[b]DAY 26: AM I THE LAST ONE HERE, OR THE LAST ONE LEFT TO FALL?[/b]

The king woke up with a strange feeling in his heart. There was something odd lingering in the air, almost like a miasma of some sort. He could sense that things weren't quite right and he raised his stiff body from his bed. Pale light came through the great windows and he was sure that it was morning. As soon as he managed to get up, he walked slowly to the windows and looked out for a while. The early signs of winter were in the air, in fact, there was some light snowfall already coming down from the heavens. He watched the delicate dance of the snowflakes for a while before he turned away from the windows and began to get dressed. When he was done with that, he made sure that he looked regal by staring at his reflection from the mirror, and after giving himself an approval, he started to make his way out of his chamber. The door shut behind him, and he didn't know, that this was the last time he would go through this door.

It wasn't unusual that he didn't meet anyone after arriving to the corridor. But as he moved further in to the heart of the castle with grace, he took another note that something odd was going on. His chamber was located in a tower and when he was descending the stairs, he hadn't seen a glimpse of anyone. No servants, soldiers, not even his own daughters. This was very strange and wrinkles of worry appeared on his already aged face. What could be possibly going on? He decided to investigate this matter.

The old king wandered around the castle like a forgotten ghost. He would occasionally call out, wishing to hear a response, but it turned around that it was just his own voice echoing in the empty halls. He visited many rooms, even the servant quarters and kitchen where he usually wouldn't go at all. The guest rooms, parlor, even the great hall and the throne room were all devoid of life. There was no sign of anyone, it clearly felt like he was the only person in the castle. But how could that be? Everything had been normal just a day ago. Puzzled and tired, he decided to retire to the throne room to think this over.

The throne room had a little rigid look. The floor was black and the huge windows on the sides let the pale light in, giving a glacial appearance as a whole. The throne itself was black with some golden ornamentals and it had sharp pointy decoration sticking out of it. The room seemed unwelcoming, and didn't really feel fitting for a kind-hearted king. He made his way to the throne and sat down, letting a heavy sigh from his mouth. He didn't know what to do. The only place he hadn't checked was outside. But he wasn't sure was he ready to venture out just yet. His old bones were aching. For a while he was sitting there in solitude.

Soon he got a visitor.

Something came through the double-doors that led to the throne room and the king looked at the monstrosity that had entered. It was a disgusting abomination, a seething mass of multiple conjoined bodies. It had pieces of armor here and there, and it was holding in its numerous hands quite an arsenal of weapons, such as sword, lance, axe and flail. It had many faces and they were all screaming in agony without a voice. In addition to all of this, the creature was covered in fresh blood. The king was very much terrified seeing this abomination coming through the doors, but there was no place where he could go. So he just sat on his throne, his hands grasping tightly the armrests.

What can you say when you're facing your inevitable death? The old king didn't know. He could only stare at the grotesque creature approaching him. Strangely, as the abomination came closer, the king could hear faint voices. They were crying, pleading for help, shouting in anger, wailing from agony. Were those the voices of all of his people? Suddenly it felt a little bit easier to accept his fate. At least he could join in with those close to him.

He had no idea where this hellish monster had come from. But as it pierced his chest with a bloody lance, he knew that this was the end of his reign. His kingdom had fallen. The cold steel had ruptured his heart, and his body went limp. Oddly, however, the voices became louder as his spirit was leaving his body, they were telling him to come to them. Little did he know that he would join a chorus of tormented souls, perpetually screaming in pain.

The creature devoured his body. The kingdom of the north was no more. Only the resentment of the consumed people lingered in the air for all eternity, as a grim reminder of the past.



[b]DAY 27: CURSE ME, HATE ME, HURT ME, KILL ME[/b]

Oh, my love, you are so handsome as ever! I can tell that even though a thick mist is veiling this cursed town. You're walking with confident steps to your home and I'm following you like a loyal shadow. You're aware of my presence, but whenever you glance behind you, you can't see me as I'll immediately find a place to hide. This is just a little game, you know, and I'm also a little shy. But I'll tag along the whole journey to your home and I'll follow you with my gaze until you disappear behind a door. I giggle a little to myself and I prepare to leave, heading to my own home. I can barely get any sleep because you are on my mind.

We see again when it's morning. The mist has faded almost completely and the sick light from the dead sun is brightening the corrupted world. I still wish to be near you, but you are somewhat annoyed, but no, I don't mind that. I'm still following you wherever you go, but I'm not hiding anymore. You are cursing, saying hurtful things to me, like you hate to see me and I should leave you alone. But in my ears, what you're saying is music. Please, talk to me more!

A couple of days goes by, and oh, my heart is bursting from love! I can't get enough of you, so I keep following you around, whether you see me or not. Sometimes you look so angry, so I have thought that it would be best to stay a little further away from you when you're having one of such days. But you're my love, my everything in this world, and I feel like dying when I can't be near you. Maybe I really should start to be around you more, so the pain would be gone. But oh, those angry eyes of yours… It seems like you're hating me? Please do, I can turn it into love! It's not a problem, really. I just want to be by your side and I can guarantee that I could be the love of your life! My mirror image thinks so too.

Oh darling, what is in your mind right now? You have been acting a little strange lately. Some days you're really silent and I feel horrible seeing you like that, it hurts my heart. And some days you're just so cold and wrathful. Something is troubling you, I can see that. Tell me what's wrong? I know that you're the silent strong guy type, but everyone needs a little help sometimes. What is the burden on your back? Maybe I can take a part of it so you don't have to carry the whole weight. Oh, seems like you don't want that… Why are you grasping my arm so tightly? It hurts, but if it eases your pain, I can take it. It is okay. Unleash your wrath on me so it won't rot your insides, especially your precious heart.

I can't believe the winter is here already, it has come early this year. Maybe your heart follows the northern winds and has grown cold because of that. You're having so much hatred in your eyes, it makes me sad. If only I could make everything better for you, I would, but you keep pushing me away. I know, you're just bad at showing affection, it's okay, I understand. But I will be here for you for as long as you need.

Should we watch the snowfall together? It can be quite mesmerizing and induces serenity. It's one of the few beautiful things this world got to offer. So here we are, side by side, watching the snow calmly fall.

Hmm? What is that thing you have in your hand? It's a knife with a blade black as night. It's beautiful. Then you stabbed me at my chest. Tears of sorrow blinds me. I can feel you stabbing me repeatedly, the blade pierces my skin and flesh and drinks my blood. I have always understood you and so I do now. You're absolutely right, our love can't possibly blossom in this dark, horrible, corrupted world. We need to release our spirits so we can join in together in the afterlife and be together forever. You're being very considerate, making me go first so I don't have to watch you die.

I start to feel weak. I collapse on the frozen ground and my blood stains it. I can feel that end in near, everything is getting engulfed by darkness. But I hold no fear in my heart. I know we will see each other soon in a better place. Let me go first, I'll see you around on the other side.

I love you.



[b]DAY 28: I CAN SEE THROUGH THE TEARS BUT ALL I SEE IS RED[/b]

It was a great calamity. The city had lived decades in peace until this destruction struck it and suddenly everything had succumbed to chaos. Many lives were lost as the huge space ship crashed down. Buildings collapsed, there were huge metal chunks everywhere and fires were raging all around the city. It was like a doomsday to these unfortunate people who had to suffer through this. So great was the devastation that the skies were burning as well, and a crimson atmosphere surrounded the whole area. Sun's light could barely be seen through the fires of the sky, but few clouds still dotted the sky. The already barren landscape looked like a wasteland, much more than before; the sands, the cliffs and rocks, they were all reddish as well. That day, this land seemed like a hell on earth.

One young man was walking calmly through the burning land. He had been in a safe distance away from the city when the destruction happened, but now he was heading to its direction. He had watched how the great space ship had crashed and burned everything, and he had a strong feeling about who was responsible for all of this mess. But was his hunch right, that's what he wanted to figure out.

He was wearing a special kind of armor that protected him from the heat, so he wasn't worried that the flames would hurt him. His right arm had been surgically removed long time ago and had been replaced with a prosthetic one, which had long blades in the place of fingers, and thus, could be used as a weapon. Around his chest, there was a round part that looked like it was made of glass. It was like a window to his heart, except that he had no heart, it had been removed as well. All that remains was just blackness inside.

The man kept walking among the wreckage of the space ship, witnessing many horrific scenarios. Bodies and parts of them laying here and there, survivors with horrible injuries such as burns and lacerations, children who had lost their parents… It wasn't easy to observe all this. That's why he could feel tears forming in his eyes and he walked among the victims crying for them. He wanted to find the one responsible and make her pay for her crimes, if she hadn't already perished during the destruction.

He focused on examining the pieces of the space ship, because that's where he would find her. And he was in luck, because he spotted a familiar figure stumbling out from a piece of wreckage. She seemed a bit disoriented and she had a huge wound on her arm, along with some bruises and ash on her face. She looked around, being a little confused, when her eyes landed on the young man. Her look was dull for a moment, but then she realized who she was facing and immediately her expression turned hostile. She watched how the man approached her, tears and hate in his eyes.

This was the person who had mutilated his body. It was her space ship that had crashed and caused all this chaos, costing probably hundreds of lives. And still she had the nerve to be alive, she should have died along with her vessel. She had also tormented multiple people in the past, changing their bodies, robbing their identities, just like what she had done to him. But he wasn't really pitying himself here, it was what she had done to all the others that made him feel immense hatred. He looked at his mechanical hand for a moment, moving the finger blades. Then he shifted his gaze back at her.

“What are you waiting for?” she said mockingly, as she could see his intentions reflecting from his eyes. “Just kill me already, coward!”

She didn't have to tell him twice. He took few steps closer to her and prepared his weaponized hand for a strike. Hatred guiding his hand, he thrusted forward and the blades went through her neck. She made a gurgling sound as the blades tore apart her throat. Blood was gushing from her mouth, and it was staining the man's mechanical hand as well. She hadn't probably expected this, that the weapon she had created would turn out to be her demise. She choked on her own blood and her body collapsed to the red ground.

The young man watched her lifeless body for a while. He didn't really feel better, not yet at least. But now he had avenged the deaths of hundreds of people. May they rest in peace knowing that the one whose fault the chaos was is now dead and hopefully destined to go to hell. He looked at the burning city, deciding that he would help as many people as he could. That would be his new purpose in life. So, he abandoned the body of the wicked woman and started his new chapter.



[b]DAY 29: STARING AT THE BULLET BEAST POINTING HIS GUN[/b]

Their small expedition team had been wandering in a deserted part of the planet. The terrain was pretty much just a wasteland of grey sand which the strong gusts of wind were blowing constantly and it was almost completely devoid of natural sunlight, the sky was enveloped in everlasting darkness. But was it possible for anything to survive in such desolate place? That was what the group was trying to clear up. So far their journey had turned out to be futile. There hadn't really been any signs of life, but there was still a lot of area to check. The group had kept going and eventually, they did discover something.

It was like a door of some sort, or more like its frame. It seemed to be an entrance to some facility that possibly was underground, judging from the placement. The group did check the records from their devices that was there any data of a facility being in here. But they found nothing. The curiosity guided them and they decided to investigate the place. With slight twist, the door opened with a horrid screech and the team went inside. The door shut behind them and little did they know, this was the last time they would see the outside world.

They came to a dark corridor, which was to be expected. It was leading to nothingness, there was nothing but darkness ahead. The team turned their lights on and began to investigate, although there wasn't much to see – yet. The darkness felt unnatural somehow and the atmosphere felt heavy and ominous, it really brought ghost stories into their minds. The sound of their footsteps was the only thing they could hear, however, few of the members could swear that they were hearing breathing sounds. Nonetheless, they kept going deeper and deeper into the facility.

The place turned out to be quite a network of tunnels. The team found abandoned laboratories and various rooms for other functions such as storage and even a place where some animals had been held. What the people had researched here? Something had clearly gone wrong, badly. There were numerous odd signs talking about the fate of the facility; huge claw marks on the walls, broken equipment, ripped cords, cages that were forcefully crushed, stains of blood here and there… Even weird round marks that looked like big bullet holes. These were unsettling things that the team took as a warning, something was clearly telling them that they should get out, now. Something evil was hiding in here somewhere and they didn't want to meet that thing. Even the bravest of the group were feeling extremely anxious at this point and so they decided to leave. Things that want to be forgotten should be left alone.

But it was already too late for them.

Something big was staring at the team. It had moved without making any noise, so nobody had heard or seen it coming. But there it was, standing tall in the darkness, measuring them with its green glowing eyes. The whole team was frozen with fear, their lights pointed right at the monster. It was a huge bipedal creature with mainly white fur, though some spots were bald. It had a ripped snout with monstrous teeth sticking out and it was drooling quite a bit. Oddly, its legs were covered in black scales, and it was swinging its tail like if it was a whip. It had huge claws in its right hand but in the left hand it had a big gun. At that moment, the group knew exactly what had happened in this facility.

They had to get out.

And so they ran, it was the only thing they could do. A hollow roar echoed in the tunnels as the hunt was on. But soon they realized that it was futile, because the beast was faster than they were. It could use its huge claws in frighteningly effective manner and mowed down the members of the team one by one, and those that were too far ahead, it shot them with incredible accuracy. It was clearly programmed with a sadistic nature, as it didn't intend to kill the people too quickly, it was letting them bleed out. It would wait a little, watching them suffer and lose their blood until it decided that it was time for them to die. Then the abomination would tear apart when they were just barely still alive, making a gruesome killing blow.

The beast would then devour their bodies, leaving nothing behind. After that, it would continue to patrol the facility, like it had done since it had broken out of captivity and turned against the researchers that had created it. This was its nest now and it would kill again whenever a next curious soul would dare to step into this dark world.



[b]DAY 30: I PLAY THE GAME OF PIERCING FEAR, IS THIS THE ONLY SOUND I'LL EVER HEAR?[/b]

He hadn't expected that an ordinary day would turn out to be his last. It had been just bad luck. He had entered a convenience store just like he had done so many times before, thinking nothing of it. But that day, he had been in a wrong place at wrong time. There had been a robber that day, completely unexpectedly, and he had been the one who got shot by an intimidation bullet. It had got through his heart and he died at the store. He left behind a messy apartment and a cat, what a poor thing. He hadn't had really social life, but maybe his parents would grieve his sudden passing.

What happens after death? He hadn't really thought about it. But what happened to him was definitely something that he hadn't expected at all. He had found himself from a manor of some sort. He had examined his own body and came to the conclusion that he was still the same, wearing same clothes and he still had a bleeding wound on his chest. Then he had focused on observing his surroundings. There was no one to be seen and the silence felt heavy. He could swear that he was in a foyer, but there were no doors. There were no windows, either. That was strange: how had he ended up in here if there was no way in or out? He looked around, noting that everything seemed to be tidy and all the objects looked rather old. It seemed like that somebody could live in here, but there still was no one around. But he noticed that there were stairs leading to upper floor; maybe he could find somebody from there? It's not like he could do anything in here. He walked to the stairs and began his ascension.

As he climbed up, he started to hear a weird ringing noise in his ears. It was annoying, but he could ignore it, as he was more focused on his task at hand. Eventually he found himself from a long corridor with endless rows of doors. This place seemed to get weirder and weirder by the minute. He glanced behind him, but now the way he had come from was blocked: a wall had appeared. His gaze shifted back to the doors. It would take ages to check them all. But he didn't have any choice. A bit reluctantly, he began his daunting mission.

He found nothing from behind the first few doors, but the rooms had been decorated like they had been prepared for guests. He wondered why was that. Then he opened a door that led to another such room, but something hit him, it was like a cold shower had washed over him, but he could only see darkness. It passed in seconds, but he could hear a strange sound that resembled laughter. It did make his shot heart beat faster, and he just stood there for a while, gasping for breath. The ringing in his ears became louder after this event and it irritated him. Soon he recovered and continued opening the doors.

A moment passed by and he had found nothing. But strangely, when he was getting closer to yet another door, the ringing became really loud and was giving him great headache. He didn't realize yet that this was a warning and went ahead and opened the door. Darkness hit him in the face once more and something scratched his arm, making deep bleeding wounds. Then the dark entity was gone. He touched his fresh wound, his fingertips getting red. It was odd that this was hurting him and the gunshot wound wasn't. He hadn't fully figured out the rules of this place yet, but he was getting there.

It took him another incident before he fully comprehended how things worked around here. The ringing in his head had got louder when he was at a door that would open to a room where this shadow creature was waiting for him, ready to strike. This time it had clawed his leg, leaving heavily bleeding wounds. He was gritting his teeth from pain, but he could still move.

This was some twisted little game, he had thought. He had to open doors so he could hopefully find a way out of this place, but he had to avoid the doors whenever the ringing in his head would get louder. After understanding the rules, he was doing well, and didn't have nasty surprises for a while.

But whoever was behind this messed up game, they were clearly a sore loser as they began to change the rules.

It didn't matter if the noise stayed more quiet, she shadow entity would still appear from behind some doors, slashing him. Eventually he was having lacerations all over his body and he was in agony. In addition, the ringing noise in his head started to be constantly so loud it was making him insane. He was afraid and frustrated and desperate. In the end he became a sobbing, bloody mess on the floor. What had he done to deserve this? He just wanted it all to stop, he didn't want to exist anymore. He didn't want to keep opening the doors, he could only find more pain.

His consciousness did fade in the end, a comforting darkness embraced him. He forgot all the bad things that had happened here.

He woke up again in a foyer. He looked around, wondering where he was. It seemed like he was in some sort of manor.



[b]DAY 31: YOU CAN SEE GOD WHEN I TAKE MY MASK OFF[/b]

Sanlin had met Nanrie very unexpectedly, but he couldn't have possibly imagined what kind of person Nanrie truly was. Sanlin got ambushed by a group of bandits, and even though he was a swordsman with great skill, he was badly outnumbered, being the only one against six. Then Nanrie had appeared and lent him the helping hand he desperately needed in order to get out of that bad situation. Working together, they managed to defeat the bandits and they fled like kicked mongrels. Ever since that faithful day, Sanlin and Nanrie had traveled together, wandering from place to place and helping people.

But Sanlin had never seen Nanrie's face. He was always wearing a mask. Sanlin had learned to not to ask about it and let his companion have his secrets, but he admitted that he was curious about it. Little did he know, that such day would come when he would see what's behind the mask.

That day had been just like any other. The men had been walking through woodlands and Sanlin had noticed that Nanrie had been more silent than usual. He wondered what was on his companion's mind, but hadn't dared to make up a conversation about it. It wasn't until Nanrie signaled him to stop when he started his questioning.

“What's wrong?” Sanlin asked.

“Come. Follow me.”

That's all the other man said and he slightly changed his direction, not even making sure that Sanlin was following him. Sanlin was a bit puzzled by this, but went after his companion anyway. He found it to be a little odd that Nanrie was knowing exactly where he was going, as if he was really familiar with this forest. It didn't take them long to reach the tree line and the men found themselves on a small cliff. The view was really nice, they could see how the woods would pitch down and then turn into fields, and a bit further down there was a small town resting.

After admiring the view for a short moment, Sanlin spoke again: “Why are we here?”

“Just wait.”

It was everything the other man said. So Sanlin waited. For a moment they just watched the motionless landscape and its beauty, the wind blowing gently. Sun was shining beautifully, blessing the land below it. 

Until it suddenly disappeared. Sanlin's gaze focused on the sky and he noted that something strange was starting to going on. Dark clouds had gathered from nothing and blocked the sunlight. They only grew darker and darker, until they were almost black. The gentle wind had turned into a piercing gale. Then, few huge blue beams of light penetrated through the dark clouds and whenever they pointed, a fire would break out. Fields and trees and the buildings of the town would catch blue fire and even from this distance Sanlin could hear the terrified screams of people. He was stunned by all of this as it all felt like an end of the world.

“Did you know about this?” Sanlin asked from his companion.

“It was a town of great sinners. They deserve a punishment.” Nanrie was watching the destruction in such a calm manner in spite of his hidden face that Sanlin felt a bit disturbed.

“Who are you exactly?”

It was a question Sanlin should have asked long time ago. Dreadfully slowly Nanrie shifted his gaze at him and just stared at him for a second. Then he began to do something he hadn't done ever before: taking off his mask. Deliberately he took a hold of his disguise and removed it. Sanlin was shocked to see what lied beneath.

Nanrie's face was like a void. It was pitch-black and there were hundreds of sparkling things in there, like stars in the sky. With closer inspection, Sanlin realized that they were eyes. Now he understood why Nanrie had been covering his face. This was a sight that wasn't meant for the eyes of mortals. Sanlin himself was having a strange feeling like his consciousness was slipping away, and if something was yanking his soul. He couldn't stand to look at Nanrie's face much longer so he looked away.

“I am a god of justice”, Nanrie spoke. “It is my duty to punish mortals who have gone against the will of gods. What you're witnessing here is an illustration of my power.”

Sanlin didn't know what to say. To him, the destruction seemed cruel, but if it was the will of the gods, then he had just to accept it.

“Would you like to be my servant?”

In disbelief, Sanlin glanced back at the god. Could you really refuse such offer? Could you really defy a god? But then again, Nanrie wasn't really a malicious person. They had traveled together, worked together as a team, and Sanlin had got quite attached to him. Would their life really be that different? He pondered about it for a moment.

“I will.”

He surrendered himself fully to Nanrie. But he hadn't expected the god's next move. Suddenly Nanrie took a hold of Sanlin's shoulders, grasping them tightly. From the void of his face, few tentacles appeared and they invaded Sanlin's face by going in through his mouth and nostrils, and popped his eyes out, infiltrating the sockets as well. They invaded his brain, leaving small diamond-like objects in there, and after this deed, the tentacles retreated, disappearing back into the void where they had come from.

What was left behind was a husk of a man. His brain was now in full control of Nanrie. The god put his mask back on, and started to make his leave, the mindless man following him, ready to obey every single command.