I pulled on my satchel and left the small inn I had stayed at the last night. I walked down the main road, which I thought was rather beautiful in its own way. The road was cobbled with colorful marble stones, and there were bushes, trees, and flowers lining the edge of the cobbles. It was just before sunrise, so it was dark and there were very few people wandering around, who were mostly drunks or farmers. I stopped at the gates and sat on a bench fashioned out of a log to wait. I didn't have to wait long, however. The man from last night walked up quickly, carrying a satchel.
"Hello! Ready to go?" He smiled nervously. "Yes, demon-helper." I frowned. "My name is Aris, and I don't help demons." He relaxed a bit. "Alright, I apologize Aris." He walked off before I could reply. The trip was long and boring, we didn't talk much and most of the countryside was dull and uninteresting. When we finally arrived at the forest the bridge was located in, he just gave me directions and left for his property, unwilling to enter the forest.
I stepped into the forest. It was dark and uninviting, the trees too close together to provide much sunlight. I could hear nothing inside the forest, there was no birdsong or wind. It was very disturbing, and I could understand why people would think it was haunted. I took a deep breath and ventured farther into the woods, following the instruction I'd been given. It took me a few hours, but I'd finally found the bridge. It was a very unimpressive bridge, over a shallow, brushless, dry gully. It was very simply designed, made of plain wood and iron. The only thing remarkable about it was the dark blood-like stains all over the bridge, giving it a creepy feel. I wondered why he wanted to meet here.
I sat on a log near the bridge and ate a light lunch I had prepared the previous night, waiting for darkness. I was just finishing my lunch when I head footsteps on the rock in the gully. I froze. How had they gotten into the gully?! I had heard nobody! Maybe it was Azen! I walked over to say hello and froze. It wasn't Azen, it was a boy who looked around the same age, but he had pure white hair and red eyes. We stared at each other in surprise, and then he walked forward, sharp teeth bared in a feral grin. "Ah, what do we have here?" he purred menacingly, eyes narrowed. "Just a human passing through, demon!" He paused. "A cocky human at that! Why are you being so nonchalant about meeting the bane of your kind?" The demon seemed rather confused, and I hoped I could talk my way out of this.
"I'm what you could call a friend to another demon. His name is Azen, I am coming here to discuss becoming his partner!" He looked at me for a few minutes, and then smiled. "Oh, are you now? I might as well do Azen a favor and test you... " He looked at me happily. "I despise Azen. Today isn't a good day for you, human." I felt the color drain from my face. An enemy of Azen's. Damn. I tried to smile, and was halfway successful. I decided to try and distract him. "Why do you hate him so much? He seems like an okay guy to me." The demon narrowed his eyes, and then shrugged. "He killed my best friend." I stared at him. "He killed... I see... He deserves your hatred, then. So are you still planning to kill me?"
The demon laughed harshly, and then looked at me with an evil look in his eye. It somehow was more chilling than when Azen did it. I felt a shiver run down my spine, even though it was a warm summer night. "Of course I wouldn't kill you, what'd be the point? Azen would only be angry and sad for a while, then he'd get on with life. If I kept you as a pet though, it'd be much more effective and fun!" I flinched as that terrible grin came back. A pet?! I shuddered, I didn't want to know that that would mean for me. Then the demon lept towards me.