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I was spawned at sea. My sire was called Hate; Sorrow, my
mother. There are many legends, some more true than not, but it
was the hunger that drove me...drove me mad.
The oceans seemed to stretch on forever--vast, wild expanses full
of promise and danger in equal measure. So I explored, all the
while growing swifter and stronger. And hungrier. There was
plenty of food to be had, sure, and the killing came quite naturally.
I devoured every dull, simple beast in my path. But the hunger still
twisted and writhed inside me.
Nowhere could I find a like being to converse with, nowhere
another soul to reflect mine. Now I knew the name of my hunger.
In the cold and dark of the deep, this loneliness followed me
everywhere.
Then my excursions revealed something new. The hunger receded
under the possibilities of this discovery. There were bits of wood
and other strange things from the world beyond mine--and there
was a visitor. Whether out of curiosity or desperation, I rose
toward the surface and approached the creature. Its limbs flailed
against the water. It was so small and weak and painfully aware.
And so alone. I reached out, gently wrapped its body in my
embrace.
Finally, here was a real, feeling companion; here was a mirror in
which to see myself.
But when I looked into its eyes, into its soul, I found only Terror.
Even though my heart might ache with loneliness, I could not bear
to witness the suffering. I had but one skill, knew only one way to
stop my new enemy. So I took pity on this poor creature.
And then another. And another...
I have spent a thousand years on this hunt and will spend a
thousand more, for the hunger is relentless, and Terror is
everywhere I look.
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