Darkness.
It stretched endlessly, smothering everything in its cold, heavy grip. I couldn't see my hands, my feet—just the void swallowing me whole. Even the air felt wrong, sharp and metallic, tinged with the faint, bitter scent of blood.
I wasn't alone.
The growl came first, low and guttural, echoing in the silence. My chest tightened as I turned, searching for the source, but there was nothing to see. Just more darkness.
Then came the sound of movement—slow, deliberate, wet. Like claws dragging across slick stone. It was behind me.
I stumbled backwards, heart hammering. My foot hit something solid—a surface? But the ground didn't feel real, just another part of the void. The growling grew louder, closer, vibrating through my chest.
"Who's there?" I croaked, my voice barely a whisper.
The answer came as a voice, deep and rasping. It sounded like it had been dragged through broken glass.
"You know me, Kazuki."
I froze.
The darkness shifted ahead of me, twisting into a shape—tall, hunched, impossibly wide. Its eyes opened first, glowing like embers in the void, followed by the glint of jagged teeth as it grinned.
"We just met a while ago right?" it hissed, its voice crawling under my skin. "A few moments before you… plummeted to your death."
I stumbled back, legs shaking. "I died? What… what are you?"
The creature laughed, low and guttural. Then it lunged.
Its claws tore through my side before I could react. A searing pain ripped across my ribs as I fell backwards, gasping. My hands clutched at the wound, warm blood seeping through my fingers.
I scrambled to my feet, chest heaving as I staggered away. The creature didn't follow immediately. It stood there, hunched and grinning, its ember-like eyes fixed on me.
"You can run," it said, its jagged teeth glinting in the faint light of its eyes. "But you can't escape me."
My legs moved before my brain caught up. I bolted into the darkness, my breath coming in ragged gasps as the ground shifted beneath me. It wasn't solid—it moved, rippling like liquid, trying to drag me down.
Behind me, the creature laughed.
The sound sent a chill down my spine. It wasn't just laughter. It was a voice—a voice that knew me.
"Kazuki, do you remember the closet?" it said, its tone mocking. "The one your so-called bullies locked you up in?"
I stumbled, nearly tripping over my own feet.
"You screamed, didn't you? Pounded your little fists on the cold metal door until they bled. But no one came. No one even cared."
My throat tightened. "Shut up!" I yelled, my voice cracking.
Its growl rumbled through the void, closer now.
"They laughed while you cried. Do you remember their faces, Kazuki? Their smiles?"
I did. I remembered every one of them, their cruel, toothy grins burned into my memory. I shook my head, trying to block it out, but the darkness wouldn't let me.
Ahead of me, the void shifted again. Shadows twisted and curled into shapes—human shapes. They stood there, grinning at me with wide, unnatural mouths, their teeth too sharp, their faces stretched into mockeries of the bullies I'd known in school.
"No, stop it. Please. I beg you." I whispered, stumbling to a stop.
The shadows laughed, their voices blending into the creature's. "Run, little dog. Run, run, run."
A weight slammed into my back, and I hit the ground hard, the air knocked from my lungs. Pain exploded across my shoulder as the creature's teeth sank into me, tearing through flesh.
I screamed, thrashing as its claws raked down my side. Somehow, I managed to twist away, kicking at its massive form. My foot connected with something solid, and the creature growled, pulling back just enough for me to scramble free.
Blood ran down my arm, warm and sticky, as I staggered to my feet and ran again. My vision blurred, the darkness closing in around me.
The creature didn't chase me this time—not physically. Its voice followed me instead, crawling into my ears, digging into my mind.
"Do you think anyone cared when you dropped out of school?" it said, its tone mocking. "When you walked out those doors, did anyone look back? Did they even notice you were gone?"
I clenched my teeth, shaking my head as I ran. "Shut up. Shut up. Shut up!"
But the darkness didn't stop.
"How did it feel when your first and only friend turned out to be just another bully?" it said, its growl laced with laughter. "How did it feel when he laughed after telling the entire class about your little crush?"
My legs faltered, and I nearly collapsed.
"No," I whispered, my voice trembling.
The creature's laughter grew louder.
"Oh no. Poor Kazuki Ren. Destroying lives from the very minute he was born. Do you even remember your mother's bloodied face?"
I couldn't stop the memory from surfacing.
My mother's face, twisted in rage. Her voice, sharp and venomous: "You ruined my life."
My father's bloodshot eyes, the knife shined in his trembling hands, lodged in my mother's stomach. Her screams, the flash of red, the scent of blood—so much blood.
And then her last words, gasped through trembling lips: "It's your fault."
Tears streamed down my face as I stumbled forward, my legs barely holding me up.
"Stop it," I whispered. "Please, stop. Just let me die."
The darkness closed in, and for a moment, I thought it would swallow me whole. I curled up. Every painful memory. Every single tear I shed. Everything I buried deep in my heart, was alive in the void.
Haunting me. Reminding me how worthless my life was.
Then I saw it.
A light.
Faint at first, barely more than a spark, but it was there. It flickered in the distance, warm and steady, cutting through the suffocating black.
Hope.
I wanted to run towards it but my legs were heavy. As if stuck in the void. The creature growled from behind me, slowly walking towards me. Its claws razor sharp.
I squinted my eyes, prepared to get mauled to death or worse, eaten alive.
Yet, all it did was… gently nudge my back with his claws.
"You loath in your suffering, every painful memory bites at you. Seventeen years full of misery. Blaming every person in life. Yet you never once stopped to ask yourself. 'Did I try enough?'"
Those few words were enough for me to snap. I forgot everything else, my pain, my bad memories. All that was left in my heart was rage. Pure rage, not just at that creature but at the entire world.
I picked myself up from the ground, whispering curses.
"You really think I didn't try? I did everything. EVERY BLOODY THING I COULD THINK OF."
I turned around to face the creature, its face was hidden in the shadows. The only thing visible were its amber eyes, glowing through the void.
"I studied every day, hoping someone might take me in for my knowledge. I tried every sport, hoping someone would notice me. I endured the bullies for eight fucking years. Always answered in yes with a smile, no matter what."
I leaned in closer, close enough to smell its breath. My face contorted with anger.
"So tell me. Did I really not try enough?"
It didn't answer. No, it just smiled.
After a few minutes of silence, it finally opened its mouth.
"You really are like me aren't you my sweet little toy?"
Its words sent a chill down my spine, and the adrenaline subsided. The gravity of my situation finally caught up.
It could have ripped my head off any second if it felt like it. I could feel the pain searing in my arm and back. It burned. As if I was being cooked on a stake.
I stepped back, trying to get away as it murmured "I see so that's your answer huh?"
"It seems you'll need to learn the hard way." It said, stepping forward. Consecutively the light also started to move towards me, dawning over the darkness, swallowing the shadows in a sea of white.
The light illuminated the creature's face, but before its features could be revealed, it shifted its form. Transforming into something more human. No, a twisted, demonic version of a human.
My eyes teared up again. The form the creature took was of my dead mother. The knife that my dad struck her with, still stuck in her stomach. Blood gushing out. Her eyes were replaced by a black void spiralling into the abyss as purple fog oozed out.
It slowly walked towards me. Each step made my heart bleed. Before I knew it, the creature was mere inches from my face. Smiling. A grin wider than my mother's face. Its yellow, bloodied teeth glinting at me.
"Till we meet again. My dear puppet."
Were the words it said before pushing me off balance. I fell, but instead of hitting the ground, I sunk. Straight into the light that flashed bright enough to blind me. It sizzled on my skin. Burning it but I couldn't feel any pain. Slowly my entire body broke, turning to dust. I had sensation but no shell. It felt like my soul had escaped my body.
"Welcome to a world loved by the gods." The creature's voice blending with my mother's followed me.
I could feel my surroundings change. The chilly and suffocating void turned into a warm paradise. The sound of birds chirping and the scent of flowers invaded me replacing the metallic scent of the void. It felt as if my soul had descended from hell to heaven in a mere instant.
"I hope you enjoy your stay."