The sight before me was... unimaginable.
Smoke curled into the sky like the hands of death itself, rising from what was once my home. Flames licked the edges of the wreckage, but it wasn't normal fire. The colors shifted unnaturally-blues, blacks, and deep purples, casting an eerie glow over the twisted remains of the street. My feet felt frozen in place, disbelief gripping my chest so tightly I could hardly breathe.
"What... what happened?" My voice was barely a whisper.
I forced myself to move, step after agonizing step. Bodies... I saw bodies. They were scattered like broken dolls, lifeless and twisted. My stomach churned at the sight. People I'd seen every day- neighbors, friends-lay motionless, faces frozen in expressions of horror.
I stumbled, my legs barely able to carry me as I ran toward what was left of my house. I could feel my heart pounding, threatening to burst out of my chest, my breaths coming in short, panicked gasps.
"Dad...!" I screamed, praying I wasn't too late. "Dad!"
I reached the gate, my voice trailing off into a weak sob. Hanging there, swinging like some grotesque puppet, was my father's head. His eyes, wide open, stared blankly at nothing, his mouth slightly agape in what could only have been his final scream.
"No... no... NOOO!"
The scream tore from my throat,
wild and uncontrollable. My legs gave out beneath me as I collapsed onto the bloodstained ground. "Dad... please..." I couldn't stop shaking. I tried to pull myself together, but every inch of me was trembling. My mind couldn't comprehend the nightmare I was living.
I clutched the dirt, nails digging into the earth as I screamed again, raw from the pain, my voice breaking under the weight of my anguish. "Please no, please no..."
I didn't even know how I managed to get to my feet. Stumbling forward, barely aware of my surroundings, I ran inside the house.
"Mom?" I called out, voice hoarse, as I staggered through the smoke-filled rooms. "Mom! Where are you?!"
The silence pressed down on me like a heavy blanket. And then... a voice. Weak. Fragile.
"Elba... darling... help."
My heart lurched. It was my mother's voice.
I followed it, pushing through the haze and debris, until I reached the hallway. The voice was coming from the closet. I ripped the door open, and there she was.
My mother. Skinned alive. Her face... her face had no skin, only raw, exposed muscle and blood. Her eyes, wide and desperate, locked onto mine.
"Oh God... oh no," I muttered, my hand flying to my mouth as a bile rose in my throat. I couldn't hold it in. I turned to the side and vomited, the acid burning my throat as I collapsed to my knees.
"Water..." she croaked, her vocal cords barely able to form the word. They were burned, charred. She coughed, and I could hear the blood gurgling in her throat. "Run... Elba... you have to... run..."
"No... no, I can't leave you," I cried, shaking my head, but she grabbed my arm with what little strength she had left.
"Elba... run...!"
Her voice, that broken rasp, echoed in my ears, but before I could process it, a shadow fell over me. A voice-deep and menacing-came from behind me.
"Are you their son?"
I froze. Slowly, I turned around, my legs weak, my body cold with fear.
Standing in the doorway was a figure-a man, if you could even call him that. His presence was overwhelming, a dark aura that seemed to choke the air around him. Thorns jutted out from his head like a twisted crown, his skin pale as death, stretched tight over his skull. His eyes... they were pitch black, void of pupils, hollow and endless.
In his hand, he swung a rope-like weapon, thick and heavy, tipped with jagged metal. It clanged softly as it hit the floor, echoing in the stillness. His mouth twisted into a grotesque grin, but there was no warmth in it- only malice.
I couldn't move. My legs felt glued to the floor, my body paralyzed under his gaze.
The man took a slow, deliberate step toward me, his voice low and guttural. "You look like him."
I couldn't breathe. I couldn't think. The terror consumed me, sinking its claws deep into my chest.
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