A/N: Please Read and Review... Thanks

Anguish

Misfortune

I woke up to find myself in my chamber. The joints in my shoulder were aching, as though strained for a long time. I had a mind to rub my shoulders but to my surprise, my hands were bound with manacles. I was dangling a foot from the dusty floor of the bedroom. I looked up to my manacled hands for a while, studying them, and then tried to twist them free. The shackles was gripping my wrist tightly… so tight that it would be impossible to slide free. I stopped struggling with the shackles when I heard a sinister laugh fill the room.

A sinister laugh echoed eerily through the dark room making the hairs on my nape to stand up. I stopped struggling with the shackles and tried to locate the source of the sound. The cackle came again, this time nearer. The laugh hinted of malice and malevolence. The situation was bad, I could tell. And it would turn worse…

"Do you know that I have been waiting for something like this to happen?"

I looked up and stared into a pair of shining orbs. In the dimness of the room, I recognized them to be the eyes of the stuffed toy. Imare was no longer the Imare I've known. He has now become the twisted and evil spirit which characterized the beings of the village. The usually blank black eyes were now glowing bright red. There was wickedness and anticipation lurking beneath its glassy surface. The bunny was holding a chain which looked like it had been wrenched from a flail. The monster that Imare had become gripped the chain tightly and then started to rotate it with its stuffed right paw.

Fear and horror began to grow somewhere in my chest as I watched the bunny. The horrid feelings then raced through my nervous system, causing my body to shake uncontrollably.

The evil bunny drifted closer, its sewn mouth arching into an evil grin. The chain rotated faster and faster, gaining momentum with every completion of a revolution. If it was ever swung at something, it would be destroyed quickly. And I had the horrifying premonition that the something would be me…

"STOP THIS!"

The bunny monster grinned wider. It was clearly drawing pleasure from my fear.

"Oh how I would love to hear your scream of pain…"

This is not Imare… He would never hurt me… He wouldn't ---

The statements of denial resounded in my head. I did not want to believe that Imare would be capable of hurting me. Imare… the being I closely regarded as my father… the one who took care of me in the ten years since my birth. Betrayal… It would be too painful.

At that moment, Imare the evil bunny redirected the chain from its rotation to me. Reflexively, I closed my eyes and tensed for the blow…

oooOOOooo

CRASH!

Startled, I looked towards the source of the deafening sound. Imare was no longer at the desk. He was hovering in front of an old cabinet where I kept my clothes and some memorabilia. On the floor was a rusty old anvil and what looked like ---

A painful sensation erupted in my chest.

--- The chain.

Slowly, I shifted my gaze to the hovering figure of Imare. He was looking at the chain, his eyes blank. The minutes went by; Imare did not budge. His gaze was fixed on the chain.

Suddenly, he lifted his stuffed head… then looked directly into my eyes. The blazing crimson of long ago was there again… like it was that unforgettable night.

"Care to do it again?" he whispered, a wicked grin forming on his face.

oooOOOooo

"Hey, have you seen where Misha went?"

Haziel gave me a fleeting look and then went back to studying her reflection on the body-length mirror. She flipped her long black hair, picked up a stellar pin, and then attached it to her hair. The priestess smiled haughtily at her reflection, apparently satisfied with her appearance.

"What did you say, Renz?"

The priestess turned to me with a sweet smile on her lips. She was indeed a beauty. The rumor about her extraordinary beauty did not even justify her loveliness. She had long and wavy black hair that cascaded up to her waist. It framed her heart-shaped face in an enchanting fashion and complemented her ivory skin.

"Where is Misha?"

"Oh… Her," she said distastefully

She turned her back on me and busied herself with her things, not even bothering to answer my query.

"She seems to be lost. Aren't you concerned?" I asked again.

"No… She'll come around. Don't worry," she replied indifferently.

oooOOOooo

I'm lost! I am so lost!

The realization that I had gone astray kept recurring in my panicked consciousness. I was on the verge of madness. Were it not for the pleasant scenery around me I would have lost my sanity.

How? How did I get lost? How did I get separated from the party! How? Why!

My alarmed mind shouted the questions hysterically. Panic gripped my wits. Fear was numbing my brain. I could not think. My mentality was disoriented to the point of nothingness. It could not conjure up a plan or even just to THINK.

THINK! THINK! THINK! You have to get yourself out of this dungeon! One attack from a monster and you are dead! Dead!

In hopes of finding something that could help me in my predicament, I looked around my surroundings, my eyes darting here and there. Nothing registered. My wits were in too much of disarray.

I caught sight of something that looked like a human. Relief replaced my earlier fear. At last, I will be able to get help. Feeling rather confident, I walked up to the woman.

"Excuse me," I said timidly, "could you please he --- "

At that moment, the 'woman' turned and looked directly into my eyes. She had leaf-green hair knotted atop her head, black eyes that were blank, and her lips were chafed and pale. She was unclothed and bloody; and seems to be attached to an unusual plant that curled its long leaves and roots around her.

My breath was caught in my throat. I was shocked by 'her' appearance. The creature was not human, it was a monster. I swallowed hard. I had to get away a.s.a.p. The monster could attack me any second now. The only reason I was not yet being shred into pieces was that I caught it by surprise.

I stepped backwards slowly. I did not want to make any sudden movement that could make it feel threatened. Then I found myself on the edge of a drop-off.

"This is bad…," I whispered.

The monster lurched forward. Reflexively, I took another step backwards. My foot came in contact with thin air. A moment later, I was falling into the dark void. Darkness surrounded me and my heart cried out desperately for help. A plea that could not be heard… much more acted upon.

"Liza…," I whispered sadly, a moment before I was consumed in the darkness.

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To be continued…

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oooOOOooo

Thank you 4 reviewing, Myura… I'm glad you like it…

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