Prologue


Izaya huffed as he ran, his legs aching and heart pounding. He looked over his shoulder, his assailant out of sight. But Izaya knew that he was coming. The trail of blood coming from the raven's arm was making sure that the killer could find him.

Izaya faced front and gasped. He skidded to a stop, the floor in front of him gone. Izaya looked down, a burning mine shaft his only escape route. He stared down, looking for some way to climb, but every metal beam seemed like it would break or be too hot to touch.

'Shit. What do I—eh?'

Izaya stared down at the floor, nearly a two hundred food drop. But Izaya could see as clear as day that there was a little girl staring up at him.

Izaya jolted as he turned around from hearing a metallic, inhuman groan behind him. The giant seven foot man with a metal pyramid for a head stood behind him, raising his scalpel-like blade over his head.

Izaya screamed and leaped back. The blade barely missed Izaya, swinging in front of him and leaving a line on his chest.

Izaya screamed even louder as he fell down the burning mine shaft, terror taking over his chest that he was going to fall to his death. He reached out, desperate to grab anything. He gripped a chain, the metal hot, burning, melting his skin and he screamed in pain but he held on as he slid down the hinges. The chain ended more than five feet before the ground, but the raven wasn't prepared for the abrupt end and flailed as he fell through the air. He landed on his side, the air being knocked out of him. He gasped and coughed, steam coming from his hands and he rubbed his head into his arm. He was near in tears from terror, despair, and pain.

But as he lied there, he began to hear someone else crying. A girl crying.

Izaya looked up. And sure enough there was a little girl huddled on the ground with her face in her knees.

"H-hey..." Izaya groaned. He went to push himself up but automatically fell on his side as his hands ached. He looked at them, horrified to see they were severely burned and nearly skinned.

The girls cry grew louder. Izaya looked up at her. He groaned as he pushed himself up by his elbows to his feet.

"Hey." Izaya said, walking over, sweat falling down his face as the heat seemed to intensify "What are you doing here, sweetie? It's dangerous."

The little girl almost automatically stopped crying as she turned around slowly. Her ragged black hair did nothing to conceal her face, which was just as dirty. Her blue school uniform was dirty as well, with a tear here and there.

"Are you okay?"

"...I'm scared..."

Izaya nodded at her, looking around for a way out.

"You're bleeding." The little girl said.

"I know."

Izaya smiled thinly at seeing an exit door.

"Follow me."

"Can I hold your hand?"

"Ah..." Izaya looked down at her outstretched hand. "My hands are hurt."

The girl looked downcasted.

"Once I wrap them then you can. For now, hold onto my coat, okay?"

She brightened at that as she grabbed Izaya's fur-trimmed hemming.

Izaya smiled down at her as he led the way to the exit.

As the two stood in front of the empty entryway, a metallic, inhuman roar barreled down the mine shaft. Izaya turned around to see his pyramid headed assailant falling down the mine shaft after him. He landed flat on his feet, shaking Izaya and the girl off their's.

"Izaya!" The girl cried.

Izaya reacted automatically as the molten metal grates were unhinged by the monsters landing, causing them to touch something flammable and spark a fire that was quickly growing in intensity. Izaya wrapped his arm around the girl and pulled her to his body. His hands, cut arm, and sliced chest protested to the act, but Izaya ignored it to the best of his capability as he stood with the girl in his grasp and ran.

The fire followed quicker then the monster, likely at Izaya's heels, as he ran down the exit hall. The hall seemed to trail forever until finally Izaya saw the door. His heart flared with hope as he reached for the knob.

And as soon as his hand touched the knob, his heart plummeted in despair.

'It's locked!'

Izaya turned around to retreat but his exit was cut off by fire. He gasped and back-stepped, pressing against the door.

'We're trapped!'

Izaya looked around desperately for an escape.

And he spotted one. An air-vent in the middle of the hall.

But it was too small for him. The little girl could get in, if the fire didn't burn them on the way. However, there seemed to be no escape for Izaya. The fire was coming closer and closer by the second, making the vent escape even more dangerous.

But Izaya couldn't let this girl die because of him.

So he ran to the fire.

Sweat drizzled down his face as he got closer to the flames, standing under the vent. He put the girl down against the wall, using his own body as a blockade. He reached up and knocked the vent out of place. Then he grabbed the girl and lifted her up.

His arm and hands burned in pain, but he placed his hands under her black shoes and lifted her up. She clamored into the vent, then turned around to stare down at Izaya.

Fire wrapped around Izaya's ankle. He screamed and ran away to the locked door, fear swelling in every organ as the truth of his situation dawned on him.

He was going to die.

The little girl stuck her head out to stare at him.

"Get away!" Izaya yelled. "Get out of here! Now!"

The girl obeyed, disappearing into the vent.

Izaya smiled thinly, knowing that the little girl was most-likely going to die now that she was on her own.

But as the fire engulfed Izaya's legs, he started to worry about himself. The heat was excruciatingly painful. He tried to back away but his back was already pressed against the wall.

Izaya's body was engulfed in absolute pain. Every patch of skin was slowly burning and blistering. Izaya screamed in pain as his clothes fell off his body in burnt heaps.

And to make matters worse, Izaya could see the pyramid head man walking through the fire as if it wasn't there.

'Please kill me.' Izaya begged. 'It hurts so much. Please...'

Izaya could only scream in pain as the man came closer and closer to him. Izaya's eyes widened in fear and relief as the man raised his blade over his head.

Izaya continued to scream.


Izaya's eyes flared open as he continued to scream. Once done, he gasped loudly to catch his breath then exhaled as he scrambled back.

A woman sat in front of him, holding him by his shoulders.

It took a moment but Izaya recognized her.

"N-Namie-san..."

Izaya looked around himself. He sat in the entry hall of his apartment, the automatic locked door closed and pressed against his back.

"You were sleep-walking again." Namie stated.

"Duly noted." Izaya said, chuckling nervously as he stared at the secretary.

As Namie stood, Izaya held his hand out to her, silently asking for help due to his legs still shaking.

Namie obliged, pulling the raven to his feet. She stared at his shaking legs with indifferent scrutiny, but she did lend him a shoulder as they walked into the living room, where Namie had Izaya sit down on the couch.

"I'll make some tea."

Izaya nodded as he tented his hands and pressed them to his face as he leaned forward on his elbows.

As he rubbed his thumbs against his palms, he paused. His palms weren't smooth. They were ragged and bumpy.

Izaya pulled his hands away and looked at them.

And was absolutely horrified by the sight.

His hands were scarred as if he had burnt them badly.