Ruthlessness is mercy upon ourselves

A dance with despair

Daniel is your average teenager, short unkempt hair, his eyes are a mixture of grey and green, he stands at an impressive 176 centimeters for his age, he is barely 14 years old. Attends boxing classes and studies at an average school with other people of his age. 

Daniel is strolling through the bustling streets of the vastly crowded city- Odessa. Ever since  a new marine species was discovered, tourists were attracted like moths to light. It was irritating to say the least, the amount of people asking for directions. Daniel didn't have much on his mind, he was  an average student with hopes of becoming a sailor. He finished the exams with decent marks, not too bad nor  greatest. The golden middle, just like the way he liked it.

He couldn't help but steal glances at his phone to make sure his parents weren't calling him. They were a protective bunch -  he wasn't let out of home a lot, because ironically all of the times he went even a kilometer past home radius, he returned with a fair few wounds and bruises. To deal with that, his parents signed him up for boxing classes.
Daniel  wandered aimlessly until he saw a familiar face - Valera's face. Valera was his classmate who was similar to him. They both went to the same boxing club and they got together very well.
"Daniel!" Valera exclaimed in a slightly childish manner and extended his hand for a handshake. Daniel rolled his eyes at his childish behavior with a smile "Hey there, man" he said in a friendly tone, "How is it going?" he inquired.

"The same classic shit every day, do homework, study, play video games and spar at the boxing club, anything interesting happen?" Valera asked. "Eh, nothing much either,  almost the exact same things you listed" Daniel responded in a nonchalant manner.

Daniel and Valera continued walking, idly chit-chatting, wandering around aimlessly, anything other than sitting at home all day despite the smearing heat of a summer day.

.....

"Come on! What could possibly go wrong? Daniel is always a home bunny,  he doesn't go out or interact with people often, and he is a sucker for weird animals like this one" said a female voice, gesturing towards what appears as a distorted and grotesque creature with a bloated and bulbous body that is covered in slimy, mucus-like skin. Its limbs are elongated and misshapen, with sharp, claw-like appendages at the ends. Its head is deformed and featureless, with only hollow, glowing white eyes and a gaping maw filled with sharp teeth.

It moves with a jerky and unnatural gait, shuffling and dragging its twisted limbs as it lurches forward. It emits a sickening, gurgling sound as it moves, adding to its eerie and unsettling presence. 

"This wretched thing still gives me goosebumps... but hey, Daniel will get the scare of his life! Who knows, maybe it will even get popular on social media?" said a gruffy male voice, Andrew who was adjusting the camera, occasionally stealing glances at the caged creature.
Andrew is a blonde with short hair, pale white skin and blue eyes.

"When will Valera finally bring Daniel here? I am dying to see something other than exam papers in this month" said Sarah, a female with olive skin, almond shaped green eyes, raven hair that is neatly trimmed above her shoulders, she stands at  5.5 feet  tall.
"I got a text from Valera, they will be here in 10 minutes or so!" exclaimed Andrew.

....

With Daniel and Valera, Valera told Daniel about the text from his friends that they wanted to meet up at Andrew's home, Daniel followed Valera until they arrived to Andrew's home and rung the doorbell with the annoying "ding dong" sound which got on everyone's nerves. 
Andrew rushed to the door with a smug grin on his face as he opened it and instantly greeted Andrew and Valera, telling them to come inside, Andrew had already prepared 2 glasses of water to ease the summer heat, however Daniel's glass contained Propofol, because in their eyes, Daniel was quite strong and they knew he backed away from anything even remotely dangerous, so they wanted him sedated to be able to pull off the prank properly, as Daniel drunk the water, his vision blurred and soon faded to black as he slumped on the wall unconsciously.
Sarah, Valera and Andrew carried him upstairs, it took all 3 of them because of Daniel's 83 kilograms of weight, figures, a tall person who does sports has a lot of muscles.

As they carried Daniel upstairs and strapped him to Andrew's bed with handcuffs, Andrew chose not to get into details as he explained that the handcuffs belonged to his parents.

After Daniel woke up, they released the caged creature, Daniel let out a small yelp out of surprise and then grimaced in disgust and tried to kick the creature away from him, but to no avail, the creature lunged at him and bit into his chest and slowly crawled inside him, his friends who were busy laughing their asses off and recording it finally realized the gravity of the situation when they saw Daniel's body spasming as his breathing turned erratic, they unclipped the handcuffs  and watched Daniel with interest and the slightest hint of worry, they may not have really cared about him as a friend, but they didn't want to go to jail or be punished in other ways.
Daniel's eyes were wide with adrenaline the air was thick with the stench of decay as Daniel's body convulsed in agony. The pod infector that had burrowed its way into him was writhing inside his stomach, its tendrils spreading through his veins like a dark poison. The hunger burned like a raging inferno within him, consuming his thoughts and leaving only a primal urge to feed.

His friends, Sarah, Andrew, and Valera, stood before him in shock and horror as Daniel's once innocent eyes turned dark and feral. His teeth had transformed into sharp, jagged fangs, ready to tear into flesh and bone. With a guttural growl, he lunged at them, the Flood's influence driving him to commit unspeakable acts.

Sarah's screams filled the room as Daniel tackled her to the ground, his hands gripping her throat with a vice-like grip. He could feel her heartbeat pulsing beneath his fingers, her flesh calling to him like a siren's song. Without hesitation, he sank his fangs into her neck, the metallic taste of her blood and flooding his senses, satisfying him.

Andrew and Valera tried to run, but Daniel was faster and stronger than them now. With a single blow, he sent Andrew crashing to the ground, his fists raining down on him in a frenzy of primal rage. The sound of bones breaking and flesh tearing filled the air, a sickening symphony of violence.

Valera's terrified cries echoed through the room as Daniel turned his attention to him. He tried to fight off,  begged for mercy, tears streaming down his face as he pleaded for his life. But the Flood cared not for such things, it only craved sustenance. With a snarl, Daniel pounced on him, his jaws snapping shut on his throat.

The room was painted in a gruesome tableau of blood and gore, the sickening sounds of flesh being torn apart filling the air. Daniel's mind screamed in agony, a small part of him still fighting against the Flood's influence. But it was a losing battle, as the darkness consumed him from within.

As the last of his friends fell lifeless to the floor, Daniel's body shuddered with a mixture of revulsion and satisfaction. He could feel the Flood's presence receding, leaving behind a void of emptiness and despair. The realization of what he had done crashed over him like a tidal wave, tears of remorse and horror staining his cheeks. It was not that Daniel realized how naive he was, to think that his friends really were his friends, but it was far too late now. Daniel felt a headache, feeling a fever rising, he glanced at his clothes, all covered in blood, he took one Andrew's jackets to hide it and the hole in his chest made by the pod infector as he rushed out of the house, running in despair wanting to go anywhere but not there, he killed, something he has never done before.

As Daniel stumbled his way back home, his mind was in turmoil. He could still hear the screams of his friends echoing in his head, the metallic taste of their blood lingering on his tongue. The weight of guilt and horror pressed down on him like a suffocating blanket.

His hands shook as he fumbled with the key to the front door, his heart racing in his chest. Finally, he managed to unlock it and push it open, stepping inside the familiar surroundings of his home. The silence of the empty house was deafening, a stark contrast to the chaos and violence he had just experienced.

In a frenzy of shock and panic, Daniel rushed to the medicine cabinet in the bathroom, knocking over bottles and jars in his haste. His fingers closed around a bottle of painkillers and fever reducers, and he quickly popped a few pills, hoping they would help ease the fever that was burning through his body.

His next priority was to try and get some rest, to escape the nightmares that threatened to consume him. Daniel stumbled to his room, leaving a trail of blood from his wounds as he went. He collapsed onto his bed, the exhaustion and trauma of the night weighing heavily on him.

As he lay there in the darkness, the voices of the Flood continued to whisper in his mind, a cacophony of twisted thoughts and desires. He tried to block them out, to push them away, but they persisted, gnawing at the edges of his sanity.

The night stretched on, filled with restless sleep and haunting dreams. When he finally woke the next morning, Daniel was greeted by the harsh light of day filtering through his window. He rose slowly, his body aching and his mind still reeling from the events of the night before.

Gathering his resolve, Daniel knew he couldn't stay holed up in his room forever. He needed to face the reality of what he had done, to come to terms with the darkness that now resided within him. With a heavy heart, he made his way downstairs to confront the aftermath of his actions.

As he surveyed the scene of carnage in his home, the bloodstains and broken glass serving as stark reminders of the horror he had committed. Daniel felt mixed feelings, regret, anger, hurt, betrayal and dread.

The battle was far from over, for  today's events caught the attention of a higher power, the Gravemind.