The inspiration for this story comes from two amazing stories written over the years, one of which can be found here on this site. I grew up with these amazing characters, and although I love the comedy aspects of the story, The Darkness Within places our beloved characters in serious, unfamiliar territory. Although the premise is not original, the implementation is. If you enjoy this short introduction, please take a moment to let me know by leaving some feedback.
PROLOGUE
A loud crash ripped through the night sky. The bright flash that preceded it seemed to light up the world with a puissant luminescence that could rival the sun. It revealed, to the naked eye, a seemingly endless supply of minions in flight, their momentum interrupted by rooftops, cars, lamp posts, Koi ponds, and other objects upon which they incessantly pounded. Electrical storms such as this have been looked to as common sources of dread for small children and the vulnerable, but it is undeniable that these awesome forces of nature carry more than dread and destruction along with them. As a result of their attack, a great cleansing is also brought upon the land. It washes away the stains that threaten to obliterate the delicate balance that exists naturally in nature. By destroying, it also creates and nourishes.
The short-haired teenager turned over roughly as she pushed the covers down from over her head revealing puffy, tear-stained cheeks. With a heavy sigh, she sat up in the bed and dangled her feet over the side. She was out of tears: she could simply no longer cry. Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately) for her, sleep would just not come this night. At least the nightmares would not be able to reach her. Although at several times earlier in the evening slumber seemed to be painfully close to overtaking her, the realm of dreams would then turn and fade away into nothingness leaving the girl wide awake to contemplate the unjust nature of the world.
Could she make it through this night?
She stood up slowly and with extreme care, her hand instinctively grabbing hold of her desk. She dare not trust herself right now in her current state of mind and body, better to hold onto something incase her legs gave out from under her. Pushing aside the curtains that covered the windows, Akane Tendo cast her eyes out into the storm that raged on outside of the household. Fierce as it was, it could not compare with the storm that raged within her ravaged soul.
After several minutes had passed, she reached up shakily and opened the window. At first, the cold night breeze was all that slipped in through the small opening of the window. A fraction of a second later, the storm reached out its arms and forced the windows wide open against the inner walls of the home. The loud crash echoed throughout the home. Akane, startled as she was by this sudden turn of events, suddenly found herself on the ground, her legs twisted awkwardly beneath her.
Unable to bring herself to move, rainwater continued to pour into her room from the open window claiming hold over everything in its path. Akane remained still as the rain soaked her nightgown, then moments later, began to penetrate the fabric and soak her body. Although little strength remained within her, she began to sob quietly at first, but as the seconds passed, her sobs became increasingly violent. She wretched, fighting to hold the meager content of her stomach from coming back up. Tears streamed from the young girl's eyes, but they were quickly swallowed up by rain as it pounded upon her already drenched body.
Suddenly, she was no longer alone.
Akane found herself encircled by a pair of strong yet tender arms that almost instantly became softer and shorter as she continued to cry. The concept of time was lost to her, and minutes seem to pass by like seconds as she lay there. Tears eventually ceased, but the protective arms around her remained. As her eyes finally managed to close, she succeeded in finding a semblance of what had eluded her all evening: her center. Although the symphony of the storm continued to rage all around her, all of the sounds were dwarfed by the gentle yet firm heartbeat.
As Akane drifted off to sleep, a small droplet slipped from the eye of her protector. Although she was the one being comforted, her soul was not alone in its torment on this night. A small piglet slowly made its way from beneath Akane's bed and sat down beside her. It looked up slowly to meet the eyes of the tiny red-head whose arms were protectively wrapped around Akane. The quizzical expression on the piglet's face quickly changed to anger.
Although her tone was barely louder than a whisper, there was an unfamiliar coldness that chilled Ryoga to his piglet core. Something was not right.
"Go away."