Chapter 105: The Story of a Human Boy

Chapter 105: The Story of a Human Boy

12 years ago in Year 106.

A young boy walks through the streets of a city, hands in pockets. It’s raining, drenching anyone without an umbrella. The boy has short, dark purple hair that spikes backward, and has blue irises. He is wearing nothing but a plain T-shirt and shorts.

His gaze is lowered to the ground, sadness within his eyes, as he wanders aimlessly.

“Little boy,” a woman’s voice calls out.

Her voice grabs his attention. He stops in place and raises his gaze to look forward. A man and a woman stand there, focusing on him with worry. Both have short black hair and red irises in their eyes. They are wearing jackets and are carrying umbrellas.

“Little boy, where are your parents?” the woman asks.

The boy’s expression saddens further, somewhat avoiding eye contact with them.

“They were murdered,” the boy replies, trying to hold back his tears. “They pushed me down into this place as they were being killed.”

“That’s horrible!” the man exclaims.

“What is your name, and how old are you?” the woman asks.

“My name is Keith, and I’m 10 years old.”

“How about you come live with us?” the woman offers. “At least for as long as you are willing.”

Keith looks hesitant at first, but then opens up to them.

“…Okay,” he mumbles. “What are your names?”

The woman smiles. “My name is Lisha.”

“My name is Trate,” the man adds. “We’re a married couple.”

***

Keith narrates. “I was young, alone, and had no other choice, so I went with them and lived with them in this city. Then I got to meet their son, Jinto, and daughter, Bayga. Jinto is about a year younger than me, while Bayga is about two years older than me. The living experience was great. I got along well with all of them. For 2 years, my life was as ordinary as it was with my biological parents. But then… I had discovered that all four of them are demons. I had walked in on them when they were in their true forms.”

Keith walks into their home’s living room, stopping in place as his eyes widen and mouth drops open, seeing all of his family in their demon forms. Not much is different about them. They have the same general appearance, with the differences being that their skin is darkish red, they have pointy ears, and they have short spikes on their arms.

“W-What…?” young Keith utters, struggling to say anything.

“Keith, we can explain!” Lisha assures with a slight panic, trying to prevent him from being frightened.

Keith narrates. “As a 12-year-old, I didn’t know much about demons. They thought I would get scared and run away but I didn’t. Instead, I started asking questions and got answers. They told me how they were born as demons, which I thought was an odd thing to explain. Why wouldn’t they be born as demons? So, I asked them if it was possible to be something else and become a demon. They told me that there were two ways a human could become a demon. It could be done by implanting ‘special’ internal ‘objects’ or by doing a direct restructuring of a person’s DNA. The first method makes you become an Enigmus, a demon crafted from a human. But there is no label for the other method. You simply become a demon. I told them I wanted to become a demon. They told me they liked who I was now, but I insisted. They didn’t have the means to do the Enigmus method. We had no choice but to go with the second method so we obtained a slimy cocoon thing that their specific species of demon liked to use. They were worried because this method is not as ‘safe’ as the Enigmus method. If my body rejects the DNA changes, I will die. I was placed in the cocoon, and I immediately fell asleep. The process takes time so I was in it for one year. It’s much slower than the Enigmus method.”

Keith’s family gathers around the cocoon, staring down at its brown oval-shaped exterior with hope. Jinto has short black hair and red irises. Bayga has long black hair with bangs that hang down close to her eyes. She has red irises.

“I hope his body does not reject the changes,” Lisha says. “Keith is a wonderful member of our family.”

“All we can do is wait,” Trate calmly says.

“How long will big brother be in there?” Jinto asks.

“You are going to be waiting a while,” Bayga answers. “It will take a whole year.”

***

Keith narrates. “But finally, one year later, when I was 13 years old, I had ‘hatched’. My skin was just like their skin now. The DNA changes were only to my physical makeup, and my magic was now of the demon ‘variety’, but everything else about me remained the same. I even had the ability to disguise myself with my human appearance. It was just like how they were able to use magic to disguise themselves, except that they were never human. For the next 6 years, I continued to live normally with them. They were nice demons. But then at the age of 19… Things went downhill for this beautiful city… This beautiful city of the Swamp Underworld.”

Keith, as an adult in his human appearance, walks through a valley toward the city. He still has short, dark purple hair that spikes backward. He stands at 6 feet tall. He is weak and injured as he walks, covered in wounds.

Talking to himself, he says, “I’m now 22 years old and these last 3 years have been hell! Drinking has become a common occurrence for me now. But one day, I will free the Swamp Underworld from this hell!”

A new character enters the story.

Chapter 105 END

To be Continued in Chapter 106: Angel Sanctuary