The Glowing Apple
"What the hell is this... an apple?" But it's blue. And above all, it's glowing. An apple? I start by peeling off the machines attached to the fruit that looks like an apple. The lights inside them flicker out one by one, and from that alone I can tell this thing is no ordinary object.
"What kind of thing is this?"
I turn the apple over in my hands and give it a sniff. It smells exactly like a normal apple. "Eh, whatever."
I shove it into my bag and am about to bolt when the instincts hit.
Behind. Danger. Dodge right.
I tilt my head right. Instead of blue electricity, a red-hot bullet screams past my ear.
"He dodged—the target dodged...!"
I snatch a pebble off the ground and whip it at the pursuer's head. The cheerful clang of stone against his metal mask is followed by a short scream as he drops.
I glance in the direction he came from. Looks like he was the only one here so far. Time to move before more show up.
I run like I've never run in my life, tearing through the undergrowth.
"This should be far enough."
I strip off my outer jacket, stuff it in the bag, smash my glasses, and toss them in a trash can. Blending into the crowd pouring out of the lecture hall during break, I pull off my mask and catch my breath. My eyes sweep over the people around me. No one suspicious.
Only then do I let out another sigh of relief and step into the building—not to attend class, but because I need a place that's empty yet still occupied if I'm going to figure out what this apple-thing is. The empty lot at the old dormitory where I first met Chae-yun would work, but it'd be too obvious. So I end up right back in the last stall of this bathroom. It already feels like home.
I lock the door, unzip the bag, and blue light floods the dim space. The glow is so bright I almost yelp.
"What the hell is this...?"
I examine the fruit slowly this time. It radiates such a brilliant, ethereal light that I feel like I'm holding an entire planet in my hand.
Eat.
Like a star.
Eat.
Why does it look so delicious? The fruit drifts closer until I sink my teeth into it.
"So what happened?"
"...Three of the four A-team members assigned to retrieve Subject 1 are dead, one is critically injured, and the standby member is also critically injured. And..."
"And what?"
"Subject 1's power source has disappeared."
I walk over without a word and kick the agent in the shin as hard as I can. It must have hurt, but he only flinches slightly before standing ramrod straight and continuing in the same flat tone.
"I am truly sorry."
The power source—of all things to lose. Setting that aside, does the entity even know what it is? That shouldn't be possible. Even the most sensitive entity would struggle to detect trained agents moving covertly.
"...Was it just one?"
"Yes. Only one entity. And there's something else unusual..."
I snap at the agent who's been trailing off.
"What is it?"
"...The entity was male, not female."
We are still awake. Grow. Bloom.
What the fuck is this supposed to mean?
Where am I? Everything in front of me is pitch black and my body won't move properly. It feels like I'm thrashing underwater. And from the bottomless depths comes a voice echoing like a whale's song—loud, yet somehow warm, like a lullaby from childhood.
Achieve it. My... child...
Wait—the voice cut off for a second. What did you say? Say it again.
"Wait...!"
I reach for the fading voice, but the sensation is different now. My hand moves easily, slicing through air instead of water. If I stretch just a little farther, I'll touch it. I throw my arm forward with everything I have.
Light floods my vision.
CRASH!
My hand smashes the bathroom door to pieces. I jerk upright like someone waking from a falling dream and turn the restroom into a disaster zone.
"Oh, shit."
The door shatters under my palm and the flying debris takes out the urinal in front of me. I scramble out of the stall and check the bathroom—no one else is here. Through the window the sky is tinged orange with the setting sun. My phone says it's 5 p.m. I must have been out for at least four hours. It's been a while since I slept more than two hours straight in this body.
Last thing I remember is eating that apple... Right, the apple. I spin around in alarm, but the fruit has lost its glow and now looks like an ordinary red apple.
"..."
Just in case, I take another bite.
"...Tastes good."
Normal apple flavor. Though I can't quite recall what it tasted like before.
Behind.
I flinch and look toward the hallway. Voices. One person.
"E-excuse me, is anyone in there? I heard a loud noise."
"Ah, yes, I'm fine. I just tripped."
That voice sounds familiar. I grab my things and step out. An all-too-familiar silhouette waits outside.
"...Professor?"
"Oh, it's you, Chan-woo..."
One of the design department professors. Younger than most, popular with students, easy to talk to. I'd assumed it was a woman because of the voice and that she couldn't come in, but of course it's the professor.
"..."
"..."
An awkward silence. I don't get along with any of the professors anyway, so this is just uncomfortable. I should leave quickly.
"...Well then, I'll be going—"
Use it.
"What's wrong?"
The moment I try to say goodbye, another image rises in my mind. Can I actually do this? I stop, turn around, and look at the professor. Fine, hair-like spines emerge from my index finger. I press it to her forehead.
"What are you doing right n—ah...?"
Her arms go limp, her eyes lose their light. Something—not blood—flows through my veins, through the spines, and into her head. I don't know why, but I know how to use it.
"Can you hear me?"
"Yes..."
She answers with a drop of drool at the corner of her parted lips.
"Tell me your name, age, and job."
"...Han Hui-ju, thirty-six years old. I work in the design department at Seonghoe University..."
A student pressing his finger to a professor's head while she answers his questions—even personal ones. The glowing fruit must be responsible for this abnormal situation. I don't know the details, but it seems to connect our brains and inject some kind of liquid directly into hers, making the mind as vulnerable as if drugged. Basically a hypnotic trance state. Not as all-purpose as Chae-yun's brainwashing. This one will require slow, careful work.
"Good. Now then..."
"Ahaha! That's great, well done!"
I hug the agent in front of me. He looks flustered, then awkwardly pats my back.
"You should've told me about that earlier! Does your leg hurt?"
"Ah, no, I'm fine."
A male entity. A male entity that walks on two legs, possesses intelligence, and shows no physical mutation—completely different from anything we've tested before. We still don't know enough. I can't stop smiling. I feel like a child who just got a brand-new toy.
The discovery of a male entity we've never seen, and the first entity to show interest in the "power source." Once you step outside the lab, there's an entire ecosystem that can't be contained in a hard drive. Thanks to the bald team leader. Love you.
"Ah, but I can't return to the lab for another three days..."
"....."
"Oh! Right, sorry about kicking you earlier. Want to come to my place? The research team's having a dinner tonight."
"Ah, no thank you, I'm fine—"
"Come on, it's fine. You have to come."