《Eldritch, Fragments from the Abyss》 The forest It was a stormy night, the moon was up and shiny. the wind was strong and cold, the trees were dancing and the sky was of a deep black, illuminated only by the constellations A lonely car was travelling in the night, "fucking idiot!" the man murmured angrily while driving, "next time I will show him who is unresponsible!" he looked at the clock, "damned! My wife is gonna be very angry at me, again!" the car was chaotic, beer bottles and cigarette butts rolled around the passenger seat, smudging important crumpled document that were littered all about "next time!" he said while taking a sip from a bottle "next time I will show him!". A shrill metallic sound was heard, like a metal bar being pierced, suddenly the car was out of control and spinning very fast, then another sound was heard, this time like a crack, and the car started rotating upside down, only stopping when it hit a tree. The man had his face on a red airbag when he woke up, he slowly managed to recompose himself and crawl outside of the car, it was a disaster. The car, his only car, was destroyed, suddenly he felt a sharp pain, from his mouth drops of blood were coming out, then he started coughing violently and soon he was vomiting blood, he had something broken, he can felt it, he instinctively searched his pocket for his phone but could not find it, probably it was destroyed, gone in a thousand pieces when the car started spinning. He looked around, he could only look so far into the darkness with so little light. Nothing. The entire zone was desert, not a single soul or thing, suddenly he felt a thrill, he felt very cold and wet, the violent rain was cold, if he did not act quickly he will be dead.If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. He desperately looked around again looking for anything that could help him, a tree, a cave, a deer, anything, he noticed a vague black figure that looked like a strange oval, then the figure moved, he was a bit scared but he was going to die if he did not act, "WAIT!", he yelled with all his strength, the figure stopped for a second, then continued to move, he started following it, deep into the forest. Running in the darkness of the night illuminated only by the stars, the man felt a sense of alienation, the wind produced a strange melody, the sky became of a dark blue, the trees started to become higher and higher, their very form block the sky and the moon all while dancing with the wind, his vision became blurry and confused, his ears were bleeding, his headache worsened, his blood loss severed, he could see the dark figure from afar, the lights became strange, his eyes were hurting, he passed his hand over them, ¡°dust?¡± he thought, he looked at the trees, now they were grey, lifeless, unnatural and contort. The dark figure stopped and he managed to reach it, "WaIt!¡± he yelled, I neED" he coughed some blood, "hElp" he throw some more blood, the figure was kneeling on his legs, in the centre of a levelled plane, on the grass and dirt, silently looking up at the stars. He looked up, it was beautiful, for a single moment he forgot his pains, the stars, the moon, all the colours mixed creating a beautiful painting remarking the constellations, even if he knew that much of it was a hallucination it was beautiful nonetheless, then he looked down again, the figure was gone. Had his mind tricked him? Was all of it an hallucination? He did not care at this point, he was dying, he kneeled , imitating the posture of the figure, he looked up at the sky one last time, closing his eyes forever while watching the alignment of the constellations and the infinity and magnitude of the cosmos. My brother red book Note: The number in the parenthesis are notes at the end of the text. I was returning from work an evening when I notice that there was something in my post office box. Mr Carlo (1) is with generous condolences that we tell you that our brother Marco has died in an accident, we ask you to come here and take its objects and personal affections, we leave the address below. This news was not a surprise, Marco was always reckless, dauntless and regardless of dangers, I remember that when we were young we imagine that in the forest there were who knows what magical and mysterious creatures, many times our parents have pass sleepless nights searching us in the woods, the problem was that I have stopped when I become an adult, he continue, living a nomadic life, a life of renunciations and travels, I hate him for this when you will grow up? When you will become an adult? Do you want to remain a tramp all of your life? When will you settle down? I tell him, and he in response shows me various items that he had collected in his travels, exotic items, alien, strange, and for each one of them there was a different story, ¡°you see this dragon statue made of obsidian? Beh this is a strange story, see¡­. , and when he had finished his tail he asks me what I have done, and what I have to show him, I was furious at him, why he gave all of this importance to certain things I don''t know. Regardless he is my brother, and even if I have not heard him in years, I am his only parent alive, It is my duty to go and conserve his affections and give to him one last goodbye, so take 3 days off work and I go to the address. High mountains, boundless green landscapes, not a sign of human construction, it seemed that I was in some remote landscape in New Zealand or some unknown and unexplored land, I understand why my brother had chosen this place, arrived at the foot of a mountain, my guide, a man on the 40, that comes from the village and offer himself to guide me, despite his age was still very energetic, tell me to stop, ¡°we have arrived¡± he says, ¡°now we have only to climb the mountain¡±,¡± WHAT¡± I said in a stunned tone,¡± what you mean we have to climb the mountain?!?¡± he answered me with a laugh and starting to climb, for me, use to the city, the climb was very hard, paths that were narrow and rocky, herbaceous, insects and animal everywhere, the hot sun, for him the climb was super easy, although he has 20 years more than me, after two hours, but I think that they were eight I manage to reach St. George on the mountain(2), a village on top of a mountain, in the middle of nothing, with nothing inside. I recover my energy and I follow the guide toward the house that was of my brother, while I was going I notice that this village is ancient, very ancient, it seems that here time stop at the start of the XIV century, not a trace of industrialization or development, the clothes of the people were made at hand, all was made by hand, from the doors to ladles, there where no babies or young adults, only old and middle-aged people, what I was expecting? Who wants to grow here? Once I arrive at my brother house, a little white medieval house, common in this village, I immediately notice that there was something off, an order and cleaning too thorough for my brother, I ask my guide if he can leave me alone, he agreed, I take his affections, not much, an old backpack that show the sign of time, some money and various camping/exploring items, but something was missing, where they are the various items that he found? Where was the obsidian dragon, the strange ceremonial knife, a feather of (what the legends say) a fenix, a statue of the buddha in blue glass and the bronze amulet? Where they were? He can¡¯t have lost them, they were too precious for him. I turned the house upside down, checking every angle, every wall, every stone, I realized that a part of the floor was empty inside, with much effort, I manage to find the point of opening, and open it, I found myself before a strange vision, various papers and letters, a red book, a piece of flesh(?) and various object, among which his relics, now that I look closer at this objects they appear even more strange, examining what I found I feel confused. Dear Mr M he was right, next time I will be prepared for certain occurrences, I feel like I nearly found his position, a castle abandoned during the reign of Frederick II di Svevia somewhere in Sicily, unfortunately, the documents and the legends contradict themselves, but I believe that I found a castle that corresponds, more or less, to the descriptions, a long journey await me. PS: Don''t rush your researches, always remember the dangers that you are running. L. What letter is this? That my brother had lost all contact with reality, and immerse completely in some game? That he had a correspondence with other people like him? His diary, a book covered in a strange red skin, decorated finely with strange drawings and various minerals, what a strange item for my brother, he loves simplicity, and this contrast his nomad and poor lifestyle, who knows where he had found it? Was even worse, a mass of sentences without sense, if they were even sentenced, they were strange letters that I can''t understand. Maybe Kyros, maybe Kryne or Daigon? What I know, I don''t believe that you care, like the starry sky does not care about the earth, so you don''t care. My brother had completely lost his gumption, he had completely contact with reality, but there was something that gets attention particularity, a strange piece of what seems to be the meat of an unnatural pink, it was strange, very strange, what animal had skin like this? Between the shell of a turtle and the skin of an elephant yet soft on the contact? where he had taken this from? That my brother had started to butcher animals? And what was the strange dripping fluid that covered it? Still, in a state of confusion, my guide enter the room while I was examining the piece of meat, ¡°that¡­.¡± he stops for a few seconds, ¡°is clearly a piece of meat of a diseased pig, why you brother kept these things?¡±, ¡°I don''t know¡± I answer him,¡± and I don''t want to know it¡±, I put his stuff in my backpack, except the piece of meat and some of the more heavy pieces of exploring/camping, and I left the home, I was in a hurry to leave this village, isolated, full of old people, in which the madness of my brother reach his peak, renaissance cities underground, children being educated by strange creatures, immortal being that wander the earth in nights without moon, please, then where his fantasy on ¡°statues of white knights¡± that follow him come from? Here there are no statues. I go to the exit in a hurry only to find it closed, I notice that the guide was running behind, ¡°is near night, you can''t leave now, you had trouble in broad daylight, let alone at night! And then you still need to assist your brother funeral¡±, with delusion I had to go in the church, where, what it seemed to be the entire population of the village was waiting for me, many looks at me in a strange way, wary, I see the coffin open and I came closer, even if I hate him is still my brother, see someone so lively, dauntless and adventurous, become a cold carcass feel my heart of pain, and I started crying, ¡°why you have left? There are so many things that I want to tell you, why¡­.¡±, the ceremony went on normally, except for the priest that sometimes, because of his old age mispronounce some words. Afterwards, the coffin was, for the moment, put in the local cemetery and was engraved with a gravestone, after the coffin will go to our country of birth, I was the only one crying during the ceremony. A bit after the funeral, the inhabitants offer me the house of my brother for free as a sign of condolence, obviously I don''t want to live here, but I don''t know where to stay for the night, once I enter I start organizing all items, the instruments, the few coins, his relics, the letters, the book and the pie-, where is the strange piece of meat? I searched all the house, and I did not find it, but I notice that there was a strange line of humidity on the floor, I remember that the strange piece of meat was covered in a strange liquid that was dripping everywhere, I pick my backpack that contain among other things the book of my brother, and I follow it, the line was leaving the more ¡°develop¡± part of the village and had taken a route in the part more wild of the mountain ¡°damn¡± I thought, ¡°he had travel quite a lot¡±, at that moment I thanked my brother and his compass and lantern, without them I will never be able to follow the line, at a certain point I arrive at an abandoned water well on it a pretty long rope hang, for a moment, my brother words had come to my mind, but I dismiss them immediately. Moved by curiosity I take the rope and I back enter the water well, at the bottom there was a hole in the wall that go somewhere, normally I am not an adventurous, but this is the best that I can do to honour my brother memory, I notice that the strange liquid had arrived here, how? I enter the hole and after a dozen of minutes i find myself before a strange spectacle, that never in my life a city inside the mountain in full renaissance style, despite the darkness that made the vision of the entire city impossible, the city of magnific with his warm and life full colors and his artistic architecture, i forgot the liquid and the piece of meat, and i started wandering for this great forgotten city, the first thing that i notice where the various statues of knights, so is here that my brother had taken the idea, i explore the churches, with their epic architecture, with their splendid paintings, strange they were no crosses, i explore the houses, that seemed very well preserved for being forgotten for who knows how many centuries, in a house i notice something very strange, the pot was tepid¡­, strange, i heard a strange crunch, a little noise, i had the impression that one of the statues had moved, it can''t be, it must be my memory, i come closer to the statue and i notice nothing of strange, so i turn back with the intention of exploring more that house, but in that moment i feel a piercing pain behind the back, follow by much blood, i started running for where i don''t know, after a bit i notice what it seem to be another tunnel in the rock and i run inside it, i ran for long, i don''t know for how long, at a certain point i slammed on something soft that made me bounce back. ¡°AH, you hurt me,¡± a voice said with a strange tone, I hit the ground and when I open my eyes I saw it, a strange creature, high just a little more than me, with all his flesh of an unnatural pink, his physiognomy was between that of a reptile and a man, his shape seems like that of a centaur, that instead of the man at the end had a strange cluster of meat and tentacles, his legs seemed to be the one of an elephant, his bones were out, his skin¡­ was like the piece of meat, I started running in the opposite direction, but at this point I was breathless and I was bleeding, ¡°wait we can be friends¡±, ¡°WHAT¡± I answer him, ¡°my name is Phtu¡± the creature said,¡± what is your name?¡± My mind was in a state of complete confusion, what was he/she(?), what was the thing right in front of me? And why he was acting like a child that want to make friends? I sit, I was losing litres and litres of blood, my clothes were drenched in blood and sweat,¡± Carlo¡± I said, ¡°Wait are you the brother of Marco?¡± he/she(?) respond, ¡°yes, how you know that?¡± I answer surprise, ¡°the guardians can be very evil, I remember that he always played with me, I am sorry for the horrible end that he encountered, a very nice and strange boy, all of his skin was strange, like yours, but it was a good guy, I told him that he shouldn''t go too deep into the mountain¡­¡± the creature looked sad and a few moments of silence followed, ¡°what is inside the mountain?¡±, I humbly asked, ¡°Many things, the temple, the cradles, dad, mom, and my other friends, I don''t advise you to go there, they are very violent with strangers,¡± said with particular emphasis on the very, ¡°why they are so violent?¡±, ¡°For an old rancor, long, long ago dad tired, dig a hole and started sleeping, much later a king awake him offering him a pact, it was something about a relic, something went wrong, and dad started inflicting terrible disease and catastrophes to the kingdom, asking the king for impossible things if he wanted him to stop, at the end the brother of the king had to sacrifice himself, from then they hate the outside world and they never leave, even wandering the nearby mountains is consider venturing too far¡±, memories of my brother book had come to my mind, now more clear than ever ¡°how much possibilities i have to exit from here alive?¡±, along silence followed,¡±none¡­..¡±, i gathered my energies, ¡°take this, protect it better than me, do it for my brother and me¡± i give my backpack to him, i notice that the backpack had a pretty big cut, fortunately not much was lost, ¡°i will do my best, i know a place that no one ever check¡±, ¡°great¡±, then i take a deep breath and i started running as fast as i could toward the water well exit, i run through the renaissance city again with all the statues that were moving and trying to stop and attack me, at the end moonlight, i climb the rope with my last energies, only to find myself surrounded by a hundred people, ¡°I KNOW IT¡±, someone said in the mob, i recognize the voice, it was my guide ¡°the brother were co-worker, BRING HIM TO THE TEMPLE¡±, a a loud strike made me faint. The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.When I reopen my eyes, I was bound to some columns with some ropes, two torches placed near the columns had given me enough light for understanding what I had in front of me, in front of me there was a big and deep cliff that spam for kilometres, a creature emerged, a monstrous creature that vaguely resembles a gaping dragon(3), his meat was pink like one of the creatures, his bones had exited from his flesh forming a giant mouth, parasites and insects were everywhere on his body, I closed my eyes, I can''t look at it, at a certain point something grab me and in a fraction of a second my bones were broken, my flesh was torn, and after a second I didn''t feel anything anymore. Notes from the text: 1 I decide to not translate the names 2 Fictional place not real, although a mountain named after St. George exist 3 Here I have taken a bit of artistic liberty, I utilized the term gaping dragon referred to the gaping dragon of Dark Souls Thank section: I want to thank the discord of royal road and writers lounge. I also wanna thank everyone atscribophile for the critique and help. The castle The castle I was travelling around, looking for rare artefacts, when I suddenly overheard two people speaking: "Have you heard the news?¡± he said to his colleague, ¡°They have sent another team in that castle." ¡±Another one?!?¡± He says with great surprise ¡°This is the, what? The third? I don¡¯t know what happens there, that zone is strange" His colleague nodded "This time they should have the adequate equipment to build an excavation site, they say" nearly with a sarcastic tone. "Do you remember what happened last time? <>¡± they both laugh ¡°and by the way what is so special about that castle? Is just a bunch of ruins" When I heard this I immediately asked them where that place was, they looked at me perplexed like I just asked about unicorns, ¡°Ser, there is nothing for you there, I am sure that there will be other occasions for exploration, especially for you¡±, I looked at his colleague and asked where that place was ¡°San Alberto Magno¡±, I pick all my stuff, a handful of coins, supplies, a rifle with ammunitions and lots of artefacts and papers. Surrounded by green and flourishing nature lay a small village of farmers, the trees provide wood for the fireplaces, the rivers provide water, and the vast green grasslands and mountains provide food for men and animals. A very isolated place that sustains itself, where people live off earth fruits in a simple and clean way, the ideal if a man wishes to study in peace. Asking the inhabitants I quickly realize that they knew little about the castle or tower, and what little they knew was strange, confusing and highly questionable, "What, that tower? I tell you that is the house of the devil!", "What goes near that castle is not the same", "I promise you on my honour! I have seen the lights of the strangest colours coming from the top of the tower!", "The wild animals go there during nights without the moon and they come back stronger, hungrier and very very mad", I did not believe a single word of what they said, superstitions spread and distort very easily, so I went to the only place where I still hoped to find some information, the local church. When I went there I noticed a statue near the entrance, a band of what seemed mercenary fight against a devil with a priest holding a cross in charge. When I entered I noticed the beautiful glassworks depicting the local saint, but what impressed me was not the style, but the colour, I had already seen that purple-red but I can¡¯t remember where. "Is truly beautiful isn''t it?" The priest said to me when I was looking at it ¡°We made it from a ruined glass work¡± ¡°A ruined glasswork?¡± Where have you found it?¡± I asked a bit alarmed, ¡°A ruined glasswork from a church near the castle, the bishop know nothing about that church, you had to see it, the colours where beautiful¡­ but unfortunately time had destroyed the picture leaving only a pilgrim praying to a strange shiny cluster of purple and red¡±, for a moment I was shocked, but I quickly manage to control myself ¡°So do you know anything about that castle?" "That castle? Nothing only folklore and fairy tales, you are losing your time here" he said with a strong tone ¡°I am sure that they are plenty of places that need your help, this is not one of them¡± he continued, ¡°there must be something about that castle, anything would be useful!¡± I said trying not to be too emotional, a smile appear on the priest face ¡°Well if you are so interested in that castle,¡± he said, ¡°you don¡¯t need to look too far into the past, follow me¡± he then brought me in an old house, ¡°I made an archive of all the things that had happen here¡± pointing to a big shelf, ¡°when you have finish lock this place with the key¡± he then give me the key of the house ¡°Remember God is always here, if you need something you know where to find me¡± he then left. It seemed like a very old shelf, one that has not been clean for years, when I pick up the first block of document a large cloud of dust formed, the documents were varied, some were newspapers other journals, other pieces of bigger pages, they were talking about murders, strange disappearances and strange visions near that zone, I don''t believe most of them, doubt many other, but some seemed genuine, there was something not right there, I need to go there seeing for myself what all of this was about. Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. So without further ado, I bought all the supplies that I would need, and direct myself to the castle. When was the last time I hadn''t felt either freezing cold, or strong winds, in this darkest of nights? I don¡¯t remember, and I don¡¯t want to remember, I will not survive another day in this path, my health is quickly getting worse and I desperately need shelter, these mountains are like the dark forest of the Divine comedy, frightening, pitch dark, wild and nearly impossible to traverse. As I walked I heard strange sounds, I paused and focus, many footsteps in the distance, running fast toward me, I picked my rifle and waited, they are many, they are coming here, a few moments of silence... CRICK HAHARSHAU, a wolf emerge from the dark, BOOM, straight trough his head, another one, BOOM, another and another, a wolf, a bear, a snake, nothing had ever stop me, the rifle made a TICK sound, I had no more ammo, a wolf is rushing at me, I picked my sword and knife, CRACK the sound of his school being crush, ¡°COME AT ME BEASTS OF SATAN, LET SEE WHAT YOU GOT!¡± They fight like mindless beasts with the only objective to attack and kill, no matter if injured or alone, they attack, the castle was so close but so distant, I can¡¯t rest now, I had to arrive at the castle as fast as possible, I had to endure. I still stand, even with all the blood and gore on my body, I have arrived at the castle, these stones, this tower... Still manages to give a vague sense of terror after all those years. The whole castle is in ruins, as it should be, except the tower that still stands, I noticed a stone out of place, when I went there I noticed that there was a passage of some sort, maybe an escape route in case of siege? It was pitch black, and I had no idea where it leads, I light up my torch to illuminate the tunnel, a long corridor with a staircase at the end of it, I look at the beauty of the sky for a moment, maybe the last, and then I descend into the darkness, the staircase was long and I walked a long time without seeing an exit, but at last a door appeared¡­ only to lead to another tunnel, this one was different, on the walls they were strange drawings, strange things. I went into the tunnel and down the staircase, another long staircase and another door, I open the door, I entered the tunnel, is this a maze? I open the door leading to anot--- AHHH, I shut the door and run back to the last staircases, only to see that the room had changed? I return to the last room and the creature was no more. I sit there and meditate, remembering the holy words ¡°there is no such thing as the physical world, only consciousness and energy¡±, some time passed, my mind was focus again, I go to open the door, another staircase even darker, I close the door, and return in my footsteps, where all this confusion is coming from? I open the door at the end of the staircase, a strange blob of flesh come charging at me with a thousand voices and feet, I close the door and open it again, the flesh monster is no more here, I climbed and descend yet again until I have not found a larger and darker corridor leading to a bigger door, I open it, this room is way bigger than the last ones, huge statues of gods and nightmares decorate the long hall, there is a throne at the end, the statue had half decay and the whole place was falling apart, even the throne, a king with unnatural yellow eyes shining through the darkness, sword in hand and book in the other, with a white pale skin and long white hair, with noble clothing of an ancient age sit on the throne dominating the beasts, only a panting but pretty powerful, it was above the throne, I reach the throne and look at it for a few moments, then I sit on it. The priest was cleaning the altar of his little church, it was night and there was not much light, at a certain point a horrible smell entered the church, he then noticed a figure in the dark standing, ¡°Who is there?¡± He said in a frightened tone, the figure made a step forward, ¡°oh is you, the researcher, you have come back, I told you there is nothing in that castle, only ruins, I can suggest you a good bath where you can clean yourself¡± he said relieve, the figure remained silent, he then notice that it was holding something, ¡°what are you holding?¡± The figure then throw a skull at him, the priest was shocked, the figure spoke at last ¡°You have lied to me as you had lied to them, you had lied to yourself playing this comedy, you know full well what was inside that castle¡± he said with a heavy and tranquil voice, ¡°you don¡¯t understand! Inside that castle there is a God, the one true God! If I manage to reactivate the circle mankind can finally see the one true god! If I manage to activate the circl--¡± ¡°mankind will be no more¡± he said interrupting him ¡°you have made up the archive only to arouse the curiosity of the researchers, but nothing you had know and nothing you know¡±, the priest was becoming by the moment more agitate ¡°YOU! What do you know? I had been here for years studying that castle! Y E A R S! I will not be stopped by you!¡± He said with a rage unnatural for a priest, ¡°you know it is man¡¯s pride that makes him think that the universe is made for him, that he could communicate to those beings, that there is recover after the revelation, that with hope and determination we could survive and strive, how naive. There is no turning back, the only thing that we can do is remain in our little island, hoping that nothing will come from the sea¡± the figure made a few steps forward, unnatural yellow eyes shone through the darkness, the priest was shocked, ¡°I was once like you, determined to see the true one god above the sky, then I discover that there is no god above the sky, only nightmares, I will see humanity die¡± He said with a very heavy and angry tone, ¡°My LoRd¡­ It was sAid That¡­ thaT¡­ thE KinG would¡­. rEturN¡­ thE Lord...ReTURn¡± the priest was terrified, he suddenly see other creatures in the darkness, ¡°did you want to see the one true God? Here you see his angel and servant¡± He said with a tranquil tone, ¡°NOOO, PLEASE, PLEASE! HAVE MERCY! I CAN FORGET, I WILL TELL NO ON--¡± a strong sound was heard, the priest voice had gone quiet. THE END The Lake The terrain was hard and harsh, the air suffocating and graves were all around, "Of all the places" I thought "that he can have chosen he had to select this one! An abandoned mine!" I caught and stopped, the mine air had started to take his toll on my, "father why?" I murmured while looking at his urn, "why the family mine? Why me and only me? Why precisely the deeps of the mine?", I did not know the answer, after a few minutes of rest I managed to get up and continue. I had a wish to fulfil, my father last wish: "Son... son please let my body be burn and put in an urn... when you- when you reach adulthood, you...you need to go to the mine and disperse my ashes- and disperse my ashes... in the water deep... deep into the mine... please son, this is the last- last wish of a dying man... an old dying man..." When my father died, a few days later, I was barely 14 years old. The ambient was claustrophobic and decaying, the silent and darkness of the mine were terrifying for me, the silence was broken only by the sound of something moving, probably a serpent or some other animal returning to his nest, and by the occasional little Crick that the supporting structures made whenever I would happen to touch it, nearly all tunnels had collapsed or didn¡¯t reach deep enough, except one, the B34, according to my map that was the only tunnel that reached deep, my only hope is that it did not collapse in all those years. Never I understood this wish, my father was never a miner and neither had a bound with this mine, it was an abandoned mine that he had inherited from his father and his father before him, reaching back to one of his ancestors who purchase it very shortly before it¡¯s abandon. No member of my family made a cent out of it. While damning my father for the wish, I heard a strange sound, like glass being broken, I made a step and I heard it again, I looked down and there was a strange green crystalline thing on my shoes, I had no idea what was it, but it emitted a feeble green light. Soon after I encountered a strict and narrow tunnel with a sign that readUnauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. B34 LAKE ATTENTION! Considered the high number of casualty that we had on this tunnel we decided to close it, ALL miners have prohibited the entrance. On the sign they were traces of green, probably indicating the presence of the green crystals, ¡°Lake, Water!¡± I thought and I entered. "The water deep into the mine" I murmured, while my lounge was in pain, my eyes were bleeding and my clothes were being consumed bit by bit, it must have been more than an hour that I was descending the tunnel, "WHY!?!?" I yelled in an explosion of rage, I sit on a rock and took a deep breath, "calm, calm, stay calm, you must go on otherwise all this effort would be for nothing, remember why you are doing this". After descending more I noticed that the crystalline green things were becoming more and more frequent and the air was change, now there was a vague perfume in the air, like¡­ like¡­ the walls too changed, becoming of a dark grey, now the terrain was humid and- is this moss? The tunnel opened into a cave, it was beautiful, the green crystals emitted a feeble light illuminating parts of the cave, they were strange plants and vines like I never saw in my life, it was strange, terrify and beautiful at the same time. I entered deeper into the cave, searching for the water, I was very excited and curious, soon my dreams can come true! I saw what looked like a very ancient temple, it was very strange, of a style that I never saw, it reminded me of the pictures of Giger but only vaguely, I entered deep into it, exploring it, looking at the various pieces of vases and paintings, what strange things, depicting strange and alien colourful beings, I was curious, I was devoured by curiosity, soon I saw a big hallway at the end of it there was a big closed door, ¡°soon I can see it!¡± I thought I opened it, and I saw-, I saw-, I saw... Then I blow the tunnel and destroy what little remained of the mine, I don''t remember much as I already said... ¡°What was of your father urn and ashes?¡± A voice said ¡°I think that I have throw them in the lake just a little before I¡­¡± silence followed ¡°What killed your father?¡± ¡°My father was killed by¡­ by tuberculosis¡­ I was just a little child of 8 I don¡¯t remember precisely¡± ¡°Why you destroyed the mine?¡± ¡°Terror,¡± He said decide for the first time in the conversation ¡°it was terror¡­ terror of something¡­¡± ¡°Of losing your father?¡± ¡°Yes! Yes, I fear to lose my poor ill father! You know, doctor, he is a very old man and I am worried about him¡± ¡°I understand,¡± said the doctor closing his notebook and giving him a handshake, ¡°I hope that he recovers¡±, then he exits the room. White eyes through the black night(old) It all began in a moonless, starry night. "Did you like eating much John? Then you will have tons of friends underground, the worms and insect will share this passion with you!" I was carrying some corpse from the hospital to the graveyard, and, as usual, I was cursing many of the corpses, many people do not deserve a grave, much less a crypt, ungrateful, lazy, immoral, fat and greedy bastards that they were. My only consolation? Cursing their corpses and hoping that they were burning in the hell pits. While doing this I saw something on the horizon, a feeble dancing white light, true I and it pitch dark and I may have drunk a little, but I remember his form to be strange, tall, big, strong, like some sort of giant. Then it disappeared in the dark night, and I continued my work, wondering how much they will pay me, nothing or less than nothing? Then I felt a thrill, my heart started beating, the darkness becomed more menacing, but I continued, who stops at a thrill in the darkness? After twenty minutes I was turning at every little sound, checking what made it with my knife ready to fight. After an hour I was too scared to check.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. I never realize up to that point how much fear can take over one¡¯s mind. I was in liquid darkness surrounded by darkness, my eyes had gone insane, I had gone insane, how I reach this point? What was this liquid? I am insane? Is alcohol? I lose control of my mind, I become terrorize. Everything seemed to be moving, Everything was moving, the shapes morphed, becoming bigger, stranger, unnatural, deforming in the worst of ways; The forest had become gloomy and nightmarish, to continue was no easy task, how savage wild that forest, how robust and rough its growth, which to remember only, my dismay renews, in bitterness not far from death.[1] I started feeling colder and colder, there was something lurking at the edge of the darkness, it was watching, I could feel it, It was following me, trying catching me. It made a step forward, I rush at my dagger, but I stopped in terror, that thing not of god domain. Tall, big, a long dark cloak, covering who knows what, reaching and crawling on the ground and the eyes! That damn six white eyes that pierce through the soul and the mind, reaching the depths of the heart, that damn eyes that I keep dreaming at night, that damn eyes that bring light, light through the darkness, light through the void, light through the soul, light bringing doom. I found myself in a bed, I must have blacked out, my saviours told me that they had found me on the river of a swamp, far from where I remember being, cold and white like death but still, somehow alive. I promised myself to change life, to do something, I picked a pen and wrote, rushing, those verses : Light that shines through the darkness Light that shines through the void May your light be bless Eyes that look through the night Eyes that look through the soul May you see Twilight Beast from beyond Beast without god May you claim your birthright And bring End in starlight The mask in the forest Believe me, when I say that of all children I was the kindest and most religious, never in my life I had done evil to an animal much less to a person, always just and honest, never had I told a lie in my life, always royal to others and myself, always good and striving to create a better world, I was the simplest of guy, I was the nicest of guy, born of a good family, in love with a girl, Camilla, the most beautiful girl in the world obliviously, and I studied hard for when I will inherit my father fief. Maybe is for this reasons that some entity or destiny had me found the mask, whatever the case one day I found a mask, a mask made of dark gloomy wood, it was finely worked, beautiful to the eye and hands, it was love at first glance, neither my family nor my friends could convince me otherwise, never I understood their opinion that it was horrible and badly made, I loved the mask with all my heart, as one loves only once, maybe more than Camilla, it was the only thing that I really felt like mine and mine alone. Strange dreams started appearing in my sleep, dreams of vast deserts home to ancient beings, sunless lands down in the sky where the gods once lived, dreams of vast wastelands where death reigns and green fires pierce the cloud and the sky; And nightmares, horrible nightmares that pierce in one''s soul and never leave. I began waking up in strange places, in a mine depths, a mountain peak far from home, nearly drowned in a lake, sometimes near my church and house, and many, many times in the depths of the forest, the same forest that was dear to me as a child but I had long since abandoned for other things, more worldly pursuits, I kept awakening there as if some part of me desperately desire to return to those trees, to older days when imagination carry me higher than heaven, happier days, days where I dreamed of cities inside mountains and ancient cults beneath the moon. Returning from the forest, one day, I saw a house burned, reduce to ashes and dust, several people burnt alive, their corpse in agony. That was my house. ¡°An unfortunate incident,¡± Camilla told me¡± you must have faith, I am sure that if someone burned your house now he is burning in hell, trust God, he will take care, he always take care.¡± Something broke inside me, something had died. I know who they were, they envied me and my family, but I could not prove it, so I did the only thing that I could do, I trust. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. I trust myself to God with all my heart, I even considered taking vows at one point, to show my supreme and utter devotion to him. And my trust was good place, as trust in God always is, because, one after another, they died of the strangest conditions and diseases; They were evil, they deserved it, they are in hell burning; If they were good and had nothing to do with plotting and scheming now they are in God grace, who is to decide? God, the infallible, kind and always just God, how beautiful life is sometimes. People started talking about some strange beast and rituals; Hunter returned empty-handed or dead. Houses started burning with people inside, the atmosphere quickly became grim, people started accusing one another of that or that, executions and burnings became commonplace. But not all hope was lost, soon the holy inquisition arrived, their words were full of hope, full of faith and desire for justice, people, for a brief moment, really believed in God with all their heart, except a few, a few who had already guessed the future: A few more corpses in the forest. The inquisitors entered the forest followed by a mob of valiants, nothing was heard of them for days, only when a brave hunter entered into the deeps of the forest they were found: tortured, crucify, without eyes, without heart, with runes and symbols all over their body. It was a horrible sight. After that people lost all hope. The atmosphere only became worse, heresy and superstitions became common, merchants stop arriving believing the city was cursed by some evil, markets close, poverty spread, the beast changed too, it became bigger, stronger, faster, mystical, demonic, it was no more a beast, it was a divine Flagel upon mankind, a god-like beast that cannot be killed, the rituals in the forest only increased as people give to desperation. Cammila was still there, somehow, she survived and kept faith in God, the only motive of her life. it was only a question of time before he realized what I was doing. "You don''t have to do this" Cammila said "don''t you see? That mask has changed you, you are not like this! You are a good person, I know it for sure, throw the mask away, please! Don''t you see, it made you a killer, a cultist, devil, a beast, you are still in time, hear me please, take God hand!" I stood there silent and Apatethic for some moments, I toggle the mask from my face, I touched it, and I throw it away, never to wear it again. Camilla hugged me with all his strength, "you have finally returned! You are no more a beast, I am so happy, now we can think...¡± I looked her in the eyes, she stopped, I left the hug, I had knife her to the abdomen, "why? Why? You had retuned... the devil was gone," she said agonising, hearing those words I could no more restrain myself, I reduced her body to pieces, one of the cultists saw me, "master?" he asked in a trembling voice, I started speaking without looking at him, "she was a good person, but she surrendered his will to God and divine justice, now she may have the reward and justice in which she believed,¡± I stood up and look at him, he saw my face for the first time, I smile for the first time in a long time, ¡°I and I alone did this, nor evil nor mask nor God, I.¡± I picked the mask from the ground and I touch it. ¡° you served me well, but now I don''t need to hide anymore, now I can be who truly I am.¡± A sacred mask signed my fate For forever rule Among others and outsiders But never over myself For forever see Truth and ideals upon the heavens And lies and deceits on earth White eyes through the black night In a moonless, starry night. "Did you like eating that much John? Then you will have tons of friends underground, the worms and insects will share in this passion with you!" I am hauling some cadavers from the hospital to the graveyard and, as usual, I am cursing at many of the corpses. Many people do not deserve a grave, much less a crypt, these ungrateful, lazy, immoral, fat, and greedy bastards that they were. My only consolation for carrying out this grim work? Cursing their corpses and hoping that they are burning in the pits of hell. While doing this I thought I see something on the horizon, a faintly glowing, dancing white light. True, it is pitch dark, and I maybe a bit drunk, but I remember his form to be strange, tall, big, strong, like some sort of giant. Then it disappears into the dark night, and I continue my work, while debating in my mind whether they will pay me or just give me good beating? I feel a thrill down my spine, my heart starts racing, the darkness becomes more menacing, but I continue as only a child would be halted in fear of the darkness. As time passed I start turning at every little sound, with my knife raised, ready to strike. After some more time I am just too scared to even check. I never realized how much fear can take over one¡¯s mind.Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. The chill darkness clings to me pulling at my clothes, lost in the pitch-black void, my eyes had gone insane? Have I gone insane? How have I reached this point? What is this liquid? I have lost control, I¡¯ve given in, to the terror. Everything seems to be moving, everything is moving, the shapes morphing: becoming bigger, twisting unnaturally, and deforming in the worst of ways; The forest has become gloomy and nightmarish, to continue is no easy task. With every attempt to advance, my dismay only renews, in bitterness realize I must be not far from death.[1] I am feeling colder and colder, there was something lurking at the edge of the darkness. It is watching, I could feel it, chasing me, trying to catch me. It creeps forward, and I lunge towards my knife, but come to the horrifying conclusion: that thing is not of God¡¯s domain. An enormous long dark cloak, covering who knows what, reaching and clawing ground; and the eyes! Those six damned, glowing white eyes that pierce through the soul and the mind, reaching the depths of my heart. Those damn eyes that bring the light, the light through the darkness, through the void and through my very soul. I find myself in a bed, I must have blacked out, my saviours tell me that they had found me on the riverbank in the swamp, far from where I last remember being, cold and white like death but still, somehow alive. I now promise myself to change my life, to do something, to use this blessing that the white eyes have given me, to live again: and write this poem : Light that shines through the darkness Light that shines through the void May your light be bless Eyes that look through the night Eyes that look through the soul May you see Twilight Beast from beyond Beast without god May you claim your birthright And bring End in starlight Vast dunes in the holy desert The sun rays are piercing my eyes, the desert sands are suffocating, it has been three days since I last saw another person, I have long lost the way, I am completely lost in those vast empty dunes. Everything was alright, I had a nice job, a nice apartment, a nice girl, I was living a happy life; Like thunder on a sunny day, a vision came to me, I know that my life would no more be the same. Curse that day! Curse that vision descended from planes unknown! What madness had taken hold of me to follow such a mirage! I would have died happy, in my home surrounded by my family and friends, if it has not been for it! Now I am condemned to die in the emptiness of the sands, without comfort or kind words, isolate and alone! Another day has past and nothing except vast dunes as far as the eye can see, I am starting to feel more and more tired, these sands burn hands and feet. My camel has died, supplies are ending, I don''t know for how long I can survive, I wonder if is not better to just end it here, in a moment all will end and I will be free... NO, I have not done all this road to die without seeing again that vision, I must go on, I must find the meaning of it. I see a dot on the horizon, a mirage maybe? Arriving there I realize that this is some sort of small red cave, it''s protected from the sun and so I can rest here... or die, I don''t know at this point if I will awaken from sleep. Strange sounds near me "a long time ago people come here to be sacrificed" a heavy animalistic voice say, I open my eyes, a creature similar to an albino buffalo was staring me, "you are dying," he said without moving his mouth "Are- you an hallucination?" I said scaredEnsure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. "Would that change anything?" he said in a kingly tone "If- you are real you could give me some water..." I replied very weakly "Oh my dear, is not lack of water that is killing you," he said amused "What do you mean?" I ask in confusion "Is a long time that you are dying, I can see it, your soul is longing for awakening, your mind for meaning, your heart for passion, yet you have not heeded their call, they are dying. What life did you conduct?¡± "No, you are wrong, I was living a happy life before that damn vision!" I said with rage, ignoring the question. "Since when the aim of life is happiness?" He said smiling "Only a dying and desperate soul embarks on a visionary quest in the desert." "You know about my vision?" "Yes I know it, is because of it that I am here, I was once a king among kings, a lord among lords, and yet I sacrifice everything for a vision, a mirage, a dream." He goes outside looking at the stars, I follow him. "I have nothing to give to you except this symbol of a long-forgotten meaning" he pulls out a strange object, it looks like a piece of violet white wood, with a strange symbol on it, it reminds me vaguely of a moth, "would you accept this symbol and with it his burden?" I stood idle, thinking, for a few seconds "I accept it". He smiles at me, then he looks up at the stars, crying, the moonlight embraces him as his body fades into a thousand grains of sand. I looked at the piece of wood and his symbol, I now have a mission to fulfil, a burden to carry, and a meaning to my life. Desert once holy Vast dunes that the sun golden Ancient beings long forgotten Let the prayer found the way Upon stars and moonlight Let his soul find awakening Let his mind find belonging Let his heart find passion[1] Nothing to lose except his life Nothing to give except a holy symbol In the vast dunes of the desert desert A loose soul found the way Fool The trees dance with the winds Water flows in the rivers Leaves are carried away In the forest walking the way, I encountered a cat. "She is such cute," said the cat while giving me his back "you must see her." He paused and turned around, "what are you doing here young one?" she said looking at me "I am walking the path to the temple, you seem lost little cat" I responded "You? Oh, yes she has lost the path and you too, for how long have you wander through this forest?" the cat asked. "Enough to meet others like you" I responded strongly. "Oh. What evil there is to put some small doubts into one''s mind? Perhaps you have lost the way, perhaps there is no way, perhaps you should go back to the palace." the cat said with a quirky voice. "Perhaps you are right, but I will continue regardless, for this is my way" I said decidedThe genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. "How foolish of you! Such heroism, courage and strength display only in vain words! You know how many of you She has encountered! Now they are all death, corpses. tear in a thousand pieces, you want to reach the temple but you will not reach anything, ANYTHING!" "Empty words." I paused "Go away." And I walked further in the forest. "Fool" replied the cat from a far. With great haste the creature looked behind every rock and wall, searching with dribble her launch, her prey, Me. With his eyes, with his nose, with his mouth, searching for any trace, with great ability and silence, like the most astute off hunters, how foolish of me, I could never defeat such creature, not with a flinched heart, not with an unstable mind, not with a broken sword. But perhaps there is hope, perha- A quick bite, a hollow sound, acute pain, the creature has found me, his mouth opened and I drawed my last breath with a tormented soul and pierce soul. My sword lies broken My armour shattered My bones fractured My flesh teared I welcome faith With all my heart Lost in peacefulness I confused peace and war Not knowing neither Now that doom is upon me Hope is now gone My only wish now Is for a quick death Sleep(old) Once upon the misty swamp, there was Oorbgh, Oorbgh loved the swamp and he was tired so he decided to sleep on it. With time other beings notice him and started worshipping him for his oniric properties, a small cult formed and the swamp was renamed the oniric swamp. Thanks to his properties and the cult, many beings from different worlds come to the swamp worshipping him, including a handful of humans. The story talks about a human who entered the swamp and found the cult. I found myself laying on the dark naked earth, it was night, a profound dark night, no stars nor moon, only thunders of strange colours gave some light. I stood up and look around, they were a few pink lights far away after some sort of mountain range, I decided to go and check them. The land was strange, anything except regular and easy, the terrain switched between soft and hard without externals signs, gravity did not seem to work properly here given all the inverse trees and strange conformations and spirals, I needed help. I quickly abandoned the climb and started looking for an alternative path, I saw a strange, giant, round, mosquito with red eyes and no mouth flying at the contrary, going around pink stones that emanated a strange exotic smell. I should have regulated the dose better, I thought to myself. The earth started moving and a far chant could now be heard, It was coming from the direction of the pink lights behind the mountains, the mosquito and even the stones moved toward the city. It was not long before I stumble across a creature similar to an anteater, it was strange, he had no skin, all his flesh was exposed revealing a long series of teeths running all throughout his body, maybe he was aggressive, maybe he would have eaten me, but I must try to ride him.Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. "Oh loth ah yuhan, oi woundier yohaw hi munege tho keth hiry" the creature said when I approach him. "Wait you can talk?" I responded surprised. "Sire oi kan toukal, bur omi nor beri hood ot ito" the creature answer. "Can you understand me?" I said not understanding the creature. "Yis" he said moving his head in agreement. ¡°Can I ride you?¡± I ask. The creature stood immobile for a few seconds, ¡°Siri¡± then he lowered his head. The anteater gave me a ride through the high mountains, I discover that he was able to make very long jumps, I understand very few words of what he was saying. Ritual, sleep and Oorbgh were frequent words, I was excited. Soon we reach the city, it was completely invaded by a strange, purple, smoke, the lights where very sparse and few between, most buildings were illuminated only at their entrance, leaving the inside and the highs totally obscure, I wondered how they looked like, strange symbols and objects were everywhere, what kind of things the darkness hide? What crazy and delirium part of my subconscious created this city? Creatures looked at me, some very similar to humans, others indescribable and eldrich, many ate each other in a loop, many were sleeping, many were screaming unnoticed in the midst of the crowd. It was perfect. Suddenly the chanting became stronger and more intense, I became tired, " Wu Lust Yurri" the anteater said, shortly before hasting to reach the chanting. When I reach the centre I saw it, surrounded by temples and shrines, he was calling me, his son, the chants, the smoke, the creatures, I suddenly realize, this was no dream, this was no product of my brain, I wanted to go back home! Soon great tiredness and sleepiness had taken hold of me, I could not move, my strengths left me, it was in that moment that Oorbgh made me understand the chants before I closed my eyes falling into a profound deep sleep. Once upon the swamp Oorbgh arrive Tired and sleepy he felt asleep Dreaming of other worlds and realities The creatures saw glimpses of his dreams With temple and shrines they worship him Great darkness finally fell An infinite night full of dreams And Oorbgh finally sleep soundly The oniric swamp Once upon the misty swamp there was Oorbgh, Oorbgh loved the swamp and he was tired so he decided to sleep on it. With time other beings notice him and started worshipping him for his oniric properties, a small cult formed and the swamp was renamed the oniric swamp. Thanks to his properties and the cult, many beings from different worlds come to the swamp worshipping him, including a handful of humans. The story talks about a human who entered the swamp and found the cult. I was laying on the naked dark earth, confuse and disoriented, it was night, a profound night, no stars nor moon, only thunders of strange colours rage from afar giving me a little bit of light. I barely manage to stand up and look around, trees were growing backwards, the terrain was unregular, the mountains distorted, gravity seemed broken, everything looked like an impressionist painting, what kind of place was this? I saw a few pink lights from afar, maybe a village or city, behind some sort of mountain range, I decided to check them, maybe they could help me. The terrain switched between soft and hard without externals signs, the mountain was high and a maze of paths, I needed help. While looking around I saw a strange giant round mosquito with red eyes and no mouth going around flying near pink glowing stones. "I should have regulate the dose better" I thought to myself. While watching them the earth start moving and a far chant could be heard, the thunders become more violent, It was coming from the pink lights behind the mountains, the mosquito and the stones move toward the city, like attracted from something, soon many different animals were going to the city. It was not long before I encountered a creature similar to an anteater, he had no skin, his flesh was exposed revealing a long series of teeths running all through his body, maybe it was aggressive, but I must try to ride him, "Oh loth ah yuhan, oi woundier yohaw hi munege tho keth hiry" the creature said with the tone of a very old person. This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report."Wait you can talk?" I responded surprised. "Sire oi kan toukal, bur omi nor beri hood ot ito" the creature answer. "Can you understand me?" I said not understanding the creature. "Yis," he said moving his head in agreement. The anteater gave me a ride through the high mountains, I could understand very few words of what he was saying: ritual, sleep and Oorbgh were returning words. Soon we reach the city, a strange smoke was everywhere, the lights where very sparse and few between, most structures were illuminated only at their entrance, leaving most of them in the dark, I wonder what is in those rooms what kind of thing the darkness hide? Forgotten symbols and power, my urge to delve into the darkness was only momentary suppress by the anteater speed and hurry. Strange creatures looked at me, behind windows, behind walls, I could feel something strange, something was watching me, something of big, some creature were very similar to humans, others indescribable and eldrich, many ate each other, many were sleeping. The chanting became stronger and more intense, a strange sensation of tiredness had taken hold of my body, " Wu Lust Yurri" the anteater said, shortly before rushing to reach the centre of the city. When I reach the centre I was nearly asleep, surrounded by temples and shrines, all kind of creature sleep, something was calling me, his son, the chants, the smoke, I was terrified, I wanted to go back, this was no more a dream or hallucination, soon great tiredness and sleepiness had taken hold of me, my strengths left me, it was in that moment that I finally saw him, Oorbgh[1] the dreamer, I laid on the ground, I had no more strength, and at that moment I finally understood the chants, right before falling into a deep sleep, dreaming, being, in different worlds. Once upon the swamp Oorbgh arrive Tired and sleepy he fell asleep Dreaming and snorting Soon great sleepiness took over the swamp And all creatures went dreaming with him Darkness finally had come and the sun was no more Oh Oorbgh we pray and serve you Make us dream of other worlds and realities So we can finally see the truth And transcend into places beyond the real[2] For a piece of meat Little Kyr was carrying a piece of meat through dust and bones, looking for a safe place where to eat "not again" he murmured "no they won''t have my meat again, I won''t go home still hungry." He spotted a good place, the inside of a giant skull that had fallen and crumbled. He slowly craw in one of the empty eyes, carefully and paranoidly, until he hadn''t reached safety Eating that fat piece of meat was like heaven for him, he risked his life to obtain it, ripping what little flesh was left from the corpse of a very big ogre, it was said that he was a king. For him now he was flesh to be eaten while watching the green flames and acid purple storms in the distance. How beautiful it all was...sometimes. And while enjoying the launch he felt something shake the ground, he looked outside and saw a large beast coming in his direction, he was scared; Was the skull so secure? Remain hidden or move? The beast could break the skull? The beast charge could break the skull? A thousand doubts arose in his paranoid mind, he needed to act quickly. He decided to look for another hiding place, he spotted a fissure in a bone, probably a rib, far higher and safer. "Calm, calm, Kyr, you have done this a thousand times," he thought" a claw after another, the fissure is not far, just don''t look down, don''t look at that thing." It was monstrous, a mass of jaws and teeth ready to eat him with the head similar to a crow, legs vaguely remembering an elephant and eyes, eyes everywhere. It looked around sensing that there was something nearby except the usual bones and dust, there was food, Kyr was scared, his teeth started trembling, he lost the grip on his precious meat, the precious meat falls down. The beast devoured the little piece of meat and looked up, where Kyr was, it made a large jump on the bone where he was, breaking it. He was trowed high in the air, falling on a pile of ash and dust that soften the fall.The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. His eyes were dirty so he decided to clean them with his little, tiny, claws, when he opened them the beast was looking at him, at that little thing in the dust moving, he was hungry, he could feel it, he started running, the beast charged. "Run as fast as you can and never look back until you have not reached your safe nest," this he had learned in all those years of scavenging, he spotted a hole in a stone and he went into it, only for the stone be trow high in the sky. The fall hit him hard, something broken, he looked up at the big black canyon and the vegetation in front of him, he must find a way to survive. "Act, quick, hide, where?" he spotted a big blue mushroom, he started running toward it only to find himself hobbling. He felt a breath, a large shadow fell on him, the beast was upon him, he was thrown first on the stone wall, then on the terrain, the beast picked him up and ate some off his fur, the beast was playing with him, he was delighted to see this little thing so hard trying to survive. When that little thing bored him, he fully opened his big mouth. At that point fear paralyse little Kyr, he was going to die, he could not move, he couldn''t escape, it''s this his end? A sound, like bones shivering mixed with a scream, then nothing. He opened his eyes, the beast was gone, vanquish, gone into the air. He turned confused and saw that the beast had been torn in a thousand pieces, he was happy but still confused. He looked up for a second and immediately started running, ignoring his leg, faster than before, never looking back, never slowing down. When he finally managed to reach his nest he was breathless and his leg was hanging, like rotten meat. He was still in terror from what he had seen, that was too much even for him habituated to such life. He went to sleep, but couldn''t, only a few hours later, when weakness and exhaustion had overcome him, half-dead, he dreamed of the thirteen eyed void dragon and his thousand tails that obscured the stars, of his endless and indefinite form, of his breath, of his being. "Beautiful," he thought, the dragon absorbed him into the endless darkness and peace of the void. He never wake up, his corpse lay there, meat for others like him, but on his face bliss could be seen. Who knows what had given him that, how a few moments before dying, deep into sleep, he found the peace that he had so longed for. Another creature ripped his flesh and eaten his corpse while watching the green flames and the purple storm, far, infinite, perpetual, while he wondered how he should survive tomorrow. The master and the monster In the depths of the green dark forest a soul was wandering, long he had travelled and searched for the cave now so close to him, the cave whom many deem cursed. And yet he was dubious, after all this work he couldn''t muster up the courage to go there, to challenge the darkness. Long he stood idle there, walking, cursing and planning without going there. Alas, like a lost, frightened child, he timidly challenged the darkness. "Just folk tales," he repeated to himself "this is just a normal cave." Worryingly he passed the entrance, trembling did he venture deeper and deeper into the darkness. Until he didn''t reach the end. Just a few bones and skulls of animals long death, nothing more. How foolish of him, worrying so much because of folklore and children bed stories. Relieve he tur- Hungry red eyes glowing in the darkness, grey inhuman skin, long animal fur, the monster was standing there, just a few inches from him, he didn''t hear him but the monster did, listening every word, observing every movement. Paralyse by fear his muscle couldn''t move, but from his mouth a few words managed to be utter "I-wan... th,t bec..ome a stu...d-ent." The monster turned his gaze away, "I don''t take students," he said in a deep and strangely human voice, "go away." "But" Now braver without the monster looking at him "I want to learn." The monster looked at him again, he couldn''t decipher his expression "you are still too young, go away." this time the monster showed his teeth. Frighten he quickly abandoned the cave. Weeks passed before he could muster again the courage to enter the cave. "Mas..ter.." he said while venturing into the cave again "I want.." The monster was eating a deer alive, the inhuman figure, his teeth, his claws, his red eyes, that was way more than he could support. He quickly ran away, nearly screaming. This circle repeated himself a few more times until he didn¡¯t talk to one of the locals. "My master doesn''t want me as his student. He scared me away," he said nearly sobbing. And the folk replied "I remember that in my younger days I was in a similar situation, I had a very severe and scary master who always made me run away in fear or shame. Do you know how I manage to finally become his student? By not running away, showing him my courage and determination. Try doing this for a few days, if he really doesn''t want you as his student after a few days go away. After all, what is the worst that could happen?" This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.Images of dead animals and skulls rose up from his mind. "Y-es... what is the worst that could happen..." Enghlitened he ventured into the cave, the monster was there waiting for him. "Master, I was a coward before, Permit me to show my determination" The monster quickly came toward him, looking him in the eyes. He feared, he tremble, he cried, but he didn''t break contact. The monster then started teasing him with his claws and teeth, making many little cuts and bites through his body. The monster continued for hours upon hours, making him jump away in fear, insulting him, scorning him, humiliating him, bitting him, torturing him. Many times over he thought that he was already dead, but he persisted. After what felt like days the monster said: "You can''t control fear, it will come regardless of you wanting it or not; what you can do is act regardless of it. You have act regardless of it, you have a great spirit, but you are still too young to close yourself in a cave, you are fascinated by the occult, you fear losing your youth, you wish to know the unknown, I understand this. Come back to me once you are ready." So he got up and left, a bit sad and relieve, and he exited the cave, venturing into the world. Many years later he came back, his body was full of scars, his right arm was missing, his face had grown old, his youth was gone, but his eyes still somehow glowed with the same spirit and determination to know. "I wish to become your student," he said humbly. The monster hinted at a smile and made a gesture to follow him ¡°so the first thing that you should know is that¡­.¡± For many years he was his student, always diligently doing his work and serving his master. With much sorrow did the master saw him going away, but that was the course of things, the trained student that leaves the master in order to become one himself. Not a single day had passed since where he didn¡¯t hope to see him again, older, stronger, wiser, ready to take its place, but that time has not yet come. Not a story but an update Where to start? So I had taken a long break from writing, a very long one. I hadn''t simply the fire/motivation/inspiration/daemon/that things that make you write. If an idea came I trowed it into the trash bin: too bad, too unoriginal, to banal, this is not even a story, this is just boring. I didn''t write at all for most weeks. Then I was very inspired by an idea, I had a calling to it. I decided to transform it into a novel, I was writing it even! But I kept rewriting and editing the first few chapters, mostly because I wasn''t sure what the story had to be about or what happened when at what moment. Was this event here appropriate? Was the character consistent? While this paragraph read so bad? What is the story about? It didn''t finish it. One day something strange happened, I had a dream, a very interesting dream. That would make for a very interesting short story. Keyword short. It was too light-hearted for my standard so I create another fiction for it. The story was finished in a few days. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. When I finished writing it something strange happened, I saw the writathon challenge announcement. I decided to participate in with my new fiction. Now I am writing daily more than I was writing monthly. I never felt so tired and content in my life. This is not an exaggeration, I am feeling content after a long time. I just like how simple it''s. You write 1.6k daily and... stop, that is the entire challenge. It''s good? Are you sure that you want to publish it? Does it fit your genre? Is it original? Who cares! This is the beauty of this challenge for me, you just need to write. If you are wondering: Yes those stories are a mix and match of genres and ideas. And yes: there are also horror and Lovecraftian one, hope that you like them. I will rewrite those stories after December, after that I will mark this fiction as complete. In the mid-time, this fiction is in hiatus. Thanks to everyone who has been waiting for an update in a long time and all the people who support and supported me.