Transport

May is brought to the Dark circle by a mysterious demon. She tries to search for the people who murdered her parents but gets distracted by a constant threat at every turn.

May looked him in the eye and could hear his voice echo in her head.

“Who are you?” She asked him.

The man simply smiled and grabbed her hand.

“Let go of me you pervert!”

May couldn’t escape the strong grip of the man as he tried to lift up her shirt. Once he saw the mark on her side he stopped and stared at it. While he was distracted May did what she felt was right. Bite him, taste his blood that was all she wanted to do. She tried to shake the strange thoughts from her head.

“Return with me,” The man said.

“To where?” May asked curiously.

The man smiled with a devilish grin that revealed a set of fangs. May began to slow her breathing as her heart raced faster. She looked down at the man’s hand and noticed his nails were as sharp as claws. He took his finger and began stroking her cheek.

“This will hurt,” He told her.

She could feel him digging his nail into her cheek as he began chanting in some mysterious language. May didn’t cry because for whatever reason she could not feel any pain. Her surroundings began turning into a blur and the dark colors of night swirled together into a dark cloud. It felt like at that moment although there was a strange man with her sticking his nail in her face, she was at peace. Her body felt light, reminding her of the times when she was little and her mother used to push her on the swings.

She opened her eyes and it took a moment for her to adjust. May could tell that she was in a different world. Everything felt strange and new, but it looked like she had just traveled back in time. They stood in a field atop old corn husks and bamboo shoots. A soft breeze welcomed her and she could tell it was spring.

“Your sisters will come soon enough.”

May almost forgot about her sisters. She began feeling like she didn’t need them, but a part of her was already missing them. May took out a pocketknife that she snuck into her bag.

Pointing it at the man she asked “Where are we and who are you?”

“Welcome my dear to the Dark Circle,” He said with a bow.

May titled her head and watched as the man took off his hood, revealing two enormous horns that swirled like the shell of a snail. She didn’t want to admit it but there was a strange charm that seemed to hover about him.

In the back of her mind she was happy this was happening because it probably had to do with her parent’s murder. She was not as surprised as you would think. All of a sudden a name popped into her head.

“Ryuu,” May said softly.

The man began walking away from her, mumbling to himself.

“Come,” He said to her.

“What is your name?” She asked.

He chuckled as he said “You already know, you said it.”

May scrunched her face in confusion as she silently followed the man to what seemed to be some kind of town or village. The sound of children laughing became more prominent as they got closer. Ryuu led her down an alley and into what seemed to be a blacksmith’s shop.

“I brought her,” He said to a man pounding out a sword from steel.

The man looked up at Mayumi and smiled.

“Finally,” He said.

The man motioned for May to follow him and she figured she had nothing to lose. She followed him into a back room, concealed from the rest of the shop by a curtain.

“Sit,” He said motioning to a small wooden chair.

She did as he told her and there was a moment of silence. The man revealed a hidden chest, aged with layers of dust. There was a loud creak as he opened it and the air began to taste dry and salty.

May looked around, trying to examine her surroundings, but it didn’t seem like anything interesting. She was just going to play along with whatever game this was, even if it was her mind playing a sick game.

The man coughed and handed her a long cloth. Once he placed it in her hand she almost dropped it, not realizing there was something wrapped inside it. She looked up at Ryuu and his red eyes gleamed with contempt.

Pushing back the cloth, she revealed a beautiful steel sword. The arc of the sword replicated the arc of a fishbone. It looked sharp and ready to go. She placed it on its side, noticing a small orb that glistened on the hilt of the sword.

“Is this part glass?” She asked.

The man smiled at her replying “If that’s what you want to call it.”

“What is this for?”

“It’s yours, and therefore yours to figure out,” he replied.

May sighed, starting to get tired of all this mystery.

“Can I have a pen and paper?”

The man handed her a piece of parchment, an ink bowl and pen. May looked up at him like he was crazy, but she drew what was on her mind.

“Do you know what this is?” she asked pointing to her drawing.

“That is the symbol of the Demon King,” he answered softly.

“The demon king?” She asked.

“That is all I have to say. Take the sword and do what you were destined.”

May was basically pushed out of the shop and stood there for a moment. What was she to do? A Demon King? Everything was so out of whack she began questioning her sanity. Suddenly, she felt a hand on her shoulder. Flinching, she turned around. Ryuu smiled at her.

“Please, stop that.”

“What?”

“Your smile, it creeps me out,” May told him.

Ryuu creeped closer, so that their noses were almost touching.

“I am leaving you here, have fun figuring things out,” He said walking away.

He waved goodbye as May stood there, dumbfounded. Sliding against the wall of the shop Mayumi thought of her sisters. Ryuu had said they would join her soon enough, but when would that be? What would that mean?

Kei and Manna sat on May’s bed. Manna rubbed Kei’s back hoping to ease her pain.

“Where do you think she went?”

“I’m not sure,” Manna answered. “I think we should head to sleep, what do you think?”

She looked down to see Kei had her eyes closed and was starting to fall asleep. Manna smiled and didn’t want to move her. She pulled May’s blanket over them and fell slowly to sleep.

“Ahhhhhh!!!!!”

Manna woke up to Kei screaming.

“Kei! What’s wrong?”

She was squirming frantically, holding her hands over her stomach. Manna noticed there was a drop of blood on her arm and wondered where it could have come from. Kei continued to scream and cry. Manna didn’t know what to do, but just as she was going to run out of the room for help, Kei became quiet.

“Did your tummy hurt? Do you want me to rub it?”

Kei softly nodded, and Manna lifted her shirt to reveal a small mark. Manna’s mind began to spin. This was the same mark that May had, but now Kei has one too. It looked like a curse or plague that was sweeping over their family. Their parents were just murdered and now there are weird marks appearing on their bodies. They couldn’t go to the police unless they wanted to end up separated in a nut house. She was stuck, completely unsure of what to do.

May continued to pass shop after shop as light peaked over the horizon. She began feeling a strange sense of familiarity from her surroundings but brushed it off as it was a piece of lint. She stumbled upon an in just as her stomach began to growl.

“Kei get up please”

Kei mumbled as she turned around.

“It’s time for school. I know it’s only been a few week but you need to go to school.”

Manna did not want anyone suspecting anything so she had been calling her parents in sick for their jobs and today is when she would take Kei back to school. She needed to waste time so she could get her head on straight. They still didn’t know where May was or if she was okay. The guilt from having her sister leave was tearing Manna apart more and more every day. 

Author's Note

*** indicates the transition between worlds

Reviews

[David Jae]

Full of intrigue and dark mystery with a compelling character who has an unexpected destiny thrust upon her. If I had to make a criticism, it is that it is a little to rushed as a beginning. It would benefit from being introduced more slowly to build up character or starting in media res and then going back to explain during the narrative.

Still, the idea is strong and all the rest is just a matter of refinement.

Ganbare

[Tama]

Thank you so much for your review! I appreciate your incite on the pace of the story and I hope you keep reading!

[David Jae]

You're welcome