Once, there was a pack of rats. They were cocky and impudent, ready to mistreat anyone just to satisfy their own whims. No one loved them; no one welcomed them. The world looked at them with eyes of detestation and abomination. Yet, the world was powerless against them, for as long as they stood together, they were untouchable. Others were forced to obey, suppressing their hatred and replacing it with fear. These rats considered themselves superior, viewing all others as mere subordinates.
But one night, one of the rats met a mysterious figure. The figure spoke a chilling prophecy: "Among you, there is one who intends to betray the rest. That brother will kill you all, one by one, until he is the only one standing atop the corpses of his kin."
The figure vanished, leaving the rat dazed and skeptical. He believed it was nothing but a cruel deception.
The next morning, the brothers witnessed a horrific scene. One rat had been murdered; its head was missing, leaving only a body covered in deep scratches. No one knew how this could happen in a single night. The rat who had met the figure announced the warning: "The culprit is one of us. He will kill us all."
Terror gripped the pack. They had always believed they would never betray one another, but now an atmosphere of suspicion smothered them. They stood in a circle, staring at one another, their trust replaced by high alert.
By afternoon, another rat was found dead, strangled by its own tail with its eyes poked out. The demand for a trial became a roar. The interrogation was strict and intense, forcing every rat to defend his life. When it was the Shy Rat's turn, he admitted he had been absent during the murder to search for food. This was seen as proof of guilt. Despite his begging, the execution was carried out; he was pushed from a high ledge and fell to his death.
They thought the culprit was gone, but the next morning brought a new horror. A brother was found skinned alive—nothing left but a mass of red meat. Another trial was held. This time, the Biggest Rat was accused and executed, poked to death by the spears of his own brothers.
That afternoon, another was murdered, chopped into pieces and scattered across their den. Another trial opened, and another rat—no matter how much he implored them to stop—was burned alive.
As the days passed, the murders grew more horrific. Paranoia and anxiety reached a fever pitch. They began blaming each other groundlessly. Violence escalated until the rats turned into mindless beasts. They began to smash, scratch, and bite one another, looking at their own brothers as bitter enemies.
Among the carnage, only the Youngest Rat kept his sanity. He closed his eyes tight, refusing to harm his kin. When he finally opened them, he saw only a bloodbath. The den was filled with bones and organs.
Petrified, he could barely move. A dying rat approached him, half of its body missing, painfully crawling toward him. It tried to speak, but its throat had been torn open. It shivered once and stopped moving.
The youngest rat turned and fled, running as far as he could from that cursed place. As he looked back one last time, he saw a final, ghastly sight: the bodies of his brothers lay in a circle, their tails glued and tangled together in a knot of death.
He continued to run, and never to be seen ever again.