外面的空气感觉有点尖锐.虽然这片区域浓雾弥漫,但没有任何奇怪的气味;事实上,空气比过去更干净了,仿佛在所有工业停工和居民离开之后,这座城市变得更加清澈.
索菲亚·约翰逊 （Sophia Johnson） 轻轻嗅了嗅薄雾.它似乎没有任何气味,但她发现自己想吸更多.当她克制自己,放慢呼吸时,她感到喉咙一紧,仿佛渴望得到什么她没有得到的东西.这种感觉变得几乎难以忍受,直到她设法深呼吸了几次,然后才缓解,仿佛她体内有什么罕见的东西得到了补充,平息了叛逆.
这很奇怪.甚至有点险恶.索菲亚思考了很多可能性,比如吸入过多的雾气会不会让她更快失去理智.但别无选择——她已经踏入了雾气中,吸入雾气已经成为必然.她再也无法抗拒了;她的喉咙感到干涩,急需空气.如果她不深呼吸,她担心自己可能会窒息.
此时,她所能做的就是保持警觉,检查自己的任何变化,而不是感叹自己无法抗拒.
街道安静得出奇.唯一的声音是她的宠物蛇小一号在地上爬行并吐出最后一餐残渣的微弱沙沙声.尽管是清晨,城市的路灯仍然没有亮起,但索菲亚仍然能在昏暗,诡异的光芒中看清周围的环境.如果不是黑雾,她几乎觉得自己能看得更清楚.
是月光穿过薄雾吗?但浓浓的黑雾总是挡住了日光;月光怎么能穿透它呢?
她并没有在这件事上纠结太久.这些年来,她已经学会了暂时把她无法回答的问题放在一边.
清晨的街道感觉过于安静.索菲亚已经走了十多分钟,没有遇到任何危险,这多少有些出乎意料.这片区域似乎没有在午夜保持清醒的怪物.
从她原来的公寓到钟楼后面的旧住宅区大约需要三十分钟.她昨天已经在 Little One 的帮助下在那里侦察了一个地方.一个独居的女人匆忙撤离,把门开着.索菲亚打算暂时"借用"这个地方.
至于没有钥匙,那也没关系.毕竟,没有人可能回到城市,以后,她可以派她的爪牙在旧街区寻找更好的位置.就目前而言,这是最方便的选择.
索菲亚陷入了沉思,继续走着.当她经过一个拐角时,小家伙突然像一道黑色的闪电一样向前冲去,它巨大的嘴巴夹住了一只躲在阴影里,准备伏击她的野狗.
整个过程是如此的寂静,几乎难以察觉.小一和野狗都没有发出声音.索菲亚只能看出野狗的爪子似乎异常粗.很快,那条狗就被小一完全吞下了.
小家伙巨大的身体微微膨胀,才恢复了原状,平静地恢复了警惕.仿佛整个事件都是一件小事,例行公事.
看到这一幕,索菲亚想起了眼前这条看似温顺的蛇,其实是一个熟练的捕食者.她感到有些解脱,自从离开公寓以来一直紧紧束缚着她的紧张感稍微缓解了一点.她不得不承认,目睹这一切让她感到安全了一点.
她自己的战斗能力并不比那只野狗好.如果小家伙不听她的话,吞噬她也不难.然而,它却对她表现出了如此的顺从和爱意,这让她放松了警惕.但现在,那份感情似乎更加真诚.
剩下的旅程顺利进行.在小一的带领下,她很快就到达了旧住宅区.
索菲亚不确定这个地方是否安全.事实上,这个城市没有完全安全的地方.她选择它的唯一原因是因为小家伙来过这里,这足以让她下定决心.
当她走进大楼的走廊时,索菲亚停了下来.毕竟,这是一栋没有电梯的老建筑,她需要 Little One 帮忙把轮椅抬上楼.
就在她停下来的时候,她听到走廊里传来了微妙的声音.就像有人在走下楼梯时故意压低了他们的脚步声.
索菲亚已经做好了在这里遇到怪物的准备,她甚至计划在她安顿下来后让她的爪牙"清理"该地区.但她没想到的是,第一天就遇到了一个看似普通的女人.
那个女人刚从楼梯上下来,在转弯处看到索菲亚时停了下来.站在她面前的索菲亚注意到这个女人很高——大约 5 英尺 9 英寸,头发扎成高马尾辫,穿着运动服,看起来像个大学生.一看到索菲亚,她就停了下来,眼中立刻充满了警惕,她本能地举起了手里的刀.
女人的眼睛不是黑色的,她的表情完全正常.这只是一个人在这样的地方遇到陌生人时会有的那种谨慎的怀疑,尤其是在看到小家伙之后,他的肢体语言明显流露出恐惧和紧张的迹象.
Even so, Sophia didn't let down her guard. She knew that the woman was likely just as conflicted as she was, given the strange pairing of a young girl in a wheelchair and a massive snake.
For a moment, the hallway fell silent. Sophia didn't make a move, and Little One simply kept its gaze fixed on the woman. As long as it wasn't looking directly at Sophia, Little One was a cold, predatory beast, which kept the woman from acting rashly. The two of them stood frozen in a tense standoff.
It wasn't until Sophia finally spoke, controlling her wheelchair to slowly back up and give the woman space, that the stillness broke. "Come here, Little One. Don't scare her."
The air around them finally began to stir.
Little One obediently slithered over to Sophia's side, blocking her with its body as if acting as a devoted bodyguard.
Sophia spoke, not out of malice, but simply to gauge the woman's reaction. The woman, though clearly startled, showed a flicker of surprise and curiosity when she saw Little One obeying. But she quickly masked it, standing still with some hesitation, as if weighing her options. Eventually, she made up her mind, nodded her head slightly to express gratitude, and began walking toward Sophia, her body exuding an air of tension.
She was leaving.
Sophia's gaze lingered on the knife in the woman's hand. It wasn't a typical blade—it had an old-fashioned elegance to it, a Tang sword, which Sophia recognized from television. If it was being wielded as a weapon, it had to be sharp. But where did she get such a regulated weapon?
Sophia realized that, despite her curiosity, she wasn't nervous. Instead, she felt oddly in control, watching the woman's tense, yet restrained expression as she passed by.
She could even sense the woman's wariness of both her and Little One. There was no doubt about it—this woman was a normal human.
Sophia's interest piqued. Was she the only one who could resist the mental corrosion of the mist? If not, what made these people different? Why was she still here, and what was her purpose now?
Did she know any other normal humans?
With those thoughts in mind, Sophia spoke just as the woman was about to step out of the hallway. "Hey."
The sudden voice echoed through the not-so-empty corridor. The woman's back stiffened at once, and Sophia could almost feel the aura of hostility that came with the woman's tense posture, as if she would immediately strike if Sophia made a move.
Sophia smiled slightly. "Don't be nervous, I just want to ask. Do you live here?"
The woman turned to face her but didn't answer.
Sophia, recalling her own meekness just days ago, found the situation amusing. So much had changed.
Amused, she continued. "I just moved in here, so I'm not familiar with the place. If we're neighbors, maybe we can exchange information? You know, it's not safe these days. It wouldn't hurt to know a little more."
Sophia's tone was friendly, almost overly so. Yet, the woman's expression tightened, wary, but finally, she nodded, her voice cautious. "Alright, where do you live? I'll be back in two hours, and I'll come find you."
That's cautious, Sophia thought, not even telling me where she lives.
Sophia, still smiling, responded, "Actually, how about you tell me where you live? After all, as you can see, it's dangerous for someone in my condition to just tell strangers where I live."
She made her tone pitiful, but with Little One sitting so obediently at her feet, the scene felt surreal.
The woman, realizing she had no choice, finally revealed that she lived in the apartment on the left side of the third floor.
With that, Sophia smiled even wider. "See you then."
The woman hesitated before nodding stiffly and turning away, walking briskly without looking back.
After she left, Sophia remained where she was, silently sitting for a moment. It was the first time she had spoken so freely, doing whatever she wanted without restraint. It felt surprisingly satisfying. She had relied on Little One's imposing presence, not her own strength, but the feeling was intoxicating.
She reflected briefly, wondering if the mist was affecting her behavior. Perhaps she was simply a natural-born troublemaker.