Interlude - A Dark Place

Disclaimer: This is a work of fan fiction based on multiple existing anime/manga series. The characters and settings used in this story belong to their respective owners and creators, and no copyright infringement is intended. This story is purely for entertainment purposes and is not intended to infringe upon any existing intellectual property. I do not own any of the original works that inspired this fanfiction, and I fully support the original creators and their works.

Special Thanks To Glorious4EyedKing for the Free Labor of Beta Reading this :P

-Story Start-

An abyss of darkness.

It was the only way I could describe it when I awoke here.

No matter where I turned, empty darkness engulfed me, not a hint of light in sight.

Oddly, my usually hyperactive mind was silent.

Who am I?

What am I?

I felt weird and lethargic, unlike anything I had ever experienced before.

It wasn't that no thoughts crossed my mind, it was as if I could barely think in general.

Only exist.

A perpetual eerie calmness.

A detached state of mind.

A wet sensation from my knees down drew my attention.

In the endless darkness, I had to rely on my other senses.

Lowering my hand, I felt a liquid.

It wasn't cold, neither warm, but just right.

Familiar yet unrecognizable.

With no further thought, I embarked on a journey through the endless sea of darkness, my only company the silence and the splashes of my steps.

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I trudged and trudged aimlessly through the sea of darkness.

Seconds turned to Minutes.

Minutes turned to Hours.

Nevertheless, I had not felt nor cared about the passing of time.

Eventually, something new made its appearance.

From the edge of my vision, a blue glow.

Without hesitation, I continued my journey in its direction.

The closer I got, the more light reached my eyes, allowing me to properly observe my surroundings.

The blue glow originated from what seemed to be the distant ceiling of this Abyss.

Narrowing my eyes, I could barely make out what it was - A Blue Vein.

Upon that observation, with the little distant light it provided, I managed to categorize the Sea I had walked through.

It was a pure black liquid.

It was a Sea Of Shadows.

With that confirmed, I decided to follow the path of that Blue Vein.

Perhaps, it was my key to getting out of here?

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Once again, I trudged for an unmeasured length of time through the sea of shadows, following along the distant blue vein.

However, I had a marker for progress.

The longer I walked, the closer the vein appeared to be.

A simple conclusion was then formed:

It was not that the Vein was getting closer, but that the ceiling of this Abyss was lowering along its path.

I did not know what that meant, nor did I care.

I simply continued listlessly on my path, as the glow grew alongside the proximity.

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Another change, a stark change.

From a distance, I could see countless faint glows.

I felt no excitement at allegedly nearing my destination.

I did not tire.

Once again, I continued on my path.

I Only noticed that the otherwise still Sea Of Shadows had begun to flow in the very same direction I was heading, much later.

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It was a strange sight and difficult to describe.

I had reached the intersection of the Blue Veins, the ceiling of the Abyss having lowered significantly.

It was pitch black like the rest of this Abyss, swallowing the blue glow from the veins that it held.

However, the sight before me was the most glaring change from the usual Sea Of Shadows I walked through.

Even from a significant distance, I could see it:

Liquid shadows flowed into a gigantic pit endlessly, not a sound of impact was heard, as if the shadows were being swallowed up into an endless chasm.

I continued walking, approaching ever closer.

After an unmeasured period of time later, I eventually reached the edge of the pit.

I did not feel fear at the possibility of falling into the abyss.

Nevertheless, my observations were now made clearer:

Above the pit, as if to mirror it, the ceiling extended into endless darkness, the blue veins following suit and disappearing into the boundless distance.

Strangely, right at the center of the giant pit was a floating island with a large facility of sorts.

Regardless, floating island would be an inaccurate assessment.

From the upper walls of the chasm below it, Nine large chains pierced through the Island's ground, keeping it afloat.

There seemed to be another, tenth chain, but from the looks of it, it seemed to have been cut off.

However, it was clear that these nine chains were not actually responsible for keeping the island afloat.

An eleventh chain, larger than all the others, pierced right through the middle of the island, reaching into the facility built on it.

The large chain, however, did not come from the chasm, but from the endless ceiling.

Looking up, expectedly, I did not see where it originated from.

Ignoring that, I was intent on reaching the large facility held on that island.

Turning my head, I scanned for a method to reach it, my eyes caught a small bridge that connected the Sea Of Shadows with the Island.

Without hesitation, I headed to the bridge and began to cross it.

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I crossed it without issue, the bridge didn't seem all that old, but not exactly new either.

I reached the island, and I immediately noticed the first sources of light that weren't those Blue Veins or Chains.

They were modern lights, an indication that the facility was outwardly modern with the addition of its metallic exterior.

There was a clear path from the bridge to the facility, so I followed it for a few minutes, eventually reaching the facility's entrance.

No outward change in temperature or otherwise, yet I couldn't shake the cold feeling coursing through my body the closer I got to the facility.

But I lacked fear nor wariness in my state.

I approached what seemed to be the door, a clear sign above it that read:

"******* ****** ******"

I could not read it.

Yet I instinctively knew it was the name of this facility.

My hand gravitated to the handle and I opened the door with a creak.

It was large, metallic, and heavy, yet I managed to push it open and enter the facility.

My eyes were greeted with a large lit and dreary hallway.

Without further prompting, I headed through, my footsteps echoed with a clang as they impacted the metal floor.

I walked with a familiar silence, as I eventually reached the end of the hallway and was met with another heavy door.

Opening it as well, I was immediately greeted with a room in front of me.

Approaching it, I immediately noticed the peculiarity of it:

Separated by thick glass, I was met with an empty white room.

A stark contrast to the endless darkness I have experienced here.

The only noticeable aspect amid the empty white room was what seemed to be an uncountable intertwinement of black veins, only held tightly together by a singular blue vein.

They all seemed to originate from below the floor.

Lowering my gaze, I was met with a control panel that sat in front of the thick glass.

A panel, I could not make sense of, yet that nostalgic familiarity echoed in my psyche once more.

Once more, I noticed a sign beside the control panel.

Surprisingly, I could read it:

"Garden Of Imagination."

With nothing else left, I made my way around the room, intending to continue my path forward.

Once again, I was greeted with another long hallway with a door in the distance.

And once again, I marched on.

-------------------------------

It was different.

A sign was above this door, and a green light shone on the futuristic sign, signifying the open status of the following room:

"Garden Of Optimism & Pessimism."

There was no glass wall for me to peek through, so I had no clue as to what to expect.

Yet, the path is only forward.

With a creak, the heavy door opened, and I entered.

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It was a sea of mist.

Black mist.

White mist.

It mingled, intertwined, and mixed through the air.

My steps echoed as I walked through a grassy plane, occasionally stepping on the significantly smaller blue veins sprawled along this area.

Every few moments, it changed periods of time.

At one moment it was day.

At another it was night.

Yet the constant aspect was the mists.

Whatever effect it may or should have had, it did not affect me in the slightest as I walked aimlessly.

I hadn't been here long, but I eventually saw a door in the distance, one that likely led forward.

However, I did not continue in my path.

I had stopped due to a sighting of twin wolves.

One of black fur, the other of white.

They were single-horned and muscular wolves.

What stood out, was that a chain, similar to the large ones that held the island, each bound the wolves.

It didn't seem to bother them, as they curiously observed me for but an instant and a moment later decided to roam around in the room.

Once again, familiarity struck me at their sighting.

A feeling I shook off in favor of pressing forward.

I reached for the handle, slowly opening the heavy door that led me to...

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Once more, a contrasting environment.

Instead of the tight, claustrophobic hallways I attributed to this facility, I was met with an incredibly spacious open area, that gave a view to the open Abyss.

In front of me, the extraordinarily large chain that was sourced from the endless roof of the abyss pierced the center of the open area, seeming to have dug deep into the island and facility.

Turning my head, I glanced at the surroundings, noting that there were eight large rooms in the distance.

The most noticeable part was that all of them had a door leading inside, and that familiar thick glass wall that allowed sight into the contents.

A set of strange black veins, extended from a single room towards all the other seven.

Something to observe later.

What cannot be denied, however... Was that the cold chill that went down my spine increased tenfold upon entering this place.

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I stood before the first room.

Through the glass, I could see a giant moon overlooking a sea of mirrors in what appeared to be a swamp.

There, a pitch-black toad, similarly bound by chains stood aloof.

Similarly to the other room, blue veins sprawled along the room in front of me, and the black veins originating from one of the other seven rooms extended to this one.

I turned to the door, noticing the green sign that indicated that I was allowed entry and the sign before me:

"Garden Of Mirrors."

I moved on to the next...

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I stood before the second room.

The only thing I could see through the glass was a singular rabbit tied by a chain.

Those blue veins were sprawled on the floor, as well as the invading black veins.

The door to the room was similarly open as the first room.

The name was:

"Garden Of Wit."

I moved on to the next...

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I moved on to the next...

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Upon reaching the fourth room, I found the first oddity.

It was the room where those black veins were originating from.

The door was similarly open as the others thus far.

However...

The ghastly sight before me reflected the title of this room:

"Garden Of *******"

Blood and shadow sprawled along the walls and floor of the room.

What seemed to be feathers scattered around it, and whatever form this garden was supposed to take, had lost all its color and shape.

I was certain something died here.

It died brutally.

A part of me.

Something that hurt me.

However, amid all the chaos and brutality in the room, a liquid ball of shadow lay on the floor, it seemed to be connected to the black veins that extended beyond the reaches of the room.

I moved on to the next... The cold feeling grew ever stronger in my path.

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The seventh room.

It initially didn't seem any different than the others that held animals and otherwise.

However, the first difference was that the green sign was now red.

The door was shut tight.

Beyond the glass, I saw a muscular tiger.

What stood out to me, was the ever-shifting Bell beside him.

For a moment, it was a clock, then a gong, it was ever-changing.

My eyes shifted to the title of this room:

"Garden Of Faux Chimes."

With that observation complete, I moved on to the last room.

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The cold feeling.

It came from this very room.

Like the tiger, the door leading to it was closed, the red sign being all the evidence I needed.

Unlike the others...

Despite being locked behind a room.

It could not roam freely like the other nine creatures.

This one, whatever it is, is bound in a cocoon.

Not to mention the chain that bound it as well.

Despite not being larger than the largest I've seen here, it sent shivers down my spine.

I felt no fear, but it felt right to be cautious in the face of that thing.

My eyes gravitated to the title of this room:

"Garden Of Harmony."

And it was with this final sighting, that the tour of this facility was over.

Or so I had assumed.

Do I get to leave now? I wondered.

Whatever this place was... These "Gardens".

Judging by the very atmosphere of this place, I could only think this place was either a laboratory or a prison.

It was that final thought, that shook me awake and brought me back to reality.

To Be Continued!

-Author Note Start-

You're getting your chappie don't worry you greedy scallywags!

Anywho, this isn't outa nowhere.

You'll get the context to this real soon.

(I didn't have the patience to wait it out until the start of the Chunin Exams to write this part - Either way, the context is next chapter lol)

Cya later! XD