First Creak

Silence surrounded me in the pale grey void. My joints felt stiff, locked in place. Slowly, I willed my long left arm to twitch. A faint wooden click echoed in the stillness. I pressed my clawed fingertips against the flat ground beneath me, feeling its cool, smooth resistance. When I opened my wide mouth, a soft, low hum vibrated from deep within my chest, rippling through the quiet space. I lifted my right arm slightly into the air, watching my crooked fingers flex and curl one by one. I can move, I can speak, and I am here.