The creature parading as Zee threw her arms in frustration, walking around in a circle. She hissed and shook her head, grabbing her temples. “Why is this happening?!” she grunted, shaking her head. “Was it because she was the first sapient I’ve consumed? This woman’s emotions and feelings are bleeding into my own. How did the elders… how did they separate the multiple minds they’ve—”

She heard a shuffle of feet. She turned her eyes to the young man on the floor, scooting away from her. “Z-Zee..?” he said. His head swiveled around, looking from side to side, trying to find a way to escape. 

“Is it you, Zee? Are you there? I-I don’t know what happened to you but it’s going to be oka—”

“Zofia is dead,” Zo’eryloth replied. 

“She’s dead..? T-then who am I speaking with?!”

“I told you. I am Zo’eryloth, a voraciocite.”

“Voraciocite? What is…”

“My species. I am not from this world,” Zee replied. “I came here trying to scout for new planets for my people to feed on. My ship malfunctioned and crash-landed into a nearby field— and in the crash I had lost significant biomass, and my ship’s communications were destroyed. Zofia, the woman whose body I now use, was the closest living being I had found with enough mass to replace what I’ve lost. So I consumed her, and took her form.”

“What—?” 

“Are you still not understanding, Francis? From what I recall using Zofia’s memories, humans are supposed to be intelligent. Perhaps I was wrong.” 

“Y-You’re asking me to understand t-that my friend is dead a-and that her body has been taken over by some otherworldly m-monster!” 

“Taken over?” Zee chuckled. “No, her body is gone. Completely consumed. This is my body. I simply took her form and copied it down to the last detail. It is how my species infiltrates and devours entire civilizations,” she explained. “Your world is no different. Your kind would be easy pickings with your lack of technological advantage. From what I see, your species has barely left the steam age. Very few communication satellites, no space defenses or FTL travel, not even advanced weaponry, utterly barren. It’s unfortunate that I crashed here with no way to contact my kin for now, that is until I repair my ship’s communications.” 

“S-so you’re an alien… from another world?” 

“Finally, you’re understanding me.”

“B-but why here?! Why Earth?!” 

“Prey does not ask why they are being eaten,” she said. “They simply understand that it is the way of life. The same goes for your planet and all its life. There is no particular reason for us to come here other than to consume. It is not like we have any malice or hatred towards your race. In fact, I just discovered this planet, by accident even. None of my kin know of it yet. But when they finally do, when I tell them of the riches this planet has, they will come in droves, and this world will be stripped away.”

Francis swallowed hard, still backing away from the monster in Zee’s shape. “T-then if that is your goal… why couldn’t you eat me like you were about to? You said that Zee’s m-mind loves me too much. She won’t let you. What do you mean? I-is she still in there?!” 

“In a way,” the monster hummed. “I have not eaten sapients before. I am new to this as a scouter. Veterans could consume multiple sapient beings and take on their forms and personalities so perfectly, no one could tell the difference. So it may be my lack of experience that’s preventing me from shutting up the flaring emotions of this woman’s attachment to you. It bleeds into my own and it screams at me like a blaring horn.”

“Then her mind is still intact?”

“No,” Zee shook her head and sighed as if exasperated from explaining. “Her mind is gone. Zofia no longer exists in the sense that you know her to be. Whenever we eat creatures, we gain their memories and personalities as well as physical traits and abilities. This allows us to perfectly mimic the victim down to their most subtle quirks. However, the victim is dead,” she explained.

Francis stares at her dumbfounded.

Zee pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. “Think of it this way. Say you’re reading a book or watching a film about a person’s life. You can know so much about them to the point where you can perfectly mimic them. You dress like them, talk like them, sound like them, and act like them. But you are not them. You are simply a perfect imitation. It is the same to us but on a higher degree, for we completely consume and become that person. We voraciocites archive the DNA of every species we consume, even their minds. This allows our bodies to change shape and pull the knowledge from these archives of devoured creatures to perfectly mimic them. However, we are not them.”

“So you’re a fake…” Francis shook his head looking at the ground. “Zofia is truly gone, and you’re just parading as her. Fooling everyone by using her own memories,” he muttered. He felt a knot in his stomach, twisting and churning in his gut. His head felt dizzy and his vision shook. 

“Perfect! You got it, Fran!”

“Don’t say that. That’s what she used to say… Don’t use it!”

“Huh, I thought you would feel better with the familiarity.” 

“You may not be able to kill me, because her past feelings for me prevent you. But I would be able to!”

In a sudden moment of bravery, Francis steeled himself and leapt up to his feet. He dove for the pot of water that was boiling on the stove. He grabbed the wooden handle and flung the contents of the pot at the imposter. Zee barely dodged out of the way. Her arm instantly split open and spread out like a shield, and the flesh solidified into solid bone. The pot of boiling water did nothing as it splashed against her bone shield. 

“Wow, you’re pretty crafty, Fran. Brave too. Bravo.” 

In a jerk of her arm, it suddenly transformed into a tentacle, stretching out and wrapping around Francis’ neck. “I’ll give you that. But try it again and you will seriously regret it. Do you understand me, Fran?” 

“And what? You can’t kill me, you said it yourself.” 

“No, I can’t. At the moment, at least. However, every voraciocite veteran has had their first time devouring a sapient, and eventually, they figure out how to keep their minds separate from the multitudes of those they have consumed. I will too. When I finally do, I would have nothing holding me back from finally eating you.”

“Well, looks like I have time. I-I can have you killed. I-I can report this to the authorities! T-the agency!” 

“Agency?” Zee pondered the word, digging through Zofia’s memories. Agency… Agency. Ah. That agency. They sure do look like a force to be reckoned with, no doubt. With what little knowledge I have and my current state, I cannot possibly stand a chance against them. Hm, what a predicament. I cannot kill Francis, at least not at the moment, yet I cannot allow him to notify others of my existence. 

“Yes, and they’ll hunt you down.”

“That’s an interesting threat,” Zee replied. “But I’ll do you one better. Now, I may not be able to kill you at the moment, but once I figure this out, I will be able to. Now, this puts me in a difficult spot, because you have who knows how long to plan and strike back against me. However, you have family, don’t you? Francis?”

Francis froze, his eyes widening at the realization.

“I can’t kill you, fine. But I can always go for your little sister. Your mother. Your Father. You told Zofia about them, but I cannot find a single memory where she met them. Her connection with your family is not as strong as it is with you. Oh but, while she hasn’t met your family yet, I do remember you giving her your address,” she grinned. 

“N-no…”

“That’s right. I know where you live, because she knows,” Zee hummed softly tapping her left temple. “It's all in here, in the archives. I wonder how long your family will last when I come after them. Maybe devouring more humans would help me get over this blending of emotions in my head. How would your little sister taste? I wonder what sweet childhood memories she’s had with you.”

“P-please don’t hurt them…” 

“I won’t,” Zee hummed. “If you agree to my deal.” 

“Deal?”

“Yes. You won’t tell a soul about what I am. Not even a hint. We act like we normally do as close friends. You stay with me and help me navigate this confusing world you live in. Zofia’s memories aren’t enough, and I am still having trouble threading through a sapient creature’s memories. Their brains are wildly different from animals,” she said. “Zofia was also socially awkward, with only you as her true friend, so I wouldn’t call her experiences a reliable source of how to interact in your highly sociable society. She did prefer studying animals, after all. While you have plenty of connections, not to mention outgoing and friendly.”

“S-so, I just help you out and you’ll let me and my family live?”

“Sure. You have my word. Even after I finally separate Zofia’s head from mine, I promise not to eat you or your relatives. As thanks for your service and loyalty. Like a pet or a slave.” 

“I’m neither of those!” Francis grunted, feeling the tentacle around his neck tighten. 

“But right now, you don’t have a choice do you? So what do you say then, Fran?”

“Y-you truly promise?”

“I swear on my heart,” she grinned, her chest opening up to reveal an imitation of a human heart, pumping blood throughout the body. Her ribs opened and moved like teeth before snapping back into place, and her torso zipping back up like a skin suit. It was mortifying to see. 

“So, w-what do I call you?”

“I think I’ve taken a liking to ‘Zee’. It’s simple.”

“You can’t use that. That was her nickname.”

“Well we can’t arouse suspicion now, can we? You have to act like we have before.”

“You mean how she and I acted before. You said it yourself, you’re not her.”

“Such animosity. I understand your feelings, but really you don’t have a choice here. You cannot kill me even if you tried,” she hummed, slowly letting go of his throat. Her arm morphed back to a human’s. 

“I can try,” Francis glared at her. 

“You can. But what are you going to use? Guns? Bullets will damage me but I can always regrow and spit them back out at you. What next? Blades? You going to try and shank me from the back? Boiling water again? Face it, Fran. You don’t know the first thing about me to even damage me. You don’t even know what I’m capable of.”

The young man bit his lip, but slowly let his head fall down, defeated. “F-fine. But you can’t use Zee. That was hers. Zofia was hers. You aren’t her.”

“Then think of a new one for me, won’t you?”

Fran shook his head and swallowed hard. “Zoey.”

“Zoey,” she tried the name out in her mouth, clicking her tongue. It’s good. I like it.” Zoey grinned. 

“So what would you have me do, now?” Fran said.

“Now, I’m still hungry, Fran. I guess humans are off the menu for now until I can figure myself out. But you were going to cook me something weren’t you? You can continue on with your task.”

Fran slowly moved over to the stove, keeping his eyes on Zee… no. Zoey. His head was spinning with so many thoughts. What he could do. How to escape. How he would even begin to kill this monster. Yet he couldn’t do anything for now. He had to play along. So his first task was cooking for a monster.