1 The Devil’s Den.
The music was loud to the extent that Elfric felt that his ears were about to bleed. The banging in his head was now in rhyme with the tempo of the base oozing out of the sound system that was embedded in every corner of the club. The air was dense with the strong smell of sweat and alcohol mixed with the sweet aroma of perfume all around him, the smell was so intoxicating that he felt his head lighten up.
"CHRIS!" Elfric called out to his friend that was pushing through the crowd a few steps ahead of him. "We aren't supposed to be here!" he yelled on top of his lungs as he tried to grab his friend's attention but the music swallowed his voice.
He figured that his friend was not hearing him – or choosing to ignore him, he still couldn't decide which. He covered the distance between them in a couple of long strides before grabbing his friend by his black leather jacket, turning him around to finally gain his attention.
"I thought you said we are going to a nightclub, Chris!" he protested as he pointed to his surroundings which screamed nightclub at every corner and that made no sense.
"Bro, cool down," Chris chuckled. "We 'are' in a nightclub! Look around you." He opened both of his arms wide as if he was displaying the surroundings. Elfric didn't bother to look but rolled his bicolored eyes, completely ignorant to the stares that were piercing him. Something that he was used to. He was an albino with bi-colored eyes and hair as pale as the moon, big deal.
"A nightclub, Chris!" he hissed as he narrowed his eyes pulling his friend in closer, making sure that the crowd was busy dancing. "Not the Devil's Den Nightclub!"
Chris raised an eyebrow as he released a sigh, not believing how Elfric was backing down now when he was the one that pestered him all morning in school to hit a nightclub after they are done. "You seriously don't believe all that shit do you?" he asked keeping one of his eyebrows raised as his green eyes scanned his friend's pale skin that the albinism didn't completely ripe the pigment of it. "That there is some devil-worshiping cult in here do you?"
"All stories are true, Chris," Elfric said, his violet eye was shimmering whenever the neon light found its way to his face. Christopher was used to hearing this sentence whenever they talked about myths or rumors. Elfric would always cut through and say that all stories are true.
People found it ironic really. To them, Elfric was nothing less than an actual elf but if they haven't seen him bleed themselves when he got into a fight back when they were kids, they would have kept assuming that he was an elf undercover.
"Then don't you want to see the stories for yourself?!" Chris exclaimed as he took hold of his friend's shoulder, changing tactics into persuading him into staying. From the sparkle that found its way to his bicolored eyes, he knew that it was working. "I mean, we will only take a look down in the basement and leave, I promise!"
Elfric scanned the duo green eyes that were gazing deeply into his own, and honestly, he was thinking of a reason not to agree with this mess but he couldn't find any. A deep part of him was screaming to go forward with this, the only thing that was holding him back was his family. If anything would happen to him, who would take care of them?
But the first was louder and more dominant. He nodded his head once, watching how his friend yelped in excitement winning yet another debate. The moment that he had nodded his head, he has given in to the temptations in his head, he felt the adrenaline start to release in his veins as he followed side by side next to Chris.
The crowd broke around them like the sea of Moses, till finally, they were at the back of the club. The only door that separated them from what they seek was guarded by two heavy-looking men dressed in black who didn't bother to spare them a glance.
"This my friend is when I shamelessly take advantage of your ethereal," Christopher muttered under his breath loud enough for Elfric to hear him.
"W-What…"
Before Elfric could resist in any sort of way, Chris bumped him forward and into the guards. His long middle lengthened white hair fell on his face as he staggered forward, almost slamming into one of the guard's chests. Elfric jolted his head back up and straightened his posture as he was mentally prepared to be kicked out. But…the guards just stood there looking at his face.
It wasn't something that he isn't used to. People who saw him for the first time took a long and good stare at his face. His shoulder lengthed white hair and bi-colored eyes; right was light violet color like lilacs and the other was honey tinted.
A long second passed, Elfric didn't dare to take his eyes off the guards as he awaited to see their reaction. They smoothly moved to the side as they opened the door that was tightly sealed behind them. Before he could protest, Chris was already grabbing him by the arm and dragged him through the door along with him, shooting the two guards a wide grin that was completely ignored.
"W-What the hell was that?" Elfric whispered, hearing his heartbeats echo in the back of his mind.
"Well, this is a demon cult and there is nothing more convincing than a super natural-looking dude," Chris stated with a wink that sent shivers down the other boy's spine.
"It's called albinism," Elfric argued but it fell on deaf ears. Soon he was also sucked into the surroundings, darkness. The only light source in this place was the bright color of his hair!
Faint echoes started to be heard as they got lower and lower underground, the only thing that guided their path was the led lights that were embedded in each stair.
Louder and louder the voices started echoing in their chests, deep and inhuman as it mixed with the heartbeats in their chests. Getting closer to the floor only added to their racked nerves. Elfric noticed how Chris lost all the excitement that he had a minute ago replaced cruelly by fear. He couldn't blame him as he felt his own strength give in to the creepy vibe.
There they were, standing a few steps behind the circle of masked men and women, their hands raised above their heads as they clenched on something hard. Elfric narrowed his eyes, he saw blades shining in the dim candlelit room, each one of these freaks was holding one. Elfric wanted to say something but he felt the words get stuck in the back of his throat.
Their voices were now a mere mumble, going back and forth in keys. 'What are they saying?' he puzzled as he got closer, they weren't taking in English…or any other language that he has ever heard of.
"W-We should get out of here," Chris stated to Elfric's surprise. The last thing that they thought they would find was psychopathic cult members with daggers and funny face covers.
"Wait," Elfric breathed out, leaving his friend's side and walking in closer to the open arena that the crowd gathered around something in the center. The closer he got the heavier the crowd got. He glanced up, there were even other cult members up there holding the same daggers. There was no way to tell them apart. Were they nobles or commoners, there was no knowing. Their black outfits matched along with the masks they were wearing which made Elfric's bright appearance pop out yet, somehow he was walking by unnoticed.
Whatever they were doing seemed to be more fascinating and eye-catching than an elf-like human.
"You who live in the dark,"
They all said at once, making Elfric snap out of his daze. He cursed under his breath as he completely forgot about Christopher, he glanced over his shoulder and there was nothing but the crowd of black, the only thing that he could do was hope that he found his way out of here.
"You who live in the dark, we hereby ask you to come forth,"
They continued chanting, the voice got rougher as he started to reach the center…finally his eyes fell on the alter that was the focal point of their attention. More precisely the child on top.
Elfric watched to see a man on top of the alter wearing the same black robe like the rest with a similar silver dagger pointed to the child's chest. Dressed in a plain ragged white top that went over the knees, with hair that was recklessly shaved off.
The child was squirming around the restraints on his limbs. His cries of help and mercy were swallowed in the enchantment. Elfric hoped hard that this was some sort of a sick prank, but the child's horror said otherwise.
"You who live in the dark, we hereby ask you to come forth from the depths of hell, fulfill min call," the echos were now at the point of turning evil, there was nothing on this earth that sounded like this, nothing… "accept min sacrifice, and heed my call!"
The dagger leaped through the air, piercing exactly over the boy's heart. Elfric heard the silenced scream of death escaping the child, as his eyes dilated. His fragile body went limb instantly as the blood poured out of his body. The alter was now tinted with the crimson color of blood, slowly dripping to the floor and down the step to the same level as the rest of the crowd, creating a pool of the victim's blood.
Elfric found himself falling to the floor tumbling between people's legs, silent gasps escaping his throat as he felt the warmth of the blood as it got to his fingers. His bi-colored eyes were fixed on the boy's eyes…finally they were shut saving the fragile being from further torment.
Elfric released another loud gasp as he struggled for the air. Completely losing his senses of his surroundings, not even when a fire took hold of the whole place, blue flames tinted the frame of the room. One after one he saw the members fall after another as they caught fire. Things were going too fast, screams and cries coated the air heavily. The smell of blood was stinking the air along with the smoke and still… Elfric couldn't take his eyes off the boy as he lied there still. There was no way that he just saw a child get killed so coldheartedly!
"WEAKLINGS!"
The ground shook underneath him with the roar that pierced the air. A sight that Elfric couldn't explain, darkness was gathering on top of the body of the dead child, slowly taking form into something that resembled a human…a human's shadow.
"You are all weaklings," the shadow spoke again its voice echoing in Elfric's chest, he watched as it moved swiftly over the ground to approach him. It left death in its walk, one after one they fell.
"HEAR MY CALL!"
"OH, THE DEVIL!"
"TAKE MY SOUL!"
The screams were sickening as their owner fell to its doom. And finally, the shadow halted right in front of him, towering over him as he looked up at the shadow that seems to be looking back at him, diving deep into his soul.
It slowly raised its hands taking a tight hold over Elfric's jaw. He dared not breathe as he gazed right into the darkness that looked right at him. The hair in his nape was standing as he felt the fingers move through his silver hair, the other was firmly holding his jaw in place.
Almost delicately, it moved the locks of hair that covered his right violet eyes.
"I see darkness in thee that I have never witnessed before," the voice rang in Elfrics head. "I shall hear thee call."
