Arisu [ #JustWriteIt - Horror - Complete ]

Chapter One - Allure Of Darkness

"The somber manor stood so proud and tall.
And,
An angel's footsteps echoed throughout the hall."

His golden cloak billowed out behind him. One step forward; his traveling boots left their faint mark on the steady ground. With a glinting brown eye, he studied the aged bridge.

Dark green moss had crept up the cracked sides of the weathered stone blocks over time and, together, they arched elegantly over the tail of a snaking, surging river.

His other eye was robotic - a high-tech piece of charcoal-coloured machinery. The iris was slate black, the pupil a thin slash of red.

It wasn't just intimidating - it was useful. Telling him about the bridge's stability, the type of materials used to build it, even the species of the bright green vines that snaked across its hewn sides.

A sudden gust blew his hood back from his head, golden fabric rippling, whooshing past his ears as it cracked his exceptionally long ponytail in midair like a light brown whip.

Coryn folded an arm over his shoulder, with the intent to pull it forward again. His hand lingered on the hood, and retreated as he changed his mind.

"Let's go. The bridge won't collapse under our feet... but stay away from the edge."

A little girl, who was grasping the end of his cloak, pulled it close to her chest like a tawny blanket. Her eyes were wide, her bottom lip trembling. The wind flittered her pink hair as if it was made of paper.

"C-Can we go back?"

A little boy had his arms wrapped around Coryn's neck, hanging off his back. He wasn't wearing a cloak - and was covered in stray leaves, twigs, even a few tiny red feathers.

"Don't you remember what the innkeeper said? They don't book rooms on the thirty-first of October because they're a bunch of superstitious loonies." The boy made a cuckoo gesture to emphasise his point.

Alice whimpered and started fidgeting with the cloak's sturdy fabric, fingernails picking at the hem.

Her hair stood on end when a cawing crow shot over their heads and flew towards the setting sun, leaving a few raven feathers twirling in the air.

"Bad, bad, bad luck! I don't like it!" she sobbed, going wobbly at the knees.

A raspberry was blown.

"Play nice," Coryn warned him gently, turning his neck to the right.

His seven year-old brother became wholly quiet when subjected to the artificial glare. "O-Ok-Okay," was eventually mumbled.

Alice hugged her whole body against Coryn's leg and wouldn't let go. It made crossing the bridge a tricky endeavour, but he managed it step-by-step.

The moor's forest disappeared on the other side. All of it was gone - the shadowed trees, the rustling branches, the soft whispers, the hostile birds.

A stretch of bare land encircled the grand manor, filled with dense, dull grass. It wasn't soft - it felt like pinpricks.

The afternoon sky melted into an endless river of pale blue, purple and pinks as the glowing sun dipped out of sight. Dottings of fluffy clouds blended into the colors, the closest reflecting the last rays beautifully, while the rest were consumed by brooding darkness and shadow.