Winter had broken out long after the country had forgotten the massacre of Saint Minerva's hospital. With the increasing numbers of those of diminutive size the massacre was quickly forgotten, the perpetrator of the horror never caught or found. All that was known was found from the carnage left behind. Those who were able to be buried were. Those who were never found were searched for. And saint Minerva herself was labeled a martyr for at least devising a means of combating the shrinking epidemic. A hero who was taken too soon from the world.

Few would know the truth of her plans. Fewer still would ever speak of them. And as for the bandage-wrapped, half-inch man who watched from the snow a series of television sets within a store, he promised he’d never speak about what happened to him. His skin was replaced with nearly unbreakable wrapping. His bones, malleable a sturdy. Any human features he once possessed, long gone because of what was done to him.

He'd never speak of what happened, not because he loathed it, rest assured he did, but because it was the only thing he could do to spare himself of reliving it all again.

Sitting upon the cold sidewalk he barely had to wear any clothes save for pants made of trash. It’s not like he needed to wear it, he had nothing to hide now. But time on the streets and at such a small size had forced the half-inch human to be resourceful. He didn’t need to eat, breathe or really do anything. He just, walked around, from one place to the next.

Used to be different for him, back when he was normal. Back before...all of this. Now normal seemed impossible in the world. The newly dubbed ‘beta epidemic’. It was cruel name, denouncing those afflicted as lesser. Certainly treatable, but far from fixed. He doubted this would ever go away. The world was changing before everyone's very eyes. He only regretted that he was alive to watch it all.

Even seeing it now, it was difficult to believe. Sitting on some street small enough to be mistaken for a bug and being forced to look up towards a store window that contained numerous television sets, all delivering the chilling news of what was occurring.

“The madwoman did it.” the minuscule man muttered as he began his walk away from the store. His size made it difficult for others to see him, but even should they step on him by mistake he always survived. That was his curse now. Wanting to die but being unable to do. That was what was done to him. By a woman, he hated almost as much as another. “Fucking Saint Minerva. Saint my ass. At least she won’t live to see this world she’s made...”

It was a small comfort it seemed, knowing she was dead. The bitch who made him like this.

It was her who placed him in a ‘foster home’ specially made to house her successful experiments. Though foster home was a bit of a stretch. Its caretakers hardly cared for the ones they were meant to be attending to. Instead, all they cared about was the money they were being paid. Must’ve been a good sum too, as no matter how much they complained they never left. They had ample reason to he’d admit. The other experiment weren’t quite as...sane as himself. Some were traumatized beyond repair. Others were only capable of hearing static. And that was only the tip of the iceberg for the shit he’d seen. Thankfully, as the smallest among them, it was fairly easy to leave that place all together a month after he was placed in the homes care.

“That was... two years ago.” the half inch man mused. How time flies when your only job is existing when you didn’t want to.

Well...there were worst ways to live. And in worse company.

The half inch man shuddered at the thought of being in the company of the one who had forced him into the care of Saint Minerva to begin with. Now Josephine Minerva was a demon in the mans eyes. But that other woman. That woman who tried to kill him, and would have succeeded too had he been taken anywhere else. It wouldn’t be wrong to say she was hell on earth.

But, she was gone now. The last time they even saw each other was perhaps three years ago. Twenty two at the time the half inch man would hate to admit the fact that once upon a time, both he and the blue haired woman were a couple. It seemed so simple then, their relationship. Their laughs seemed genuine, they company they gave one another were enjoyed. He thought the two of them were as happy as could be.

Had he the chance to meet his younger self he’d beat the naivety out of him. But, that was all in the past. Now, in the present, his only problem was having to remember his own name. His real name, not the pet name he was given by his once girlfriend.

What he thought was a number in reference to how many partners the woman had was in truth the amount of people she’s killed leading up to what she often referred to as her ‘one and only’. The half inch man chuckled at his own past cluelessness, having not taking the hint and running when he could. Or perhaps, he already knew and simply stayed because he enjoyed the feeling of being with one so...powerful.

Yes, that’s the word he used to describe her. Powerful. More so than those who had money or political power. They hired people to get rid of others, but her?. She killed people herself, in ways that would make hardened men cry.

But again, that was in the past. Now, all the man was doing now was trying to remember his own name. He hadn’t spoken it, perhaps maybe a few months ago. he’s had no reason to say it save for simply remembering he had one.

“What was my name again?” the man wondered. “It started with an A...i think...or was it a D?”

he rummaged through his mind trying to remember his parent given name, but with little success. “Alan? Derrick? Loretta!?” he chuckled at that last one, only imagining how funny it would be were that it. Of course, they were all wrong.

Then he remembered, a pang of joy being felt as he could still recall something so simple.

“Oh that’s right!” he exclaimed quite happily. “It’s...”

“Siiiiix~”

His joy erased, the half inch man felt the world spin around him as he remembered the voice behind him. Its was as though he were a deer caught in a cars high beams, unable to move or speak. He only felt fear as the sound of his living nightmares walked towards him, their footsteps booming as they crunched into the snow.

He knew it was useless. He knew it wouldn’t change anything. But would that stop him from trying?

No. Of course it wouldn’t.

Six ran faster than he ever had before, his steps sinking into the few inches of snow as he tried to escape the woman behind him. He couldn’t get tired, he knew this to be a fact. The only problem was that Six wasn’t very fast at his size. Despite that, he made more distance than he thought, the blue haired giant behind him no doubt giving him this head start. It wasn’t long before he broke free of the snow, finally finding solid pavement, and making a break for a possible escape. Only then did his pursuer make her way towards him at a most leisurely pace.

Had she began searching for him a few months prior she’d have a much more difficult time keeping track of her beloved. Since than though she’s had ample time to practice. She’s gotten good at tracking down her little victims. So good in fact that it was no issue hunting down one that was only half an inch. She’s found much smaller after all.

Wearing a black dress shirt and pants, along with matching boots, glove and mask, she seemed as normal as anyone within such cold weather. Yet were there any survivors to her onslaughts then her faded blue hair and brilliant blue eyes would be a dead giveaway. Turning back to see such features sent the woman's beloved Six into a panic, his pace picking up despite her slow advance.

“Fuck off Maya!” he shouted, hoping that it’d be loud enough to draw someone else to his aid. But nothing came. No help ever came when he needed it most. All this managed was instilling a feeling of elation within his pursuer as she watched his every movement with hungry eyes.

“Awww...he’s terrified” Maya thought as she raised a hand to her cheek. “That’s so cuuuuute~”

Six saw an alley fast appraoching. The very same alley he’d hind out in should anyone manage to find him. He’d use it to evade capture and hoped that now would be no different.

But this was Maya. Someone even more dangerous then a figure head like Minerva. Someone who, if she wanted results, would go about completing tasks herself.

She was capable. She was relentless. And before Six knew it, she was with her prize in hand.

The action was so fast and yet so careful that it never even occurred to Six that he was already caught. It wasn’t until the white of the snow of the alley was replaced with the white of her gloves that he realized he was in the palm of her hand. She brought him up to her now maskless face, a smile etched upon it as she looked at her beloved Six.

“M-maya...just... just hold up. Please...” the half inch man muttered, trying to crawl away only to find there was nowhere to go. He knew he was small, but rarely did Six find himself in the palm of another human. Now that he was in the palm of the last person he wanted to see, knowing there was no chance of escape, only now did he really think on how insignificant he was.

“Six~” Maya muttered, her smile slowly fading as her pleasure over tormenting another human being gave way to something else. Joy and disbelief for having finally found the one she was looking for.

“Six...” Maya muttered again, now bringing her lips closer to the man on her palm. He had changed so much since she last saw him. He didn’t even seem human now. But that hardly mattered to her. It didn’t matter how small he was or how her beloved looked. She finally had him all to herself.

“I finally found you...” Maya said as she pressed her lips down on her Six, his body nearly engulfed by the two soft masses. He stuck to them for a full ten seconds before falling to Mayas palm once more.

Whereas Maya felt happiness that could barely be described, Six felt a dread that consumed his entire being. He was disgusted to find that his ‘skin’ was covered in gloss. Looking up at Maya he saw that she had used several cosmetics to make herself look pleasant for their reunion. She had been planning this for quite some time. What he wanted to know was how she found him.

Maya, surprising her beloved once more, answered just what he was thinking, almost as though she were able to see clearly the question that laid behind his pink eyes.

“You’re wondering how I found you? Aren’t you, Six?” Maya deduced. Judging by her captives lack of speech it was clear that she was right. “Oh my sweet little boy toy~. You of all people should know that when I want something, I get it.”

Maya opened her mouth wide, revealing another captive within. Squirming on her tongue at three inches, middle aged, well built and sporting poorly drawn tattoos across his seemingly stitched arms. His whole, pale body was heavily macerated. One had to wonder how long he was within Mayas mouth.

It was his caretaker. Or at least one of them. Seems they weren’t fortunate in avoiding this pandemic sweeping the world.

A chill ran down Six’s spine as he realized had he chosen to stay in that foster home for his fellow experiments than he would have ended up in Mayas clutches sooner.

“Ur-pise!” Maya exclaimed, her voice coming out as a mess because of her open mouth. To remedy this Maya shut her teeth around the man within, audibly gulping as she swallowed him whole. She struggled for a moment, the process of eating the larger ones forcing her to keep her inhibitions in check rather than focus on her breathing.

Maya regained her composure before opening her mouth once more, revealing nothing of its previous hostage was left behind.

“All gone~” Maya taunted as she licked her lips for effect. She was trying to instill fear within her little lover. She wanted to watch him squirm, just as he used to when they would watch horror movies together.

She loved to see him squirm. He used to be so easily frightened. And she was elated to see that hadn’t changed one bit.

“Poor little Six~” Maya taunted as she ran her tongue across her palm, steam rolling Six in the process and nearly bringing him into her salivating maw. Luckily he was able to pull himself free before that could happen.

“You’re lucky I found you when I did” Maya explained, her gaze never shifting from her beloved even for a moment. “Did you know, those caretakers at your old foster home were going to get rid of the other experiments? They thought it was because of them that this whole epidemic happened. So, stupid~”

She brought her hand close again, kissing Six even longer than the last time, allowing him to pull free as she spoke so close to his body that he could feel the heat from her breath each time she opened her lips.

“I wonder what they would’ve done had I not been there” Maya mused, making sure to take in the terrified expression on her little lover. “Maybe they would’ve stepped on them. Or at least, the caretaker that still could. She was...fun”

Maya recalled how she caved in the womans head with a stone vase and laughed. She never saw it coming, her attention too focused on the little experiments she hated so much.

Maya audibly moaned as she recalled those as well, remembering how even the brain dead ones struggled when they realized they were in her mouth. As if some semblance of awareness decided to rear its head at that exact moment, only to unveil to them the terror of their situation. She even toyed with them longer than necessary, her desire to torment them almost overshadowing her desire to search for her Six. Ultimately they just ended up as an early morning snack. Unsatisfying ones at that.

“You wanna know something reeeeally funny~” Maya asked with a chuckle. Of course the half inch man in her palm didn’t answer, though it wasn’t as if she needed him to anyway.

“That little man you saw? Celle que j'ai mangée? The one I ate? I kept him in my mouth all day.” Maya waited for Six’s reaction before laughing herself, as though the situation were some joke. “He kept kicking my teeth for a few hours, as if that would help him!” she continued to laugh as though it were an old joke between two friends. Perhaps she saw it as such. Quite one sided because there was nothing of this situation Six saw humorous.

“And you wanna know the best part?” Maya asked again, her laughter dying down as she began walking out of the alley. Again Six said nothing, instead looking on in fear. And again Maya hardly needed him to answer. “I promised him I’d let him go.” Six looked up to Maya, not at all buying the confession.

“I know what it looks like” Maya assured with a raised hand. “But I actually did intend to let him go. Not like there’s anything he could do afterall. Him and the rest of you...betas” Maya referred to the pandemics name, finding it quite fitting of a category for the newly shrunken.

“But when I see you Six...” Maya continued. “When I think of you...there’s so much I feel like I can do. Before, I used to do horrible things just to feel good. But when I do them in your name, for your benefit...well there’s no words to describe how I feel.”

The half inch man could see the blue haired giant blushing as she spoke, her eyes free of any insanity. For a brief second he forgot he was looking up towards what very well may be a devil in disguise. For a moment he was lost in those eyes, forgetting who it was that set him on a path of suffering.

For a brief moment, Six was head over heels for Maya again. That was, until she spoke, breaking his fixation.

“And now that you’re with me again...i just can’t wait to find out how that feels.” Maya ran her free hand down her legs, picturing all she could do as her lovely, little Six squirmed across her body.

“I want you to crawl between by breasts as I cave in some whores head with a hammer” Maya explained, her breathing growing extremely labored as a result of dreaming up her fantasies. “I wanna rub you against a bloody corpse and lick you clean. I wanna feel you squirm against my snatch as I bite into someones heart.”

Mayas gaze intensified as her breathing left her Six covered in perspiration. “I want everything you can give, my little boy toy. And whether you like it or not I’ll take it all.”

Maya brought her lips upon the half inch man one final time, licking all her tongue could manage to lap up. She was positively salivating at this point, threatening to drown Six had he still needed to breath to survive.

And then, just like that, she lifted him into her mouth. Her saliva proving to more than enough to keep him in place when used in the right quantity.

The world shook for Six as he was thrown about within Mayas mouth, her tongue pressing him against her teeth, squeezing him against the roof of her mouth and even raising him into the air and threatening to have him slide into her throat.

His frantic attempts at escape tickled Mayas tongue, making the woman giggle as she adjusted her mask back onto her face. She wouldn’t eat him, of course. Not like he could die anyway, but retrieving him if she did would be…messy. Perhaps an activity the two could partake of in the future.

For now, Maya was eager to get home. She had so many things she wanted to do, and had just the person to do them with. The world may be changing around Maya, but her whole world was kept wriggling atop her tongue.

And she wouldn’t want it any other way.