Chapter 1 - My First Life
Splash. I let out a cold hiss at the feeling of water drenching my trousers. If I had known the rain would pour down so suddenly, I would never have volunteered to stay behind and lock up. I optimistically assumed thirty minutes of jogging to my apartment, and hoped the rain would clear up before then. Ten minutes in and my unkempt black hair blinded me. In an attempt to clear the water out of my face my footing slipped, and I elegantly fell face first into the muddy bank. Belittling myself for getting my work clothes dirty, a joyful tune responded under the heavy downpour of the storm. The banging of the rain got louder, trying to conceal the sound's position further, but to no avail. I grasped the sound, my phone revealing the emergency alert about a dangerous tornado approaching my destination and ordering me to take shelter anywhere possible.
Bang. Lightning crashed and illuminated the faint shadow of a mansion which I had never seen before. "Where am I?" I muttered in disbelief as tall trees loomed over my head and outlined the winding path to a gate in the distance. My heart pounded, as I stressed over the huge change in location. What should I do? Where am I? How do I get back home? The beeping alert reminded me of my impending time limit, and I thoughtlessly ran to the rusted gate. It creaked open, sending shivers down my spine. Noticing the porch of the manor in the distance, I unassumingly headed towards the beginning. Upon arrival I felt free as my body heat returned to safe levels only to lower again at my confusing and scary situation.
Nonetheless I would make do and started knocking on the main door. "Anyone home?" I stressfully asked as the doors slid open showing the dark, seemingly empty main hall. A large, centered staircase led to the upper floors and two hallways oppositely headed into the mansion. My legs gave away, terrified of the choice between the dark of the mansion or death of the tornado. I logically despaired over the thought but slowly treaded onto the velvet carpet, shut the doors, and blissfully savored the numbed sounds of the storm. Almost immediately the rain and wind assaulted the doors, relaying my wise choice to enter the mansion.
Left or right. Which way leads out of the dark I thought, with no way of knowing due to my short range of vision. Ultimately picking left under my strenuous attempt at coping with the dark, I trembled down the corridor whilst hugging the right wall. Eventually, a door extruding from the wall blocked my path and invited me in. A sofa, traditional bed, bedside desk, and a few inoperable lamps adorned the large room. Drawn towards the couch, I slumped down recollecting the events of the last thirty minutes or so, becoming conscious of how cold I was. I stripped off my soaked jumper, reading the label *Tomita Keiko* which I had forgotten to take off after work. I could feel my body and brain were at their limits and so pulled the covers off the bed and draped them around me, hoping the owner wouldn't mind getting the covers dirty, instead of the entire bed. I drowsily shut my eyelids, taking a brief moment to recover my strength.
Opening my eyes, I breathed in the damp smell of sweat, dry mud, and dust. Wait, dry mud? I wasn't soaked anymore? Completely dry? I grabbed at my phone still frozen on the alert screen, trying to get a reference point of absolutely anything that could help. "No use", I hoarsely whispered to myself, almost shrieking at how sore my throat was. In pain, I dragged my feet towards the door and reluctantly entered the darkness again. Assuming the danger of the tornado I chose not to drink the rainwater, and slowly started walking further down the hallway. Dragging my hand across my eyes and feeling the prick of tears I concluded I had fallen asleep. For the next few minutes, in faster succession than the first room I found many other doors, albeit none lead to any water in my quick searches.
Bang. Crash. Creak. The floorboards snapped in the distance as I noticed the corner to my right. I rushed through the possibilities of what the sound was, but reassured myself that there was nothing dangerous in the dark. Only figments of my imagination. I gripped the wall, turning the corner...
As I thought, nothing there. Unbeknownst to me at this time there were many large dents in the floor hidden by the darkness. tap, tap. I took two steps forward around the corner and recognized a familiar mumbling sound. Prying my ears, listening in to what the sound may be, I held my breath. Is that a person? "Hello. Anyone there?" I responded to the inaudible words I had heard prior. Everything went silent for a single instance, before the ground started rumbling and the world started shaking. I shrunk down cursing my luck. Really, there just had to be a tornado and now an earthquake. A vague image shook at the end of hallway, seemingly coming closer in an oscillating motion banging into the walls. The dark must be playing tricks on me I wrongly hoped before an ear piercing shriek destroyed my reality.
My instincts grabbed the wheel, and my legs pushed off the floor backwards. Bang as I headbutted the wall on my left and turned a glimpse at the creature rushing my direction. Seven large hairy spears protruded from its torso, unevenly split across the sides of it's body. Eight large glowing eyes glared into my soul and riding on it's back was a large rusted metallic speaker wrapping coils of wires into and around the huge spider like beast. My legs used as much power as they could slowing the inevitable arrival of the monster. What the actual fuck Is that, scrambling my brain around the beast's existence. I turned a left back around the corner, and rushed to the nearest door. Thud as my heart fell to the jamming sensation of the door.
My panicked breathing incited I try again, denying the idea of my death. I slammed into the door and fell onto the hard ground of the room. Struggling off the floor on all fours I pushed on the door sliding it shut. Looking across the room in a panicked state, and heaving the heavy couch across the floorboards with sounds comparable to chalk on a chalkboard I blocked the door and dived under the bed. The crashing and shrieking sounds completely blocked off the rain as my deep and fast breathing blocked off my logical analysis. In desperation my brain wracked off thoughts. What is that monster? I've never heard of that in our history lessons? Where am I? my thoughts were cut off by the end of the crashes, and peaceful return to the storm.
"Are you in here, no need to hide?" a voice spoke. I was unable to tell the difference from a little girl to an old man from how it sounded yet knew it was neither. The handle of the room I was in made a pinging sound, and rotated slightly. The screech of metal on metal pained my ears as the handle turned but the door did not budge behind the sofa. A scattering of legs left the doorway, and at least three people trudged to the next door. The door faintly creaked in the room nearest mine, as the huge monster overturned the room.
The creature made clicking sounds and then. "I can smell you."
Breathing intensively heavier, I freaked out placing my hand over my mouth as the wall caved in and splinters stabbed into my arms. I looked upon multiple stakes covered in hair, stabbing into the ground, in front of a scene of devastation and destruction of the wall, hinting at my fate. A cry escaped my mouth as a voice rebounded around the room. "Found you."
All of a sudden, the bed tipped over and landed on my legs, crushing them completely. Wailing escaped my mouth as I looked upon a new phobia. Lightning flashed again revealing an apex predator playing with it's food. Pincers jabbed from its head and it released a clicking sound yet again. In response, my breathing stopped and my body shut down in fear. The monstrosity, and possible definition of fear looked down at me with it's two main eyes. The pain in my legs screamed at me and yet I remained silent, no matter how much I tried to scream. I looked up as it raised it's leg and thrust it downwards. The pressure in my skull exploded as I internally screamed at the leg going through my eye socket and crushing my brain.