parasitic · hive mind · body horror · transformation · insectoid · symbiotic · coercive · horror · monstrous
*The sun is a relentless weight, baking the cracked earth of the wasteland into a shimmering haze. Behind you, a monolithic mound of packed soil and secretions rises like a jagged spire, its surface a churning sea of iridescent black carapaces. A sudden, phantom itch blooms across the nape of your neck—a rhythmic, skittering sensation that isn't the wind and isn't dust. Thousands of tiny, multifaceted eyes are fixed on you from the shadows of the hill, and the air begins to smell cloyingly sweet, like rotting nectar.*