The sky cracked open, jagged lines spreading like molten glass shattered across a darkened pane. The sunlight faltered, pierced by bleeding fragments of red that spilled from the heavens like a wound torn open between worlds. A silent, oppressive stillness fell over the town of Hanji—a vacuum before the storm devoured all hope.
Jin stood frozen in the middle of the cracked street, his heart thudding wildly against his ribs, blood roaring in his ears louder than distant screams. Mere moments ago, he had been with Sora, his sister, her laughter warm and bright like a beacon in their small garden behind their home. Now that light was drowning under a blood-red rain, crimson droplets slicking the cobblestones, turning them into a reflection of the fractured sky.
The distant rumbling did not sound like thunder—it was something older, heavier: the coming of nightmares.
"Jin! Get back!" a panicked voice shattered the fragile calm.
Jin's eyes darted to the street, where shadows writhed and twisted into monstrous forms. The creatures that poured through the rifts overhead were far from human—withered limbs covered in jagged scales, mangled faces contorted in hunger, eyes glowing with malevolent intelligence. They tore into the crowd with ferocity untouched by mercy.
Some of the neighbors tried to run, but the beasts were faster, their claws ripping through flesh and bone like paper.
"No! Sora!" Jin's scream was lost beneath a terrible roar.
He sprinted toward the garden gate, weaving through frantic survivors desperate to escape death. The gate hung broken, hinges shattered and sparking faintly under the blood rain. The earth beneath was torn—splinters of wood and stone torn asunder. There, beneath a fallen tree branch, lay Sora, pinned and barely conscious, eyes wide with terror.
"Hold on! I'm coming!" Jin dropped beside her, hands trembling as he tried to lift the weight off her legs. But the branch wouldn't budge; it was like trying to move a mountain.
A growl rolled through the air, low and cruel.
Jin's pulse skyrocketed as a towering beast emerged from the shadows. Its form blotted out what little light remained, stance poised for the kill. Jagged claws scraped stone as it stepped forward, eyes drilling into Jin like burning coals.
Jin's breath caught. The ground trembled beneath him, and suddenly a whisper slithered into his mind—a voice ancient and chilling:
"Survive. Sacrifice."
His gaze slipped downward, and horror bloomed in his chest. Chains—made not of iron, but of thick, swirling blood—snaked around his wrists, glowing faintly with a sinister light. They tethered him to a circle etched with runes glowing a dark crimson on the cracked earth.
"No... no, this can't be real," Jin gasped, struggling to break the bonds. He twisted, desperate, but the chains only tightened.
"Sacrifice... or perish."
The voice was merciless, echoing through every fiber of his being.
His eyes flicked to Sora—her breaths shallow, barely audible, lips trembling as dread shadowed her face. That moment stretched thin—as if the world slowed and held its breath.
Memories swirled: their morning walks, shared meals, whispered dreams beneath the stars. And then the unbearable realization: he had to choose.
"No... I won't lose you," Jin whispered, hands shaking.
The runes on the ground flared suddenly, the chains pulling him inexorably toward the ritual's center. Pain exploded through his chest like wildfire; his vision blurred, and his world dissolved into blinding crimson.
Sora's name echoed in his fading consciousness before she was gone—reduced to shimmering particles of blood and light swirling upward and vanishing.
Jin collapsed, breath ragged, heart breaking. His right arm twisted grotesquely; beneath his skin, veins pulsed crimson like molten lava. Power surged suddenly through his veins—a raw, monstrous strength clawing to be unleashed.
The beast roared and lunged.
Jin met it head-on, fists striking with desperate fury. Claws struck ribs; flesh tore, but he answered with blows fueled by the power awakened in him. Every hit sent sparks of agony through his limbs, but the exhilaration was undeniable—terrifying and addictive.
Minutes felt like hours as the furious battle raged beneath the blood rain. When the beast finally fell, broken and silent, a silence heavier than death settled over the ruins.
Survivors gathered, eyes wide with equal parts relief and fear, whispering curses on the boy who had become something else entirely.
His body trembled violently, crimson veins glowing beneath torn skin. Blood leaked from wounds invisible to the eye, painting the earth in living red.
Above, the sky continued to bleed and fracture, as if mourning those lost and promising more horrors to come.
A faint whisper echoed once more inside Jin—softer, colder:
*"This... is only the beginning."*
Jin opened his eyes, filled not only with burning determination, but the first seed of something darker entirely.
He was no longer just a boy.
He was becoming a monster born of blood and sacrifice.
And the shattered sky roared with cruel delight.