away from my peace.

Every inch as painful as scraping over nails.

...

And after an eternity it all stopped.

Back in complete darkness.

With but one change.

Gone was the feeling of bliss, comfort and homeliness.

Replaced by the feeling of a heavy weight placed on me.

Tiny spikes poking me from every angle.

...

And I realized where I was.

Back in the maw of the predator.

Or better said the corpse of the predator.

But I have no way of moving or acting.

No arms nor legs to move.

I was stuck.