The Infernal Society

Prologue II: The Dream

In the dream, vivid blue eyes shot through the darkness of the room. Even from where he stood did he notice alloy flecks of sparkling silver swimming in the intense gaze, and glimmered against the silvery light of a full moon. They belonged to a boy, probably only a few years older than him from what he could tell. The mysterious stranger studied him carefully from the darkest corner of the room and glared with curious eyes.

The bedroom appeared ancient, untouched, with wooden floors sheeted with chalk-colored dust. Of paint-chipped walls that were in need of urgent care. It felt empty and strangely hollow. The only living thing in the room was him and the unholy being across from where he stood.

He felt cold and heavy. And harsh clouds of his breath lingered before him with every exhale. He tried to move but it was as if he were frozen, having no will over his suddenly numb limbs. He started to panic, his eyes darting side to side with his breathing brisk and fierce.

The stranger took a step closer. All he could do was stare. Somehow the boy found the strength to speak.

"Who are you?" Alfie nearly choked on his words. The presence of this stranger felt oddly familiar.

The strange boy smiled, showcasing alabaster teeth, razor sharp, the kind meant to lacerate flesh.

Alfie felt sick. The voice of him alone sent pandemoniums hurdling through his head, which inspired a violent ache. He wanted to drop to his knees and vomit all over the tattered wooden floor. Still, I couldn't move.

"The answer to your call," replied the boy. Alfie was confused. What could that mean? He thought. But he couldn't question the boy, for he couldn't move, nor speak. He was frozen. But odd how everything around him began to swirl and change. Until the room was no longer old and unkept, but warm and cleaned. Stuck in place, all Alfie could do was spectate. The bed was occupied by someone, a petite body beneath covers as the strange boy with dark curly hair and burning blue eyes, hovered over them menacingly. As the body turned over, the blankets that fell from the body revealed a young girl, as young as Alfie, assumed to be a few years older. The boy was nineteen. The girl eighteen. Somehow Alfie knew this.

Alfie tried to scream. His mouth opened but nothing came out. "Is it time?" the girl laid across the bed in front of asked the boy. Her was voice familiar...

"Time to come home..." There was something in the boy's eyes. He looked...sad. It was strange to see such a display against his previously menacing appearance. The girl gave him a kiss on his forehead and his grin revealed perfect white teeth. At that very moment the room started to warp and spin once more, a white light burning away the scene into a blinding flash.

A series of laughter filled the warping room.

Is it time?
Time to come home...

These words echoed and faded with every repeat. Nothing but a blinding white light remained...