“What... what am I? I’m certainly not human. Though, I think I used to be.” A black creature of unknown form writhed in contemplation within a pure white void.
“My name, it used to be… I can’t— I don’t remember. Why? Also, why do I feel this overwhelming amount of raw power? As if I were a god… Though I feel mighty, I know I’m constrained. I seem to be an outsider, all alone.” The shadowy black mass suddenly felt a wave of depression. However, the feeling was short-lived, as curiosity drove the dark being to search for anything of value. Eventually, it found something—a shiny black sphere. The abyssal creature instantly knew what it was looking at.
“This is a multiverse! An infinite universe with infinite parallel timelines. Fascinating! And there’s so much life in it, too!” The creature immediately tried to enter the sphere, but the ball began to rumble and shake as it moved closer. “Ah, what a bummer. My existence is too powerful. If I enter all at once, the verse will collapse and disappear, killing everything inside while leaving me unscathed. I don’t want that, but what if I just stick my finger in? Make it as thin as a needle and touch down right... here.”
----
A small family in a horse-drawn caravan was speeding for their lives. The horses, running on fumes, were driven only by primal fear, for what chased them would surely kill them if it caught up.
An enormous beast, 20 meters tall when fully standing, galloped toward the group at terrifying speed, nearly twice as fast as the caravan. The creature resembled a monstrous blend of gorilla, dog, and shark, its jaws hanging open as its thunderous legs propelled it forward. Rapidly closing the distance, it bore down on them, and with the surrounding landscape a flat marsh, the family had no place to hide.
“Gwahar!” The beast roared as it leaped toward the carriage, ready to pounce and devour its prey—only to be pierced by a thin metal pillar that descended from the heavens in an instant. The sheer force of the pillar’s arrival created a shockwave, tearing the beast apart and sending the caravan flying into the air. The carriage shattered, injuring the family inside. The horses, however, escaped unscathed and, now free of their harnesses, bolted away in a frenzy of residual fear, running for their lives.
The family of four, injured and helpless, lay among the wreckage at the crash site.
“Jezebel! Isabela! Jacob! Are you alright?” A muscular, tanned man with a face full of black hair called out for his family. Despite the numerous bruises and cuts covering his body, his duty to protect them remained unwavering. He hurried to his wife, the second to emerge from the scattered remains of their broken carriage.
“Isaac! I—I think my arm is broken, but I can walk,” replied a well-built, fair-skinned woman. Like her husband, she was covered in cuts and bruises, and her long, silky white hair was tangled with dirt and splinters of wood. However, unlike him, her left arm was bent at an unnatural angle.
“Oh no, no, no! That’s... that could be a death sentence, Jessie!” Isaac's ocean-blue eyes filled with worry as he examined her injured arm.
“I know, especially since neither of us is a doctor or a priest. But we need to check on the kids first,” she said, gritting her teeth against the pain.
“Yes, the kids... right. If a single one of them— I, fuck, fuck, fuck! Isabela! Jacob!” The father shouted in panic as he frantically searched through the wreckage. The mother, though understandably lacking the same vigor, joined in the search.
“Fa... Father,” a small but determined voice cried out. Isaac rushed over, tossing aside boxes and pieces of wood, and found his 8-year-old son holding his leg, whimpering. A splintered piece of wood had lodged itself in the boy's calf, but thankfully, it had missed the major veins and arteries, and there wasn’t much bleeding. Aside from his leg, the boy seemed mostly unharmed.
“Jacob, you’ll be alright, my boy. Just fight the pain a little longer,” Isaac said, lifting the boy into his arms.
“O-okay,” Jacob whispered. Feeling safe in his father’s embrace, he lost consciousness moments later.
“No!” A sharp scream pierced the air, drawing Isaac’s attention. The mother had found their 6-year-old daughter beneath a large cloth, blood pouring from a wound on her head. “Izzy! Izzy! Please, not like this,” she cried, using her uninjured arm to gently lift the little girl's head in an attempt to stop the bleeding.
“Isaac! Do something!” the desperate mother urged.
“What am I supposed to do? We’re in the middle of nowhere! The horses are gone, Jessie,” he replied, his voice laced with frustration. His anger, though, was not directed at her but at himself.
“I—I know! I don’t want our daughter to die, Isaac,” she sobbed, holding their child close with her good arm.
“I know... we could try to staunch the bleeding,” Isaac said. He grabbed a torn piece of cloth and pressed it against the wound, doing his best to stop the bleeding. But it wasn’t working. “You might die too. I’ll focus on the kids—try to do something about your arm.”
Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
“If I have to go, so be it. Better me than Izzy or Jacky,” Jezebel said, running her hand gently through her daughter’s hair. Her panic-stricken eyes darted around the crash site, desperately searching for anything that could help. Her gaze finally locked onto the long, thin pillar that had both saved their lives and caused their injuries.
“I have a crazy idea. It might not work, hell, it might get us killed. However, both Izzy and I are already on death's row. My execution’s just a bit later than hers.”
“You, you're planning on going near that pillar? Are you mad?!” Isaac exclaimed.
“It fell from the sky, Isaac! It still towers into the heavens! We have no idea what it is or what it can do! It could be a benevolent god!”
“It’s not a god, Jessie! It’s probably not even alive... What the—!” Isaac’s protest was cut short as small black tendrils emerged from the base of the pillar. They slithered over to the carcass of the beast that had been chasing them, inspecting it. Then, a thin black wisp of something rose from the corpse and was drawn into the pillar.
“What the hell did that thing just do?!”
“I’m going to it, Isaac. It’s our last chance. If we die... please, take care of Jacob for me,” Jezebel said, her voice resolute.
“Jessie... there really is nothing else we can try, is there?” Isaac asked quietly.
“No. Either we die later, die because of that pillar, or a miracle happens. There’s no risk in trying something this desperate. Izzy’s fading already.”
“Just go. I’ll be watching, with hope.” Isaac gently laid his son down on the ground, then helped his wife get a good hold of their daughter with her working arm.
“Best not to,” she warned.
“I’d only blame myself if I didn’t. It would feel like I jinxed you.”
“How unfortunate,” Jezebel said softly. She gave her husband a light kiss, for luck, and made her way toward the black pillar. The journey was short but laborious, as she carefully stepped around the blood and pieces of flesh from the torn carcass of the once titanic beast. Finally, she reached the base of the pillar.
Gently, she laid her daughter at the foot of the oddly pristine structure, then collapsed to her knees from fatigue. Looking up at the towering black pillar, she whispered, “I beg you, whatever you are, please help my daughter, if you can.”
Much to her dismay, a large eye opened, staring down at Jezebel and her daughter. A wave of fear washed over her, as the eye seemed to command a power so great that it threatened to tear apart her mind and shatter her soul. Yet, instead of overwhelming her, it turned its gaze toward her husband in the distance. Suddenly, several eyes opened along the pillar, countless eyes stretching past the clouds and far into the sky. But just as quickly, they closed and vanished, leaving only a single eye focused on her once again.
“Y̴͉͘o̸͓̐u̷̜̔ ̴̻͋f̷̤̈́ŏ̴̟u̶̜̽r̶̠̀ ̴̲̽s̷̙̎ë̷͉́e̷̡͠m̶͎͂ ̶̲̽t̸̺͋o̸̤͑ ̶̺͠b̷̼̎e̵̙̋ ̵̙̇i̴̳͊n̴͖̈́ ̶̤͛a̷̹̅ ̸̝̉v̶̘̎e̶̘̚r̵̭̔y̵͎̚ ̶̖̂p̸̮̋r̶̹̊e̵̦͒c̷̭͗a̸̳̋r̸͇͘ị̴͒o̵̮͋ų̸͋s̸̩̋ ̸̦̾s̵̫̈i̶̙͠t̵̺͊u̶͕͝ȧ̵͚t̶͔̒i̶̯͌o̸̫͗n̸̹͂,̸̹̕ ̷̙̓m̴͈̃ỳ̸̠ ̶͍̍b̸̨̂a̴̹̕d̴̜̔ ̶̲̏f̷̡́o̵̝̔ŗ̵̌ ̶̖͝n̷̬̒o̷̰͠ṱ̵͛ ̴̱̓n̵̫̕o̸̲͂t̷̪͠i̶̭̓n̵̼̏g̶̳̚ ̵̻̇s̷̭̾o̵̤̐o̸̢̾n̷̹̈́e̶̖͛ŗ̸͛.̸̲͊ ̵̫̈́S̴̮̈́u̶̡͛r̵̭̽e̵͖̚,̷̪̂ ̴̮̋I̷̱̅ ̵̹̈́d̸̠̽ô̸̬n̶͈̓'̷̞̇t̸̫͋ ̶̩̃m̷̝̈i̸̜͌ņ̶̽d̷̩̂ ̸̮̓h̷͚̚e̸͕̓l̶͖͊p̸̫̚i̵͚͆n̴̼͛ǵ̶͕ ̷̠̚o̶̯͂ù̵̫t̸̝̃.̴̋͜”
The pillar spoke, but Jezebel understood nothing. Blood trickled from her ears and nose as she struggled to comprehend the language. Confused, she watched as a small black tendril detached from the tower and gently touched her daughter’s forehead. Instantly, Izzy’s complexion improved. Her skin softened, and the blood that covered her head and body began to fade away.
In her awe, Jezebel failed to notice a tendril touch her forehead as well, cleansing her of soot and grime and, more importantly, healing her arm. Isaac rushed over, carrying Jacob in his arms, and both father and son were also cleansed and healed.
The husband and wife embraced each other as their children slowly regained consciousness. The whole family came together in joy, though the children were also filled with confusion. Isaac bowed to the pillar in gratitude, a gesture mirrored by the rest of the family. “Great lord, thank you for your grace!”
“A̶̻̚h̸̺͊ ̴́ͅñ̵̯ô̶̤ ̸̜͂p̵̠̿r̶͔̾o̵̘͆b̸͕̋l̴͌͜e̸͕̅m̷͚̅,̸̺́ -Ahem, I mean, it is not a problem,” the pillar replied carefully, ensuring that his words wouldn’t cause the family to bleed again.
“Sorry, it took some time to properly translate my thoughts into a language mortals could understand.” The pillar noticed the group looking at him oddly, the casualness of his speech feeling out of place coming from such a being. “Um, did I say something strange?”
“What? No, not at all. We just didn’t expect such a kind… god,” Jezebel replied nervously.
“I see. So, what brings your family out here? It seems like quite a dangerous venture,” the being inquired, gesturing toward the carcass of the beast it had just slain.
“Our previous location had a tyrannical figure who enacted greedy and harmful laws and began enslaving us. We decided to move away to survive. While we couldn't afford protection, I have family who recommended this route as the least likely to be traversed by great beasts. We are scouting for a place to settle down, and many more plan to join us. We’re supposed to meet near a mountain west of here,” Isaac explained.
“Interesting. However, while you four are alive and well now, without any form of speedy travel or a caravan to transport your belongings, your family’s chances of continued survival are low.”
“That’s true, but we’ll have to manage on foot, no matter the danger,” Isaac replied.
“Of course, but it would be a shame for your family to perish right after I healed you. Very well, I shall repair your caravan and provide you with new mounts. That way, my healing won’t be in vain,” the pillar promised. A new black tendril appeared, touching the broken caravan and scattered items. They combined seamlessly, restored to their original condition, practically as good as new even.
Next, the pillar tapped on the remains of the beast's flesh. Slowly, four horses emerged, their colors a striking blend of blue and black. Muscles rippled beneath their skin as bonelike armor formed around their bodies; two females and two males. The pillar’s eyes shone a light on the family of four and the newly created horses, leaving an odd mark on both the beasts and the family.
“There, new horses! They will only listen to those who share your blood. I believe this will be more than enough to continue your journey to safety?”
“Ah, yes! This is incredibly gracious of you, my lord. Um, how should we address you?” Jezebel asked, bowing in gratitude and pulling her husband down with her; he was too busy marveling at the new horses to notice.
“Hmm, you may call me Nachtaiyo, or Nachta for short,” the pillar replied.