Rot In Bloom

Ashes swallowed the sky, drowning it in black, thunder roaring inside.

“What the hell has he done?!” Alaric said as he faced the sky.

Splat! Something fell on the ground. A thin shriek followed.

“Lyra?!” Touma turned around. “How did she wake up quickly, Dain?”

“The spell must have broken with Malrik's death.” Dain muttered, still dazed. 

“What the hell is that?!” Lyra shouted, kicking something near her feet.

“What happened?!” Touma approached her. 

“Something… something fell from the sky. Look! It– it's there!!” Lyra pointed in the distance.

“What's there?” Touma turned to look at it. “What the hell?!” He jumped.

“What happened?” Dain came to him.

“Look at it." Touma answered.

Dain's confusion twisted into dread. “How… how can a head fall from the sky?” He whispered, staring at the severed thing lying in the dirt. 

Plop! Something fell from the ground. It was raining, but the water was black.

“Hey!!” Alaric shouted. “Look at the sky!!” He exclaimed.

Touma turned his face to the sky. “What's that?!” He freaked out.

The sky was weeping. It started to rain, but the rain wasn't water. Hollowborns fell from the sky, their rotten stench lingered in the air. Thwack! A body fell from the sky, then another one, and another. 

The ground drowned in rotting bodies, black fluids seeping into the dirt. Lava bled down the volcano's sides, choking the air with heat.

“What the hell are we supposed to do now?!” Dain's feet trembled. He was scared. “They're standing up!!” He shouted.

“I… I don't know.” Touma was devastated by the sight. 

“Lyra. Get up quickly! We might have to run.” Alaric shouted.

“Got it!” Lyra got on her feet, ready to run at any moment.

“I think… we can't run – not anymore.” Vorain finally spoke. 

“Why?!” Alaric shouted under the roaring sky.

“Look there.” Vorain spoke as he pointed his finger towards the top of the volcano.

Everyone froze. Atop the cliff, two massive eyes burned through the veil of ash.

“W– what’s that?!” Touma's words were filled with fear.

“It's… him.” Alaric stuttered, knees hitting the dirt, his heart sank. “We're… doomed!” His eyes were blank, he had lost all hope.

“No! Don't tell me that–” 

“It's him… Cenoth.” Vorain words quivered with fear.

“Huh?” Touma was speechless, his eyes widened, fear took over and his body started to tremble. “Just what kind of monster he released onto this world!”

“The eyes… they're gone!!” Lyra shouted.

“What?” Dain looked at the volcano. “W– where did he go?!” He shouted.

A thunderous swish split the air – wings beating with a sound that drowned the storm itself. Cenoth was flying overhead.

Bam!! Something hit the ground, destroying everything beneath it. Dust arose in the air, the bodies launched away due to the impact.

Eyes glowing from behind inside the dust, Cenoth was standing in front of Touma, its size comparable to the capital’s library.

“Get back To– !” Alaric gagged, collapsing onto the ground as bile surged up his throat.

It wasn't just Alaric. Dain and Lyra were in a similar condition on Cenoth's arrival.

“What happened to them?!” Touma turned to Vorain.

“They… don't have enough strength to fight their pasts.” The reply came almost instantly.

“Huh?!” Touma staggered back – only to freeze. His legs refused to move, locked in place like stone.

“It's your turn now. Buckle up! Cenoth isn't kind.”

“What do you mean–” Swoosh! Something hit Touma like a torrent mid-sentence.

Darkness swallowed him. The air grew cold, the floor beneath him was soft – too soft to be the ground.

Opening his eyes, Touma found himself under a ceiling, a familiar one. 

“Huh? Where am I?” He thought. “This ceiling… Wait! It's my room!”

He jumped awake, trying to analyse the area. 

“Hff! Hff! So all of it… was a dream? Was I just sleeping?” 

“Touma! Wake up fast or you'll be late for school.” A familiar voice of a woman.

“Yes mom!” He replied instinctively.

The sounds of footsteps entered the kitchen. Touma had dressed up. 

“You sure dress up quickly. Anyways, why are your eyes red?” 

“What are you talking about?” Touma was clueless.

“Check them for yourself.” Mom pointed towards a mirror in the corner of the kitchen.

“Huh? My eyes… they're actually a bit red.” 

“Come and eat your breakfast now. We'll talk about it later.” 

“Got it.”

The chair scraped the floor as Touma pulled it. Thump! He sat down. The plates clattered on the table, it was omelette for breakfast. 

“Where's Dad?” He asked.

“On a business trip. It was urgent, so he left early.” 

“When is he coming back?” 

“Maybe in two or three days.”

The discussion ended, so did the breakfast. “I'm going now.” Touma said.

“Will you be fine?” Mom asked. “Your eye… it doesn't hurt right?” She was worried.

“I think I can manage. It's only a little irritation, nothing more.” He replied.

“Stay safe. And be home on time! Okay?”

“Yeah.” The door creaked open. “Fix this door please. It's annoying.” He said.

“Your Dad said he'll get it fixed when he comes back. He was annoyed by the creaking too.”

“Makes sense.” Touma stepped outside. “What a bright day it is today.”

“Stay safe.” 

“Yeah.” The door closed behind him. Touma had left for school.

Walking on the sidewalk, Touma didn't pay any attention to his surroundings. Ping! A notification came.

“What is it?” He took his phone out of his pockets. The notification was spam, but his gaze fell on the date.

“Huh? It's 11 August today?” He made a left turn, towards the city centre. “I think I'm… forgetting something.”

He was walking straight, lost in thought. “But what was it? My memory is going blank, I can't even remember that dream from the morning.” His eyes were on the road, but his mind was not.

Thud! He bumped into someone. “Watch where you're going kid!” It was a man, he was annoyed.

“Ohh. I'm so sorry. I wasn't looking!” Touma was embarrassed.

“Don't worry. I'll let it slide since you're just a kid. But pay attention on the road from now on.” The man started walking away. “You even creased my coat.” He said.

“I'm really sorry.” Touma apologised. 

The man was gone. Touma went his way. “That coat… I think Dad had a similar one when I was in elementary school right? Well, who cares?”

A minute had passed, but Touma was still thinking about the morning dream. 

“What was the dream I had today? I can't remember anything!” 

He stopped at a red light. “Wait! I remember everything now!” He started walking. “I was in Sereneth! So how did I get he–” 

A loud honk cut Touma mid-sentence. A truck – its tires screeching against as the brakes were slammed. “Huh?” By the time Touma realized it, the truck was already too close.

Metal slammed into flesh with a sickening crunch. The truck hurled Touma across the road like a ragdoll.

“Hff! Hff! C– can't… breathe… it… hurts!” 

“Someone call the ambulance!!!” A person shouted in the crowd. 

“My voice… it's gone. My body is numb. What… is this person… saying?”

“Stay with us kid! The ambulance is coming! You can't die!” A person held Touma in his hands. 

“I… can't see… anything. I'm… cold.”

Touma felt the last bit of warmth leaving his body, his body was numb. Everything went black. Touma was dead.

“Hff! Hff! Hff!” He jumped awake, finding himself in his bed again.

The lights were off, it was dark. Only a lamp was lit as a weak source of light. Touma was sweating. His eyes hurt.

“Huh? If I remember correctly… I was hit by that truck. So how am I in my room?!” He was confused, nothing made any sense.

“What is the time right now?” He grabbed his phone, turning the screen on.

The screen showed 4:57 AM. “It's morning?! Wait, the date… 11 August.” Touma's eyes widened, his confused expression turned to shock.

“I need water.” He got up from his bed. The thud sound of his footsteps went down the stairs. 

Creak! The kitchen door opened. Mom was working, Dad was eating breakfast.

“Why did you get up so early?” Dad asked.

“I… I think I had a… bad dream.” Touma replied. 

“Here. Have some water.” Dad replied, offering him a glass of water.

Touma took the glass, gulping the water down in one go.

“Why did you wake up so early?” Touma asked.

“I have a business trip. I'll be back in three days.” Dad replied. 

“Please get the main door fixed too. It's annoying.” 

“I know. I'll get it fixed when I come back. You should go to sleep now.”

“Yeah.” Touma went upstairs. The door creaked behind him. It was silent once again.

The day passed like usual, it was evening now. Touma was coming back from school.

“Help me!” A low feminine voice.

“What’s there?” Touma followed the voice. It was coming from an alley. “This place… I seriously don't want to go in there.” He was reluctant.

Despite his hesitation, Touma went inside. A young woman was standing there. She looked scared. Touma looked around for a bit, until a man in a coat caught his attention. “Wait… that man, that coat… I remember it all!”

The man pulled out a knife from his pocket and swung it at the woman. Instinct took over, and Touma stepped in. “Stop right there!!” He shouted.

“Huh?” The man turned towards him. “A kid? What do you think you're doing here?!” He said.

“Can't you see… I'm here to stop you.” Touma dashed towards him, punching him with all his might. The man fell on the ground, his knife shot up in the air, landing near a garbage tank at the end of the alley.

The man slowly stood up. “You goddamn kid! Why didn't you leave quietly when you had the chance?! I had made up my mind to leave you alive… but you had to get in my way!!!” He was furious.

“I remember it all now. This place… this world… it's all Cenoth's doing.” Touma's eyes widened. He remembered it all, his body was burning. “I'm gonna break free of this fake world!!” 

“Try it then!” The man stood in his place, glaring at Touma with malice. He jumped at him with nothing but his fists.

Touma lunged, his kick driving into the man's gut. “I'm not weak anymore!” He roared.

“That's why I've come prepared.” The man put his hands in the pockets of his coat, pulling out a gun from there. “Try dodging this then!” The man pulled the trigger.

The gun roared. Pain never came – only the thud of Touma's body hitting the concrete, blood pooling beneath his head as smoke curled from the muzzle. 

“Huh? What just happened?! It doesn't hurt… but… I can't move!” The atmosphere went silent, it all went black. “What's going on?! Am I… dead again?”

Nothing made sense, everything was happening too quickly to process anything. His mind started to get cloudy. 

“Congratulations on completing the trial.” Another familiar voice.

In the blink of an eye, the world turned w

hite. A void stretched in all directions. “What the hell is this place?! Who's there?!” 

“Do not worry Touma… you know me.” The voice was gentle.

“This voice… you're that God from before!!” Touma realized it. He was before the same God that sent him to Sereneth.