This was located in the legendary yet nightmarish realm of Hell, where the sky was in an inauspicious shade of purple, casting an eerie glow over the landscape.
Multiple black moons loomed ominously, their shadows stretching across the ground below.
As the late-night blood rain poured down, it mingled with the crimson essence already soaking the earth, creating a gruesome tapestry of violence and despair.
The air was thick with the metallic scent of blood, stirring an uncanny atmosphere as it dripped from the grotesque corpses that surrounded a lone, standing figure.
His name was Lucien.
The ground was littered with hundreds of lifeless bodies, a haunting blend of both humans and fiends, their expressions forever frozen in torment.
He stood amidst this sea of carnage, enshrouded in darkness.
Clad in regal yet dark and sinister attire that only added to his menacing appearance, his blood-stained form was a chilling proof of the callousness that had gone by.
His long black hair framed a face marked by shadows, with eyes reminiscent of a storm—deep-set and glowing with a deathly, crimson intensity.
In this macabre dominion, his figure radiated both sadness and strength.
As a shadowy silhouette approached, Lucien's ears twitched to the sound of movement, causing him to knit his brows and glance back.
Not particularly aimed at the shadowy figure, he asked aloud, voicing in a gruff manner, "Tell me, how the fuck did I end up here?"
.....
"911, what's your emergency?"
A little boy whispered, trembling, "Mommy's being killed!"
"Stay calm," the 911 operator said in a soothing tone, "I need you to tell me your location. Can you do that?"
The child replied with a trembling voice, "I... I don't know... It's the house... the blue one... please, hurry!"
"Okay, I'm sending help. Is there anyone else with you?"
Glancing around in panic, he whispered, "No! Just me... I can hear her... I'm scared!"
"I understand. Can you hide somewhere safe?"
"I'm outside the room... but... I don't want to leave her!" Tears filled his eyes as he bravely moved closer to the door.
"You have to stay quiet and hidden. Help is on the way. Can you do that for me?"
Sniffling, he wanted to say yes, but his legs moved of their own accord, towards the slightly opened door.
Then the operator heard it:
Clap~ Clap~ Clap~
"Ugh... I... can't... I can't take it... anymore~"
"Save... me... save me..."
"Heh! That's how you like it, huh? Let me rock your fucking world, baby, take that!"
Clap~ Clap~ Clap~
The operator fell silent for a moment.
He didn't get paid enough for shit like this.
The kid sensed the silence on the other end and whispered into the phone, fear creeping in.
Meanwhile, the man in the room, already busy, heard something outside.
He flashed a wicked grin, winking at the child as he pinched the mother's chin, drawing her closer.
With dark skin, a sharp jaw, prominent cheekbones, braided hair, and ferocious, hazel eyes, he was a striking figure.
His toned body hinted at years of grueling hardship.
Not caring for the kid any longer, he focused on his task.
After a moment, the operator finally spoke again.
"Look, kid, I don't get paid enough for this, and your mom should've had this conversation if she was planning to get rifled, but..."
On this day, a little boy matured into a black-hearted young man.
.....
Ruffling the brat's hair, Lucien showed a wicked grin, and a ferocious light shone in his eyes.
With a husky voice, he subtly threatened, "When I come back, I'll eat you too."
Horrified, the little boy stumbled back, falling on his buttocks, and shivered in fear. His skin paled, and tears welled up in his eyes.
He looked away from Lucien's vile gaze, terrified...
Almost satisfied, he winked at the trembling child and departed.
The mother was suffering from a lack of strength to get out of bed and see him off.
With brisk steps, he descended the stairs on the porch and stepped onto the yard's grass, effectively touching grass.
When he reached the sidewalk, a frown spread across his face.
The blinding light from a bolt of lightning raced across the skies, quickly followed by a thunderous clap.
"Damn, you go at it, dear god. Sounding just like me for real," uttering this, he chuckled lightly.
However, he didn't take many steps before droplets of rain began to fall from the night sky.
Whoosh~ Whoosh~
The sound of vehicles passing by filled him with envy.
It wasn't that he did not own one himself; however, his luck had been down lately. He even got into a vehicular accident, and his car was still being repaired.
There was money to be saved in everything.
This unsatisfied woman's house was merely a few blocks away from his. He was not an unfit person, and the little sweat was good for setting the mood when he arrived...
Only, with the sudden stormy weather, things weren't looking good.
There were vehicles parked on either side of the road. Luckily, it was quite wide, so even though some double-parked, it was not an issue for the drivers on the road.
Suddenly, his gaze was drawn upwards.
This was not from a magical sixth sense or anything of the like. He just watched upward for whatever reason, and coincidentally, a bolt of lightning fell.
Boom!
A nearby tree lit ablaze.
"What the-!"
His steps quickened.
Thinking back, his luck was really shitty the past few months.
He didn't dare think too much, lest he really jinxed himself; however, what if he was unlucky enough that a bolt of lightning fell on him?
The rainfall intensified.
Pitter~ Patter~
Puddles quickly formed on the sidewalk, and before he realized it, a pair of black Air Force Ones were soaked.
"For fuck's sake."
Grumbling under his breath, he brushed past a space on the roadside where no vehicles were parked.
Boom!
His steps were brought to an abrupt halt.
Lightning, or whatever it was, exploded on the pavement inches in front of his leading foot.
Instinctively, he evaded, though, realistically, it would've already been too late.
Is this luck?
No way he just evaded lightning?!
However, his question was answered in but a moment.
Upon jumping away, his left foot was the first to land. Unluckily, it landed on the edge of the pavement, and he lost his balance.
Stumbling back, he took three steps to regain his balance; however, the sound of a honking vehicle brought him wide awake.
It was too late to dodge!
Don't worry, though, he reacted quickly, jumping into the air and curling up into a ball. The windshield fractured, and he was sent hurling into the middle of the road.
'I'm alive!'
He quickly fought against the momentum that had him tumbling down the street. His nails scraped against the asphalt, violently ripping apart skin.
Another honk!
This was...
This was a much louder, scarier honk.
His entire figure was lit up by the headlights of a mammoth in the form of a truck.
'What shit luck.'
After a good time and tormenting a little brat as well, he could not die here!
He shot up to his feet and desperately dived to the pavement, but his left leg was still caught by the side bumper of the truck.
The momentum caused his body to spin uncontrollably.
When he crashed into the ground, his head was rapidly approaching the edge of the pavement.
Thankfully, his reaction was even faster, and he placed his arm to protect his head.
Bam!
The sound of his forearm bone being crushed followed.
"Ugh! Arghhh!"
Bones in the foot, back, and arm were broken, and flesh wounds littered across his body.
'Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck...'
The time when pain did not hit had subsided; right now, it was assaulting him like a bitch in heat.
Tires screeched, cars stopped, people jumped out of their vehicles, rushing towards him, but if he survived, what kind of half-assed bad luck would this be?
Crackle~
A blinding light flashed, causing the approaching individuals to shrink back in fear. The sound of an explosion followed...
Lightning had missed big time the first time, and by a fraction the second time.
A car failed, and a truck couldn't finish the job.
Luckily, the truck worked in unison with the pavement, landing a despairing blow, only for the third round of lightning to hit the finishing move.
Realistically, a human could not evade lightning.
Finally, the bastardly black air force ones demon died.
.....
Like explaining colors to a blind man, Lucien experienced what was essentially an indescribable sensation that permeated his entire sense of self.
The consciousness, or the soul, was carried out of the body.
A period of time passed in the blink of an eye, but at the same time, it gave off the illusion that it was an extraordinarily long time.
His thoughts were a jumbled mess during this time.
This was like a sleep.
One closed their eyes to sleep, and what felt like a second after, they reopened their eyes. At the same time, one subconsciously knew that many hours had passed.
For him, hours were like the years.
Or maybe even centuries...
It felt like eternity, but he only lived for less than thirty years, so he couldn't really tell.
Eventually, he reopened his eyes, welcoming a new life.