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Chapter 1
The school bell rang, indicating that it was the end of the day. Hiroshi closed his book and slipped it into his bag. The binder of the book scraped along the plate shard he had in his bag, a constant reminder of the events from the mansion. Hiroshi paused before glancing down at the stray shard of ceramic, a piece from a white plate with a yellow banner around the rim of the plate. Small birds were printed on the banner. It was a shame such a lovely plate had been smashed but 'accidents' happen. Hiroshi shook his head slightly, shaking the memory away as he focused on getting himself ready to leave. Most of his classmates had already left, while some were waiting for Hiroshi to leave so they could make a start cleaning up the room itself. Closing the bag, he got up from his seat and headed out the classroom. Hiroshi walked down the corridor before he felt his eyes drawn on three posters on one of the multiple notice boards scattered around the building. Three missing posters were pinned with red pins, indicating that they were important. One poster had a picture of Mika, the photo matched the same photo on her student ID card, with the word MISSING in big thick black letters on top of the poster. The poster itself held minute details about Mika herself and where she was last seen along with providing a number to contact if she was found. The other two posters were similar but instead of Mika, the posters either had a picture of Takashi (with relevant details) or Takuro (with relevant details).
"They won't ever be coming back…" Hiroshi muttered to himself as he turned away from the posters and headed home. He knew why they were missing…he was forced to tag along with the other three as they ventured up to the mansion. Out of the four of them, only Hiroshi had survived the mansion and escaped…he had seen the inhabitant of the mansion pick off his 'friends' one by one as his mind was picked at while completing the mansion's puzzled. Hiroshi's mind flashed to what happened to his friends…Takuro's head was bitten off by the inhabitant of the mansion, Takashi stumbling while being chased…and watching muscular fists crushing Mika's body. Hiroshi felt his body tense up as he forced the memories out of his head, he couldn't afford to think about them. He believed that he was doing a fantastic job of keeping memories like that out of his mind…to keep his sanity. It had been shaken badly, forcing him to see the world is a painfully new light. A creature like that…it shouldn't exist…but it does.
"Hey Hiroshi, are you okay?" Hiroshi heard a concerned voice behind himself. Snapping back to reality, he turned around and noticed that he seemed to have worried a few students as he passed them in the hall. About three other students has worried expressions on their faces.
"Yes, I'm fine."
"They were your friends…right?"
"They were, yes."
"You're taking this well…" The student simply said before they turned their attention off Hiroshi and back onto what they were doing earlier. Hiroshi turned his attention away to. He couldn't tell them what really happened to his friends, he wouldn't be believed…must like the inhabitant of the mansion. Hiroshi continued his way from school.
"He looks lonely…" Whispered a student.
"The smartest student in the class, lonely? Isn't that just how things go?"
"Maybe Hiroshi does know…"
"Maybe he doesn't?"
"Maybe…the mansion got them…?"
"Don't say that!"
"Why? Hiroshi's smart enough not to go there…"
"But I wasn't…" Hiroshi muttered under his breath. 'Even if I didn't go with them…they'd still die…' Hiroshi thought to himself as he finally reached the lockers. Finding his, he pulled out his locker key and unlocked it, taking out his trainers, he slipped his school shoes off and slipped his trainers on. Placing the school shoes inside the locker, he closed it, locked it and headed outside. Once outside, he withdrew his scarf from his bag and slipped it on, around his neck, leaving the two ends flowing behind him as he walked through the school yard and outside the gates.
Over the past couple of days, Hiroshi had started to believe in seeing an occasional dark blue insect, with eyes larger than its body. If he ever got close to further examine the insect, they would quickly scutter off in the direction of where the mansion stood. It seemed that the mansion inhabitant picked up on Hiroshi's fascination of insects and his bug-catching hobby. It was possible that when the…blue monster killed and devoured his friends, it gained information about him and how to lure him back to the mansion. The more Hiroshi saw the strange insects…the more he felt a pull towards the mansion…as if the insects were trying to hypnotise him into returning. So far, Hiroshi had remained strong…but he knew that one day…it was going to work, and Hiroshi would find himself unknowingly…standing in front of the perfectly normal mansion…but the insides were twisted. The mansion always looked bigger on the inside than the outside. It was just how the inhabitant liked it.
"Come…Back…" Hiroshi heard a whisper on the wind and he froze. He had heard the whispers once before as he ran away from the mansion…the inhabitant chasing after him. It wasn't happy that Hiroshi had found the front door key and managed to escape the mansion while his friends suffered. The inhabitant…was a large blue, disfigured creature. Something Hiroshi still denied existed but…it did. It was scientifically impossible for a creature like that to exist…especially when it suddenly looked like it was on steroids…it's already freakish body suddenly grew huge, ripped muscles and something that shouldn't have even fitted through doors…but it did. It seemed to change back when Hiroshi was running back to town though, but it was whispering in some sort of tongue that Hiroshi couldn't understand. What intimidated Hiroshi the most was that the whisper seemed to have carried on the wind…just to torment him. Recovering from the shock, Hiroshi hurried off home.
Hiroshi's parents were worried about him and Hiroshi knew it. He had walked past his parent's room one night and overheard a conversation that they were having. Both had noticed that he had been different since his friends had disappeared and it was obvious to his parents. Hiroshi couldn't bring himself to say anything to his parents…there was the worry in the back of his mind about that blue creature and the other forms that Hiroshi had seen in that mansion. All of them were grotesque…just thinking about them he felt a tiny pull. Hiroshi reached home, taking out his house keys and unlocked the door.
"I'm home," Hiroshi called out to the empty building. His parents were busy working at this time and wouldn't be back until after five o'clock, when their jobs finished. Hiroshi took his shoes off and slipped on his slippers before entering the house further. Taking the bag off his shoulder, he dropped the bag on the table and took out his homework. Might as well get that over and done with before his parents come home. This time, things felt a little different…the whisper on the wind…the pull he felt from the blue insects… "This is all connected…" Hiroshi muttered. He knew it was and he didn't like it. There wasn't any point in worrying about it now when he had homework that needed doing. Hiroshi did what he did best…he got stuck into his homework.
Strings of Blue Fate – Ao Oni – Chapter 1
Hiroshi stared at his clock and watched the seconds tick up. Another sleepless night wasn't much of a surprise, not when he could hear the wind outside his window, if he listened carefully…he could hear a faint whisper telling him to return. It was slowly driving him crazy. Now after a month of him escaping from the mansion, was the scientifically impossible creature invading his life once more? He wasn't even near the mansion. He never dared step near the mansion again…why was it plaguing him so much now?
"Come…back…" He heard the whisper once more. A tiny part of him wanted to return there and tell the monster off for ruining his life…but that was probably what it wanted. It wanted Hiroshi to return for some stupid reason and Hiroshi was going to resist as much as he can. "Come…back…Hiroshi…" The wind whispered again. He felt the tug…this time, slightly stronger. How much longer could Hiroshi ignore the pull…the whisper…the blue insects that try and lure him back to the mansion. People can only be strong for so long, Hiroshi was no different. There was a gentle knock on the door, Hiroshi's attention snapped to the door.
"Hiroshi…? Can we talk?" Hiroshi's mother asked as she knocked.
"Come in," Hiroshi said. The door handle moved, and the door slowly opened. Hiroshi's whole body froze as he watched the blue monster forced its body through the doorway and into Hiroshi's room. Hiroshi wanted to scream…to run…but his body wouldn't listen. The monster stood tall in his room. It had to slouch as Hiroshi's room wasn't as tall as the mansion's rooms were but that only added onto the fear Hiroshi felt. The monster opened its mouth wide, showing off the jagged teeth, thick saliva dripped down from the top row teeth and the scent coming from the monster's mouth was revolting, the scent of rotting flesh, dried blood and whatever else the monster ate to sustain itself with. Hiroshi covered his nose and mouth as the monster slowly walked towards him.
"Hiroshi!" The light flicked on, dispelling the monster that was once standing in front of Hiroshi. Hiroshi wasn't sure what had just happened, but his eyes watered, and tears slowly dribbled down is face. It started off slow…but soon the fears fell rapidly. Hiroshi's parents stood there at the door, his mother was extremely worried and ran to his side quickly. "Hiroshi, please tell me what's wrong? Please?!" She begged Hiroshi. His father wasn't even sure how to react as his wife tried to sooth their child down. Never had either of them seen Hiroshi this scared before. He had always been strong, reassuring to them that everything was okay, he was fine. He smiled, acted normal…but after tonight…that belief that Hiroshi was okay with his friends disappearing had finally made him crack.
"I…couldn't…save…them…" Hiroshi spoke through his sobs. His strong persona had been destroyed by a hallucination of the monster from the mansion.
"What?" Hiroshi's mother gently cupped Hiroshi's face and forced him to look at her. She saw the fear, the pain, the emptiness his friends had left in his heart, the sadness…the guilt Hiroshi was feeling was swirling in his eyes and it tore his mother apart. Wrapping her arms around Hiroshi, she pulled him into the tightest of hugs. Hiroshi clung onto her in return, burying his face into her neck as the tears just continued to fall.
Scutter…scutter…scutter…a large blue cockroach quickly scuttered under the bed…
Hope you enjoyed it. Review, follow if you liked it and I'll be back again next chapter.
