*Book One of The Accursed Chronicles*
August was a man from a normal world, living a mundane life until one night everything changed, and he was sent spiraling into a world stuck forever in winter, full of magic, creatures, and a curse that has grip...
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I woke up feeling like I had been hit by a freight train, more than once. My lips were chapped, my body was sore, and worst of all I could feel something shifting around inside me beneath my skin, like worms. I felt sick at the thought and immediately sat up to throw up, but I stopped myself mid-puke when I saw Gloom sitting on the edge of the bed. The dark, heavy circles beneath his eyes were the first thing I took in, then there was the hollow, tiredness of his gaze.
We both made eye-contact for far too long before I broke it, looking down at the floor. Everything from last night was fuzzy. I could remember pieces of vague memories, like shouts from Leuthar and Gloom then the feeling of burning pain in my wrists. I glanced down at my wrist and noticed a deep red imprint the size of a golf ball, making me touch my fingertips to it.
"What happened?" I asked, then lifted my gaze to Gloom when he stood from my bed, hands rested behind his back.
"You remember what I told you about how hybrids have constant battles between their demon side and human half?" I nodded before he continued, "That was what happened last night. Your demon half appeared to have a stronger awakening then what you had expected, and it took over before you managed to gain control again. It pays to train as I have told you to."
I sighed, tired of being reminded of this fact. "Which side won?"
"That would be for you to tell me. I cannot tell nor can others unless there is an obvious change. There hasn't been any since last night," he replied plainly, then hummed and turned away from me towards the door. "You should go about your day as you usually would. There's no need to be concerned, what you're going through is normal."
"How do you know what normal is? There's hardly any writing on hybrids. I have half a mind to believe you're talking out of your ass," I grumbled as I swung my legs over the edge of my bed and snatched my crumpled tunic from atop my blanket. I tugged it on as I added, "It is stupid to act like nothing happened. I clearly fucked up something because the hallway was a mess when I returned to myself. Whatever is inside me is more than what you thought, isn't it?"
He didn't answer my words, and when I finished pulling on my shirt, I glanced over at him. "Gloom, am I not right? You have no experience with this. I'm an experiment for you."
"We are making do with the information we have. There's no need to speculate or panic," he stated finally, making me roll my eyes. He would have to respond this way. He turned back towards me with a clench of his jaw. "Don't roll your eyes. There's no way to predict what will happen or how things will turn out. You are more likely to drive yourself mad than find a conclusion."
I reluctantly had to agree. I was already feeling myself grow lightheaded with all of my overthinking, but most of it came with reason. What if I was a danger to everyone and everything? Gloom himself had told me how demons once had ruled Laelmos and had everyone gripped with fear. What if I became that way? I didn't want to be because I had all intentions to stay with Gloom and Leuthar.
