A lone wanderer, wrapped in a golden mantle, traversed the path of black clouds. Darkness radiated from his body so richly that even the stars dimmed in his embrace. He looked like an immortal, a god untethered, his will painting the sky itself. He stretched out his arm, his frame trembling, and with a single spark, black mist rose from his body and drifted into the unknown cosmos… leaving the husk behind.
---
A young man stood upon a vast stone bridge, staring blankly into the sky, as if stuck in a dream. His eyes were lifeless, his face unreadable, and tears spilled against his will, as though he had witnessed something no human should ever lay eyes on.
He wore a plain white shirt and black pants, which made him stand out from the rest of the crowd, who wore black tunics. After all, he was not alone in this dark place. Countless other forms drifted past him, moving forward without pause, yet none turned to look at him. It was as if he didn't exist in this plane. Unlike the rest, whose skin was drained of all color, he still carried a flush of life in his cheeks.
Then, without warning, his brown eyes clouded with black smoke. They spun and shifted until their color deepened into a dark, glowing crimson. Life surged back into his expression.
It was Nox. He had just crawled through hell to reach this plane, his body torn from the mortal world in agony beyond description. The pain had left his heart cold as ice, and he had no sense of how much time had passed. A second? A day? A lifetime?
He patted himself down, touched his face, making sure he was whole. "What… happened to me?" he muttered, glancing up at the dark sky. Above stretched a single brilliant streak of light, shimmering like northern lights against the void. It was the only color in this endless dark.
Only then did his eyes drift to the crowd around him. Curiosity stirred as he studied them. Who are these people? Their skin was too pale, like corpses, but not translucent like ghosts. The contradiction unsettled him.
His very essence craved answers. He didn't care from who; he just needed confirmation. Nox reached out and clasped the shoulder of an old man shuffling by.
"So cold! Are you alright, old man?!" Surprise cut through his tone. The flesh beneath his hand felt like frozen stone, but the man gave no response. Not even a growl. His legs carried him forward, dragging Nox a step with him, utterly unbothered.
Nox yanked his hand back and stared at his palm. Frost clung faintly to his skin before melting away against his heat. The hell is this place? He spat the words in his mind, but no answer came.
"Surprised, aren't you?" A woman's voice slipped out from somewhere within the crowd. Nox turned, scanning the endless stream of pale figures, but there was no way to trace it. Everything looked the same: faces, bodies, even the bridge itself. The only things that stood apart were the massive black gate looming behind him, where souls manifested as if from thin air, and the distant grey barrier ahead, where they vanished.
"Hello?" Nox called out, but his words fell into silence. His brows furrowed as he bit his lip. Everything had happened too quickly; too mind-breaking. One moment he had touched the skeleton, the next he was here.
Am I… in the world of the dead? The thought pressed into him, cold and bitter. He didn't want to believe it. It went against everything he had stood for, everything he had worked to prove wrong. Yet the sight of the corpse-like people drifting past him made denial impossible.
"Follow me…" The voice echoed again, this time from ahead. Nox lifted his head, hesitated, and then took a reluctant step forward.
There was an old saying: curiosity killed the cat. And unknowingly, he was the cat. Nox failed to notice the hidden figure among the endless crowd. At first glance she looked no different from the rest; a pale wanderer drifting forward. But this one was different. A woman with soft white hair and grey eyes that shone with unnatural clarity.
She licked her lips, shifting carefully through the crowd. Her gaze locked on him, unblinking. She felt a deep craving for this man. Yet her eyes held no desire for lust. It was uncontrollable thirst and hunger. She craved the warmth clinging to his body; she planned to rip it away and wear it for herself. The cold here had gnawed at her ever since she arrived, and her body shivered endlessly.
Her name was Alice, a girl of nineteen who had chosen her own death. A tragic fate, one no soul should ever embrace... And yet here she was, among the dead. But unlike the others, she had not lost her clarity. For twenty long days she had resisted the call of the grey portal. Fear of what lay beyond kept her here.
And when she saw a being who still carried the breath of life, a plan stirred in her mind. A plan so cruel, so desperate, it sickened even her. To kill him. To consume him.
"Come… I'm here…" Her voice slithered through the silence, eerie enough to make Nox halt mid-step. Hesitation crossed his face.
"Tsk." She clicked her tongue impatiently. In the blink of an eye, her nails stretched into razor-sharp claws. With a predator's grace, she darted through the spirits like a silent assassin.
Nox had finally noticed her, turning his head… The woman's frame reflected in his crimson gaze, but no fear lived there. That burning crimson hue longed for blood just as much as hers did. He only despised that someone had dared to strike from the shadows.
But it was too late; she was already behind him, her claws just inches from his artery. For the first time in his life, he could taste death. It was so cold he dared not embrace it. In that instant, a primal desire for survival ignited in his chest, and something dark answered his call.
Black mist burst from his heart, coiling up his throat like armor. A sharp clang! split the air, sparks flying as claw met shadow.
"AWOOOOO!"
A terrifying howl ripped from the mist. The force hurled the woman back and sent Nox stumbling forward. All around them, the spirits froze, shivering in place. The grey portal no longer mattered. Every hollow eye turned toward the evil that had manifested among them. From the seething black fog, a wolf emerged; its body towering as high as a man's chest, its fangs bared, standing protectively at Nox's side.
Master… The voice scraped into Nox's skull, deep and metallic, like blades grinding together. Maw welcomes you to the world of the Between… Allow me to serve you... as your noble hunter.
Nox's eyes widened, his chest pounding. For some weird reason, he felt that the beast wasn't just some creature standing at his side. He felt it crawling under his skin, inside his bones, as if it had always been there, waiting... As if it were a manifestation of him...