THIS IS NOT MINE. My friend, a sweet dude (though this piece makes me suspicious...), wrote this and wanted to post it but was too much of a mouse-heart/limp noodle/biscuit head to make an account and do it himself, so he asked me to. So review and yell at him and tell him to make his own account, consarnit!
Anyway, warnings abound: this story contains gore and heavy religious themes.
EDIT: This story has now been posted on Fictionpress by my friend, who has decided to start posting stuff on his own. Go check it out over there and follow him to see when he posts other stuff! s/3328745/1/Antipasto-Awaken
~Topaz
(Warning: This story contains gore and heavy religious themes. If any of these things offend you, please do not read any further. Also, there is a copious amount of Japanese, Latin, and Italian, sorry.)
A young boy kneeled before the altar, his hands gently clasped around an amber rosary. His voice was a gentle whisper, barely audible, even in the small shrine.
The boy opened his eyes, sensing a warm, gentle aura spreading over his back. He stopped his silent prayers and turned his head away from the altar.
Standing behind the boy was tall figure in a long, white robe. Their face and body did not give an aura of either masculinity or femininity, but seemed purely androgynous. Their face was gentle and kind, with a smile of pure bliss.
"Your Holiness," the being in white said, bowing towards the boy as he stood up, "you are required at the gates."
"Why am I needed?" Asked the young man, smoothing out the creases in his suit, his voice tinged with an Italian accent.
"I do not know, Your Holiness," said the being, "but I assume it to be of the utmost importance."
"Very well," said the boy, turning back towards the crucifix on the altar, "I'll be there soon."
"I will alert Saint Peter, Your Holiness," the being said, walking away from the boy. Almost instantly, two luminous crescents of light appeared on the beings back, which gently buffeted them into the air.
The boy stared at the cross, the image of Jesus, while painted with bright streaks of red from its stigmatic wounds, showed a face of tranquility, as if he was in a deep sleep. The boy made the sign of the cross and bowed at the altar before looking towards the nave of the city-sized cathedral, making his way through the crowds of people that packed the marble floors. Thankfully, the small shrine was close to the near skyscraper-sized doors, saving the young man from a long walk.
The doors seemed to be kept open by the sheer force of the thousands of people walking through them. The other side of the door was made up entirely out of bright slab of white-gold light, which the boy walked into with a relaxed gate.
::::
The boys pupils grew at the sudden shift from the bright light of the doorframe to the more regular light of his destination. The boy felt his shoes move from touching hard marble to soft grass and earth, he was suddenly in a meadow, filled with brightly colored flowers and a collection of trees every few hundred meters. The meadow was, however, cut off by a thick wall of gold. The wall was divided by a large pair of doors, the same material as the brick fence. Near the wall, sitting in a small, gilt palanquin, was an old man, dressed in the long, white robe and cloaked in a tan toga. Above both the robe and toga was a scarf decorated with crosses and chi ros symbols. His balding head was covered by a white skullcap that matched his silver beard.
"Peace be with you, Your Holiness Saint Peter," said the boy, kneeling before the older man.
"And peace be with you as well, Saint Dominic Savio," said Peter, giving a slight nod and presented his hand to Dominic, who gave a kiss to a large, golden ring on St. Peter's finger.
"Why have you summoned me, Pontifex?" Dominic asked.
"You are patron of rebellious and sinful youths, are you not?" Asked the first Pontiff of Rome.
"Yes, Your Holiness," said Dominic, looking slightly puzzled, "why do you ask?"
"There has been a great amount of misfortunes occurring to young spirits on Earth," said St. Peter, "once innocent souls have been corrupted into horrible monsters that the Church has had very little experience with."
"Why has the Lord not given us more information on this?" Asked Dominic.
"You know as well as I that Our Lord would not simply give away information with no effort," said St. Peter, his brow slightly furrowing.
"Of course, Your Grace," said Dominic, bowing his head even further and his cheeks growing slightly red from embarrassment, "forgive my insolence, Your Grace."
"All is forgiven, brother," said the patron of fishermen, "just listen closely. While the hosts of heaven have very little knowledge of these pitiful creatures, there are a group of beings that do. Are you familiar with Kami, St. Dominic Savio?" asked Saint Peter, a wizened, gray eyebrow cocking in curiousity.
"I do not, though it seems to be a rather pagan word," Dominic said, a slight bit of indignation in his voice.
"Oh, my dear boy," chuckled St. Peter, "do not be so prejudiced. We are in an eternal alliance with all those 'pagans'. Anyways, Kami are the name of the nature spirits native to the islands of Japan, they are very familiar with a similar types of creature that plagues the faithful," he gestured towards the gates, "and you will be working with one."
"Y-your Excellency," stammered Dominic, "a-are you sure this is wise? They are not of the faith, they do not share the greats of the Church, they could try to betray us, they-"
"Hold your tongue!" snapped the Pontiff, his gentle expression hardening to anger in a moment, "remember the words of Christ: 'Judge not, lest ye be judged!' The Kami have acted as wise and close allies, they have no reason to betray us!"
Dominic was taken aback by the sudden shift in St. Peter's mood, the red of his cheeks was accompanied by tears welling in his eyes and ran down his cheeks. Peter noticed the boy's clear distress and his face softened,
"My apologies, Your Holiness," said St. Peter, "I was simply shocked by your lack of knowledge on these matters."
"Yes, Your Holiness," said Dominic, taking out a silk handkerchief to wipe the tears from his face, "forgive my insolence. I am not as well versed in affairs outside of Heaven as I should be, it seems."
"It would be wise then," said the Vicar, "to absorb as much information as possible while you are on Earth."
"Earth?" asked Dominic, his eyes widening slightly, "I'll be going back to Earth?"
"Oh, yes," chuckled St. Peter, "why do you think I summoned you to the gates?"
"This is wonderful, Your Holiness!" Dominic said, practically jumping to attention, "I'll get a second chance at spreading the word! I'll get to do more good deeds! I'll-"
"Calm down, Dominic!" Peter said, raising his hands in mock defense, "this is a very single-minded mission. I'm afraid that all those will have to be put to the side for the moment."
"Oh," said Dominic, deflating slightly.
"Though your chaperone might advocate for such things," St. Peter said with a chuckle.
"Chaperone?" Dominic responded, his head tilting slightly.
"The Church's influence in Japan has been limited, but not nonexistent," St. Peter said with a chuckle, "you're chaperone is a Saint from Japan who will act as your cultural and social intermediary." Dominic straightened his back and raised his head.
"I will fulfill my duties in a manner befitting an emissary of Christ," he proclaimed, his face becoming serious, but only as a mask to hide the boys giddy excitement.
"Very good," said Peter, standing up with a slight grunt and reaching up into his robe. After a moment, he pulled his hand out of the robe and revealed two keys, one gold and one silver, attached on a bronze circlet.
The Gatekeeper of Heaven placed his hand on the silver key as he walked towards the gate. The other side glowed brightly as Peter unhooked the silver key and raised it in the air. The gates slowly and silently opened inward, coming inches away from his Levantine face. Once the gate was completely open, the glow outside it grew brighter and brighter, until it became a brilliant wall of pure white.
"You will arrive on Earth, near the hunting ground of one of the creatures," Peter said, turning to Dominic, "the Kami and your chaperone will arrive shortly for you."
"Thank you, Your Grace," Dominic said, walking next to St. Peter.
"Good luck," said St. Peter, watching as Dominic Savio walked closer to the wall of light, "and God be with you."
"And with you, as well," Dominic said, turning his head to St. Peter, smiling. With that, Dominic walked into the white light.
::::
Dominic suddenly appeared in a shockingly open and dark room. Since he had just come a place so bright to a place so dark, it seemed as though he had entered a dark void. It took a moment, but his eyes eventually adjusted to the darkness. He found himself in some kind of foyer, filled with ornate potted plants, chairs couches (one of which he was sitting on), and a grand piano. There was a fireplace flanked by two pillars, and on the other side of the room was a flower laden fountain.
Dominic heard a pair of soft shoes squeaking on tiles. He stood up, banging his knees on the low table in front of him, causing him to wince considerably. Dominic hadn't felt pain since he went to Heaven, and the feeling was rather surprising. He sat back down quickly, nursing his aching knees, the two pairs of feet grew closer and closer.
"Hello?" said a gentle voice, "is there anyone out there?" the pattering of feet ceased as Dominic's breath stopped in his throat.
"Miki, you idiot!" said a second voice, "do you want to get caught looking like this?"
"It's the only way they'll recognize us!" the first voice said.
"I'll turn on a light," said the gruff second voice with a sigh.
There was a loud snap, and suddenly the two pillared lights near the couch illuminated themselves. Dominic was still nursing his knee as the lights flickered to life, he whimpered as he used his spare hand to shield his eyes, they more intense than any candle he had ever seen.
"Hello?" the first voice said again. Dominic turned his head towards its source. A few meters away were two men, one appeared to be dressed in a bright white tunic and pants. His deep black, matted hair divided by a golden ring around his forehead. The second appeared to wear a greyish-black tunic with baggy sleeves, above it was a greenish-blue vest with large, pointed shoulders. The vest also appeared to taper off into into a pair of extremely baggy pants of the same color, and a sheathed sword was wrapped at his waist with a cyan belt. His short hair, as black as his companion, was slicked back and tied into a small two men approached Dominic, who had stopped clutching his knee and was now staring in awe at these men.
"Peace be with you, brother," said the second man, giving a small bow, "are you the second Saint sent from Heaven?"
"Yes," said Dominic, shaking the man's hand, "Dominic Savio, Patron of Troubled Children."
"Ah," said the second man, his face shaping into a bright grin, "Paul Miki, Patron of Japan and one of her first Jesuits."
"I am honored," Dominic let go of Paul's hand with a cordial smile, he then turned his gaze to the first man, who was now glaring at the two of them, "and this is our pagan ally."
"Susanoo-no-Mikoto," said the first man, looking around the open room, "Kami of storms and the sea, brother of Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi, son of Izanagi, slayer of the dragon Orochi, rescuer and husband of Kushinadahime, Lord of Yomi, etc. ."
"Interesting," Dominic said flatly, turning his gaze back to Paul, "now I was told there is a soul in dire need of the love of Christ."
"Very enthusiastic," said Paul Miki, "that's good, I guess then we shouldn't delay." Paul gestured towards two sets of glass doors, on the other side of which was the darkness of night, punctuated by strange, bright lights that would glide past the void. Paul and Susanoo walked towards the door, with Dominic scrambling off of the couch to follow them.
Suddenly, as Paul and Susanoo walked towards them, the first set of glass doors slid open. Neither of the two men had touched them, yet they still moved. Dominic brought out his rosary, gently moving his fingers across the orange-brown beads and towards the small, silver crucifix that hung from it. Paul and Susanoo noticed that Dominic wasn't following them, they turned to see Dominic standing a few feet behind them, clutching a rosary close to his heart with trembling hands.
"What is it?" Susanoo asked, looking around the room one more.
"I think he's frightened of the automatic door," Paul said, walking over to the boy, "is that it?"
"What sorcery is this?" Dominic said, pointing at the door, "that causes these doors to move of their own will."
"Boy," said Susanoo, "have you been on Earth after you became a Saint?"
"This is my first time back on Earth since I died," Dominic said, his hands slowly settling back to his sides.
"When did you die again, Brother?" ask Paul Miki.
"March 9th, the year of our Lord, 1857," Dominic said, "I remember it very well."
"So you haven't been on Earth for around two hundred years," Susanoo tersely whispered, trying to control his anger and prevent anyone from hearing him.
"Has it been that long," Dominic said, "what year is it?"
"The year of our Lord, 2016," Paul said, Dominic's eyes went wide, "and the sciences have advanced with great leaps and bounds. Like the ability to make doors open as you walk to them."
"That's a pretty simplified version, but yeah," Susanoo said, "that reminds me; we really should change into something less iconic." Paul looked down at himself.
"Good point," said Susanoo, he turned to Dominic, "I'll take care of that!" Susanoo snapped his finger. In a moment, the god in front of Dominic was suddenly no longer in his white tunic, but rather in a storm grey suit. The gold circlet that once acted as his crown moved upward and shrank along his scalp, forming a messy ponytail, and at his feet was a black guitar case.
"Nice work," Paul remarked, now in the black suited robe and white collar of a Jesuit Priest. A bronze plated crucifix hanging from his neck.
Dominic looked back down at himself, and saw that his suit and vest was now a choirboys robe. The white cloth was almost entirely covered in finely detailed leaves and vines made of gold fabric.
"Now that that is in order," Paul said, once again walking towards the doors with a large grin, "let's go!"
Dominic couldn't help but smile along with his fellow saint. He was once again on Earth, ready to do anything that would fulfill a mission from God. He slowly and clearly walked through the automatic doors, his head head aimed at the sky, only slightly flinching at what his subconscious instantly assumed was some kind of demonic magic. As he walked through the second doors, his ears were violently assaulted by a cacophony of loud beeps and whines. He bent over almost instantly, clutching his ears.
"Mio Dio!" he screamed in pain, "cosa diavolo e questo?" Susanoo and Paul looked at each other. Paul quickly reached into his robe and pulled out a balled fist. Dominic felt a pair remove his shaking palms away from his head, and placing two, round objects into each of his ears. Before Dominic realized it, the loud noises had dulled, and Paul was helping him off the hard ground.
"I apologize for that," Paul said, letting go of Dominic, "I should've realized that you wouldn't be prepared for cars the moment you told me that you hadn't left Heaven."
"Cars?" Dominic questioned, gently holding his head in one arm. Paul pointed to the strange machines that had caused the loud noises that attacked him. Dominic stared at the crowd of people that walked so effortlessly across the sidewalk, the bright lights that came from every building.
"This is how people travel now," Paul said, staring at Susanoo, who was trying to disperse a small crowd that had appeared, "you will get used to it eventually."
"Well," Susanoo said, picking up his cello case while glaring at Paul, "since I got that attention off of us, I think you should hail a taxi."
"All right," Paul sighed, "but you have to watch him until I'm back." Paul gently pushed Dominic towards Susanoo before walking towards the edge of the road, waving one hand in the air. The two looked at one another with surprised expressions. After a moment of awkward silence, Susanoo finally spoke.
"So," he said, "this all it's cracked up to be?"
"I beg your pardon?" Dominic said with an indignified tone. He most certainly was not thrilled with being next to this pagan spirit, much less talking to it.
"This whole monster hunting business," Susanoo explained with a grin, "is it all you thought it was going to be?"
"I do not plan on doing any of this 'monster hunting', as you put it," Dominic said, his voice reeking of pretentiousness, "I plan to act as the emissary of God on Earth. Which entail the forgiveness and caring of the lost."
"You sure about that?" Susanoo asked, "I've been tracking this thing down alone for almost half a year. It doesn't seem like the forgivable type."
"If you ask the Lord for forgiveness," Dominic said with a slight grin, always happy to spread the Gospel, "he will provide it for you. No matter who you are."
"If that helps you sleep at night," Susanoo said, looking back at Paul who appeared to have finally hailed down a taxi.
"Let's go kid," Susanoo said, grabbing Dominic tersely by the wrist.
"Do not called me that," Dominic said menacingly, ripping his hand from the storms gods grip.
::::
"I swear," said Paul, his eyes glowering towards the taxi as it drove back into the night, "that driver charged us extra. I saw the odometer, we didn't go far enough for that price, and I definitely saw him change the numbers! I swear, there's no more respect for the clergy anymore."
"Could you stop with your complaining," Susanoo said, stretching his arms over his head, "we have a job to do."
"So this is where the monster lurks," Dominic asked, staring up at the towering warehouses that filled the abandoned industrial area.
"Not really," said Susanoo, looking into the large, shattered window of one of the metal leviathans, "but it does seem to be the place where it lures its targets towards."
"So what do we do now?" Dominic asked looking up at the starless sky.
"We wait for our signal," Susanoo said, setting his guitar case down on the rough concrete and flicking open the locks. Dominic peered in, to see what appeared to be a long sword, its blade wrapped in a dark blue cloth. Susanoo slowly removed the cloth, revealing a polished steel blade that curved at the tip into a wicked point.
"Ama-no-Hahakiri," Susanoo said with grin, "ain't she the most beautiful thing you ever saw?"
"It's a sword," Dominic said, raising an eyebrow at this odd sight, "you act like it's a woman."
"Don't listen to him," Susanoo gently whispered to the blade, "you're the only one here who understands me." Susanoo continued to whisper sweet nothings into the metal even after Dominic walked towards his fellow saint, who was on one knee, silently praying.
"Your Holiness," Dominic asked Paul, "what did the pagan mean by a signal?"
"He has a name, Dominic," Paul said, rising up from his meditation, "you really must learn to get along with him if you want our mission to be successful. Second the signal should be something like-" Paul was cut off by a shrill scream that echoed throughout the barren shipping yard. The three holy beings turned their heads towards the source of the screaming.
"That?" Dominic guessed the ending to Paul's sentence.
"Yes," Paul answered, his gaze not leaving the source of the scream.
"I think I can pinpoint where it is," Susanoo said, his fist now firmly gripping the handle of his sword, "follow me!" Susanoo burst into a run, with Paul and Dominic trying desperately to keep up with him. Appropriately for a god of storms and the wind, Susanoo moved with inhuman speed, leaving his Catholic companions wheezing and sweating in his dust. As he ran, his storm-gray suit slowly morphed back into his white tunic and pants, and the band keeping his hair in order turned back into a gold circlet around his forehead, causing his hair to fly in every direction as he ran.
After a few pulse-racing moments of sprinting in between crates of rotting goods and rusting cranes, the trio stopped in front of a large warehouse, the large ruined doors slightly creaked open.
"Are you sure this is the one?" Paul asked, reverting back into his original clothes and drawing his own sword. Before Susanoo could answer, there was a loud crashing sound, followed by yet another scream.
"Yes," Susanoo said, aiming the tip of his sword at the gap of the door. Quickly, he moved the tip of the blade in an upside-down 'L' shape on the door.
Dominic stopped panting and supporting himself on the metal wall as his choir robes turned back into his traditional Victorian suit.
"That's it," he said between gasps and wheezes, "you barely touched it." Susanoo completely ignored the boy's remarks, and violently kicked his sandal-clad foot into the metal. A rectangle of the metal within the area that Susanoo had cut popped out of the rest of the door and skidded inside.
"I stand corrected," Dominic said, standing upright and tracing a finger over the cleanly cut metal.
"Never underestimate the power of traditional Japanese metallurgy," Paul said, gently touching the sword at his hip.
"We can pat each other on the backs later," Susanoo said, gripping his sword in both hands, "let's go!" With that, Susanoo rushed inside, followed by Paul and Dominic.
The first and only the trio could see was darkness. The only source of light was the pale sliver of gray moonlight that came from the hole that Susanoo had cut into the door.
"How the hell are supposed to fight this thing if we can't see it?" Susanoo whispered, tentatively staying in the light.
"I think we can help with that," Paul said, while clasping his hands in front of his chest and closing his eyes. Slowly, a small pinprick of light appeared floating around the back of his head, the dot began to steadily increase, from the size of a pin, to a disc of golden light the size of a frisbee.
"Your halo," Dominic said, his eyes sparkling, "that's brilliant!"
"You try it," Paul said with a happy smile. Dominic closed his eyes and replicated the hand gestures. He focused on the image of a halo like Paul's behind his head. He eventually felt a gentle warmth on the back of his neck, his confidence grew, and the warmth expanded. It went from his neck to his shoulders, and then towards the rest of his body was enveloped in the divine warmth.
"Dominic," Paul's voice broke him out of his stupor, "we only need the halo." Dominic opened his eyes and stared at his arms, which glowed with a bright white aura that expanded out of his body by an inch. The bodily glow slowly faded, and all that was left was a yellow-gold light that emerged from his head.
"Very good, Dominic," Paul said, "all you need is bit more control-" Susanoo put an index finger on his lips and gave a tense 'shh'.
"Did you hear that," Susanoo whispered, he pointed his sword towards a bare corner of the warehouse. Dominic craned his ear to where Susanoo had pointed, and he could hear faint whimpering and sobbing from that direction. The trio gently walked towards the noise, trying desperately to make as little noise as possible.
As the three holy beings got closer, Susanoo raised a fist in the air, signalling his companions to stop. Dominic looked over from Susanoo's side, showing what appeared to be a huddled figure. Paul and Dominic walk in front of Susanoo, their haloes illuminating the features of the dark shape.
It was a woman, around her mid-thirties. Her face was caked with dirt and still flowing tears, her dark curls in her face. A sobbing young boy, around four or five years old, was huddled close in her arms, in a similar state to the woman. Paul stretched out a gentle hand towards her. The woman stifled a scream when she saw Paul, Dominic, and Susanoo, covering her face with one hand and holding the child tightly with another.
"Ma'am," Paul said with a reassuring smile, "I know you've been through many things, and you do not know who to trust." He gestured to his companions, "but know that we are here only to help you." The woman lowered her arm and stared into Paul's brown eyes, her expression softened slightly. She gently took Paul's hand and raised herself from the ground. He began to silently escort her, the woman still clutching the child close to her, towards the hole in the cargo doors Susanoo had cut. Once they reached the hole, he whispered something in her ear that was inaudible to Susanoo and Dominic. Paul then placed a hand on the child's head and muttered something to the floor, before the two rushed through the hole and out of the darkness.
Paul walked back towards Dominic and Susanoo, his face still dominated by a beaming smile.
"She should be fine," Paul said, his halo brightening slightly, "I made sure an angel will be watching over her the next few months to make sure she's alright."
"That's a little bit creepy," Susanoo said with a tilted brow, "having someone look at her without her permission."
"Actually," Paul said, his smirk gaining a smug air about it, "I did ask her, and she seemed fine with it." Susanoo went a few steps closer to Paul, close enough that their noses were only centimeters apart. He opened his mouth to respond, his eyes glaring into Paul's, before Dominic squeezed himself between the two men and pushed them both apart.
"Perhaps we should save this for later," he said, staring into the void all around them, "the thing we should be doing is focusing on finding the creature." Both men silently nodded, and the three of them began to prowl through the warehouse.
"Hello?" Dominic called out into the void, "are you out there, little one?" Before he could call out again, Susanoo clamped a firm hand over his mouth. Dominic writhed slightly at the filthy digits that covered up the lower half of his face. The smell, in Dominic's minds, was similar to a combination of red ochre, wood shavings, and raw alcohol.
"What," Susanoo hissed into the boy's ear, "do you think you're doing?" Dominic took a deep breath, and pried the fingers away with own nimble digits.
"I'm trying," he said, attempting to sound as dignified as possible, "to call the creature to us." Susanoos face looked like it was ready to explode with rage.
"Why," he breathed through clenched teeth, "are you doing that?" Dominic tried his best to look more noble than the deity in front of him.
"So I may act as its confessor," he said matter-of-factly, "that its sins may be forgiven."
"What you're doing," Susanoo said, gripping his sword handle tightly, "is going to get us eviscerated."
"Nonsense," said Dominic, "I have come here to act as the emissary of the Lord, and to execute his forgiveness." Susanoo rolled his eyes and grit his teeth.
"If it makes you feel more comfortable," Dominic said, "I will stop shouting. But I shall still forgive this creature of its sins."
Ignorant pagan, Dominic thought.
Stuck-up little brat, Susanoo thought.
The group slowly walked through the empty building, trying desperately to not trip on the sharp pieces of metal and chunks of concrete that littered the ground.
Eventually, after moments of the only sound being the sounds of Dominic's dress shoes clicking against the concrete floor, there came the faint noise of heavy breathing.
"Hello?" Dominic asked to the darkness, "are you there?" He began to walk away from Paul and Susanoo, towards the inhuman noises.
"Are you crazy?" Susanoo whispered, trying to grab Dominic's shoulder, "we have to stay together!"
"Do not worry," Dominic said, brushing the storm god's gruff hand away from him, "I will be careful." He quickly moved away from the combined light of his and Paul's halos. After a few moments of prowling through the darkness, Dominic lowered himself onto his haunches, staring at the void.
"Do not be afraid, child," Dominic chided, offering an open palm towards the darkness, "We have only come to help you." He continued to gently coo into the void, trying his best to lure whatever was prowling in the darkness to come to him.
Eventually, Dominic turned his head to the sound of heavy feet stomping on the concrete floor. He quickly stood up and walked towards the the noises that grew louder by the second.
Slowly, a dark figure emerged from the darkness and into the light of Dominic's halo. It was a vaguely male figure with it's head hung low, so low Dominic could not see its face. It was slightly taller and seemed biologically older than the Saint. The top of its head was covered by a strange combination of grimy white shirt and cowl. Dominic stood up put a gentle hand on the creature's shoulder.
"Do you come to confess?" Dominic asked, fishing for a small vial of blessed oil from his pocket.
A small chuckle came from underneath the hood, Dominic cocked his head, his hand dropping the anointing oil back into his pocket.
"Is something the matter, child?" Dominic asked, his eyes filled with worry, "why do you hide your face from me?" The figure chuckled again, his shoulders shaking slightly.
"Go," the figure whispered hoarsely. Dominic looked confused, but not intimidated.
Do not fear or be dismayed, Dominic thought, recalling the bible verse, for the Lord is with you wherever you go.
"What do you mean, child?" Dominic asked, now more determined than ever to win this poor creature's soul to his side, "you can speak to me. I will not judge."
"To," the figure croaked, his shoulders now violently shaking from a raucous laughter. Dominic was starting to get uneasy now, but he would not be discouraged from his mission.
"What is it you wish to say," Dominic said with an encouraging smile, silently wondering to himself whether or not this poor thing was simple, "tell me."
"Sleep," the creature whispered into Dominic's ear. Dominic heard a thick, wet thunk sound come from underneath him. He looked down, to see a rusted kitchen knife sprouting out of his chest, the handle held firmly under his ribs. As he looked down, Dominic felt a dull throbbing come from the area where the blade had pierced him. The young Saint looked back up as a dull throbbing that emanated from his abdomen, the small pain that encircled the knife blade eventually grew in size and intensity, Dominic felt like fire was spreading all over his body. He opened his mouth in an attempt to scream, but he was rendered into shock by the pain, only letting out a weak gasp and soft whimper. Dominic felt his limbs start to go numb, and a darkness began to swallow up his vision, he felt his body hit the concrete before he succumbed to the void.
::::
Paul stared at the dimness that Dominic had disappeared into.
"Susanoo," Paul said, his voice deeply worried, "do you think we should be looking for Dominic?"
"Why should we," Susanoo said, his voice reeking of sarcasm and bitterness, "he said he'd be careful."
"I feel like you're not taking this very seriously," Paul said, "you know he is a very important part of our group."
"If he gets into trouble, he can get himself out," Susanoo said, without any emotion in his voice. Susanoo felt something cold touch the back of his neck.
"We are going to find Saint Dominic," Paul said, a disciplined power behind it, "and we will then find the creature the way we were told to; as a group. Now." Susanoo turned around to see Paul, his sword held firmly in his hand, pointed straight at Susanoos throat.
"Alright," Susanoo said with a sigh, "I'll go along with you." Paul stood up from his fighting stance and sheathed his sword. His expression softening to a gentle smile. Paul turned on his heels and walked in a random direction.
"Do you even know where you're going?" Susanoo said, walking behind Paul.
"I had a good feeling about this way," Paul said, his smile not wavering.
"So you're going to try to find someone based on a feeling?" Susanoo said, slightly aggravated.
"A nature spirit not believing in fate," Paul said with a chuckle, "do you realize the irony of that idea?"
"Yeah," Susanoo rolled his eyes, "and a Saint putting his friend in the hands of destiny and not his God. Doesn't seem very Catholic, if you ask me."
"It's all about faith," Paul said, "the Good Lord will guide us."
"Whatever," Susanoo snorted, "you just go-" Susanoo was quickly interrupted by Paul's blue-clad arm.
"Do you hear that?" Paul asked, his expression hardening again. Susanoo craned an ear, and he then thought he heard a wet squelch noise coming from a corner. Susanoo gripped Ama-no-Hahakiri's hilt and pulled it slightly out of its scabbard, the base of the blade glinted in the golden light.
Paul's halo eventually fell on a small corner of the warehouse, where both men saw Dominic, propped up on the metal wall, the majority of his body was covered by a white and black clad figure.
"Dominic?" Paul asked. In an instant, the figure turned to face the two men. Paul and Susanoo were taken aback by the hideous creature.
The horrible thing might have been human at some point, the skin was pus-white and covered in open sores. The eyes were bright red with a milky white pupil, the actual eyes were unnaturally wide, and almost entirely circular. The creature may have had hair at some point, but currently was patches of brown-black stubble that existed between splotches of scab-brown and inflamed red. Its hands were firmly gripped around two kitchen knives, which were revealed to be firmly planted in Dominics chest and abdomen.
"Dominic!" Paul exclaimed, the creature ripped one of the knives out of the Saints stomach. Paul dived out of the way as the creature ran up to them, it put one foot firmly on a chunk of concrete and leaped up into the air. Susanoo closed his eyes, without the light of Paul's halo, they were useless anyway, one hand was flung downward and firmly held the scabbard of his sword.
In an instant of perfect timing, Susanoo stepped out the creature's way and swung his sword in a large swipe, cutting off the creature's head, upper arms and elbows. The main arteries of the creature's neck spurted dark blood like a twirling fountain as the body spun towards the ground. The upper arms flopped to the ground and lay motionless. Its severed head hit the ground and rolled on the floor until it gently tapped an old wooden crate, which was shrouded in the darkness.
"Paul!" Susanoo called into the area where the Saint had dived out of the way, "you can come out now. It's been taken care of." After a moment, Paul walked back to Susanoo, his halo significantly dimmed.
"Sorry about that," Paul said, giving a slight bow, "knee-jerk reaction."
"Oh, get over it," Susanoo chuckled, giving the Saint a stern pat on the back, "no big deal."
"Thank you," Paul said with another, even smaller bow, he then looked around with a worried look, "where is the creature?"
"Well," Susanoo said, his beard barely covering his smile, he began to specific areas of darkness, "it's over there, there, there, there, and there." Paul's awkward smile slowly turned into a frown.
"You know that wasn't what we were supposed to do?" Paul asked, his face shifting again from a frown to a scowl.
"There wasn't another way," Susanoo shrugged, "it's not like I could have done anything else other than kill it."
"Our job was to save it!" Paul exclaimed, his halo flaring a fiery red and orange.
"From what?" Susanoo roared, "It's sins? Sorry to break it to you, but you saw what it was doing to Dominic, I doubt it feels remorse!"
"Wait a minute," Paul said turning his head back to the corner. The two men looked back at each other in utter shock.
"Dominic!" They both cried.
::::
The first thing Dominic felt after the darkness consumed him was weightlessness. It was the weightlessness he felt when he originally died. But this was not the same peaceful death that he had had before. This felt like being pushed into a body of water; quick and surprising. The darkness was permeated by a small pinprick of light, which slowly expanded larger and larger.
Go towards the light, Dominic thought, it will make it faster.
The light expanded, moving around Dominic, as if the darkness were a sphere and it was slowly becoming golden white. Dominic covered his eyes from the brilliance, as the lights seemed to mold themselves into solid shapes. Dominic shut his eyes tightly as he felt himself fly upward at impossibly fast speeds. His neat black was blown back by the gale force winds. After what felt like a small eternity of upward motion, Dominic felt a few minutes of free fall that slowed to a gentle float, before finally landing very quietly on a soft, fluffy surface.
"Very few times does someone come before me twice," a soothing voice crooned. Dominic's eyes fluttered open, seeing that the fluffy surface he had landed on seemed to have been molded into large, smooth slabs. He blinked his eyes as they adjusted to the light. Dominic slowly got onto his hands and knees, lifting his head to see large columns flanking the soft stone-esque tiled floor. Dominic finally stood up, noticing his suit had been replaced again. This time with a simple white robe, tied together with a thick, tan, cloth belt. He stared forward and gasped.
A few meters ahead of him sat a figure, gently sitting on the crest of a rainbow. His white robe was criss-crossed by a pair of gold straps, which were each encrusted with vibrant jewels and crystals. In the center of his chest, was a large ruby in the shape of a heart, encircled with thorns, topped with a cross, and surrounded by a disk of fire. Covering the man's shoulders and lap was a bright red, almost pink, robe. On his head was gold pontifical crown, the crosses of each crown topped with a single pearl each. His face was a golden bronze and sprinkled with freckles, long, curly black hair flowed down from under his crown and rested on his shoulders.
"D-dio," Dominic stammered, dropping back to his knees, his hands clasped together, "Anima Christi, s-sanctifica me. Corpus C-christi, salva me…"
"It is alright," the figure said, "come closer." Dominic slowly stood back up and walked towards the figure, turning his head to the side and closing his eyes as he went.
"Ah," the man chuckled, "that Psalm. Do not be afraid, child, I will not harm you."
"Lord Deliverer," Dominic said, his eyes still firmly shut, "I am unworthy of being in your presence."
"Why is that?" the man asked with a tutter.
"I have failed you," Dominic said, his eyes now flowing with hot tears, "the soul I was sent to help was not saved." In a moment, he felt two hands gently cup his cheeks, Dominic noted the lack of pressure on the center of his cheeks. It would be surprising to most people, but Dominic knew what they were.
"Child," the man said, brushing the tears away with a thumb, "you did exactly as you were supposed to. I would not ask any more of you."
"But," Dominic whimpered, "I didn't save him."
The man slowly placed his hand on Dominic's forehead. Dominic felt the world around him lose focus and darken once again. Dominic attempted to reel back in disgust as his mind was filled with all manner of wicked thoughts; thoughts about hurting and killing innocent people. He attempted to banish the wicked thoughts with every prayer he knew, but they would not go away. He shouted and screamed in his mind, trying to drown it all out all. But while he was shouted, he noticed that, while he had been focusing on banishing the thoughts he noticed, in a pale gold light, was a figure in white. It was the same creature that had stabbed him, but he was now looking at him from the back, and in the weak light, he saw himself gently holding the creature's shoulder. He then realized that he witnessing a moment from the past, but from the creature's perspective! But for some reason, that terrified him even more; these thoughts weren't human, they were single minded and animalistic, with no sense of higher functioning or morals.
At the moment he realized this, the darkness faded away once again, and he was back on the cloud pathway. The man's hands left his cheeks, allowing Dominic to see the large, red-lined holes in his wrist.
"Do you see now?" the man asked, standing fully upright, "there was nothing you could do."
"But Lord," Dominic said, "doesn't that mean that my mission is pointless? If I could not save it, what was the reason for it?"
"Ah," the man said with a smile, the kind that made Dominic want to simply lay down on something soft and smile along with him, "that is where you are wrong. You were sent to learn that you are not perfect, that you will not succeed in everything, and that is fine." The man offered Dominic a hand.
"There is another reason," the man said, his eyes furrowing for a moment, "there is a stable balance between the positive and negative forces of the universe. Many have felt a great shift in this balance, by performing your mission, you will begin to shift this balance back in the favor of neutrality."
"Very well, Lord," Dominic said, tears of joys now began to flow from his eyes, "thank you."
"You are very much welcome," the man said, the warm smile returning, "before you go, I'd like to give you something," the man balled his hand in front of Dominic, and it began to glow a bright white. The light began to expand and shape into the form of a cross, it slowly began to fade, leaving a wooden crucifix in the man's hand. The actual cross itself was made of a pair simple planks, the sides of which were covered in a thin sheet of gold, with a triangular piece of gold sticking out from the bottom.
The figure of the crucifix seemed to be made of ivory, but only the white of the cloth that covered the figures waist and thighs remained its original color, the rest was painted a golden brown for the skin, dark black for the hair, a bright green for the wreath of thorns around the figure's head, and small speckles of red the hands, feet, forehead, and side. But though the body was emaciated and bleeding, the figures face kept a gentle and kind expression, staring upward, as if in thanks or prayer. Dominic stared up at the man, reaching out a hand to touch one of the edges of the cross, the man smiled and loosened his grip on the cross, allowing Dominic to fully take the cross. He felt a strange warmth in his hand, not the same kind that emitted by the man, but it was very similar. After a moment, Dominic finally realized what he was holding.
"Lord!" Dominic exclaimed, taking a step back in shock, "this is-"
"The True Cross," the man said, still smiling, "only a piece of it, but still very powerful."
"Lord," Dominic said, lowering his head and presenting the crucifix back to him, "I cannot accept this. I am but a humble servant, I do not wish for any gifts."
"But," the man said walking back towards the rainbow, "it is not a gift. It is a tool, for you to use in your mission."
"Oh," Dominic said, raising his head and looking at the crucifix in his hand, "then I shall use it with compassion and grace."
"In that case," the man said as he sat back down on the rainbow, pushing his red cape behind him in a single flourish, "I believe you're companions are waiting for you back on Earth? You should be heading to them now." Dominic felt his body become numb and his eyelids heavy, he began to fall onto the soft stonework that he had first landed on.
"Lord," Dominic said, temporarily fighting the urge to sleep, "why did you have us ally with pagan spirits? Aren't they against your will?" Dominic heard the man chuckle as his eyes closed.
"I believe that is an answer," the man said as Dominic slowly nodded off, "for you to find out yourself. Go in peace, Dominic." That last word echoed through Dominic's mind as he fell asleep.
::::
"Dominic!" said a distorted and watery voice as Dominic slowly opened his eyes. He mumbled slightly, noticing a man in a blue robe kneeling in front of him. As his vision slowly began to return to normal and he continued to open his eyes, he saw Paul Miki, his face filled with concern and a small ring of gold fire licking at the edges of his halo.
"Dominic," Paul asked again, the small ring of fire dimmed to a selection golden embers, "do you feel alright?"
"I," Dominic stammered for a moment, trying to bring himself back into the physical world, "I think so." He attempted to sit up, but felt an agonizing pain in his left leg. He looked down, noticing a knife handle sticking out of his left thigh. He let out a stifled scream and covered his mouth with one hand.
"Oh yeah," Susanoo said as he walked into the light of Paul's halo, "forgot about that one. The guy had so many knives that I must have missed one." This time, Dominic gave a shrill scream.
"Alright, alright," Susanoo said kneeling in front of Dominic's leg, "I'll get it out in a second."
"No, no, no, no," Dominic stammered, his eyes widening with horror.
"On the count of 'san'," Susanoo said, grabbing the knife blade with a hairy hand, "ichi."
"Susanoo please," Paul pleaded, gripping Dominic's hand tightly, "we could just get him an Angel, they would be able to-"
"Ni," Susanoo continued, his grip on the kitchen knife's blade tightening.
"Madre di Dio, fermatta!" Dominic screamed, Susanoo seemed to start loosening his grip on the handle, Dominic and Paul breathed sighs of relief. Which was almost instantly dashed when tightened it even farther, with a mischievous grin, he uttered one last word;
"San," he said as he ripped the knife blade out of Dominic's leg in a single sweep of his arm. Dominic screamed in pain, his aura actually flared up a few centimeters around his body.
"There," Susanoo said, gesturing with the knife, "that wasn't so bad."
"You absolute-" Dominic said through tears as he sat up stare the storm god dead in the eyes, he would have continued if he didn't notice the fact that his leg was no longer in any pain. He stared down at his leg, pulling the fabric surrounding the torn hole back. His eyes widened again as he saw that the area that the knife was once firmly planted in was now completely healed.
"It's a miracle," he breathed, touching the exposed skin, noticing a substance that seemed much too fluid to be blood.
"Kind of a miracle," Susanoo said smugly, "your new body has its benefits. The biggest of which are regeneration and spontaneous resuscitation." Susanoo continued to ramble on about all the times he had seemingly fatal wounds, but was able to simply shake off and keep moving. Dominic stopped listening after several sentences, and began focusing on the liquid that made his shirt cling to his body. The liquid that seemed to have replaced his blood. Dominic took a finger and dabbed it on one of the gashes, he put it up to his nose and gave a small sniff. The strange liquid smelled sickly sweet, and Dominic could have sworn he had smelled something similar to it before. With a moment of reluctance, he stuck his tongue out and gave his finger a tentative lick.
"Barbaresco?" Dominic said with an almost pleasant surprise.
"What?" Susanoo asked, shaken out of his ramble.
"It's wine," Dominic stated, still surprised by the statement, "I'm bleeding wine." Paul looked at him with a quizzical expression, before dabbing his finger on the wet cloth of Dominic's pants leg and putting it up to his lips.
"He's right," Paul said, his eyes widening in shock, "it is like a reverse transubstantiation!" Dominic chuckled at that, before going into a full laugh. Whether it be from the shock of all that had just happened, or the fact that he simply needed something to make him feel a bit better, he found that statement absolutely hilarious. That idea was so surreal to him, he was bleeding wine, a reverse transubstantiation, how couldn't he laugh when a practice that was so commonplace to him was flipped on its head within his own body?
"Say," Dominic said, his laugh shrinking back into a chuckle after a moment, "where is the creature?"
"Well," Susanoo said smugly, "it really should have left after it was done stabbing you. You know, quit while it was-" Susanoo paused for a moment before reaching into the darkness and pulling out a horrifically mutilated severed head. "-Ahead," Susanoo finished, chuckling at his own joke. Dominic and Paul, almost simultaneously turning their heads away from the gory sight.
"Must you keep that thing?" Paul asked, doing a quick sign of the cross across his upper body, "it was garish enough alive."
"Sorry," Susanoo said, letting his arm go to his side, the head bouncing slightly on his thigh, "but my big sis needs to have evidence to make sure I killed the thing, since she sort of obligated me to do it. If it makes 'ya feel any better, the body is gonna be burned with the rest of this place."
"The least you could do is give it a proper burial," Paul asked, trying his best to avert his eyes from the decapitated head.
"Well," Susanoo said, raising the head to his own and placed a hand on its jaw, "let's ask him." He turned to the head with a small grin.
"Should we give you any respect, you spree-killing bastard?" Susanoo turned his head and started to speak through the corner of his mouth, while his hand moved the jaw of the monsters head up and down.
"Uh," he said, causing the wounds on the creatures carved up cheeks to expand and bleed slowly, "do whatever you want. I'm super dead!"
"Your mind won't be changed, won't it?" Paul said looking away from the disgusting act of puppetry.
"Nope," Susanoo said, suddenly turning serious, "let's get out of here." Dominic stood on surprisingly stable legs.
"Dominic," Paul asked, staring at the area where Dominic was sitting, "what is that?" Dominic turned around, and in the exact location that he was sitting, was the crucifix that the man had given him. He picked it up, and instantly felt a rush of warmth fill him. Paul gasped, feeling the energy of the crucifix as well.
"Dominic," Paul said, "your suit." Dominic looked down, seeing that his clothes were now fully mended. They felt pleasantly warm, as if they had just been recently ironed.
"It cannot be," Paul said, gripping the cross necklace that lay under the many layers of his kimono, "I-is that?"
"The True Cross," Dominic said, tracing the edge of the gold frame with one finger, "but only a piece of it."
"Lord in Heaven," Paul said, touching the tip of his finger on the torso of the statuette that hung from the cross, then bringing to them to his lips and giving them a quick kiss, "with this on our side, we will surely not fail."
"Yeah," Susanoo interrupted the two Saints, "that's great and all, but can we get out of here? I'd like to put this trophy someplace where it won't be found by anyone else until I can get it to Ammy."
"Very well," Dominic said, his face filled with a new resolve as he gripped the crucifix close to his heart, "we have a mission to complete." With that Dominic lead the way out of the warehouse and into the light of the setting moon.
::::
Jeff opened his eyes, which was odd, as he was sure that his eyelids had been gone for months. He also noticed that he wasn't wearing his normal, dirty and blood soaked clothing. Instead, he wore a crisp white robe of silk, similar to a bathrobe, and tied together by a ribbon of the same color and material. Out of instinct, Jeff touched the scars and opened wounds, his form of comforting therapy. But, to his horror, the skin was completely smooth. Jeff frantically touched his skin, finally realizing that all of his self-inflicted wounds were now perfectly healed. He traced a line along his cheek, almost sobbing, the horrific smile he had carved into his face was now gone. While he was groping around his face, he noticed a headband wrapped around his forehead. He looked around; he was in a large room, sitting cross-legged on a group of hard wooden planks, with dozens of other people in similar clothes. They all seemed to be sad, and the few that were looking at him seemed to have a bit on panic mixed with their sadness. Jeff tried to move his hand to touch the man next to him, but his hands jerked and stalled, and Jeff noticed the iron cuffs around his wrist, connected by chains to each other and the bamboo wall. That must have been the reason, Jeff realized with surprise, why those people were staring at. He would have struggled more with his bindings, when he heard a loud creaking noise and a sudden clang.
"Tamashii kyuman-yonsen-nanahyaku-yon-ju-go ban*?" came a deep, smooth voice, the rest of the people in the room sit up straight, their faces trying to hide an almost overwhelming terror. Jeff heard the clicking of wood against the boards of the boards, accompanied by the shivering of all the white-robed people in the room. The boy blinked slowly, still not fully used to the concept of having eyelids, when he reopened his eyes, his vision was dominated by a black robe lined in pale red.
"Ah," said a voice from above Jeff, "Tamashii kyuman-yonsen-nanahyaku-yon-ju-go. Shu Enma-O to no anata no yotei wa junbi ga dekite imasu**." Jeff looked up, and saw the black fabric was connected to a robe like Jeffs, but black with red lining. The person inside the robe seemed to be a man with a very thin and angular build. His black hair hung around his cheeks and was immaculately combed from his face. A partially unrolled scroll was in held in a talon-like hand. But what scared Jeff, for the first time in what felt like a very long time, was the horn; a smooth, white horn that sprouted out of the man's forehead, above his small eyebrows and furrowed eyes, covering up the beginning of his hairline.
"Ore ni tsuite koi kudasai^," The man said, Jeff suddenly noticed two other men standing behind the man, they were shorter and bulkier than the man in front of them. The two men wore similar robes, but they were made of more coarse material and had drabber colors, their hair was as dark as the first man, but they were dark and bundled together in thick curls. They also had horn, two each, like demons, and Jeff could have sworn that he saw a pair of tusk-like teeth jutting out from each of their lower lips. The two new men unhooked the chains that connected Jeff to the wall, before he could relish in his limited freedom the two men grabbed Jeff by the shoulder and began to drag him along the cold floor. The three men's wooden sandals still clicked on the boards, their positioning of Jeff allowed his bare feet to drag limply along the panels. Jeff felt the men holding him stop, he looked up to the four of them had stopped in front of a large wooden door, bonded with iron, at the end of the long hall. The first man reached into his robe and pulled out a large key, and with a long and fluid motion, he placed the key into the medieval looking door and turned it. The door slowly creaked open on its own, revealing a wall of pure light. Jeff's eyes widened as he was inched nearer and nearer to the blinding light, he squeezed his eyes again as he felt a sensation similar to pins-and-needles envelope his body.
The first thing Jeff saw when he opened his eyes was a jade green tile floor approaching him as the two men flung him on the ground. He landed on his stomach, knocking the air out of his lungs. Jeff looked up to see he was in a large chamber, the wooden roof was held up by a selection of bright red columns of the same material, the walls were made of a similar material as the previous room, but were permeated by the occasional circle of stained glass windows and greyish-black support beam. Jeff looked straight in front of him and gasped; before him was a giant; around fourteen feet tall sitting down in his large, throne-like chair. The giant wore a bright red robe and some sort of decorative green apron around his bull-like frame, his face was covered by a bushy black beard that was close to his eyes, which were topped by thick eyebrows. The man's hair was covered by a red crown surrounded by a large, purple circlet. The giants hands were resting the jade green top of an ornately carved mahogany desk, which was covered with a black brick looking object, a stone with an indent in it, a small (in comparison to its owner) china pitcher, and a selection brushes. The one horned man walked next to the giant, looking like a child going up to their parents, and handed him a scroll the size of a large painting. The giant took the scroll in one hairy hand, even though it took both hands for the horned man to hold the scroll, it looked about the size of an average book in the giants hands. The one horned man muttered something, revealing long and pointed fangs, and the giant nodded. Jeff saw as he gestured to the two men who had brought Jeff into the room and connected his cuffs to a pair of since unseen hooks that were firmly planted to the floor. The two men left Jeff to struggle on the floor as the one horned man and the giant chatted among themselves, the giant unrolled the scroll as they talked and occasionally glanced at it.
Eventually, the two men came back, holding a large mirror, a simple oval of glass surrounded by an ornately carved gold frame. For a moment, Jeff only saw his new reflection, his chestnut brown hair had grown back and clung to his scalp in a short crew cut, his skin was smooth and untarnished once again. He seemed disgusted by the new form his face took.
Suddenly, Jeff's back arched backward and his eyes turned a pure white. His vision was overtaken by every moment in his life. The innocent memories of his childhood moved into the memories of the last few months he had lived as an animalistic killer, every victims screaming face hit his subconscious like a selection of brick walls. Eventually, the memories stopped with the sensation of cold steel against his elbows and neck, Jeff slumped back onto the cold tilework and his eyes returned to their original dark brown.
The two men moved the mirror away from Jeff's face, allowing the boy to see the giant, now sitting up in his chair, dipping one of the brushes into the indented stone, pulling out the now black covered bristles of the brush onto the scroll that the one horned man had given him.
Jeff felt a booming, smooth voice fill his mind, he would have grabbed at his head in a panic at the invasive thoughts, if his hands hadn't been bound down.
You have been charged and found guilty of over a dozen counts of murder, the voice said, being what Jeff assumed to be the giants, including, but not limited to two of the Five Grave Offences; the purposeful killing of your Mother and Father. For this, I, King Enma-O, have found you worthy of punishment in the Interminable Hell!
The giant finished writing on the scroll and gave the paper a slight blow of air to dry the ink he had placed on it. He gestured to the one horned man, who have a small bow before reaching into the desk, he rummaged around in the desk for a moment before grabbing something with both hands. The one horned man pulled out a large black box, larger than a suitcase, and with surprising strength, lifted it towards the giant on the palms of his hands, bowing his head in reverence. The giant took the box in one hand and opened it, taking out a large rectangle of jade, the top of which was carved into the shape of a human skull surrounded by demonic looking figures in loincloths, and a small porcelain basin with a cover of the same material. The giant placed to the two objects on the desk, he removed the top of the basin and stamped the uncarved end of the rectangle into it. When he removed it, Jeff saw the bottom of the rectangle was covered in red wax. The giant raised the jade rectangle over the scroll and slammed it down with a loud bang.
Jeff attempted to hold his ears as the sound of the jade stamp hitting the scroll rang through the air. When the ringing sounds faded away, Jeff looked around and a saw that the small shadows that were made in the corners of the room were darkening and expanding. Within moment, the giant and the horned men were swallowed up by pure darkness, eventually the darkness had surrounded Jeff and he struggled even more to break his bonds. The darkness eventually devoured the hooks that kept Jeff tied to the ground, he began to panic as the floor around him shrank into nothing, and he found himself suspended in the void. Jeff breathed a sigh of relief, thinking the void had stopped expanding, but his hopes were soon dashed as he looked down and saw that everything below his waist had been consumed by the darkness. He could still feel his legs kick around as he panicked in the darkness, he could still feel his fingers claw and nothing, even after they had disappeared from view. He could feel the darkness crawl up his jawline and into his mouth, feeling the flakey and dry void slithering down his seemingly invisible throat. Jeff let out one last gurgling scream before the last part of his body; his eyes, were sucked into the darkness.
END