I hate them.
"King Vinel, this one has a strange look to him… Wait a minute, are those not horns on his head?!"
I hate them.
"You're right, look! You can feel them. This one is literally made for hell."
I hate them.
"I feel bad for the others who are entering with him. He'll probably just be left behind to fend for himself. I know I wouldn't be sticking beside him if I were a Diver."
And they hate me.
I leaned over the abyss, a crack in the earth that led to hell. It was not only me though, the cathedral built around the crack was large.
If I looked around, I would see 49 others kneeling by the edge of the abyss just like me.
Not only that, but I would see King Vinel and his men. The first people that I would kill first after escaping from hell.
Hell was hot; I could feel the temperature radiating onto my face from the dark depths of the crack. But I could not see much else.
We all wore the thin, ragged white robes of the Divers, but I wished I was naked against such heat.
"Now then, Divers," King Vinel said from the throne, overlooking the process. He was a large darkskinned man, with white wings on his back, which suited his white hair and beard. A powerful man, one of the Ten Pillars of Vorth.
"I would first like to thank the volunteers. Those of you brave enough to face the depths of hell in order to find the source of demons, as well as slaying as many as you can along the way…"
he hesitated for a moment, looking over all those in the cathedral who surrounded the abyss.
"However, this year, we were only able to fill 40 of the spots. Ten of you had to be forced. And for that, I will not be apologising. It's a disgrace that the people in our region of the world were not brave enough to step up, and take on the job that must be done."
"Regardless, it does not matter. We are here now, and you all know what you must now do."
The king said no more words, leaving the hall in silence. All that could be heard were strange, eery noises coming from the crack before us.
I happened to be one of those who were forced along this path. My family tried to fight against it, but were ultimately killed by the king's guard.
I truly do hate them.
"Here goes nothing." A man beside me rose from his knees and jumped into the crack.
I expected to hear screams, and cries as he was burnt by the depths below, but instead I heard nothing.
They do say that the drop into hell is survivable, somehow. Though I will not be volunteering to test it.
Then, others began to rise and jump. Some were more hesitant than others, but some had a strange enthusiasm to their actions.
I couldn't understand it. The desire to be a pawn for the monarchy. It sickened me.
After a while, there were only a few of us left.
Four to be exact.
I looked around at those who were as stubborn as I. Two women, and one man.
Their faces were solemn, as was mine, and we remained there for a few moments.
"Kick them in." The King suddenly said, uncaringly, and I felt a foot hit me hard in my back as I fell into the abyss.
---
As I fell, I expected myself to hit against the sides of the wall, and tumble into the depths as a battered mess.
But instead, it felt as though I was being guided down into a darkness that I could not see.
It was an ethereal feeling, like I was in a lucid dream, and stayed there for eternity. But after eternity ended, I emerged into a new world. One with a red sky.
I slowly fell from the sky, as though I had descended from heaven.
Instead, I descended from earth, and into hell.
The clouds were black, and full. And below me, land stretched as far as my eyes could see.
But I did not pay attention to the scenery; instead, I watched the other Divers, engaging in conversation beneath me, having landed a few minutes earlier.
Finally, my ascent took me to the ground, and I landed like a feather onto the red grass beneath my feet. We were in a grass field, which seemed rather peaceful. There were no demons here, just us, and chatter.
I spotted the others, all speaking amongst each other. There was nobody alone, everybody had someone to speak to, except for me. They seemed to be avoiding me.
My horns…
Suddenly, a young lady landed beside me.
Her hair was black like mine, and so long that I thought it would get in the way of whatever she did.
When she landed, she looked at me as though she was examining me.
She was roughly the same height as me, and would be considered very pretty on Vorth.
Then, she spoke to me.
"Demonborn," she said, the words instantly filling me with anger. "What's your name?"
I walked away ignoring her; I had no desire to speak to someone like her. But she spoke again.
"Sorry, sorry. That's just what I've heard them call you. I didn't mean to be offensive. People like us should stick together, anyway."
I turned around, my anger subsiding, and looked at her again.
"People like us?" I said, confused at what she meant.
She shrugged her shoulders as though it was obvious.
"Yeah, people like us. The ones that were forced to come here. The Taken."
I hesitated for a moment, realising that she was one of those who had come after me.
The thought removed some of the hatred that I instinctively had for her, but it had not been removed completely, just redirected elsewhere.
"Were you kicked in, like me?" I asked, and the woman let out a chuckle.
"I was." She said as she walked over me to me, extending her hand for me to take. "I'm Faye, What is your name?"
After hesitating for a moment, I took her hand in mine.
"Rade."