Chapter 6

Hiroto let his bag fall on the ground.

"Go help them, I'll join you!"

Kazuya nodded and got up the stairs as Hiroto pulled out one last thing from his bag: a shotgun. Kazuya opened all the doors he could see but none of them led to the chosen ones. It's when he opened the door near the other staircase going up that he found the beast in front of the chosen ones. It heard the door opening and turned around. Kazuya silently raised his gun, aiming for the eye, and shot.

As he expected, the demon barely flinched; a single bullet would surely not kill it. Actually, the bullets' purpose wasn't to kill it. When it took a step closer to Kazuya, smiling with its sharp blood-stained teeth, Hiroto came in right behind him and shot with his shotgun two times in the other eye. Kazuya ran to the other side of the room and guided the chosen ones out of the room and back in the main hall while Hiroto kept its attention towards himself. The teen aimed for the doorknob and shot. He then opened the door to let everyone out and closed it behind them. As long as the beast didn't know the door was unlocked, it shouldn't go out. Kazuya got back up the stairs and joined Hiroto in the room. The monster transformed into a great wave of bugs. Perfect; that what they wanted it to do. The boys swung their katanas on the floor to kill as much bugs as they could before they got on the same spot but separated in two groups. They formed two human shapes that slowly adopted the color of their skin and reproduced the same clothes. The boys immediately recognized them.

It was Hiroshi and Arata.

They didn't know the demon could do that. They knew it could turn into bugs and transform again but they didn't know it could turn into anything it felt like turning into. Hiroto was able to keep his gun raised even if he couldn't get himself to shoot but Kazuya wasn't able to aim at his brother and lowered his gun. Hiroshi reached out a hand.

"Kazuya," he said with a voice exactly like Hiroshi's one, "c'mon, I'll get you out of there."

Kazuya bit his cheek from the inside as hard as he could to not run in his brother's arms.

"I shouldn't have let you all by yourself for so long," continued Hiroshi, "I promise I'll never let you alone anymore. Your brother will protect you."

Kazuya felt a warm salty liquid in his mouth and his eyes became full of tears. He was about to join Hiroshi but Hiroto put his arm in front of him before he could do so.

"Don't go. That's what it wants," said the adult, "Give me the flashlight; I have an idea."

The teen handed over his flashlight and Hiroto got out of the room, grabbing Kazuya just to be sure he wouldn't stay behind and get killed by the copy of Hiroshi.

"Don't abandon me!" shouted Arata from behind.

The adult almost stopped but he was able to continue to get down the stairs.

"I'll keep the flashlight opened," he said to Kazuya," Lure them to the light and I'll shoot them, okay? Just don't join them or lose them; they have to be chasing you. Can I be sure you'll do it?"

The teen nodded.

"I go to the left, you take the right."

When they arrived at the door of the second phase, they split up. Kazuya waited a couple of second just to be sure they were both chasing him and ran to the right. He ran in random directions. He didn't know where Hiroto would be but he knew he wouldn't go too far in the maze. The voices of the two boys rang in the teen's ears no matter if it was Hiroshi telling him to come back or Arata pleading for help. He forced himself to focus on the run; he had to forget their voices and to picture something else. It wasn't Hiroshi behind him; he had to force himself to hear someone else. He had to imagine someone he'd rather run away from.

Come, I'll get you out of here.

He kept hearing that line Ryota said. He kept repeating this to himself to cover the voices of the ones chasing him now. Those words seemed terrifying for him now that he understood what Ryota had meant by that. He could hear him say the sentence with his real signification.

Let me kill you, I'll make it really quick. It'll be over soon.

Kazuya suddenly felt a hand grab his shoulder.

Hiroto saw a shape meet the flashlight's gleam. He raised his shotgun but didn't shoot; it was probably Kazuya. He then realized it was Hiroshi's copy. Where was Kazuya? He'd look for him right after. For now, he had to shoot. He aimed for the head and pulled the trigger. A loud sound was heard and the shape fell on the ground. Hiroto was surprised it didn't turn into bugs. Did he shoot…? No, he couldn't have shot Kazuya. Hiroshi and Kazuya both had very different shapes but the adult began to have a serious doubt. He hoped by all his heart he didn't because it would mean he was dead; no human being could just live after a headshot. He let go of his gun and approached the body. He sighed in relief knowing he did shoot Hiroshi. He still wondered why the corpse didn't turn into bugs. He decided to ask himself this later and look for Kazuya instead.

A sharp pain in his stomach made him gasp and look down. There was a blade getting out of it with his blood on it. His legs gave up but his assailant caught him before he'd fall and leaned him on the nearest wall. Hiroto looked at the blood slowly soaking his shirt and then looked up; the gleam from the flashlight was enough for him to see his assailant's face.

"Kazuya!?" he let out before he coughed some blood.

The teen didn't seem to react; his eyes were feeling-less. Hiroshi's corpse turned into bugs and got on Hiroto, biting him on the legs. There was the sound of a gunshot and Kazuya fell on the ground too, turning into bugs and climbing on the adult. A silver-haired boy stood there, holding Hiroto's shotgun. He dropped the gun and grabbed his sword before he tried to push away the bugs biting the adult all over his body. He squashed every bug he could shake off but there was too many and they ended up leaving by themselves to go in the same spot again. Kazuya grabbed the flashlight and saw a motionless Hiroto who didn't seem to have any skin. The teen gasped and backed away, tears blurring his vision. He looked back at the beast that was much smaller due to the bugs that couldn't be used anymore. It had a different shape. It was square-like and had some very large teeth. A tear ran down the teen's cheek but only anger could be seen on his face. He took his sword with both of his hands and charged toward the monster at the other end of the corridor. The demon changed form again and turned back into Hiroshi.

It didn't stop Kazuya this time.

The teen slashed the copy of his brother and swung again but before he could touch him, Hiroshi turned into bugs that fell on the floor and climbed on Kazuya. When a lot of them were on his back, he let himself fall backward, squashing almost all of them when they got stuck between the floor and his back. He pushed the others away and crushed as many as he could, containing a silent scream at each bite. The bugs backed off and got in the same spot to form somebody else. They formed Kazuya at eight years old. His younger self was curled in a ball in a corner of the hallway, weeping. Kazuya stopped for a moment but soon pulled himself together. He approached his younger self and raised his sword.

Just before it would touch the shoulder, the copy grabbed the sword and looked up. Kazuya couldn't really tell if it was still his copy or not. His ponytail was undone and his hair was plastered to his face like if he stood in the rain for a long time. There was blood on his face distorted by an insane smile and wide eyes. When the copy stood up, Kazuya kicked it hard in the stomach to lean it on the wall and stabbed it in the chest with his sword. He heard the copy laugh and he stabbed it another time. It turned into bugs that the teen immediately crushed. Why did the copy remind him of that insane chosen one? Would he have been like that if Hiroshi hadn't been there? The decade of bugs left climbed on Kazuya's legs and bit him hard. Kazuya shook them off and squashed them. The pain in his legs made him fall on the hard floor. There were no bugs left. Did this mean that demon was gone? Did this mean the plan worked? Kazuya let out a sigh of relief as tears slowly filled his eyes. Was it finally over? The teen forced himself up and walked on all fours to the flashlight lying on the floor. He grabbed it and turned it toward the spot where Hiroto lay…to find only a small puddle of blood. He was alive? Did he crawl away to be sure he wouldn't get hurt? Kazuya stood up, taking the flashlight with him and walked slowly, leaning on the wall due to sudden dizziness to look for the adult.

When he turned a corner, a dark shape leaped on him and he fell on his back because of the sudden push. A split-second later, Kazuya felt a sharp pain on his face and a warm liquid flow on his cheeks. He grabbed the flashlight and directed the gleam in his assailant's eyes that screamed and backed off. He saw it was Hiroto with purple skin and his eye black. He was like that guy during his year: Naoki. Hiroto showed his sharp teeth and leaped on Kazuya again who tried to push him away. The adult put his hands around the teen's neck and squeezed it tightly. Kazuya put his hands on Hiroto's arms to try to pull them away but he had a very tight grip. The silver-haired felt like something pierce through his neck and his head began pounding, his vision distorting. The teen reached out a hand to grab his sword or a gun but the tip of his finger barely touched the bottom of the sword's handle, pushing his hope away trying to take a hold of it. He felt his strength vanish and his arms fell limply on the side as he tried desperately to breathe.

Hiroto was suddenly pulled away by something and Kazuya took a deep breath, life suddenly coming back to him. He grabbed his sword with his right hand and his flashlight with the left one. It was just like that moment when Hiroshi's copy took a hold of his shoulder. He had been pulled away like that too, like if someone was helping Kazuya without being actually there. The teen got on top of Hiroto before he could stand up, his knees on each of the adult's hands. He raised his sword but wasn't able to bring it down. He couldn't kill Hiroto; he couldn't kill the only one who understood him, he couldn't kill the one who accepted to slay that demon with him, he couldn't kill his friend! The adult started to make more violent moves under him, struggling to get his hands away from under the teen's knees. Kazuya heard a familiar voice; Hiroshi's voice.

If you don't kill him now, he is going to murder you! You have to do it! It's your only chance, do it!

He felt like if someone gently grabbed his hands. Just before Hiroto would free one of his hands, Kazuya closed his eyes and stabbed the adult in the chest. When he felt some movement, he stabbed him again in the chest and continued multiple times, tears streaming down his eyes when he felt some liquid soak his hands. He kept his sword raised for a couple of seconds, eyes still closed, to wait for a movement or anything similar but when none came, he opened his eyes to see Hiroto was dead. His chest was soaked with blue blood and there was some on his face. His eye was closed and there was a bit of blue blood pouring out of his mouth. The teen's hands were full of blood too. He backed away and stared in horror at what he had done. He felt something pull him away from the corpse but he wasn't scared. In fact, he felt secure when he got pulled away. His head started to seriously hurt and he started shivering, his body suddenly turning cold. He felt some warmth surround him and he heard Hiroshi's voice again.

You did what you had to do, Kazuya. You have to get out or you'll die in here. Follow me; I'll lead you out.

He suddenly felt a wave of energy and he looked at his right. He couldn't believe his eyes. Hiroshi stood there, waiting for him. Kazuya was sure it wasn't a copy; the air was getting cold around him when it was a copy but he felt suddenly at peace seeing his brother standing there. He didn't need any flashlight to see him for some reason. He stood up and joined the gray-haired who ran in a couple of different hallways. Kazuya's dizziness got the best of him and he fell on the ground. He coughed and felt a liquid fall on his hand. When he looked back up, Hiroshi was still there, waiting for him to stand up and follow him. The silver-haired stood up with the help of the wall and followed Hiroshi the best he could, his vision getting distorted. They passed through the two last phases and arrived in the rope ladder tunnel. Kazuya collapsed but didn't find the strength to get back up. He could barely see a faint light at the end of the tunnel that lightened up a bit the rocky hallway. He tried to push himself up and noticed there was blood where he lay. Did this mean he had been bleeding out during the whole run? How come he didn't die of blood loss yet? Hiroshi's voice made him look toward the light even though his brother wasn't there.

C'mon Kazuya, you're almost there! One last effort; don't die there! C'mon!

He felt a warm presence next to him and hands grab his shoulders to pull him up. Kazuya stood up and walked toward the rope ladder slowly, each step making him wince because of the sharp pain travelling his whole body. He finally put his hand on the ladder. He felt the warmth surround him like a hug.

You did it, Kazu... It's all over now. I'll see you soon, okay?

The presence vanished and Kazuya's legs gave up. He barely caught himself up by holding tightly the rope ladder. His hands soon gave up too and he fell on the rocky ground. He was barely able to keep his eyes opened and look at the sky with his blurry vision. He felt a couple of retches and his eyes filled with water, feeling his last moment arriving. He closed his eyes, a single tear escaping and running down the side of his eye to disappear in his hair. Somebody grabbed him, taking him in his lap as he coughed some blood. The teen felt himself drift away and he barely heard a very distant and shaky voice but it wasn't Hiroshi's one. He recognized his dad's voice and felt a light pain on his left cheek when a warm thing gently touched it before he felt himself slip into darkness.

"Kazuya, come on! Open your eyes, please! Kazuya! KAZUYA!"

...
Seriously, I don't know what to say... I don't even know how my fingers typed those last paragraphs... XD
Anyway, please leave a review and see you in the ultimate chapter!