This is actually not my first story. Started a few years ago but I forgot my password for my previous account. Thus, I decided to start anew.

As I look up in the night sky, all I can see is darkness. No moon, no stars. It's as though I'm staring into nothingness. It feels like my soul is being sucked. I'm starting to lose my sanity…

"Wake up!"

I'm starting to gain visual and I could feel immense pain. I realized I was attacked. There was no doubt about it. It had to be a Styx. Styx, as stated in my records, is a mythical creature that lurked in the Forest of Rew. It is rumored to have the ability to create hallucinations that could cause extreme pain. It is also said to be legendary as no one has ever encountered the creature. The only record about it is from an old chief that claimed he was attacked by one.

My team mates forced the antidote down my throat trying to wake me up. They did not know why I was attacked. After I calmed down a little, I began explaining the whole story to them.

Before that, I should explain a little about my team. We were the elite exploration team from Area 13 of Queyl. Our mission was to explore Forest of Rew and collect data for records. In human history, no one has ever explored the world outside Queyl for the past 50 years. The only information we have about the outside world is from the books written by previous explorers. My team was selected and I was appointed as the leader of this team. Oh, did I forget to introduce myself? Pardon me, I tend to get distracted. The name's Sky and no, I'm not a male. My team members consist of two males and two other females. I'll get to their names later on. We picked a good day and embarked on our journey. As soon as we reached there, I gave an order to split up. I thought it was more efficient that way but it didn't occur to me that it also made us vulnerable.

Here, my story unfolds. After we split up, I went south. I picked a location near the river to set up my equipment. Not long after, I saw glowing butterflies fluttering down the river. With no time to waste, I took my camera and backpack, and followed the flight of butterflies. Then, I noticed a shadow-like image on a huge rock. I observed from afar and saw a lot of mythical creatures gathering around the rock. There were screaming roses, 5 feet tall grasshoppers, neon pink rabbits and other unimaginable creatures. Those creatures that I've only study about in books. I was intrigued by such discovery so soon in my journey. Without realizing, I was moving closer and closer to the gathering.

It didn't occur to me at all that my flash was on. As I took a picture of the creatures, the flash of light startled them. The shadow on the rock suddenly opened its eye, only one eye and stared right at me. Immediately, my mind turned blank and I passed out. I thought I was awake in my hallucination. At that time, nothing matters anymore. I don't feel alive but at the same time, I don't think I'm dead. Only after a while, when my team mates woke me up, I came back to reality.

I suddenly remembered my camera. I look through my pictures and the mythical creatures are there but… no signs of the Styx. That's impossible. I clearly took a picture before blacking out. I have no explanations as to how that happened and my team mates didn't seem to be bothered by that.

Every night after that incident, I have nightmares about the Styx. It has no specific form. Just a shadow with one eye. Somehow, I can't recall part of my memory. I felt as though something else happened but I don't remember anything. I took out my MCR device and searched for every single information about the Styx. No pictures and no weaknesses.

Just when I was about to give up looking, I blacked out again. That's when the truth started to unravel itself.