Considering everything that has transpired. All the pain, death, and inexplicable horror. Jake didn't even flinch as the furry creature spoke to him in a low, throaty voice. After all, his mind was already in tatters from trying, and failing to connect the dots. Wasted effort, because the whys and hows mean so much less when coming to terms with your own mortality. Sure the pain was gone now, but the memory remained strong. Over in an instant, yet Jake could recall every minute detail. A spiral cut spear entering his chest, ripping through muscle and tendon. Pulverizing vital organs into a fine mist as the sharpened appendage jutted out from the opposing side. Right where the mysterious cat was sitting oddly enough. As a child his grandmother explained that angels appeared when life reaches its end. A warmth in the cold, easing pain, erasing suffering, all so their souls could enter the eternal paradise anew. Hopefully she saw something better than a mangy old cat.
"Huh..?"
The black cat tilted his head, "Oh please… I can't be the strangest thing you've seen today."
"Am I.. dead? Is this some kind of hallucination?"
"Luckily for both of us," The Black Cat's tail swayed from side to side, "You're still alive, though hanging by a thread would be a gross understatement of your current condition."
The strange animal wasn't simply speaking as its mouth never moved. Yet he heard each and every word, as though it were being directly interjected into his mind. Telepathy, if his time playing fantasy RPGs taught him anything. And while the cat's speaking voice was certainly ethereal in nature. Jake couldn't shake the feeling that something was off. It seemed distant, echoing as the responses fed his stream of consciousness. Words interrupted with the crackle of something akin to static at pure random. Like he was picking up interference on a radio signal.
"An understatement? What's that supposed to mean?" Jake piped up after mustering what little strength remained. Sitting upright, causing the mysterious cat to hop off his chest with a graceful leap.
"Exactly what I said," The feline narrowed its eyes as it planted itself down directly in front of the young man, "You're nothing more than an ember of life. Burning out as your body rots away in that nasty hallway."
"Huh? Wait, what does that mean..?"
"You're talking to a cat while floating in an endless space. Trust me boy, trying to grasp it all at once is a fool's errand."
The amber eyed cat stretched out its long body, before turning on heel to trot down an unseen path. Tail swishing from side to side, and it didn't seem like they were going to stop any time soon. "H-Hey wait!" Ryan exclaimed as he scrambled to his feet, though his knees buckled, stumbling forward. "Gah… crap why do I feel so weak…"
"It's because you're dying," The cat called while looking over its shoulder, "I thought I made that perfectly clear."
"Dying…" Saying it out loud didn't make it seem any more possible. And though the talking cat had a point on that front. He still had questions, lots of them in fact. Though his limbs felt like they were wading through water, Ryan soon fell into a pace that would allow him to stay within earshot of the mysterious cat, "If I'm… Dying, how am I here? And where is here exactly?"
Ryan just couldn't make sense of anything. He was walking, but there was no floor yet the traction felt like any other floor he'd ever stepped foot on. The dark cat laughed, "I told you trying to understand it would be difficult."
"T-Try me?" Ryan asked with a soft, awkward chuckle.
"Alright… Some call it the gateway, others would call it purgatory. But I know it as the void."
"Seems fitting enough…"
"The void is a realm separate from any other. Time and space do not apply here. Or rather the concept of past and future do not exist. A dimension at the mercy of whoever inhabits it," The furry creature stopped and gave Ryan a cheeky smile. As if to silently ask him if he was catching all this information. Knowing full well that he had hardly processed a single word of it, "And right now a crack in your reality has allowed the void to spill into your world… and I need your help to fix it."
"How do you expect… wait," Ryan had to double take to make sure. But his vision was fine, in the blink of an eye during the pair's conversation. The void, as the cat referred, was suddenly replaced with the halls of his school, "How did we get here?"
"The void is a realm of immense power. Power that can be extremely dangerous when it's fallen into the wrong hands." The mysterious cat continued down the corridor. Ryan followed after, the walls clean and pristine slowly became a blood soaked tapestry. Dripping down the smooth surface, pooling on the floor in puddles of crimson. Though the cat was unbothered, stepping through them and leaving bloody pawprints on the tiles not soaked in red. The lights above them flickered the closer they came towards the end of the tunnel. Sparking off for no longer than five seconds before turning back on.
"Hey-- answer me!" Ryan stopped dead in his tracks. They were back at the trophy case and there he saw himself. Lifeless eyes staring back at him, hands limp at his side. And where the shadow had stabbed him, a gaping hole leaking red water from every direction.
"If I waste my time answering each and every question on your mind. This is what you will remain." The cat hissed as it stood on the opposite end of his own mangled corpse. Almost screeching out the words coinciding with a deep, rumbling passing over the school. Ryan braced, but no rubble or anything of the like came loose to harm him. Yet the cat was no longer standing next to the body. Instead, perched atop Ryan's left shoulder, paw pushing into the side of his face. "Do you want to live? Yes or no?"
Ryan hesitated, and the world seemingly reacted. As another tremor rocked the surrounding area. Newly formed cracks in the walls gave way to a sickly, black ooze. Cascading downward, enveloping everything it passed over. Until none of the original surface could be seen. The tar-like substance pooled on the floor, completely coating that as well. Growing, until even the gruesome reflection of his mangled corpse was erased.
"H-Huh what, what is this!?"
"Answer me!" The cat demanded, mouth open baring his sharpened teeth. Nothing from the school was visible any longer. Consumed by the darkness, and it was slowly pulling Ryan down into the depths as well, "Hurry!"
Ryan used to think that he didn't care if he lived or died. After all it'd mean one less argument with his mom about her habits. One less day dealing with people who'd never really understand what he was going through. One less day where he'd cry himself to sleep on an empty stomach because money used for food meant one less dose. But when faced with his own mortality, he felt afraid, his chest beating, throat dry, hyperventilating. Sweat poured down the sides of his face.
"I…" The ooze had pulled him into the darkness like quicksand. Everything from his waist down was gone. And the mysterious cat hopped onto the top of his head. Hissing as the void continued its consumption. "I-I want to live!"
"Finally!" The cat wasted no time, claws drawn, it drove them deep into Ryan's scalp. Painfully sliding its two hands in opposite directions, carving into the man's head, "This isn't ideal. My connection to this realm is shaky."
The feline peaked out, its face upside down in Ryan's vision, "That hurt?"
"Obviously!"
"Well get ready, that's the price of living."
The void was nearly finished with Ryan. Now it was everything below his shoulders. He strained, but there was no chance he could break free from its strangle hold. Curiously enough, it wasn't painful as the ooze enveloped him. Only a soft warmth which draped his physical form, like a soft blanket on a cold night. If it wasn't for the throbbing pain from his head, curtsy of the cat, he might have fallen asleep. The liquid bubbled up near his lips, he took as much oxygen into his lungs as he could muster before succumbing completely. The mysterious cat, leaping off at the last second, and then there was nothing once more.
"AHHHH!"
Ryan screamed so hard he felt like his throat was going to tear. He was back at the scene of his own death. Body carved up with tiny fragments of shimmering glass. And as he looked down, a gaping hole punched straight through his chest. This wasn't a dream, the pain was all too real. Instinctively he reached for the wound, grabbing at it as if to see if it was really there. It was, and so was the monster creeping towards Martin across the hall. Using the tips of its spear like arms to shamble towards him.
"Ryan!" Martin called out as his back hit a solid wall. In his haste and shock, he'd backed himself into a corner of the hallway only housing a decorative plant and a fire extinguisher. He desperately searched the surrounding area for a way out of any kind. But there was only one way, and that was through the horrific creature.
"I.. I have to do something!" Ryan said through clenched teeth. Pain, seething anger at his inability to do anything, it all melded together into one all encompassing feeling. Frustrating beyond measure, Ryan squeezes his fingers only to gasp. Aside from tugging on his own innards accidentally, there was something else. A solid mass, the size of a large stone lodged deep within flesh. Smooth surface, rounded, and while it could have been a piece of his ribs or other bone. This seemed different, why he wasn't quite sure but he knew it as though it were fact.
"Have you ever heard the phrase, fighting one's inner demons?"
Ryan knew that voice, the cat again. Spoken with the same ethereal haze.
"This is similar, although taken a bit literally."
A wave of weakness hit Ryan, who choked out a mouthful of blood.
"Grab hold and pull. You'll die otherwise."
A dying croak left the young man's lips, faced with no alternative. He latched onto the mysterious mound and started to pull. Spurts of crimson followed, as a disgustingly wet sound was made from the object dislodging from his meat. The air was pushed out from his lungs, Ryan couldn't even scream, nothing came out.
"This isn't how I wanted this to go. But remember Ryan, you asked me for this."
The foreign object was on the cusp of separating, blood gushing from the corners. With one last push, Ryan yanked it from his wound, a football sized jetblack lump with a few strings of tendon hanging off. But he was unable to make out much more as the dark sphere shattered into a thousand tiny shards. Cascading in a dazzling array of glittering light, absorbing into his skin as the light fragments came down.
The creature stopped in place, head twisting a full one hundred, and eighty degrees. The air itself seemed to thicken with a cold mist, then without warning Ryan once more released a guttural shriek. Every facet of his body was on fire. Skin wriggling as the very bones within squirmed, undergoing some kind of fundamental alteration. The young man could only writhe in pain as his body reformed. An all encompassing burn took hold, as thousands upon thousands of jagged shards pushed out from underneath his skin. There was no rhyme or reason as to where the spikes surfaced. They grew, multiplied, sprouting up like weeds. Ryan sat up, dread taking hold as he watched his arms turn into a glittering pincushion.
"A..Ah--" His voice was stolen, as a mass of crystalline material entered from underneath his chin, nailing his jaw firmly to the roof of his mouth. Adrenaline fueled his veins, even as they leaked to the outside. He bent his knees, snapping a few overgrown blades. Falling to the floor as Ryan stood for the first time. But the pain only amplified, pushing the protrusions further into his flesh. A muffled cry barely came out, as he clasped his face, this wasn't his body any longer, it was a sick nightmare.
Glass crunched loudly, by the time Ryan noticed it was too late-- a spiral spear drilled into his abdomen. He staggered, only prevented from falling backwards by a second knife-like pole slamming through his shoulder blade. The hideous, multi-eyed monster threw him into an adjacent classroom. Knocking the door off the hinges, with a hardwood desk softening Ryan's landing. His vision was muddled, as the blood from any sliver of glass-like material shooting out from the top of his head bled downward.
Though hard to make out, he noticed that the same spears he'd been stabbed with were still with his body. Ripped, or snapped off the creature as he was sent flying into the next room. But strangest of all… the strange pike was becoming part of himself. The absolute black hue shifted into the transparent blue of his own translucent material.
Silently, the beast moved into the room. It didn't flinch, nor stagger, not one singular eye even blinked. Inky ooze spilling from the forearm, where the jagged limbs once were. It was as though the creature couldn't feel pain. Something Ryan was deeply envious of. He propped himself up on his elbows. Drilling the spikes further inside his flesh. Everything hurt, every flex, every twitch, taking air inside his lungs was suffering. Still he had to move, and fast.
Make it stop.
The bits of hardened crystal at his joints shattered. Glittering dust scattered to the floor as red water dipped.
It hurts… It hurts.
He wanted to die. That's what Ryan told himself. That the pain of existing was far worse than anything. Life was a joke and he was the punchline. A forgotten and unwanted child. Abandoned by a mother who chose pills over him. However the truth always came out. The cat, whether god, or devil. Asked a simple question, and Ryan answered truthfully. To exist is to suffer, but at least the pain was familiar.
I… I…
The glass shattered as his jaw unhinged, "I want to live!"
His declaration was warbled, distorted. But the emotion was raw, this was fight or die. Without a second thought, Ryan took a swing at the beast, who made no attempt to counter. His mangled fist connected with the creature's head. Uneven edges of crystal tearing into it-- eyes popping into slime, until the motion was complete. Splashing the wall behind with black mush. Without a head, the monster fell to a heap on the floor.
"No burning..?" Ryan checked his fist, his assumption was incorrect. Smoke trails traveled up from the surface layer of crystal. They took the brunt of the monster's corrosive essence, "Martin…"
Walking was made incredibly difficult. His new body was heavy amongst everything else. The crystalline substance weighed quite a bit, reducing him to a slow shambling. Bright red smears marking his path towards the hallway.
"Ryan!"
"Mar..tin…"
Ryan made it to the doorframe, what little was left anyway. His vision still clouded with blood. He could not find his friend, until a loud thud, followed by a fire extinguisher rolling over his foot, "Martin…?"
"What the--" He stumbled backwards, falling to the ground, legs scraping the floor desperate to escape, "What the fuck!"
"No--" Ryan reached out, but his voice was stolen momentarily. His skin was continuing to grow. Replacing every destroyed piece. Including the one from the roof of his mouth, "It's… M…Me…"
Was all he could manage, hard to speak with a knife in your mouth.
With the crack of a whip, a black tendril sliced through the air! Wrapping around the same hand reaching out for Martin, "Still… a..alive…"
From a puddle of its own dissolved form. The shapeless mass was clinging to him. An eye, no, six, or seven pairs all sprouted from the darkness. Watching, waiting, wanting. His endorphins had been working overtime already to quell his carved skin. Ryan hardly felt as the toxic tentacle ate away at the protective layer of translucent blue.
"Get… off!" He cried out, yanking hard to the right. The force pulling the barely held together monstrosity towards him at an absurd velocity. There was no time to get out of the way, nor to counter with another punch. Ryan, unable to think of anything else, lashed out. Slamming his head right into the center of the demonic mass. Which simply reformed into a bubble around his head. The inside of the monster's core was hot. His painful defense was burning away fast. Improvised claws desperately scratched his face, but the sphere wasn't punctured. And every moment stuck inside made it harder to breathe.
"What.. is that?" He thought as his head hit something solid within the wiggling mess. But if it was something physical, hard, and real. There wasn't a chance in hell it wasn't important. Adrenaline pushed him past his limits, the pain a non-factor in his sprint towards the nearest wall. Crashing head first, cracking the wall, and drawing out the first high pitched whine from the beast Bashing up and down, the demonic creature squealed, but he continued to ram himself into the wall.
Then it happened, a sudden crack, like a stone struck with a hammer, And the shadow turned to a cloud of dust. Leaving Ryan gasping, he was happy to have oxygen again. Even if it pulled particles of glass into his lungs.
"D..Dead?" He managed to say, though the physical strain was intense. No matter how much of the stuff he shook off. More glass sprouted forth from his flesh. Reinforcing the damaged segment, and it came back stronger each time, "Y..You.. all..right?"
Before, all Ryan needed was the force of his jaw to sever the bits keeping his mouth shut. Now it required two extra flexes, likely a third next time. Taking a tentative step towards Martin, Ryan fell to his knees.
"Is that you… Ryan?"
"Yes," He replied through a ragged breath. The adrenaline was either wearing off, or had been overshadowed by overexertion. And that's to say nothing about the unbearable pain pulsating through his very core.
"What the fuck," Martin laughed, "What the actual--"
The floor screeched, as something heavy was dragged across it. Ryan wasn't getting a moment to catch his breath quite yet. Several inky, wet demons stomped towards them from the other end of the corridor.
"Run," Ryan fought through the pain. Rising up on legs so frail, a light breeze would topple him over. He tried, damn it he fought to lift his mangled arms up. To no avail, at the very least he'd take a chunk out of them while they walked over his corpse.
The monster's uncomfortably lackadaisical march ended as suddenly as it began. Turning at the same moment, staring right at the bloodshot moon. Pulsating and pumping, only to liquify right there on the spot. And the red jewel in the sky returned to its familiar white.
"Is it over…?" Ryan heard Martin ask over his shoulder. Then he too, fell into the darkness.