Laughter, smiles, sunshine; all that blissful happiness...
From afar she watched as the children made merry and cheerfully played without a care in the world, under the beautiful sunbeams of daylight. A tiny smile began to form before it was cut off as she slowly reminisced the true face of the world; the true picture that lied beyond what could be seen; what the world was really hiding under that façade.
She may be old -being over a thousand years old- yet those memories remained as vivid as ever...
She recalled how she had a sister and how they were... different from everyone else... They were not different like a childish adult amongst a crowd of mature college mates, nor were they different like an albino baby born in an African tribe. No, theirs were far beyond that. They were even considered special by some, especially when they were children.
Perhaps it was because of a unique ability they had; an ability to reach further beyond what one can comprehend; to see what the naked eye could not...
At first, they were viewed as unique people by their friends, but soon as they began stepping out of childhood and into adolescence, they started getting shunned by others. They would often speak things that seemed strange to others and were soon called freaks. Ostracised by her friends -and almost everyone she knew in that matter- the elder sister vanished one day and was never heard from again, nor ever spoken of by the people in their village.
The younger sister -then a teenager- was left all alone, with absolutely nobody to understand how she had felt. Her innocence was the only thing that fueled her and kept her going all that time, but even that was limited. No matter how hard she tried to convey the truth, no one would believe her. Everything she said about another world she could see and feel became but another reason for her to be viewed as a stranger amongst 'normal' people.
Often times at night, she would slowly cross this world and into the other by herself. It was an unexplainable process, where she would reach out her hand and focus, allowing her to cross the boundary between one world and another. In the other world, she could view everything much differently than anyone else. However, soon enough, she discovered on her own that there were more than just two worlds...
As the weeks passed, she began grasping hold of her ability's true nature. Not long after, she was confident and determined enough to head out, in search of her lost sister; the one person who would believe her of her findings.
The village they lived in was not one of a very safe nature at the very least. In fact, some would state how unsettling it is to live unprotected, surrounded by the woods, where darkness loomed every corner and the creatures of the night roamed within that very darkness. It was a taboo for the villagers to exit the village after sunset, as the time of darkness was when they were believed to come out; to hunt for unsuspecting prey; youkai that lived within the dark forests, hiding amongst the mute trees.
As peaceful as the village may be at daytime, it would break down in a mere second in a haunting aura as soon as dusk sets in. The chirpings of the birds would stop oh-so suddenly, leaving the forests in sepulchral silence; an eerie atmosphere one would not dare enter...
However, this girl was different. She knew she could. She had seen so many different worlds; maddeningly similar to what was the original world, yet completely different in every way possible. She believed that beyond the fearful darkness that is the woods that surround her village, was a world with vast, green fields and fresh air, just like what she had read from her books.
With nothing but the clothes on her back, she snuck out of her humble home, making sure that no one was following her. Her eyes scanned from one corner to the other as she made her way outside. The silence of the night was unsettling. The girl could feel her heart beat much faster than it ever had in the past. Watching the pitch black sky as she reached the edge of the village, she gulped. As her eyes lowered down to lock upon the forest, stories of what lurks within it flashed back into her mind; tales of how malevolent monsters lived inside this forest, only awaiting their prey. Those stories told by the elders of how youkai would spring out from the darkness and devour little children who played in the darkness at night; how their fearsome and terrifying appearance would horrify even the bravest of souls.
Before she knew it, she was standing before it. Cold sweat began trickling down her face as she took her first step into the forest; the furthest anyone has ever gone at this time. Images of those monsters kept hitting her in the head, as if taunting her, telling her that they would pounce on her at any moment; their glowing, red eyes that were said to stare into a person's soul, their razor-sharp claws that could easily rip one apart, their menacing teeth that were made to easily gnaw through flesh and bones like a sharpened blade.
They say the first step of every journey is always the hardest, yet for her it was much simpler than she had thought. The subsequent steps, too, never seemed easier! Though as fear seeped into her, time began to distort; every passing second seeming like an eternity.
The trees were huge, disabling much navigation. And soon, she knew -even if it was hard to admit- that she was lost. However, it was then and there that an idea popped up as she quickly transcended the borders of this world, crossing a layer of reality and into another parallel world...
As she let out her breath and opened her eyes, the sky was much brighter, despite the time. How perfect, she thought. She knew, somehow, that just beyond the forest she would definitely find her sister. No, that was not it; rather, it was a fake intuition that had kept her motivated to go on, in search of her sister.
Her journey went on without much progress. Convinced she could do it, though, the girl crossed yet another boundary and into yet another world. This time, the sky was in an everlasting twilight, whilst the trees were slightly smaller than before. Oh, how perfect, she told herself as she continued.
Yet her attempts were futile, as her search within the forest just bore no fruit. She was afraid and she knew it. Yet she chose not to cry; not to turn back, but to go forward and continue her search. In a way, she was right, as turning back would be impossible now that she has lost her way.
And then she told herself, that her sister was not beyond the forest, but within the forest itself! Through past experiences, there are things that can only be seen in a certain world, whilst remaining invisible in another. Having convinced herself that, she took a deep breath and began passing through the boundaries that separated the worlds -one by one- looking for the one where her sister was hiding in.
But as she journeyed through the worlds, tearing down each and every layer of reality one after another, she knew something was just amiss. For every layer of reality she had passed, everything seemed to be in much greater decay. As she was alone all the time, her practice sessions have never gotten anywhere further beyond the third layer, yet she had theorised that it was most certainly possible to go beyond that point.
Oh how right she was...
In her head, she counted the number of layers she had torn down to reach where she was at that point.
"Seven... eight... nine..." she recited. And as she did, she would scan her surroundings, looking out for her sister. Yet everytime she looked, the world grew more and more heavily distorted. The trees had wilted and the sky was nothing but a spiraling madness. The grassy fields beneath her feet had dried up and turned into a barren wasteland.
"...ten..."
As she opened her eyes after that, she let out a loud gasp. What was once her world was now a madness-inducing sight. To her right, to her left, behind her, above her, all around her... eyes... eyes everywhere...
Her body began to shiver in the sudden surge of cold and the horrifying sight alone weakened her knees as she collapsed onto the even-colder ground. Though this time, the grassy fields that had turned barren and stripped of its green glory was no more. It was but a plain surface; a very lumpy one at that...
As her eyes opened, she watched in pure, mortifying terror, what lied beneath her; an endless plain of eyes that only seemed to look back at her, scanning her every move, not blinking even once. With her body stunned and her mind blank, the girl could do nothing else but watch and scream in horror.
"NO! PLEASE! NO MORE! I- I WANT TO GO BACK!"
She screamed and shrieked at the top of her lungs, forcefully breaking from her paralyzed state and reaching out, to return to whence she came.
With all her might, she tugged, she pulled; she struggled to break free from the horrors, to return to the real world. And with that, she let out a sigh of relief, knowing that she had broken free from that plain of insanity; that world of eyes that watched her every move...
*DUPDUP*
Her thoughts of relief and hope paused at that very moment...
*DUPDUP*
Her one hint of hope then came to a complete halt.
*DUPDUP*
She knew she could recognise that sound fairly well.
*DUPDUP*
Indeed, it was the sound of a live heartbeat...
*DUPDUP*
...except...
*DUPDUP*
...it wasn't her own...
The girl opened her eyes, as slowly as she could. Her body shook like a leaf. As she saw what stood before her, her jaw dropped and she let out a scream.
At least she tried to...
She felt what had seemed like a hand cover up half the entirety of her face. A slimy, grotesque, tentacle-like arm, along with several others that began wrapping themselves around her body.
She watched the distorted world, covered in blood and made of what had seemed like the insides of a person; a world whose sky was dyed in the crimson of blood. A putrid smell stained the air, much like old, rotten flesh blended with a dozen dead carcasses. No words could possibly describe the horrors of the distorted world; a world with a pulsating heartbeat of its own.
Tears streamed to no end as the girl prayed and begged. Her pleas for mercy went unheard as she watched the very last hand -elongated like a snake- began coming down onto her face; what had remained of her that was unconstricted.
"Yukari!"
A familiar voice called out as the arm's movements stopped.
And before the grotesque, disembodied arm could reach down on her, someone else did; a warm hand of much comfort, in stark contrast to the cold, corpse-like arms that had constricted her.
In mere seconds, everything disappeared. Her body could move freely again! Yet before she could open her eyes, she was halted.
"Yukari," the voice called out once more; a voice that she could recognise for sure. Yes, she knew that was it! It was her alright...
"Sister? Is that yo-"
"Yukari, stop!" said the voice. "I have learnt my lesson after all this; this is the last layer of reality. This is what truly lies underneath what we have seen all this time. The world is but a lie; a beautiful lie that seeks to hide its true colours from humanity, for it is the one thing their minds can never comprehend. It is still not too late for you to turn back and live your life as a human, even though by now you should have understood that the both of us aren't. For ever since I have reached this void, I could not return anymore, and every day I feel my sanity slipping. Very soon I'll have gone insane, and I hope you will not see me as such that day. Now go back while you still can, Yukari, and know that I shall always love you..."
And with that, the voice faded into resounding echoes. The girl, Yukari, once again unveiled her view, watching an absolute darkness for a split second before everything fades...
And it was then that she had understood; there is no true meaning in the world, in the universe; only darkness... a neverending void of abyssal darkness, and nothing else...
Today, many beings -both human and youkai alike- spend their entire lives, researching their origins; the secrets that underlined the universe, but to no avail.
The answer to that, however, lies in the hands of only two; the only two that have seen it before their very eyes...
"Yukari-sama, it's time to go home now. I've prepared dinner."
The great youkai sage nodded to her loyal, nine-tailed familiar.
"Yukari-sama! Are you... crying?" said Ran worriedly upon seeing her master wiping a tear off her eye.
"Don't worry about me, Ran. Rest assured, I'm perfectly fine! Now let's head home, okay?" she said with a reassuring smile.
"I'm sorry, sister," Yukari thought to herself. "For years I've sealed you away in your everlasting darkness, unable to see the light; ever since that day we met again. You've deteriorated into a mindless monster, so I just had to. But I'm sure one day, you'll regain your sanity and we can play together again, like how we used to. With Ran and Chen, too! I promise, that no matter what, even if everyone else has had memories of you erased, I will remember you. One day, I'm sure the people will recognise you again; as your real self, the one that had cared for Yakumo Yukari all her life; not that monstrous abomination they had thought you as, Rumia..."