"That's the thing that all you guys got wrong. He wasn't the cause of the event—he WAS the event. He was like a natural disaster. So big and wonderful and terrifying that anything that came before and everything that came after becomes a huge blur."

The man made another attempt to claw the boy but his arms had lost their strength. His legs gave way under him. The boy sucked at the wound on the man's neck until his struggling descended into pathetic shivering, and he fainted. As the boy began to drag the man into the dark alley, he remembered a childhood rhyme: "Good food, good meat, Good God, let's eat."

The funny thing about pain is that it blinds you, makes you selfish. It turns your perspective inward. It's all about your pain, and your suffering. People do funny things when they're in pain. And children are known for doing very funny things. Never underestimate the power of selfishness. (First chapter rewritten from fanfic formally known as The Hidden.)