1 The Dungeon

"Rattle Rattle" a low beetle sound was heard from inside the skull of a man hanging chained to the wall, writhing in pain.

"AHHHH"

This pain.... this extreme pain, I felt the parasite, the evil parasite gnashing through my left ear.

WHY ME... the pain stopped for a moment, but the moment felt like paradise, I thought it would stop, please let it stop, I waited and waited, I tightened my thin and bony muscles even more in fear of the returning parasite, the pain made me vomit out in agony, and with it returned the parasite.

As if taunting me I started to scream outrageous from pure pain in my head, I felt like it would explode any time. I wanted to break free, break free and choke myself in these chains, just to release myself from this place.

Yet the chains keeping me to the wall were as strong as ever, I would never break free from these godforsaken chains, it was all I knew, chains... Blades... needles... tongs... rats... Scissors and now parasites. How much did they have to experiment on me, hadn't they done enough already?!

"Please" I begged again... "Please...".

"Make it stop... I beg y" I didn't even get to finish the sentence before the beetle-like parasite gnashed its way to my nerve system, would it kill me?

I feel so small in this room, like everything around me is towering over me, I feel so... so... so pitiful.

"Clink Clonk" was heard echoing through the hallway leading to me. I knew this sound.

It was the sound of Mr. Gibbs's iron leg repeating itself to announce its presence to all ears.

He told me a different story every time he tortured me... but they were all about how he lost his leg.

He would always begin slowly, like every soft tale for children, that was when he was preparing his tools. Then slowly as the torture progresses he would become more agitated in the story, ending up losing his temperament in pure rage.

I was sobbing... The pain had gone away just as quickly as it came, or maybe I had just adapted. I had a habit of adapting quickly, that was why they kept me alive after all. I was better suited for testing because I didn't die so easily. But they're wrong, I am already dead inside... I have been waiting for my chance for so long... I don't know how much more I can take.

"Please... no more... Please..." it had become a habit for me to beg for it to stop whenever Mr. Gibbs was around me.

"Ahh subject 69, always a pleasure seeing you in a good mood, I see the parasite has done it's work calming you down, hasn't it?" Mr. Gibbs had a cold voice, he was used to this, you could say he was an expert. He was always the one who did things around here... the scientist they called him at first.

But this demon is no more than a psycho, half the time he just does it for fun.

I fear him, he is the demon I kill in my dreams he is the only one I see. I want him gone, I want him dead, I want him... repaid, repaid for all he ever did to me! I crave the revenge!

But I have to wait for my chance... I know it'll come, I just know! Someday... Some lucky day the sun will shine upon me and I will rise from this hell of a dungeon. Then I will surely revenge myself from all the suffering they have put me through! I wi...

I screamed again! This pain is too much! How can I ever revenge someone with so much power as him... "Please stop... please... let me die". I cried out with the last hope I had... but I expected no answer either... What a waste, where did all this hope even come from? My last bit of self-awareness crumbled away like burnt paper.

"Unfortunately, we are a bit behind schedule due to your... ability." Mr. Gibbs said with his monotone voice.

"But it's okay I can see that it managed to release its toxins in your brain, so it must have gotten through to you," he said as an almost invisible smirk formed on his cracked lips, I could smell the blood from his foul mouth, I couldn't tell if it was bloodthirstiness or if he had consumed blood.

I could feel my legs starting to give up, after all, I did have a parasite gnash through my brain for the last 5 hours, I felt weak, my whole body was sore after breaking and tearing it apart and healing itself over and over again. But I had noticed something, ever since the beginning, my body had begun to heal faster the more injuries that had come... Right now I could heal a new finger in about 10-15 days... but it came with a high price, at least for me that was, this ever consuming hunger was far from practical in my state, my stomach felt like it had a hole in it, and it would corrupt everything inside me if not fed.

"Under any normal circumstances, I would simply slice open your brain and peel out the parasite from within you, but... you are no normal circumstance, in fact, the master value you so much he decided to let you live" The voice spoke once again from the dark, this time though I swear I saw a glint in his glasses as if he was enjoying the moment and couldn't wait to tear me down once again.

"Due to your condition, I will need to inject this needle into the inside of your eyelids to prevent you from making things difficult underway"

I began to panic, I felt my eyes struggling to close themselves together to prevent the needle from poking the inside of my eyelids, the only place where the substance he would inject would transfer fast enough to my brain before my body killed it. For some reason, my skin was tougher than the other subjects they said.

My whole body was panicking I heard chains rustle against the steadfast walls, and I felt my knees scratch themselves on the rough floor, the pain in my knees was minimal though, so I almost didn't notice it.

"Sit still" He spoke, and the world stopped.

Two words, two words was all it took for him to completely and utterly destroy my courage.

I felt the temperature drop, the heat literally evaporated from everywhere around me, it was so bad that the sweat dripping down my face was converting into ice in nothing short of half a second.

"Please" I sobbed having already given up. "Please" I pleaded once again.

I wonder when it comes, the needle, the damn needle, why does it have to be so painful...

I don't want to

I don't want to

"I DON'T WANT TO"

"PLEASE LET ME BE" I caught myself screaming, saliva spitting from my mouth as I spoke.

A steady hand wrapped around my head and locked me in place, then another split my eye open with raw strength

I cried, or I would've if I had more tears

then it came, the needle

I dove off as I felt my body go limp.

The usual background noises of rats and screaming were all fading.

It was actually nice for once, the feeling of my whole body relaxing. I could get used to this...

But I knew deep inside me that this would never be a reality.

I looked around me, everything was black but a few blue glints in the distance.

What is this place I wondered to myself?

I felt limitless like I could do anything in this state, yet I felt so restricted, like every chain in that godforsaken dungeon is tearing my limps apart trying to hold me in place.

It's a drug, I thought while drifting towards endlessness.

Nothing in here is real, it is but a drug. The sadness that came with the conclusion of not accepting the peace in this state, was baffling. I really am all alone ain't I? I thought to myself while dazing off and observing the blue star-like lights in the heavens.

Hours passed, or was it minutes? Maybe days... Who cares all that matters is that I am here now, and nothing matters. I am invulnerable.

I suddenly felt a surface softly tapping my toes. It felt nice, not too cold nor too heated, it reminded me of something, but I can't seem to remember where I had felt it. I wracked all the corners of my brain to remember anything about where I recalled this resemblance. Finally, I gave up with a frown and began to walk down the surface.

I kept walking... walking, walking, walking, it felt eternal, but I kept on hoping to find a goal with all this, and... there it was, shining so bright I couldn't believe I hadn't seen it before!

A purple fire was burning weak in a torch. It was so soft, it looked like would go out any time! I had to protect it, I felt this enormous urge to grab the fire and protect it inside the hole in my stomach.

I ran, I ran till my feet gave out, and I fell face-first down on the surface.

It didn't matter, nothing mattered but the flame, I got up again and darted towards the flame!

So close... Just a second more and the flame is mine!...

Boom!

Everything collapsed except the flame.

I fell, I fell from so high up that I could hear the dragon's whispers below me.

I was getting swallowed by emotions, why? I know I have to get the purple fire, I just knew!

The uneasiness with free-falling down through eternity was getting to me, I screamed and panicked for a solution. But here was this feeling again, this feeling of being weak, I was weak. I had to get stronger.

I felt the wind swoosh through my sweaty non-washed hair, it was a nice feeling like it was telling me it was okay, everything will be okay. I began to cry, then the feeling of deja vu came over me again like a waterfall and I screamed out in the distress of not remembering such a precious thing.

I landed heavy yet soft, My lungs exploded out the remaining air in them, yet... they had never been so full, I slowly got up. I should've at least broken a couple of bones there, but my body didn't hurt from anything physical. Only the mental expectations of broken bones took me a couple of seconds to get over.

I got myself together and observed my surroundings.

It was a corridor of sorts? And there were... voices but they weren't familiar at all, but maybe they had answers. Maybe they would know how to get the purple flame, or why so much in here gave me deja vu!

I ran, I ran as fast as my legs would take me, as I ran I heard more and began to comprehend what they were saying.

I could see them now, they were just a few more meters away! I began yelling "HEY, OVER HERE, PLEASE HELP" I didn't know if they ignored me or simply didn't hear me so I called out again "PLEASE DON'T IGNORE ME, PLEASE HELP ME" As I finished the last line I wiped away a water droplet in my eye corner.

"The youngster... power... must be prote..."

This time, however, they seemed to recognize my presence as the shadowy people turned towards me and faded away. I for the third time felt powerless as my run came to a halt in the corridor.

I bent forward wanting to vomit from the energy I just spent trying to chase shadows, I had to regain balance by stabilizing myself at the wall.

But up from the ground came the very chains that tormented me for all my life, they wrapped around my legs and pulled me to the ground, I resisted with all my might and felt my muscles burn as the well-known chains fastened their grips around the rest of my body, I felt a shock run op my spine and my body went limp.

It was now, I would die now, I never got to see anything outside the dungeon.

Maybe it was okay, perhaps, death is not as bad as I first imagined it to be.

I think if given the time, I might be able to come to terms with death.

I felt the chains loosen a bit as if they were alive and could understand me, but the short moment had passed away in a flash, as they bit deep in my body and dragged me back to where they came from.

Everything turned black.

###

This is the first chapter in this upcoming Demon Jaeger series!

I know this one had quite the Monday feeling to it, but I promise that it will get more interesting and there will be lots of fighting in dungeons and bosses and not but least demons!

I hope you will stay tuned for a badass, action-packed adventure!