Lord of the Wicked [✔ COMPLETE]

CHAPTER 1: Gate to Brimstone

                 A cloud of dust flew up Valek's face when the heavy wooden chest landed on the floor. Little drops of sweat trickled down his curly brown hair. After straightening himself he wiped off the sweat with the back of his hand and looked around the attic with a smile.

Cobwebs decorated the walls with spiders woven inside their own webs, and Valek figured that those dead spiders were probably older than he was. The slanting ceiling nearly touched his head on its peak, the walls and floors were wooden and except for a tiny window there was no source of light. Many would've shuddered at the thought of having to sleep in this rotting, dark attic, but to Valek having his very own room was a dream come true.

The first thing Valek did was laying newspapers on the floor and painting the walls a dark shade of blue that leaned on grey. It didn't take long before he was done, for the wood was easy to paint. After that, he carried furniture up the attic; a desk, a dresser and two bookcases, and a nightstand. One by one Valek placed his belongings where he wanted them. The chest at the foot of his bed. The figurines collections neatly in the narrow bookcase, and his books stacked in the larger bookcase. The desk he shoved below the only window and placed his laptop and notebooks on it.

Once he was done, Valek frowned and looked at the floor with a tilted head. With slow steps, he began to walk back and forth on the creaking wooden floor and lingered at a particular spot near the wall. This particular spot on the floor didn't feel nor sound like the others, he noticed, it did not creak but sounded hollow. Valek tapped his foot on that spot and an almost echoing sound came about. Then he tapped his foot next to that spot but there it sounded solid and firm.

The door opened with a screech and Valek turned to his mother standing by the entrance. The red of her hair seemed to grow more grey as each day passed, and the bags below her eyes seemed to darken as well. The woman stepped inside and looked around the attic, swept her eyes along his bed and bookcases, her glance lingered at his figurines and a look of disdain appeared, but she tried not to show it and observed the room further.

"Are you happy with your new room?" his mother asked as she picked up one of his figurines, a figure of The Joker that was worth over six-hundred, and frowned at it. "It was about time, I suppose, as you're almost a man now." When she said man, she looked up and put the figure away.

"Very happy," Valek answered, the tone of his voice was monotone and bland. "And, yes, it was about time indeed."

His mother smiled, but it wasn't really aimed at him, Valek knew, nor was it even a smile at all, it was just a pull of a muscle, for his mother was never really quite there. Her mind was elsewhere. "Can't have a sixteen-year-old boy sharing a room with his little sister, no," she said.

A shudder went through him, and without realizing it he took a step back. Though his mother would never beat him, she scared him nonetheless. Valek didn't want to call her insane, it was a word that sounded very mean and rude, but he had no other word for it. When his mother turned to face him for an answer, he quietly nodded.

"Dinner is ready," she said with a smile and turned to the door. "Come down now, don't make us wait for you."

In the dining room, there were three plates laid out, yet the only one seated was his mother who stared at nothing with a blank expression. In the middle of the table stood two pans, one of which contained rice and the other a stir-fry of veggies and meat. The food's scent was strong but pleasant.

Valek took a seat at his regular spot at the head of the table and put his elbows on the wood, and let his mother grab hold of his hand. His other hand remained in the air.

His mother threw him an angry look, and said with a broken voice, "Take your sister's hand, Valek, what's wrong with you?"

Valek looked at the empty chair across from his mother and swallowed. "Sorry, mom." Hesitantly, he reached into the air and made a fist beside the empty plate. Then he faced his mother, his eyes pleading for approval. To his relief, she smiled and gave him a slight nod.

With closed eyes, she began the prayer. "Father, we have gathered here at the meal You provided us once more, and we are grateful. We thank You for keeping us strong as a family and we thank You for this food. Bless it to our bodies, Lord, and bless and relieve the starvation of those who hunger, Lord, and forgive us for forgetting how many pray to be relieved of their hunger. In Jesus' name, Amen."

"Amen," Valek echoed and drew back his hands.

"Pass me your sister's plate," his mother demanded with her hand raised. Valek did as he was told and gave her the plate, which she filled to the brim with food to be passed at the empty seat.

Apart from the clanging of cutlery, it was dead silent at the table, it always was, and like always Valek shoved down his food as quickly as he could. There was no point in talking even if he did have something to share, his mother heard nothing and saw nothing. Sometimes, Valek was convinced that he was actually dead, like his sister, and stuck in limbo.

In his new bedroom, Valek remained lingering around that one spot that sounded hollow. For a reason he could not grasp he was drawn to that part of the floor. He knocked on it, he stamped on it, he even jumped on it. Eventually, his curiosity got the best of him and he grabbed his pocketknife from his desk's drawer and began to pry one of the floorboards open.

Once the floorboard came undone, he lifted it and the coldest wind blew so hard in his face that it made Valek tumble on his back. For a few minutes, he was frozen and just stared at the empty spot from a distance, though there was nothing he could make out except blackness. He failed to figure out where the wind had come from.

Crawling, he returned to the spot and pried open another floorboard, and after this one came loose another strong gust of wind hit him. With each floorboard he opened a heavy wind knocked him on his back, but Valek did not stop until there was a big enough gap for him to fit through.

Inside the hole, he saw stars. Valek rose up and walked to his small window and peered at the sky, and noticed that the stars inside the hole were very similar to those in the sky. Then he dropped to his knees again and dared to stick his hand inside. It felt cold, and he pulled his hand back.

Valek sat back and hugged himself as he stared at the empty space in front of him. One part of him told him that he should put all the floorboards back and forget whatever he saw. But there was another part of him, one dominated by his curiosity, that was fascinated.

After pondering for a long time, Valek chose the part of him he wanted to listen to. He dipped one leg inside the hole and felt his leg dangling in the cold air, then he put his other leg in there as well. Taking deep breaths, he counted. At three he'd jump, he told himself, but he counted to three at least a dozen times. Then he shook his head and decided it was foolish and decided it was best to put the floorboards together, but as he pulled his legs out another force from inside the hole tugged at him.

It tugged so violently that Valek felt himself being dragged inside. He turned around and grabbed the legs of his bed, to no avail, his bed was dragged along. The bed stuck outside, as it was too big to fit, and Valek held on as tightly as he could and used all of his strength to pull himself back up. Eventually, he lost the battle and got sucked into the hole.