Kari woke up that morning with an odd sense of regret. Blinding rays of sunlight poured in through the window beside her, forcing her to squint. She sat up in her cot, staring straight ahead at the bare wall across from her. A red and white kimono, similar to those that the miko who serve in Shinto shrines wear, was draped over her thin, frail body. She bought it once during a trip to Japan and used it as her pajamas ever since. Strands of her glossy bright-red hair clung to her face and cheeks, which were drenched in sweat. Her light hazel eyes, so pure and bright, were glazed over. Slowly, she turned her head to the left, and glanced down.

She frowned.

Last night, there had been someone in bed with her. She knew that much. Now, a clumsily-folded stack of bills laid in the person's place. Kari glared at the money as if it were something horribly detestable. Reaching out, she lifted the paper money up into her delicate hands, and gingerly flipped through it. There must have been about 3000 dollars here, all of it for her. Kari placed the money back in its original place.

Then, as if a slow-moving fist had finally made contact with her face, the memories of last night's events came rushing back to Kari all at once. She immediately started to break down.

'Oh god...' Kari buried her face into her hands, and brought her knees up to her chest. A powerful urge to scream swelled up within her throat.

'Oh god...'

A single tear leaked out, and it slowly trickled down the curve of her cheek.

'Oh dear lord, why did I do that...?!'

A painful cramp formed in her stomach, and the poor girl jumped to her feet and dashed straight for the bathroom. As she ran, she had no idea that two of her fingers had already rotted apart...

"Mmm...mmh...oh...oh, Michael...deeper...go deeper...uhh...it feels SO GOOD..."

"My name isn't Michael...it's Naught. If you forget again, I might have to kill you..."

"Michael...Naught...whoever you are, just keep at it!! OH GOD YES-"

"That's right...take it...take it all, you bitch...and if you're lucky you'll be able to live through tommorrow..."

A loud splash echoed into the hallway as the digested contents of Kari's stomach spewed from her mouth and poured into the toilet bowl. She couldn't keep herself from shaking. Her skin, which had once been a healthy rosy color, was now as white as snow. Kari moved a hand away from her head, and let out a choked gasp when she realized that she had just pulled off a large clump of her hair. Purple-colored veins formed all over her face and neck. Her flat stomach started to swell outwards, as if it were filling up with water.

"What..." she cried aloud, "What the fuck is happening to me...?!!!"

"Don't you remember last night...my little tulip?"

Kari spun around, and her mouth fell agape in a silent scream. A man was standing in the doorway. He was completely naked, with his generous-sized genitalia dangling heavily in between his bony legs. What really captured Kari's attention though was the man's lack of a head. She could see a small stub of bone poking out of the top of his neck. He had long, thin fingernails that made a sharp click-clack sound when he wrapped a hand around the doorknob and slammed it shut behind him.

"You..." Kari recognized the man's voice; it was the same man that she, while in a drunken stupor, offered 'mind-blowing' sex for a fair amount of cash in return. Still, she could have sworn this man had a head last night...didn't he?

Kari gasped, her body gone numb, as the headless man took a step closer towards her. Even without a face to express the specific emotion, Kari could tell that this man was grinning menacingly at her.

"Like I said last night, my name is Naught. During our lovemaking, which was every bit as mind-blowing as you promised it would be," he pointed at the empty space where his head should have been, and chuckled, "I had taken that time to slip the Seed of Logos into your body. I have spent many centuries now searching for a proper host, and have still yet to find one. Judging by your current appearance and engorged belly, I'd say that the Seed has rejected you...a shame, really. I actually took all of that money out of my bank account and left it there so you could buy some fancy clothing and make the host body look at least a little more presentable. If the Seed starts to infect you about six or so hours after being implanted, then your body does not suit it."

Kari placed a hand upon her belly; she could feel it pulsating. "What's going on here?! What's happening to me...and what the hell are you?!!"

"Just hold still, miss. I must retrieve the Seed, and then I shall be on my way."

"What...?!"

Kari's eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets as she felt the man's right hand thrust itself into her stomach. Oddly enough, the pain did not come until about a minute later. The dying woman's mouth flapped open and close like a fish as Naught's hand slowly shifted about within her abdomen. A waterfall of blood and strangely colored fluids, ranging from green to light-yellow and smelling something putrid, poured out onto the bathroom floor, staining the clear white tiles. Flecks of blood and stomach acid splattered onto the shower curtains.

There was a loud pop, and even more blood flowed out. Kari wheezed in sharp gasps as overwhelming pain filled her every nerve, her eyes reeled back so as not to witness the horror taking place within her own body. She could feel the headless man's hand actually groping at her spleen, her liver, her small intestine and even both her lungs. It was really out of place at a time like this, but memories of the old children's board game Operation came to her mind just then.

'This is a nightmare...' she thought in total desperation, 'This is just some sick, twisted nightmare I'm having because I drank too much last night...yeah...that's all it is...a night-'

Kari's thoughts were cut short when Naught's hand gripped tightly onto her heart. He let out a soft, friendly laugh, as if he weren't just about to tear this poor woman's heart out. He had located the Seed, it seemed; it had buried itself deep into the woman's heart. Kari closed her eyes. Naught squeezed his fingers into the heart, and tugged hard.

"Come to daddy."

"GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA-"

----------------------------------------------------

"Ooh...ohhh...ohhhhh...that was the best sex I ever had, even if I was the one doing it all...you're pretty good, Michael..."

"I told you, my name is Naught. Get it right!"

"Whatever, you old codfish..."

"If the Seed does not settle within your body properly, then I will be back tomorrow morning to retrieve it. I will also kill you, as this is the second time you have forgotten my name..."

"Can't wait...Michaaaaael..."

"...I really hope that the Seed cannot use you as a host...I want to torture you a little before I kill you..."