You already know what it is.
In the very center of a wonderful metropolis known as Water 7, there stood a mansion known to many as Moria Manor. To four others, it was known as "home." Beneath the roof of the expensive household, lived a family of three and their butler. The father, Silvers Moria, was the head of Water 7's public transportation department, and he controlled every railroad track in the city. His wife, Shakuyaku Moria, assisted him in his occupation and also aspired to become Water 7's greatest writer. The family butler Kurehadol made sure that every piece of fabric was ironed, every cup of tea poured, and everybody happy.
And the youngest, meant to be the future of the bloodline, Gecko Moria. The 8-year-old boy often ran around the house with one of his closest friends, Boa Hancock, the only indivisual allowed to enter the premises at any given time. The girl had always loved exploring Moria Manor's luscious greenhouse, stocked to the brim with rich and exotic plants from many different countries. It was here that she was truly happy.
One particular day, the two children were playing hide-and-go-seek in the greenhouse, which was especially fun with such a wide area to take cover. Hancock covered her two eyes and averted herself towards the wooden fence, while young Moria scurried about looking for a hiding spot.
"One, two, three, four..."
The boy saw what seemed to be a perfect location to hide from his friend. As she was counting numbers, he sprinted towards a large formation of stones, hoping to wedge himself between a gap in the structure.
"Eight, nine, te-"
A shrill scream pierced the morning air.
"Gecko?"
Gecko Moria awoke to a strong hand offering him a lift. Blinking his eyelids, he realized that he was in a pit; a wormhole of some kind. The solid stone walls were caked with dirt, and his two hands were filthy and wet. His father was reaching out to him on a lengthy piece of rope, beckoning him to grab it. Gecko gripped Silver's powerful arm as he was hauled back up into the surface.
"What did you see down there, son?" asked his concerned father.
It took a very long time for Gecko to answer. When he finally did, you could hear his voice trembling, see his eyes full of fear. "Bats," he stuttered. "In the hundreds, in the thousands. Just bats, and darkness."
Unknown to his father, there was one more thing that Gecko had not shared. A very particular something, however. A particular fruit.
He lay in bed, ice placed on his forehead and body hidden beneath the sheets. His mother, Shakuyaku, or whom he liked to call "Shakky," sat on the side of the matress, reading a comic book to the young boy.
"And so the brave hero Luffy defeated Mr. Fantastic, whose stretching limbs were no match for Luffy's superior strength. C'mon bro, that's like comparing Gucci to Macy's!"
Gecko Moria, who was rather fond of Macy's products, wrinkled his nose and disapproved of the story. "Next."
Shakky continued reading as Gecko listened carefully.
To relieve his stress, Silvers and Shakuyaku decided to go out as a family. By now, Gecko's condition was fine and he did not have to lay in bed.
"Son," his father asked gently. "Would you like to go to the Northern Beach today?"
Gecko's eyes widened and he shook his head wildly. "NO!" he shouted. "I DON'T WANT TO!"
Shocked and surprised by his son's dramatic response, Silvers improvised. While he was curious as to why the young Moria was so resistant, he decided to let it go and save the serious questions for a later time.
"Very well," he replied, detecting the fear in his voice. "Shall we then, perhaps, take a trip to the theater? I did hear news of a rather exquisite show playing at the Galley-la Broadway Stadium tonight."
While he was not particularly pleased with this option, Gecko agreed. Anything would be better than having to face the dreadful saltwater. Little did he know, he was wrong.
The eight-year-old already knew he was in for some bad luck as he saw the title of the show; Bats in the Sun. However, it was already too late to turn back. His father bought them the yellow tickets, and they stepped inside the dark, smothering audience.
Gecko began to breathe heavily. This feeling- the feeling of being trapped without any sense of direction- overcame him as the entire room was pitch black. Suddenly, the light behind the stage flickered on, revealing an ugly, sinister broze. He saw actors painted completely black hanging off the walls, in the air, and upside down. The boy's panting could be heard across his entire row.
Shakuyaku noticed this, and asked him what was wrong. "What's the matter, dear?"
Gecko began to sob as he saw all the "bats" nestling together, legs hanging along stage wires, and making strange hissing noises. Suddenly, the group of actors produced a shriek, and flew into the audience, attempting to frighten those among the crowd.
Unluckily for Gecko, one especially repulsive one jumped right in front of his eyes, covering the world around him in darkness and letting out a terrifying screech. The boy couldn't take it anymore. He screamed as loud as he could, and broke down in sobs. With a snarl, the actor zipped away along the wire.
Petrified to the point where he couldn't move his fingers, Gecko crumbled to the floor. Silvers stumbled and caught the boy, and heard him mumble. "Let's...leave."
The head of the Moria family hesitated, but seeing his son going insane, he nodded his head and pushed open the heavy wooden doors.
His mother holding his trembling hand, Gecko tried very hard not to shed tears.
"Mommy..." he whispered. "I'm scared."
"It's okay," she reassured him. "We all were."
"I'm sorry," Silvers said. "I'll make sure to choose a more appropriate show next ti-"
The family found themselves at gunpoint's end. The man wielding the firearm had shaggy black hair going over his shoulders and seemed to be wearing an eyepatch of sorts. His clothes were ragged and dirty, and a bottle of rum was stuffed beneath his belt.
"Wallets, phones, and jewelry. NOW!"
"Alright," Slivers whispered cautiously. "I'll put them on the ground, right now." Not looking at the man's eyes, he placed all his valuables, which amounted to more than 70,000,000 beli, on the concrete. His wife followed suit, also placing her items next to his.
The thief snatched the rewards and was about to run away with the money when he saw something out of the corner of his eye. "I thought I said to hand over the jewelry, woman," he said menacingly. He stared at the wedding ring on Shakuyaku's left hand, gesturing her to hand it over.
Silvers stepped in. "Now, see, sir, that's my wife's engagem-"
The robber shot a bullet into Silvers Moria's neck before he could finish his sentence. Before she could react, he had lodged a bullet into Shakuyaku's throat as well. He was going to shoot their son, too, but even an indifferent criminal like him could not bear to see the pained look on the kid's face as his parents were gunned down. Biting his lip, he put the gun back in its holster and ran away into the night, taking the Moria family's possesions along with him.
This story is based on the first movie of Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight Trilogy, Batman Begins. Hope you enjoyed and don't forget to submit a review!