My Story: The Short Story Series

 

Now, don't get me wrong. I don't feed off their agony, or soul or whatever you silly creatures think up of. I eat just like you do, and I die...eventually. I was sent here to ravage this area; I was assigned to help bring the rise of Hell's Gate. With over 45billion sacrifices made to the Evil Lord himself, Hell's Gate will rise from the core of the Earth. 

 

I've sent him...

Zero.

 

I don't want to kill. I don't want to bring chaos into my peaceful haven. But the others are nearing the goal. If only the creatures knew what was going on, but like I said, blind to what they don't want to exist. And to their eyes, what seems like a meteor crashing into their lovely planet is really the key. It is growing each day, for one day it will unlock the void of the abyss. I am the demon of exile, Ephrate Heart. Anann thought that was too difficult to say so she nicknamed me...Fayt Hart. "

 

"I believe that is enough for now," Fayt pointed out.” Yes, Master," Anann replied. Fayt walks over to the window with a grim looking face as he stares out at the red skies and quiet streets. "How long 'til the gate rises you think?" Anann looks at Fayt and walks over to the window as well, replying "I couldn't tell you, Master." With a long and saddened face, Fayt looks down and sighs. "Each day that passes that Key of the Forbidden becomes larger. Even without my contribution the Evil Lord is on our front door. There must be some way to stop this..." Anann walks over to the table in the distance and pours some tea, "Master, you used to want to bring destruction to this world. Eager and ambitious, have you suffered the Mutiny on the Bounty?" Discontented he walks over to the table and sits, "Nonsense, but ponder upon this, what pleasure can one obtain over thousands of years of destroying and watching? Haven't you gotten tired of it?" She smiles and puts the teapot down, "Master, I am here to serve you and to your ideas alone. I do not get tired of years of repetitive traditions if I must endure them." His face brightened with a smile, "Very good, as you would say to any Master. However, we've gone over this. You are as much my faithful friend as you are my loyal servant. Without you I would be in the hands of cold despair." Laughing nonchalantly, "Yes, Master Hart. If you say so." Laughing along, "Haha, of course! Of course! Now my dear Anann, come sit and join me. The tea you made is absolutely brilliant."

A loud, whining siren goes off followed by a minor earthquake. "I swear, the time gets shorter and shorter every day," complained the unamused Master. "Yes, it is winter after all." The noise of moans and footsteps thumping echoed into their room. "I suppose the tea will have to wait, right Smart-Ass?" Anann gets up, handing a bundle of equipment wrapped in a red cloth to Fayt, "Oh, you love it. And yes, now's not the time for tea."

Out from the cloth were two revolvers custom-made. On the left, 6-shot, 6 inch barrel with a silver polished finish with the word "Divine" inscribed. On the right was a custom 8-shot, 6 inch barrel and a black polished finish with the word "Sin" embedded. With a demon-like grin and a glow of his left eye hidden behind his hair, Fayt became anxious to get out and start his daily routine. "Here, Master. Your coat. It's cold out." Anann hands him a long jet black coat with red out linings. "Thanks, Anann." The demon picks up his revolver and shoots the number "13" on the door, a demon shriek shortly after and it sounded like the body fell to its death. "Careful Anann, Sneakers are out this time." As he walks out the door, behind him Anann smiles and the door closes.

 

"Now then, you little toddlers want to mess with someone over two thousand years older than you? What ever happened to respecting elders?" Shrieks in the darkness, and sounds of movement from down the hallway but nothing seems to be in his peripheral vision no thanks to the only flickering light by his door. Scratches and moans of multiple Sneakers down the hallway awaiting the last light, by apartment 13, to stop flickering and die out. "Come to think of it, I haven't seen a Sneaker in a while. I guess I have to reacquaint myself." The confident, red eyed man puts out his hand and introduces "Hi, I'm Fayt Hart. Nice to meet you." As the last words leaves his lips the lights die out and nothing but sounds of shrieks and claws can be heard throughout the hallway.

 

Anann equipping her own gear leaps through the window and onto the streets with ease. "As always, Master leaves me with the streets. It's as if he's telling me something." She thinks to herself. Out from the corner of a building, feeding off a corpse on the ground a disfigured body enjoys its meal. It senses her, looks up towards her in her direction. Unafraid of it she lowers herself and puts out her hands. The creature turns its upper body 180 degrees, with sounds of bones cracking in the process, and growls. "Aw, you poor, poor deluded puppy. Come here, let me see your pretty face," provoked the unaltered maid. The creature stepped out of the shadows revealing more to it. A blank face, nothing but wrinkled skin and a mouth filled with teeth as plentiful and sharp as a shark. A muscled upper body that thinned down to a tail-end, that was most likely a spine covered with a thin layer of skin. "Well now, you're a Peeler. A blind creature that acts upon hearing and its basic instincts. I thought you were a pup, but looking at you now...You're just the cutest little thing." In a blink of an eye, as the Peeler attempted to howl for its companions, a knife was lounged in the monster's mouth pinning it to the wall. "I lied." The knife explodes the creature to pieces, however out of all corners and alleyways more Peelers entered the scene, scaling the walls and appearing from the dark corners... "Issues," complained the staggering confident maid.

 

And explosion took off at the apartment and something went flying amidst the air. The object crashed down creating a small crater. A black shadowed figure with sharp red lines that pierced through the smoke lay at the bottom. As the smoke cleared the figure took a more familiar form. "Every time," Anann mumbles to herself, while taking a seat at the edge of the crater. In the crater was Fayt, laying flat on his back at the bottom looking up at Anann with his one red eye and a big, scary looking smile. "Yo." Anann looks down and asks "How was it?" The uninjured demon sits up and looks innocent, "Well I accidentally..." "Shot the gas tank again." Anann finishes Fayt's sentence. Laughing without a worry on their minds, "Yeah..." Anann pulls Fayt up from the crater and onto the street. "And the situation is?" asked Fayt. "You got eyes, look around," says Anann in a sarcastic tone. 

 

"I'd say-" 

"Surrounded" Anann interrupts 

"But it's-"

"Not really an issue" Anann interrupts again.

"So then let's-"

"Hop to it" finished Anann.

"Really have done this way too many times" Fayt complained.

"You just never change your lines" explained the giggling maid.

 

A plea for help rings in the ears of the Master and Servant. "Anann, there's a survivor!" Anann looks up and bares her knives, "Yes, but we've hardly any time to spare before we're overrun." Reloading his gun, and bearing a ghoul-like smile again. "Anann, cover my back. We'll make a run for her. I won't leave a survivor!" commanded Fayt. She became excited bearing fangs in her half demon, half human smile, "Yes sir!"

 

The two ran through the horde of Peelers and Sneakers, slaying each that were in their path. After a while the horde died down and an eerie silence filled the air. "I don't like the feeling of this." Anann replies, "Something's not right here."

"Look over there, Anann! It's her!" Fayt quickly runs up to a shallow looking woman near the corner of a dark room, while Anann watches their backs. "Miss, Miss! Are you okay? Are you hurt? We're here to help. What's you're name?"

"Master."

"My name is Alice." Quivering in fear, hardly spoken words come from her lips.

"Master..."

"We're here to help, don't worry I'm-"

"Master!"

"What is it?!"

"Master, the area changed." Anann looks up and reads, "Wonderland."

"Is this some sick joke? Or a strange coincidence?"

Alice, on the brink of breaking down, "No! They said they'd use me as bait to get others. To get a meal out of me, I'm so sorry!"

"Wait, explain this to me Alice. I don't understand."

 

A voice from the darkness beyond the entrance to Wonderland door speaks, "Oh, so we have visitors! Do me a favor and get a little sweat going and enjoy my Wonderland. I would LOVE to have you seasoned before my meal. Heheh...Thanks Alice, you're such a doll."

 

Alice yells out of fear at the disembodied voice, "No! You trapped me! I...I didn't do anything!"

Fayt comforting her, "Alice it's okay. We'll get through this, I promise."

Alice shivering, about to lose herself, "Those monsters...they're demons! They're going to kill us all and eat us! They'll devour our souls and...And!"

The gentle demon pats her head, "Now, now not all demons are blood thirsty human fillet-ers. Jeez."

Curious, Alice asks, "How do you know?"

Fayt's left eye glows red behind his hair and his fangs grow out as he smiles a demon's smile. He replies, "Because I'm one too. So is Anann."

Anann's tail reveals itself. It was a bushy white rabbit's tail.

Alice inching away to her corner, "Get away from me you monsters! You're just like all the rest!"

"Oh boy, I feel like I'm being dumped again. Trust me, if I was I wouldn't be in this mess nor would I have you alive at the moment," Fayt explained calmly.

Alice peeks a little from behind her knees from the corner, "You speak the truth?"

"Dip-shit wonderland freak doesn't seem to recognize me yet. So, let's keep our element of surprise, shall we?" he puts out his hand out to help the poor, dirty, scared woman up. She reaches for his hand hesitantly and gets up nodding her head in agreement.

 

"What's the situation, Anann?"

"He can rearrange the forms of the area and create a maze at will."

"Hm, that's a slight-"

"Issue." Interrupted Anann.

"That's getting old real fast Missy."

"No, we have an issue."

"Oh. What is it?"

"It seems like Peelers and Sneakers are stuck in this with us."

"Followed us?"

"Looks like it."

 

Twirling his gun, "Sin", while thinking to himself. "I was never good at mazes" proclaims Fayt.  "No, you were never good with anything that had to do with direction," agreed Anann. "Thanks...I think," Fayt added on, "We'll just take the turns and routes the Peelers and Sneakers aren't at. Easy."

 

Alice entered the conversation, "What do we do now then?" The master and his servant look at each other then at Alice and say at the same time "Cheat." Alice gave them a confused look and followed them as they entered Wonderland.

A few hours pass as they continue wondering in the maze. Tall hedges creating walls with occasional colorful flowers arranged in a suspicious order. "You don't think the flowers and the roads we take have something to do with the path do you?" asked Alice. Anann ponders to herself. Fayt replies, "Maybe. Worth a shot." The three travels back to the beginning and follow the roads according to flower color order. Fayt mumbles to himself, "Red flower...follow red road. Yellow flower, we take this turn..." Anann points out to the group, "Look a fountain!" The party walks up to the fountain. The rest of the path is a yellow brick road disappearing in the distance. "Come on, we have to get out of here fast." Alice and Anann agree and continue walking. Alice hears the water rustling and turns around to look. Surprised, Alice yells to the other two "Look the fountains gone!" 

"What?!" The two turn around and what she said was true. The fountain vanished and nothing seems to be there but another hedge wall blocking their way back. "There's no going back now," says Fayt underneath his breath. As the group continues down the yellow bricked road their path became linear and the walls disappeared. They were walking on a long winding road with no ground outside their path. It was like staring down into an abyss. 

 

"Look, Fayt! Paintings!" Yelled Alice.

 

Picture frames of a heart, a lion roaring, and a brain.

 

"Man, this guy loves to play games," says the unamused demon.

"You can say that again Master..."

Alice adds on, "it must have some importance."

"Just keep those in mind, let's keep moving, I think I see the end."

 

At the end of the road was a door red like blood with a doorknob shaped like a skull. As the group opened it, a giant face appears before them. With a thunderous voice it asks, "Who dares enter my domain?"

 

Fayt, with a disdained look, "Cut the shit and let us go!"

 

The face looks in Fayt's direction and replies, "Foolish human! How dare you talk back to God! Feel my wrath!"

 

A lightning bolt strikes Fayt, sending him flying backwards crashing into the wall and onto a pile of boxes. Both worried about him the girls scream out, "Fayt!" "Master!"

 

The face examines the girls and speaks, "You, who reached the end of this journey, tell me what is it you seek?"

 

Alice replies, "To leave this place!"

 

The face looks towards Alice's direction, "Human, there is no way to send you back."

The face disappears and a figure appears before the two. 

A change of voice took place while the figure walked towards them, to something more evil and sinister sounding. The man says, "This is my world, Piggies. You are my cattle. I will feed on you, for you have no right to talk back to a God!"

Anann gets in front of Alice, "Alice run!" She throws her knives at the figure and the explosion triggers. As the smoke clears the figure vanished from their sights, Alice attempts to run for the door they came in. The door shuts and the man appears in front of it. "My Piggies, do not fear. Be honored a God has chosen you!"

Anann attempts to strike close range but he effortlessly smacked her away as if she were a fly. 

 

Alice falls to the floor and frozen in fear. She stares up at her grim reaper before her death. As the man walks towards her, stopping just in front of her, she closes her eyes. The man reaches for her and she does nothing but cringe. 

At the moment before he even touches her, a gun fire bolts throughout the building and blood splatters on the ground. The yell of agony and pain from the one called "God."

 

The man looks around and looks at a dark corner distant from him, towards the damaged wall. A red dot glows, and some smoke rise up from a barrel of a gun. "Just how I like my meals, smoked," stepping out from the shadows, in the same black coat that never seems to damage. Fayt smiles his demon-like smile, points his gun at the man, and his eye glows a bright red from behind his hair. The man confused, scared and hurt cries out, "No way! I zapped you with a lightning bolt! I killed you! What are you!?"

 

Reloading his gun, he answers "I am what you're not. And you are what I am. Simple."

 

The man baffled by his statement asks, "What are you talking about? I am a GOD!"

 

Fayt's smile gets bigger, "Wrong. But here, I'll explain. I am a demon." His fangs reveal itself. "You are not." A long white, short furred tail reveals. "But speaking in terms of personality..." His claws grow from the tips of his fingers, silver and shiny as a dagger. "You are more of a demon, than I am." He lingers over the petrified man, smiling his demon smile.

 

The man cries out, "I AM A GOD! I CANNOT DIE! I CREATED THIS WORLD! I MADE THIS GAME! YOU HAVE TO SOLVE MY RIDDLE!" He scurries behind a pillar.

 

Clinging his claws together, creating a horrific sound. "Is that so? Then ask me, God."

 

"Y-you saw various things on your w-way here! T-they're references to my answer! W-what films did those reference c-come from? A-and what was missing within your o-own group?!"

 

Taking steps towards the frightened man, Fayt answers. "You really are simple aren't you? Alice in Wonderland was the first, obviously. And The Wizard of Oz was the second. As for what was missing, we had Alice as Dorothy since she's the only one fitting for the role, we had courage, we had heart and we had a brain. What your question is isn't what's missing. It's what ISN'T missing. Nice trick." 

 

The man shocked at this answer, "No...n-no! How could you know?!"

 

Fayt replied, "You lied to us from the beginning, you're no God..." Fayt destroys the pillar and watches the rubble crush the man. "You're a Tainted." Fayt's body glows red and he retains his human form once again.

 

Alice snaps back to herself and looks towards Fayt. She asks, "What's...a Tainted?"

 

Fayt heads towards the confused woman and answers, "Tainteds are humans who sign contracts with The Evil Lord to gain some sort of power. In return, they lose their soul."

 

Alice looks upset and comments, "That's horrible."

Fayt helps her up, "Yes, but even humans can be worse then demons."

Alice suddenly remembers, "Oh! Anann! She needs help right away!"

The gentleman calms her down, "Calm yourself, she's fine." He walks over to the area Anann was and picks up a small black and white rabbit. 

Alice questions, "Is that..?"

"Yes, it's Anann. Once she exhausts herself she takes her animal form."

"A rabbit?" She asks.

"Yes." He answers.

"That's so cute! And what about you?" She asks once more.

"I'm a feline. Technically speaking, I'm a young domestic feline."

"You're a kitten?"

"Yes."

"That's adorable!"

"..."

 

The gentle demon hands Alice Anann to hold and walks over to a device that the man was using to create this alternate world. "What are you going to do?" She wondered.

He replied, "Get us out of here." He destroys the machine and the area before them melts away. They find themselves back in the building. "Here," Alice hands Fayt Anann. "Thank you." 

Light shines through the window behind them, the sun is rising and the hour of the demon horde is over for now. The key in the sky is becoming larger but the sunrise's beauty had them forget their worries for the time being. Fayt turns to Alice and asks, "How did you survive? How did you get here?"

Before she could answer arms from the darkness from the door behind her grab onto her and pull her away. Fayt tries to reach for her but they had pulled her into the darkness. "Damn it!" Fayt yells and jumps into the darkness with Anann asleep in his jacket.

 

Meanwhile, Alice, unconscious is being dragged to the depth of the darkness the coldest and most desolate. From the heart of this abyss was a strange world awaiting Alice.