Get Rid of Him

At nighttime, Cain rushed back to his bed to sleep. 

Life at Eden was simple. Class in the morning. Daily chores. Class in the afternoon. Job in the evening. Sleep.

It was peaceful. Apart from occasional shenanigans, there was always an idea of what to expect.

...…

"Wake up!" a hand smacked Cain's cheek.

Cain's eyes fluttered open. His sight found Roy's round face, and he glared at the latter with eyes that could kill even gods.

Then he looked at the others in the room. They stood away from their bed, drowsed from inadequate sleep. Yet, they gathered together in an eerie manner.

Cain shifted his face and asked with a sigh, "Is it time?"

Amidst the regular routine at Eden, there existed a secret. Something so dark that it could lead to death if leaked.

"You bet ya! The bell rang a minute ago." Roy's face softened as he asked, "You good, bro?"

"Yeah…why?" Cain jumped out of the bed and adjusted his clothes. He felt weak in his bones, however, he knew just how crucial the event was.

"You kept murmuring in your sleep. I think it was some rubbish lullaby. Sounded foreign," told Roy.

"A lullaby? Hmm… must have been a dream."

Roy snapped his fingers and chuckled, "Talking about dreams. Guess who visited mine?"

"Let me guess, Trix?" Cain rolled his eyes. Just how dumb did Roy think he was?

Roy stuttered with a blush spreading across his cheeks, "A–Ahh, what gave it away?"

Cain let out a sigh and ignored him. He pulled Roy to the gathering, ignoring the weird look they all gave him. It was normal—one of the great perks of being the new guy.

Soon, the group rushed out of the room and met with the other groups. When, finally, the boys and girls had gathered together, they left the orphanage's compound and accessed the posterior forest to find a tunnel entrance somewhere in the woods.

After minutes of walking through the dark tunnel, the group reached a black metal door.

They knocked. The door opened, revealing two burly men with heights that seemed to pierce through the rock ceiling.

"Eden?" asked the two men.

The oldest boy in the group nodded. "Yes."

The two men replied, their voices detached and sturdy. "Get in." 

As the group walked past the door, a gigantic dungeon entered their sights. Minecarts were everywhere, with rail paths that extended into the distance, intensely intertwined.

The carts carried dead corpses that appeared far from normal. Not human-like in the slightest. They were the carcasses of monsters gotten from beyond Charmire's borders.

Cain, Roy, and Avre quickly assumed their position. Avre was part of the processing unit. It was a gnarly role. She was tasked with placing the corpses in a grinder and blending them until they became liquid. It was quite a simple role. However, it was extremely messy.

Roy was placed in the filtering unit. It involved sifting the liquid extract and mixing it with other solutions until all that was left was a pure liquid extract.

Finally, Cain assumed the last role–the production aspect. All he had to do was transfer the liquid into a round crystal-like case and expose them to cold conditions. The marbles freezes and production is complete.

'Who would ever think the producers of the famous devil marbles are a bunch of orphans and bottom-lifers?' Cain sighed as he continued producing more crystals.

Only the Serpent Gang—the sponsor of Eden Orphanage, was reckless enough to produce the illegal drugs in batches. All they had to do was simply amass the low lives under the guise of wealth.

For the children, however, it wasn't a matter of choice, but of certainty. Cain had seen what happens when one doesn't show up every night to produce the marbles. It wasn't something he wished to happen to himself!

Suddenly, a man came into the dungeon. He had dark shades on and a black suit that did nothing to hide the numerous tattoos on his skin. His long hair danced freely in the air. 

The man exuded a terrifying vibe as he walked around. A thick scent of blood lingered wherever he went. He seemed capable of changing the atmosphere to that of instant tension as if he were a demon hiding in a human body.

The moment the man showed up, he attracted the gazes of everyone, from the guards to the children. However, when the man clapped his hand, they jolted back to work in an instant.

'He's here again,' Cain groaned inwardly. 

'What am I saying? He never fails to show up. It's like his superpower.'

He barely knew anything about the man. Only his name–the Supervisor.

'Rumors say he is a member of the serpent gang. I think he might be the only gangster I know. Yet he already left a terrifying impression.'

As the man's eyes scanned the entire dungeon, Cain shook his head and went back to work, abandoning all curious thoughts

The night went by fast. 

When the kids were done, they left the dungeon, returning back to the orphanage.

...

The sharp whistles of the wind assaulted Cain as soon as he woke up.

Startled, he opened his eyes and took a long turn, but his vision betrayed him.

Something was dreadfully amiss. He couldn't see clearly.

A crimson film enshrouded his world, obliterating the spectrum of colours—no black, no white, no blue. Just shades of red; deep, unending red.

Panic surged through him, and he instantly reached for his eyes.

As if coincidentally, a searing pain exploded within him, sending shockwaves of agony rippling through his body. Streams of blood cascaded from both eyes and his world grew even redder.

'Ahh-what the hell?' Cain grimaced with a moan.

He clutched his throbbing head and fell back into the bed he had awoken from. The overflowing blood stained the white bedsheet in the most appalling manner.

In the first few seconds, it seemed like a girl's first night had occurred on this bed. But as time went on, the blood stains expanded voraciously, till the white of the pristine sheet vanished and all that could be seen was the tone of crimson.

Cain tightly gripped the bedsheet. His mind began to wander. 

He had only ever experienced this kind of pain once. And that was during the most terrifying moment in his entire life, his own death..

Was he dying again now?

How?

Why?

As he struggled to deal with the pain, he fell to the cold ground. The sweetness of metallic tang hit his tongue and the streams of blood gushing from his eyes intensified.

"Cain, what the fuck?"

"Holy divines?!"

"Is he possessed?"

Murmurs surrounded him. The kids in his dorm had woken up to his screams. 

One of them attempted to check on Cain, but he stopped and thought, 'Is he hurt? He is bleeding from his… eyes? Ahh!'

The boy was unsure whether he was the one seeing right. His eyes darted around Cain's bed, and in that moment, he trembled.

"This is definitely not normal. He is sick!" The boy stuttered in shock. Then he screamed and moved as far away as possible from Cain.

The murmurs intensified. Suddenly, no one came to help Cain. They were thrown off by the gruesome sight. So, they simply stood five feet away from Cain and stared intensely at the spectacle. Terrified yet curious.

However, amongst them, a figure dashed towards Cain.

"Buddy, what the hell is this?" Roy grabbed the bloodstained arms of Cain and lifted him up, rushing him to the bathroom.

The boys followed him like moths to a flame. 

Roy bent Cain's head into the sink and began washing his face with fresh water. Gradually, the streams of blood vanished, and the blood stains were washed away. However, the agony and weariness had shaped his face, as if wanting to leave a permanent impression. 

"Well. Well. You really look like shit. Imagine your ma was the ugliest bitch ever, and your pops was genetically deformed. Imagine their little brat. That's how you look right now," Roy chuckled as he washed Cain's face one last time.

Cain locked eyes with Roy for over five seconds, arching his brow with a hint of concern. In a weary voice, he asked, "Is it worse than your face?"

"Fuck you!" Roy's smile froze halfway, and he lightly punched Cain's shoulder. 

"Haha." Cain's chuckle filled the air, nullifying the ever-growing tension.

"What happened?" Cain suddenly asked.

He couldn't make sense of it all. One moment, he was soundly asleep. The next moment, he stared death in the face, fighting it off with his life on the line. It left him drained, every part of his body begging for rest.

"Don't ask me. All I know is you were murmuring in your sleep again. I thought it was just a nightmare, like every other night. But all of a sudden, shit turned real. And here we are!"

A frown appeared on Cain's face. He went into deep thought. 'I was murmuring again? And then my eyes bled. It doesn't seem normal, no matter how I look at it. I might be sick. Worse, I might actually be possessed.'

In this current world, erratic behaviour was often associated with devilish possession. Yet, Cain's current experience had far surpassed the realm of erratic. It was simply incomprehensible!

Cain had once seen a group of officers apprehend a seemingly possessed girl. To this day, the girl never returned to the orphanage. Rumours had spread about how her body was found cold in an alley the next day.

A voice interrupted, "We need to tell Mrs. Petra. Maybe she can help you."

Cain sharply turned his head at the short boy who spoke and raised his voice. "We tell no one!"

"You are s-sick, Cain. You need help. I-I-If you can't see that, then let us help you," the boy stuttered. 

Cain repeated in an aggressive tone. "We tell no one!"

Another boy shot off. "Bloody hell. You are possessed. I want none of your shit rubbing off me. I always knew there was something wrong with you since day one! Always acting like you are better than us! I say let's tell Mrs. Petra and get rid of him!"