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Somewhere deep beneath the ground, in a rocky cavern…

A metallic scent, thick enough that it could be sliced by a knife, drifted through the air of the cavern.

The cavern was a large one, big enough to fit an entire mountain.

Walls of the cavern shimmered with a faint light, barely enough to tell two things apart, as countless cracks ran down the walls. There were faint markings beneath the cracks, a series of images and glyphs depicting a story.

The ceiling had a tiny opening, giving the view of the starry sky up above. It also allowed some moonlight to spill in, illuminating the cavern underneath.

On the floor made up of cracked stone, countless glittering gems lay haphazardly like stars in the sky above, their worth enough to make even the most ascetic of monks bat an eye. Yet, they lay about on the floor like useless rocks. Some in piles, some dotted around about on their own whereas, others mixed with a layer of drying crimson-brown fluid.

Scratches and gashes which painted the floor and parts of walls were faintly visible within the moonlight, with one giant crater at the center of the room, directly under the hole in the ceiling, making it the most illuminated area in the room.

The crater was large enough that it would require at least thirty grown adults to hold hands and form a circle to cover its outermost perimeter. Its center was a pool of dripping crimson, filled by countless weapons protruding out of it — swords to halberds, axes to lances — all of which were pitch black, blending with the dark cavern, looking like a mural.

Beneath the pile of weapons lay a cold, unmoving body — A boy who appeared slightly older than ten. He was holding onto a broken black blade of its own. His long, lusterless black and white hair cascaded down his head, spreading all around him, covering the boy’s features. Underneath the layer of hair, bandages ran from his left ear to his chin, covering his left eye.

Abating sounds of roaring echoed in the background as the floor shook intermittently. A few moments later, following a series of ground-shaking thumps, the cave fell silent, like a grave with no visitors. Tranquility filled the cavern as the scene became still.

Suddenly, a voice pierced the silence, “Human brat, don’t die on me now! Stay Alive!”

The voice was high-pitched, almost resembling that of a kid of about seven. Yet it was hoarse due to overuse. While speaking, the voice almost cracked a few times, shaking the air along with its tremors.

The boy’s lips twitched a little in response, forming faint traces of a smile. In his moment of clarity, he cursed in his head, ‘Damn lizard, shut up for once. Like this wasn’t enough for you. Let me pass on to the other side in peace.’

His consciousness began growing fuzzy again as colors danced across his vision. Scenes from his past, at least what he could remember, drifted before his eyes.

‘I didn’t think I would be this calm before death. It’s much calmer than I imagined. I thought I would flail about or something. I did not expect it to end it this way though,’ the boy thought regretfully. After a bit, he sighed inwardly. ‘I knew death would come someday to hug me, eventually, but to think it’d be this soon…’

‘Damn it all. I wanted to do so much more, so much more. Well, I guess no use crying now. I’m sorry mother, I couldn’t keep my promise. I hope you can forgive me. Forgiveness is all I can ask for in the end. I am useless and unable to do a thing. Nothing at all, just like back then. Now that I think about it, maybe that fat baldy was right. I am a demon. I deserve to die. And with all I have done — rather, a lack of it — I do deserve it.’

The pupil of his good eye did not reflect any light as he heaved another inward sigh. After staring dazedly at nowhere, he continued ranting, ‘With me gone, now, it all can end. Though, for not long. That bastard still lives after all. I’m sure someone would take his head off someday. I’ll wait for him in the afterlife to kill him now, I guess.’

‘Now that I think, I don’t mind being dead either. It might not be as bad as people make it out to be. It feels awfully peaceful. Though, I just want to be spared the suffering,’ the boy sneered inwardly. ‘Though it might be too late for that now. Should’ve thought about it beforehand. A good few seasons late, heh. And I don’t really deserve that now, do I?’

With watery eyes, a self-mocking smile played on his face. Scenes from the past kept drifting before the boy’s eye as darkness gripped his neck, dragging him to the other side.

‘I guess this is the so-called last flashes of life. Now that I think, it hasn’t been that long since I woke up to this nightmare. At least, this is the last time I’ll be seeing it. I guess it is the best ending for me. Well, maybe not the best but not the worst either, I’d say.’

He closed his eye, reveling in his past for one last time as his breath gradually turned still.

I remember it all started when the air of the Emriticia Empire became dense with conflict when the previous emperor died at the hands of one of his closest officials, drowning the empire in chaos.

There were people fighting for power. Others were busy filling their greed at the cost of others. There were ones who killed masses to satisfy their own vanity as well. And then, there was me, a once harmless boy, who was foolish enough to be waiting for his parents to come home.

It was a seemingly pleasant day when my nightmare started. I woke up from a long slumber, only to end up in the living hell. Unable to move or scream, drowning in pain. The pain of having at least half the bones in my body broken. I tried to move my hands, but I met with nothing more than a numbness.

Later that day, my eye slowly opened as I met a wooden ceiling. It was old and time-worn, yet had enough in it to keep going for a while. A clock was ticking slowly in the background, while sounds of buzzing insects poured in through the window.

Following a good few hours of mental disorder about my condition, one thing suddenly struck out to me like a sore thumb. It picked me up from the turmoil of not knowing my situation and dropped me into an even deeper abyss, which only grew chaotic the more I tried to pry.

The trigger to all my suffering was a rather unassuming question that bears a weight heavier than it let on, picking me up from agony and dropping me into pits of despair. And by extension, my current situation. It was a few seasons ago, maybe even longer.

‘Who… who am I?’