《The Darned》 Ch 1 Beyond the constraint of all of Space and time lies a realm. Untouched by the Materium it was Hell. This was Subarashi Torikago. A place to bind the damned. The realm acted as a giant cage for souls. Built by Onsei as a safe haven from the forces of Heaven; the world was built to increase the number of souls and in turn increase the strength of its ruler. Watching the Materium from the city painted with Gold atop the Invisible Castle, Onsei subtletly influenced the Materium to drag the souls. His purple hair and yellow snake like eyes gave a maddening feeling to all those who gazed at him. His face looked old but his body was still strong. There was a legend that every Thousand years he would shed his skin like a snake. While Onsei watched the world with his unconcealed glint, four guards watched him. They were the Heart of Onsei. Thoth, The Anger. Sharriwan, The Greed. Ren, The Hate and Riku the Innocence. They were the Keepers of the Cage. Ch 1 Hotaka Takahara, was a college student living in the Mid Eastern of Culligan City. He had a jet black short hair and purple eyes which seemed to weird out people. His parents were out of state. Joshua, his best friend, had decided to go to the local pub and like a good friend he decided to join. He arrived in a colorful blazer and pant. "Is that what you are wearing, Taka?" Joshua asked jokingly. He came wearing a blue jacket and khaki pants. Ofcourse, his nerdy glasses not leaving him. Takahara felt embarrased. "Well, I thought it would be the best to wear." Joshua smiled and hugged Takahara. "You are too easy to embarrass, my friend." He was right. Takahara, unlike Joshua, was a shy boy. Even at the age of 19. They went inside the club. Joshua had booked their usual place. A private joint for him and his friends. Just as they were entering Takahara felt a cold chill pass through him. He could see a shadow of a man. Hidden behind the corner of his eyes. Time stood still as he gazed at the shadow. Two dots of red lights could be seen by Takahara, where its eyes were supposed to be. Sweats poured from his forehead and his breathing became hard. ''Wha- What is happening?'' Takahara thought as standing straight became hard. Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.A dark and cold laughter hit him. Like a windows beating on a cold wind. "Taka! Taka!" Takahara turned at the door. He could see a look of worry on Joshua''s face. "Sorry?" Was all that came out of Takahiro''s mouth. "Are you okay? You are sweating. If you are sick then we can cancel." Takahiro turned around at the same corner. Finding nothing. He shakes his head. ''Must be my imagination.'' He assures himself. Turning at the door again. "Its nothing. Just thinking." Joshua looked at him weirdly as both went inside. Their place was at the first floor. A private room in the club. They didn''t want anyone spotting them at this club. There were two others. All were talking about college and everything that could pop on their mind. But Takahiro couldn''t shake off the feeling of the Shadowy figure. He took a ship of his dream and went to the washroom. He needed to freshen himself. He went at the tap. Washing off his face. He could see the reflection on the mirror. His eyes seemed to have become bloodshot. When he closed the tap he could finally hear the sounds. Or in this case the lack of it. ''Weird.'' He thought. ''Are they planning to prank me?'' Suddenly the door opened and Joshua entered. An unnerving smile on his face. It seemed weird to watch Joshua with that kind of smile. "It got quiet." He said awkawardly. Joshua''s smile got a bit more wider. Silence permeated for a few moments. The awkwardness only got more thicker. For the first time Takahiro got scared of Joshua. He could see the bloody knife on Joshua''s hand. Takahara''s heart thumped loudly. His eyes widened. World began to spin as if someone pulled the land below him. "Josh- What did you do?" Takahara questioned. He could see the door. But somehow his legs couldn''t move. The maddening smile disappeared as Joshua seemed to have calmed down. "Ssh." He sushed. Coming closer. Takahara instinctively took a step back. "You don''t have to fear me Taka. Aren''t we friends?" "Weren''t they your friends too?" Takahara shot back. His eyes gliterring with tears. Joshua''s face hardened. His eyes had that gleam. "Well. What can I say? Life''s a bitch Taka. I hope your death isn''t." That would be the last thing Takahara heard. Chilling Death Ch 2 The land was coal and rocks. I could taste the burned ashes in the air and the rotten smell of decay and corpses. When I opened my eyes, the world was on fire. The sky above my head was dried red. Massive suns were floating. I could see nothing for miles on end. It was barren. I sniffed my nose. "Bleh!" I was assaulted my the rotten smell. I felt like vomiting. It was at this moment that I saw my hands. They were long and red. So, red that I thought someone had peeled my skin of and left the bloody flesh. My fingers were long and sharp. My nails were missing. I was naked. No piece of clothing adorned my body. I tried standing. "Fuck!" I cursed. My legs too were red, long and slender. I had difficulty standing up. Clearly not used to this body. It took a few tries but I finally stood up. Moving slowly. After some moments I finally started to become familiar with this body. It was way strong. I could jump dozens of meters without much effort. I could feel enormous strength coursing through my veins. It was intoxicating. I felt like I was a being of great might. And to top it off, a large flame was burning on my head. It came off as a scare but I adjusted. Then from the barren land I began my journey. The land was hot. The massive suns burning the ground below. It seems I had some sort of resistance to heat. My vigor diminished on the first day. The day felt longer than of Earth. I felt like I had walked for hours yet could see no civilization; not even a small hut. The days were scorching but my body didn''t feel unbearable heat. It was tolerable. I don''t know if it was just my imagination but I could smell stronger scent of decay. My every step brought a crunching sound as if I had stepped on a broken clay. The nights were worse. While my body could tolerate the heat it couldn''t do the same with cold. The cold I felt was strange. It was not freezing but I still shivered on the chill. The shivering brought memories of Joshua and my death. Every passing second my bone chilled harder and my memories became harder. It was probably the first time I felt the severity of my situation. I may have been preoccupied at getting familiar with the body but I had a suspicion that this was a dream. As if it all is brought by some state of coma but now I could sense how real this was. And it felt more real than my life on Earth. "Clank!" I gritted my teeth, fighting the shivering coldness. I could barely open my eyes. The sky seemed to have changed. Something I only noticed when it neared dawn and my cold began to weaken. It was dark and filled with glittering stars. I could see some moons far away. My sight could see farther in the dark and the moons were very far. They seemed more of massive planets floating on the edges of the sky rather than small moons.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. I walked when it was dawn. The heat came back in a wave. During this I began to feel hunger. Night came and so did the cold and pain. I didn''t stop at night. The walking distracted my mind fron the coldness that the night brought. It was still there, eating at my soul, but I distracted myself with the journey. By third day I was closed to giving up. My throat had begun to ache with thirst and my body with fatigue. I had jumped with all my strength, crossing thousands of meters, several times. I ran at speeds only achievable by cars at the extreme. For hours and hours I did. Running, jumping, walking and starting over. It felt I had crossed thousands of kilometers if not more by now. I ran again. Not stopping even as my legs ached and broke or as the day turned night. As seven days and six nights passed I saw the end of barren. Mountains stood at the end of my vision. Tall and steady. Thousands of them if not millions. Life came to my dull eyes. For the first time in a week I smiled. A vigor filled my body replacing the aching. I could feel my body getting stronger as I walked for these past days. Each day and night only improving myself. Though I didn''t feel that at the moment. As I neared these mountains I could see the end of their tip with my sight. Stretching past the clouds they were bigger than any mountains I had seen on Earth. Reaching many thousands of meters if not dozens. There were roads between the mountains. It took me a night or two to pass the massive mountains. After nine days and nine nights I saw what seemed to be walls. Bigger than entire mountains. After ten days of walking I came close to a large gate. Two demonic looking beings stood there; their figure massive. Even my new tall and slender form looked tiny compared to them. The flowing fire from my hand only coming as high as their chest. "Halt!" They bellowed. Their voice booming. Both of them looked quite similar. Their small and pointy horns along with their massive body reminded me of the Ogres. "What business do you have in here, little demon?" The one in the right asked. It was the first time I had heard the word demon. As such I was taken back. "I- I am Takahara." I said. Ten days of hunger and fatigue showing on my voice. "Then demon of the name Takahara. I ask ag-" "So, you are a new born?" The one in the left asked interrupting the guard of the right. At the tenth day of walking I came close to a large gate. Two demonic looking beings stood there; their figure massive. Even my new tall and slender form looked tiny compared to them. The flowing fire from my hand only coming as high as their chest. "Halt!" They bellowed. Their voice booming. Both of them looked quite similar. Their small and pointy horns along with their massive body reminded me of the Ogres. "What business do you have in here, little demon?" The one in the right asked. It was the first time I had heard the word demon. As such I was taken back. "I- I am Takahara." I said. Ten days of hunger and fatigue showing on my voice. "Then demon of the name Takahara. I ask ag-" "So, you are a new born?" The one in the left asked interrupting the guard of the right. "Eh?" Was all that came out. The ogre on the right huffed. "Why do you wish to enter Wine County?" "I need water." I croaked. "Let him enter." The one in the left pitied. I was in no state to refuse. I dragged myself in before the voice of the guard stopped me. "Demon of the name Takahara, Wine County is a peaceful county. Do not cause any ruckus in here. Rest here. You may even ask the chief to live here." The ogre in the right said not even turning from his post. "If you harm the County then we will throw you back to the valley beyond the mountains." My head hastily nodded at the warning. I took the steps beyond the gates as it closed in itself. Thump. The scenary I saw was quite different than I had ever expected. The land was big and beautiful. The streets were filled with masses. I could see huge mountains in the background. Lushed forests. Clean air. "Wine County." I took a breath.