Hal was right, if she hasn’t complained then I have my answer. At least that’s what I told myself two weeks later. It was the night before our wedding and yet I hadn’t seen either of them once. A disturbing sign for sure, but I was confident that Eris would choose the best for herself.

“I guess we’re both the same … you’re bound to the land just as we are.” I remembered her words from our last conversation. Realizing that we were the same, that we were both born into a role that we must fulfill, gave me the courage to arrange this. If Eris could not be happy with the role she was given, then I’ll give her a new one with me. I smiled and glanced at the full moon rising into the sky.

“Tomorrow will work out.” I reassured myself quietly. Although, that was not enough to calm my nerves. I continued to stare out of my window until the moon crawled beyond my frame’s view. I had been expecting to sleep and so my candles were already out. Now, without moonlight, it was pitch black.

Suddenly, I felt numb. I moved my hands in front of my face but it was too dark; I could not see them. A wave of pain fell over me and forced me to my knees. It quickly evolved into a torrent that wracked my body and mind. I fell to the floor in agony. Screaming was impossible, any sound I made was instantly swallowed by the darkness. Little by little, that pain was replaced with the numbness from earlier. After that, I lost my sense of touch entirely.

With no sense for my body, I began to thrash around desperately in the darkness. I heard a candle fall from my bedside table. Then I thrust my arms forward and heard the table clamor as it fell on its side. Encouraged, I moved to where the door should be and grabbed the handle. Opening the door was surprisingly easy. I stepped into the hallway where there was still a sliver of moonlight. Hesitating, I extended my hand to the light. A thin, hazy silhouette of a hand appeared before me. It quickly faded out under the moon’s glare.

What was that? I began to panic. My hand, or what appeared to be my hand, just vanished in front of me. I couldn’t tell what was worse, it’s appearance or the fact that I didn’t feel a thing. I thrust my body into the moonlight. For a brief moment I observed the arms, legs and body of my shadowy figure until they vanished as well. It couldn’t be more clear: this body was made of darkness. A shadow effigy of my original form. Innumerable thoughts and concerns filled my head. However, one stood above all others: I can’t get married like this.

I stepped back and felt my fragmented body reform in the shadows. It had to be a dream. As I wrestled any other notions out of my mind one memory came at me like a left hook: that eyeball in the basement. I had already seen something impossible, something with a body as strange as my own. A being that had been created by a certain family. I stole myself away from the manor and sprinted through the night. Leaving was easy, doors don’t have much of an effect in my current form. The only danger was the moonlight. Despite my best efforts, I couldn’t cross through any well-lit area. So instead I carefully wove my way through the shadows of trees and buildings until I came to Hal’s home.

Yes, you see, I am no fool. Why would I return to that derelict manor when the source of this curse is here in the town? There’s no need to explain the motive, it’s all obvious. I stepped through his walls as easily as one passes through a curtain and found him sleeping soundly. My blackened fingers wound themselves around his throat but I hesitated. Then I shifted my hands to his shoulders and shook him awake.

“Eh, What?” He swatted through air, passing straight through my chest, while half asleep. “Who’s there?”

“Who else?”

Hal looked around but there was no one to see.

“Why don’t you take a closer look?” I grabbed a candle from his bedside table and lit it. With no small effort I forced my face into the light and grinned. Why did I grin? Somehow the desire to scare him came naturally to me. And scare it did, Hal let out an abhorrent shriek and fell out of his bed.

“W-W-What? William!? Is that you?” He stammered. I nodded and then extinguished the candle.

“As I said, who else would it be? Crawling into your room in the dead of night like a beast into a chicken roost, like a snake into a den, like an illness into a man. There’s no one else but me, I assume, who would be such a monster.” Even with this wretched body, I felt a surge of emotions. My legs shook and my hands trembled. Despite my great pride I found myself one step away from a breakdown.

“Where are you?” Hal asked in a hushed tone. Fortunately, he could not see the pain he had caused me.

“Why did you do this? Did you really curse me just to get Eris back!?”

“Do what? What happened? Light the candle again, I can’t see you at all.”

“Really? You don’t see this!?” I lunged forward and gripped his face in my hand.

“Ouch! Stop! How are you doing that?” He flailed desperately but his hands could only pass through me.

“Why did you do this!? It’s your family that owned that house! There’s no one else who could turn me into a demon.”

“Mmmrgh!” Hal couldn’t speak while I held him down.

“…And with this timing as well, you…you must have done it.” I suddenly felt an ugly nostalgia. It was from the last time I spoke with Hal, when he learned about the wedding.

“I just realized how rehearsed our lines sound … We both knew this was going to happen, maybe not consciously though.”

As I said before, I am no fool. I had known, not entirely consciously, that there was another person who could be responsible. Who was responsible. I just couldn’t allow myself to think it.

“Why did she do this to me?” I whimpered. Then I lifted my hand off of Hal and stood up.

“William, *cough* where are you going? You-*cough*” Hal fell into a coughing fit.

“I don’t know, Hal.” At this point, both fear and rage had subsided. Now, I was truly exhausted. I knew I couldn’t confront Eris; I couldn’t even speak to her before the wedding. I could never hate her for this even if I wanted to.

“William, I don’t know what happened but don’t just disappear.” Hal called into the darkness but it was too late, I was already gone. I dragged myself back to the derelict manor, it was the only place I could think to go.

What was I expecting? Maybe there was a cure or a reversible formula neatly written out. There might be a demon that would fix me for a price. Maybe if I hid for a while I would wake up as my old self. I entertained none of these hopes but I still slipped through the mansion doors. It was empty, as expected.

“I remember you…” A familiar voice whispered. I whirled around, searching for its source. “You’re dark now, no light.”

“No-light.”

“A no-light one.”

“Like us?”

“Different.”

“Human form.”

“No-light is special.”

“Not trash like us.”

An eyeball appeared and I stumbled back in surprise. Other body parts materialized around it until a full person stood before me. Although, I hesitate to call him a person since I could see right through him. He, I assume, was a transparent creature of patchwork: an adult form with features, skin and proportions that varied greatly.

“No-light, what are you seeking here?” it asked me with a single voice.

“…I don’t know what I am or why I became like this.” I chose to answer him candidly. “I just want to be myself again.”

“Most of us have a similar wish. But we will always be demons, our forms have almost entirely faded. Ever since we were cursed by this family we have been fading.” The being wore a deadpan expression. In fact, it had been standing without moving at all, until it mentioned a family. Then its brow furrowed and its lips bent into a frown.

“I’m the same, I think.”

“No, you’re different. Far different.” It shook its head. “An entirely different breed of demon, made with a different curse from that family.”

“Then-”

“I do not have much time to talk with you, no-light. We fear that our end will come very soon. Many others have vanished from this mansion recently.”

“Will…Will I fade out as well?” I hesitated to ask, unsure if I could accept the answer.

“In time, without sustenance. Our kind survives on the light from others, we will die without it.”

“I’ll die?” Me, the son of the lord? The one who was watched carefully by servants and guards even in adolescence? I had never once considered that my destiny could end here.

“Do you wish to avoid fading?”

“I want to return to normal!” My shout reverberated through the mansion. “I can’t become a demon; I have to inherit my father’s position.”

“Then I have a solution. We are fading but there are still many of us. If you eat us with the intention to become more human, then it may happen.”

“E-eat you? I thought demons ate light or something.”

“We can also eat each other. In fact, many prefer to eat their kin.” Its features twisted and shook until they settled into a smile. “We were made to be fodder for sorcerers and their other, superior, creations. If we are to die soon, then this would be a better way to use our lives.”

“Stop, I can’t do such a horrible thing.” Pride, decency and everything I had been raised to believe told me to reject this insane proposal. Yet despite this, I licked my lips. When he mentioned eating, my body showed a clear reaction.

“Please.”

“We want to choose.”

“We can die here.”

“Help us.”

“You want to be human?”

“Don’t let them win.”

“Wretched family.”

“I don’t want to help them.”

“We are the last ones.”

“Fading…”

“We’ll become part of a greater being.”

“Process is simple.”

“Don’t leave us.”

“Profiting from us.”

“Forgotten our lives.”

“Confined to this house.”

“Hungry.”

“Light.”

“Pain.”

“Wretched girl…”

“No-light, please.”

“Eat us.”

“Free us.”

“Save us.”

“It hurts.”

“No more.”

“No-light.”

“What is it you want? We want to become a part of you.”

The cacophony rang out through the mansion. I covered my ears but it was no use. All the while the being in front of me stood expressionless, however those voices were anything but. They were filled with the rage and sorrow that I had felt so recently. I remembered that this family had not been practicing magic for many generations. How long had these spirits lived in this lonely place?

“…Fine. If it will help both of us, then I will eat you.” After all, I couldn’t give up on becoming human again.

“He chose!”

“Thank you!”

“Thank you, no-light.”

“How wonderful!”

“I’ll miss all of you.”

“It is our time.”

“Do it quickly.”

“Before they win.”

“Eat us.”

“Vile sorcery.”

“Become strong.”

“Become greater than them.”

“…Thank you.” The main body spoke once more. A faint smile reappeared on its face.

“So, uh, how does this work now? Do I actually have to…you know?” Accepting this grotesque being in front of me was difficult enough. If I actually had to bite into him then I’d have to rethink this.

“It is all about intention. You must view us as nourishment and then open your mouth. I will do the rest.”

It sounded a little ominous but I did as he said. Viewing him as food was surprisingly easy, I could only assume it was a side-effect of my demonic body. Then I opened my mouth and he began to glow.

“Ah almost fohgot, what ish your name?” I spoke while keeping my mouth open as wide as I could. The idea of him disappearing without a name didn’t sit well with me.

“There were many people who were turned into monsters. Only nine of us are left now. Our names aren’t important; we’ve already forgotten them.”

The light surrounding the man began to flow into me. With every passing second he grew fainter. Meanwhile, I felt a wave of pleasure pass through me. This feeling wasn't linked to a sensation of taste, but he could only be described as delicious. Finally, the man completely faded from view. There was nothing left of him, besides what was inside me. I certainly felt different, bu my demonic form hadn't changed at all. Then, for the second time that night, my exhaustion pounced on me. I quickly fell asleep and didn't open my eyes until the next afternoon.