Lucky, the next day was the beginning of the weekend, so Nox didn't have to worry about the alarm. Unfortunately, the situation didn't improve overnight. The next morning when he woke up, even more articles and videos appeared online. More of such creatures began to manifest in the "human" world. Those monsters, like humans, were each unique. Some simply lived their life, walking around with a purpose that only they knew of, while some seemed violent, always rushing toward Nox with aggression, but never being able to touch him.

  Looking outside of the window, the previously busy streets were empty. People seemed to have become fearful of going outside. In a way, he understood their feelings, even felt guilty. Despite living with the ability to see those creatures, he had no idea how to protect himself against them and only a brief idea—or more of a suspicion—about what they were.

  While making his coffee, he decided to check his phone again. To no surprise, the trending topics were the monsters.

  ?I thought this was a joke!!! picture attached

  ?Is he for real?

  ?I saw one too!!! picture attached

  ?WTF!!!!

  ?Idiots decided to try Monster hunting Video Attached

  ?Is this natural selection? Lol

  ?How can you joke in this situation?

  ?Job Offer!! Can someone go to the store in my place? I'll provide the money for the food and will pay for the delivery!

  ?Who would agree to walk around with monsters outside?

  At that, Nox glanced at his own empty fridge. He planned to buy groceries on Saturday, which was today. Strangely enough, he didn't feel scared of going outside. He knew which creatures to avoid and which meant no harm. With a sigh, he got dressed and left.

  Despite all the chaos, it all seemed to be the same, yet at the same time different. From the corner of his eyes, Nox saw one of the creatures bump into a glass window of a shop and completely shatter it. The thing that caused him to stop was the creature's reaction. It looked around, just as confused as him, and lowered down, its long, sharp, and fingerless limbs touching the broken glass.

  Nox knew that creature, he often saw it before. From his memory, it wasn't aggressive. Its routine consisted of walking around various stores and looking at the shelves before leaving. For some unknown reason to him, some of those creatures, before materializing, were able to pass through walls, while others had to wait for a door or window to open. Only this time, the creature stood frozen in place, its head tilting from one point to another, as if trying to understand what happened.

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  From across the street, a boy was filming the monster with his phone, silently shouting in a microphone near his mouth.

  "Do you all see that?" he asked with glee, "It's a monster," he exclaimed, "Everyone else is scared to go out—but not me! I'm here walking the streets to show my viewers what became of the world!"

  He put on a brave face, Nox noticed, yet was unable to hide his trembling knees.

  'Lucky him the camera doesn't show his full body,' he thought, amused.

  But apparently, Nox wasn't the only one who noticed the boy. The strange creature slowly turned around and looked at him as well. Its head tilting again, as if thinking what to do next. In an instant, the creature rushed at him, causing the boy to shout and fall down. The phone he used to film was dropped, and the screen shattered, just like the glass of the shop. A deafening scream emitted from the boy, but the creature only stopped in front of him and watched.

  "What are you doing?" Nox then found a superficial courage awakening in him. He slowly approached the creature and dared to stay between it and the boy.

  Despite the threat, Nox didn't feel afraid. He often saw that creature, sometimes even nodding or waving its way, only to be ignored. It never harmed him, nor did it look like it tried to harm someone else. The monstrous creature lived its own life, just like the humans that would pass it by without being aware of its presence.

  'Is it the same one though?' Nox wondered. Those creatures suddenly appeared in the real world; who was to say that their characteristics didn't change? Its light blue skin, sharp features, and hands that reminded him of a praying mantis looked threatening to anyone. Yet for some reason, when its empty head, one that lacked eyes, nose, and mouth, tilted down, Nox could feel its stare and all his doubts were washed away. It nodded at him, which caused the tension, that Nox didn't even notice, to melt away from his body. Only the tension returned when the creature rose one of its threatening hands and pointed it in the direction of an alley.

  He often watched the creatures that humans were not able to see. He studied them, their behaviour and traits. He knew their routines and actions. So the moment he saw the arm pointing in that direction, Nox felt the blood drain from his face.