Chapter 4: Chained Down

“Kuro!” came the gentle, but curious, voice of a lovely woman from across a field. “What are you doing?”

At the center of the field, the young boy, Kuro, was doing something one would not expect from an average ten-year-old—handstand pushups.

“One hundred and one… One hundred and two…” Kuro panted softly between each push, until he finally registered the voice that called out to him earlier. “Mom?!”

Startled, he lost his balance and fell to his back on the grass undignifiedly. This of course led to his mother rushing to his side, although, her expression remained fairly calm for someone whose child just took a tumble.

She smiled when she reached the boy, whose beyond pitch-black eyes stared intently back at her as he lay spread out on the grass.

“Are you hurt?” she asked, despite the fact that Kuro had a big grin on his face the whole time. “That was quite the fall.”

“Please, Mom,” Kuro confidently stated. “That was nothing. If I’m gonna be as strong as Dad, I’ve got a lotta training to do!”

His mother’s face relaxed as her smile renewed itself, tenderer and warmer than before. “Are you sure you’re ready to attain such strength, Lord Kuro?”

She giggled as he answered with all certainty, “Yes! One day, I’d be strong enough to beat Dad, the Demon King!”

He flashed his pearly whites, brimming with confidence.

A breeze brushed past them, causing his mother’s white dress to flutter elegantly while Kuro’s black hair rustled—becoming even messier.

“What’s that about beating me, Kuro?!”

They both turned toward the voice calling out to them. Their gazes met a man grinning wildly, marching in mock rage straight for Kuro.

“D-Dad?!” Kuro stammered as he got to his feet, running away from his father closing in.

“When I get my hands on you!” his father roared playfully, effortlessly catching up to Kuro and seizing him with his arms. He hoisted Kuro up to his shoulders. “The day you beat me I’m sure all Hell would break lose!”

From where Kuro’s mother stood, the sight of the two reflected in her amber eyes that were reminiscent of suns.

The pair chuckled, before Kuro’s father turned to face his wife. “Hey, Mira? Kuro’s getting a little bit too ahead of himself. Why don’t you show him how strong his parents are?”

“Huh? Is Mom as strong as you, Dad?!”

His father shot him a look and whispered, “Well, she’s certainly one scary lady—YEOWCH!”

Mira’s foot found its place on his father’s foot. Her smile suddenly lost the warmth it had earlier as she spoke. “What do you mean by, ‘scary lady’, hmm, Marcus?”

The two exchanged some “semi-playful” banter and Kuro could only smile to himself as they did.

● ● ●

One night, on the second floor where young Kuro slept, a storm was brewing. The room was so wide and expansive, it could pass off as its own little apartment.

The only source of light that filtered through the windows was from the full moon—casting its ethereal glow upon the land.

The precious moonlight illuminated the items that would otherwise be hidden in the dark, and scattered across the floor of Kuro’s bedroom. Comics were splayed out on the floors, toy bricks forming a construct of a bridge in a far corner.

A few of Kuro’s shorts and shirts were scattered around his bedside. His bed was something that would be found in a king’s bedroom. With its large frames, perfectly sculpted head- and foot-boards made of exotic woods, along with its imposing proportions, “King-Sized” would be an understatement.

Kuro stirred underneath the covers. A dream, or more fittingly, a nightmare plagued him. Two gates, stretching as far as the eye could see engulfed in searing flames of deep red. A strange, ominous, power coming from behind them.

It called to him, but he wouldn’t move near them. Just watching, wondering if the bars where always glowing due to the heat or they were just colored that way.

He snapped out of the dreamscape when a nagging thought returned… Where’s Mom and Dad…?

It was well past eleven o’clock, and Talmarius had earlier done his best to ease Kuro’s worry and send him to bed. He had said something along the lines of, “Your parents just went out for a little outing and are running a bit late. No need to worry, young master.”

Kuro looked up at the ceiling and heaved a deep sigh from his small frame.

Then it happened.

Screech…

Both of Kuro’s ears twitched. Being a Demon, he had better hearing than the average human. And he could tell the gates of the mansion were pushed open.

What he didn’t understand was conveyed in his next thought. But where is the car…?

If he remembered correctly, his parents drove out of the estate earlier that evening. So it would make sense for them to return in a similar manner.

Thunder flashed.

Kuro whisked his covers away and sprinted through the halls of the mansion, still in his nightwear. He ran down the flight of stairs, passing by maids stationed at various corners of the mansion—everything passing by him in a blur.

He was anxious to meet his parents, and vent out his displeasure with how long they took to get back.

The two large doors leading outside blocked his path. Kuro eagerly pulled them open. He set his sights on where the gates would be straight ahead—

In that moment, Kuro stopped.

His entire world, froze.

“I must still be dreaming,” were the words subconsciously leaving his mouth.

His father stood, his clothes in tatters. Blood splattered wildly without pattern. Red smeared on his lips, a little trickling down to his chin.

In his arms, a woman. Her pristine dress once white soaked in crimson. Her hands hung limply. Blonde wavy locks disheveled.

“M…… MOOOOOOOOOM!”

Kuro’s guttural shout tore through the night as a heavy downpour started.

Kuro ran barefoot across the icy road beneath, and the chilly raindrops continued their assault regardless.

As he neared, Talmarius, who Kuro had completely ignored up until now, suddenly stepped in his way to stop him with a dim expression.

“MOVE!” Kuro screamed as he pushed past his butler and continued to where his father stood motionless.

Now at an arm’s length from his father, Kuro tried to say something—anything. But he couldn’t form any words.

He reached out for his mother’s left hand—cold. Stripped of warmth.

The entire torso of his mother’s dress was stained with a deep red, stripping the cloth of its original pristine white.

And then he saw it.

The wound that claimed his mother’s life.

A hole, charred around the edges; no bigger than a rounded fist—right through her left chest.

Kuro grit his teeth and looked at his father, who had a single tear running down his face—cutting across the smears of blood on it.

A man Kuro had never seen shed a single tear.

A situation that made the young boy even more aware of the fact that, he himself was not crying…despite the pain.

● ● ●

“I better go pay them a visit,” Kuro said, shaking his head as if to dispel the memories from his childhood. “Coming, Talmarius?”

His butler replied with a bow, then led Kuro deeper through the mansion. They continued the walk till they got to a sliding door that opened to the back of the home.

The pair walked down a dirt path, with lush green grass growing on either side. Further down the path, building came into view—the living quarters.

The houses were lined up in neat rows, each with their own clothing lines, lawns and backyards. A few of the staff Kuro had previously inquired about stood in front of their homes. Some hung laundry, some tended to their lawns, and others engaged in idle chitchat.

Upon seeing Kuro, they immediately dropped whatever occupied them to address the head of the Kurosu Estate. The men bowed deeply, and the women curtsied gracefully.

Kuro cracked an awkward smile and waved at the people lined up at both his sides—looking elated whenever he waved at them.

To any outsider, they seemed like everyday workers. But in truth, they were Demons—every single one of them.

Talmarius smiled faintly as he led Kuro deeper into the estate.

The path continued through a forest dense with trees; their canopy blocking the sunlight, casting shadows on the ground.

It wasn’t until they came to a small circular clearing at the center of the forest, where a small grassy hill-like structure was bathed in the golden rays of the sun.

A small climb later, and the two were now on top of it. Kuro maintained a neutral expression as he read the inscription on tombstone, with a structure akin to a cross, or rather an X…

“Here lies Miranda Kurosu.”

“Hey, Mom…” Kuro whispered under his breath. “Just dropped by. Hope you’re good? I’m doing great myself…”

He chuckled bitterly.

Kuro's eyes turned to the tombstone next to his mother’s.

“Here lies Marcus Kurosu.”

The smile on Kuro’s face faltered for but a moment, as more memories from his past flooded his mind…