From the table.

The shadow unzipped the center of its chest. With a hand coated in dark mud, it pulled out a still-beating mass and placed it on the table.

It picked up several books to confirm the markings, then began lighting candles along the edges of the table.

White paint traced lines and circles across the surface, copied from the books and positioned according to the stars and planets.

From top to bottom, the planets formed the shape of a skeleton. At its center, the beating mass pulsed.

When the clock struck midnight, every candle went out at once. At the sound of the final bell, the smoke rising from the wicks reversed direction, flowing back down until the candles ignited again.

The wood of the table began to change where the planetary skeleton was drawn.

Like a blister forming, the surface rose, shaping itself into a body and lifting the beating mass with it.

The shadow stepped back, watching from a distance, still reading the books to make sure the process was unfolding correctly.

At the point where the head should have been—aligned with the final planet—a mouth opened behind the wood. A muted shriek escaped from the unseen transformation.

Hands began to push outward along the sides of the skeletal form, still trapped beneath the surface. The table stretched and warped as if it were chewing gum.

At twelve minutes past twelve, the beating mass sank into the wood.

The creature bent and twisted as it happened, still trapped inside the table, reaching and recoiling.

It turned its faceless head toward the shadow, opened its mouth, and let out another silent scream while stretching a hand toward it—pleading—before folding back into itself.

The shadow watched, alarmed. None of the books had warned that the process would cause this much pain. It couldn’t tell whether the ritual was failing or succeeding.

It dropped one book, grabbed another, but found no answers.

Darkness from the mass began to seep into the wood, staining it and spreading outward.

The creature’s movements slowed—not because the pain eased, but because it seemed to be running out of air.

It still fought beneath the surface, but its motions grew heavier as the stain expanded.

The shadow flipped through books frantically, tossing them aside until it found one—old, dusty, forgotten.

Raising its hand, it began to recite the words. Dark smoke gathered around the table, rising and flowing into the creature’s open mouth.

The shadow spoke louder.

For a moment, the table flattened completely. Then, as if dropped from a great height, the creature floated—stretching the wood without lifting the table itself.

The shadow kept reading.

The creature fell back to the table, motionless.

The stain vanished. The center of the table now matched the shape of the mass. The creature opened its mouth, and the smoke rushed out and dissipated.

The table rose and fell in a slow rhythm, like breathing.

The shadow stepped closer and placed a hand over the moving surface.

Suddenly, the creature snapped its head toward the shadow and seized its hand, pulling and stretching the wood.

The shadow didn’t recoil. It stared into the place where the creature’s eyes should have been and spoke a word from the book.

The creature’s hand retreated back into the table, reforming into the planetary markings. Its mouth remained open, soundless, until the shadow spoke the next word and freed itself.

The creature lay still, the table’s movement quickening slightly beneath it.

The shadow placed its hand down again and spoke another word. The wood began to peel away like scales, lifting into the air like ash.

Beneath it was skin. The creature writhed, trying to stop the transformation.

As the last scales reached its mouth, a faint sound—no more than a whisper—escaped.

A human body lay on the table.

The shadow closed its eyes and spoke another word. Its own eyes turned to smoke and drifted upward.

Covering the body with a cloth, the shadow spoke again. A sharp ringing filled its ears, then vanished.

It pressed a hand to its chest, felt the vibrations, and spoke the final word.

The shadow collapsed. As it fell, it dissolved into smoke, leaving only its clothes behind.

Inside the man, the dark mass reshaped itself into a heart. The sudden change lifted his body into the air before dropping it back onto the table.

A nearly imperceptible thread of smoke escaped from his eyes as they opened.