Black Strings: Threads of Revenge

Mini Chapter 1

Tommy opens his eyes to the night sky. The stars are particularly bright tonight. Not a single cloud in the sky. Crickets chirp in the far distance. The tree branches rustle softly in the night's breeze. The campfire embers glow dimly. He jumps down, landing on his feet, and walks up to the campfire. He grabs a few branches and sticks them into the fire. They burst into warm flames.

Another branch snaps, this time, not as far away as the last. Tommy's head snaps in the direction of the sound.

"Who's there?" he mutters, but there's no reply. Realizing he might have spoken too softly, he repeats the phrase a little louder. "Who's there?" There's no reply again.

He reaches for the charm of his necklace with his left hand and summons a sword to his right. He slowly creeps towards the source of the sound, keeping an eye out.

At first, there's nothing of interest. Not a single thing out of the ordinary. But then he comes across a half-fox girl and a young human man.

The half-fox has long, straight brown hair and deep hazel eyes. Her complexion kissed by the sun. She has this cold, determined look in her eyes, the kind that tells a story of hardships.

In the crook of her arm is the young man, his neck caught in a chokehold. His face had already begun to turn blue. He claws at her arms desperately.

He recognizes the half-fox, that cold, determined gaze. "Ginger, stop". Tommy commands.

Ginger, the half-fox, ignores his command and bites the man's shoulder, blood seeping out of the wound. The man ceases movement. His eyes roll back. Ginger lets the young man fall to the ground like an understuffed rag doll.

Tommy's sword disappears as he approaches Ginger. "That guy was pretty weak," he comments, looking at the man on the ground.

"Too weak to survive the first few seconds of the curse," Ginger says. "He didn't even start to turn. Can you hear his heartbeat?"

Tommy shakes his head. "He already flatlined."

"What do we do with the guy now"? Ginger asks.

Tommy grabs the man by his hair. "I'll rip out his soul out," he says to the half-fox. "He'll just be another missing person case."

Ginger turns into a fox, her form still translucent. She walks up to Tommy and jumps onto his shoulder.With his free hand, his hand phases through the young man's chest. Past skin, past muscle, past bones, and organs. His hands takes nail nail-digging hold of the soul, a glowing heart-shaped thing, of the man. Sharply, he rips the soul out of the body. A snap and crack ring through his ears.

Tommy drops the young man, crushing his soul. There's no emotion in his eyes for just a split second. The soul crumbles away like crushed orbeez. Clutching his shirt, emotions return. His lips part just enough to see his grit, a painful reminder reflected in his eyes.

Why can't I do that to myself?

Tommy lets out a breath as Ginger rubs her head against his.

"He'll fade away in no time." She tells him comfortingly. There's no response from Tommy.

Ginger jumps down, shifting back to her previous form. She looks Tommy in the eye. The silence between them comforting.

"I'll head home for the night." She tells Tommy after licking the blood off her teeth. "You should get some rest."

Tommy nods. "You too."

Her gaze softens. "I will."

That's where the two part ways for the night. Acting like nothing happened, he walks back to the group and campfire. He feeds the fire before jumping back into the tree and closing his eyes.

The stars above shine brightly. The night is silent. All people and animals hardly make a sound. Just the sounds of their breaths reach his ears. His eyes may not stay closed tonight, but that may be a good thing for this night. Hopefully, he gets some rest soon.