I was still wondering what Takeshi wanted to do all the way out here. Me and Mika were holding hands and giggling, and talking as we watched Takeshi make his way up the hill towards more countryside. God, he was a sporty one. Always the fittest of us, he made his way up with ease. As for me and Mika, we had different pursuits in our lives. I was my normal self, obsessed with knowledge. A quick drop of looks couldn't hurt though, and I allowed for that too. Mika was the other way. Beauty first, but knowing some facts had never killed anyone. So she wielded a mix too. But my God, she had pulled the looks off well. I was happy to have loved her from such an early age, she was already mine as she became such a stunning girl. Then there was Takuro. His normal, bolder than bold self, of course. Nothing phased the lad, he was possessed of a sentience that convinced him he was capable of anything he wanted. And it certainly gave him an edge, nobody could deny. Takuro had no fear, no threshold of how much he could take. Nothing held him back.

Takeshi: Well, that's it! This is what I dragged you guys out for! Oh, and girl. Sorry Mika!

Takeshi gave a chuckle as he gestured a large arm towards the massive house. All it's gardens had grown up and over the norm long ago. Weeds scaled the walls and even entered some windows. Glass was smashed and windows boarded, though it looked like the job of closing the building down was only half done.

Mika: We came here for that?! Um, why exactly?
Takeshi: Well, it's empty for a start. Nice hideout for us.
Hiroshi: A hideout?! Takeshi, how old are how again?
Takeshi: Hah, old enough to throw you into it!
Mika: Ey! Hands off!
Takuro: Hang on... Takeshi? Is this the Ao Oni no Kuro ie?
Takeshi: Sure is! You know your history Takuro!

Takuro paled and took a step back. He was looking at the house with an eerie stare as if something had looked back. I watched him intently.

Hiroshi: Erm, Takuro? Something got your tongue mate?
Takuro: Ao Oni no Kuro ie.... Takeshi?! WHY DID YOU BRING US HERE?!

I took a jump back as Takuro suddenly turned aggressive. He was mentally impaired and was very short tempered. Anything he didn't like would quite easily make him snap. I was impressed he hadn't done so at me, I knew deep down he was absolutely obsessed with Mika.

Takuro: WHAT THE HELL ARE WE HERE FOR?! DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT HOUSE IS?!
Takeshi: Calm down! It's a damn myth!
Hiroshi: Can SOMEBODY please tell me what Ao Oni no Kuro ie is?! I know what that means, but, well, why?
Takuro: Always have to know everything, don't you?
Hiroshi: Calm down, I just want to know what Ao Oni no Kuro ie is...
Takeshi: He's right, Takuro. Calm it. I'll tell you.
Takuro: Fine...
Takeshi: It means Black House of the Blue Demon. It's rumoured to be inhabited by a blue monster, that attacks anyone that enters the house.

I gave a rough sigh as Takuro began to pale again. Seriously, mentally troubled or not, did he really believe that crap?! Unbelievable. I decided it would be best to not argue, and just sit back, and watch his face when he realised it was all a load of shit.

Takuro: I'm telling you, there's something in there! Look at the boards! All the way through! They just stop on the second floor, in that place! I bet that's when he found them and chased all the builders out of his house!

I couldn't believe Takuro. Was he seriously this stupid?! I wanted to laugh, he was so thick at times.

Hiroshi: Takuro, if people started boarding my windows, I'd have noticed before they reached the second floor.

Mika burst out laughing and had to bend over to breathe. She lent on my shoulder as I blushed. She could be so embarrassing, but funny enough to ensure me, she would get me back for that. Sooner or later, Mika was going to crack an joke and have me on my knees for it. We knew each other too well.
I was going to try a few more jokes, but Mika hurt herself when she laughed too hard, and Takuro was pissed enough that I made her laugh once. If I got her twice he'd attack me. The problem with having such a determined friend is you sometimes have to stop, because otherwise he won't.

Takeshi: We going?! Come on, we've stopped!
Takuro: It's Mika and Hiroshi! Come on you two! Maybe we'll find you a bed while we're there...

Takuro gave a harsh, rough laugh. I knew that laugh all too well. He was on the edge of falling over from his own joke again, another annoying trait of his. It was calmed a little by the fact his throat was slit in a fight a few years before hand, so his laugh was limited, then it would quieten again, and become a lot rougher. Like sandpaper being twirled in his neck.

I sighed, and tugged the cuff of Mika's sweater. She calmed herself and we all began a slow descent down the rough terrain towards the abandoned mansion.

As we descended down the rough hill, I was caught up with an overwhelming feeling something was somehow about to go wrong. Not that I believed that the Ao Oni no Kuro ie was really going to contain some giant blue monster. Not that I believed anything contained monsters, except a weak mind.

Takuro: Takeshi! If anything happens in there, it's your fault. I swear there's something in there! I can feel it already!
Takeshi: For crying out loud... The Ao Oni no Kuro ie was a story so kids would never come here. It's too dangerous.
Hiroshi: Um, Takeshi? If it's too dangerous, why are we here?
Mika: I'm really unsure about this Hiroshi. It's not the blue demon stuff, it just looks too old! Like it should be knocked down already...
Hiroshi: Yeah, I thought that too.

I continued down the hill and was first onto the field. There was a stone path through, thankfully. Some areas of the grass went past my waist as I strode past them, Mika clinging onto my shoulder. She was apparently getting nervous as I was, just that she showed it. Takeshi pushed past us, apparently sick of our slow pace and shoved the door open. A heavy creak followed it as the great oak door heaved through a curve, then swung back towards us. Me and Mika simultaneously reached and and pushed it forward, and held it for Takuro, who was unsure what to make of the house. Takeshi looked up at the roof, and we stood in an awkward square wondering what room to explore.

Mika: Brr! It's colder inside!
Takuro: She's right... should we go?
Takeshi: You scared Takuro?
Hiroshi: Or you just sucking up to Mika?

I rubbed Mika's shoulders in an attempt to give her a little warmth. She took her hoodie from her waist and wriggled into it. I noticed her legs were bent together and her knees slanted in.

Hiroshi: Is it really that cold Mika?! Your legs are shaking!

Mika gave a giggle and realised they were. I enjoyed her sense of humour, it was always very open to my jokes and remarks. Takuro was still giving me a death glare for saying he was sucking up to her though. It was always clear that Takuro hated my humour. But, to be fair, he was the only one who did so.

With no warning, a loud crash erupted from down the corridor. Takuro jumped and looked as if he'd just soiled himself, and even Takeshi paled.

Takuro: WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!
Takeshi: You guys, I think I was right about it being dangerous. Should we go before the next smash is on us?
Hiroshi: God, you're so stupid! There are no giant blue monsters. Get over it, you're like KIDS. I'm going to see what the sound was.
Mika: Be careful Hiroshi! It sounded like something big smashing!

I turned and gave Mika a quick kiss, before turning to the doorway. My feet felt heavy, and even my mercilessly rational mind was beginning to feel like that door held the beginning of something much worse. I swung the door open, walked through, and sighed. It was a pile of plates fallen. I picked up a big, triangular shard and took it back in case they were too pathetically scared to come in and see some broken plates. When I walked back through, I was holding the piece of plate and grinning. I looked up to the hallway, and my face fell.

I couldn't believe it. How had it happened?! A few pieces of evidence were left behind for me. A couple of beads from Mika's bracelet were the first thing I picked up, and the first things that caught onto my mind. Mika. What's happened? This was no trick... Nobody's trying to show me up, that's for sure. A small splattered red area on the wooden door frame upstairs caught my attention. Mika had dropped one of her bracelets and smashed it, Takeshi had dropped a shoe, and Takuro was nowhere in sight.


Hiroshi: Mika? Takeshi?! TAKURO?!?! WHERE ARE YOU GUYS?


I was beginning to, rather than pale, blush. I had a feeling I was taking a simple game of hide and seek far too seriously. Playing along, I trudged upstairs to find everyone. I sighed and pushed open the first door I found. Nothing. Seeing as I had nothing to lose, I decided I might as well explore. I walked in and found, first of all, a piano and a bookshelf. Whoever did live here was certainly my type! Musical, and knowledgeable. I gave the piano a quick look and turned to the bookshelf, when a loud bang erupted from the closet chilling me to the bone. I wrenched it open, ready to find an onslaught of mice or rats, and instead found the very pale Takeshi. I'd seen this side of him before. He had something he nicknamed 'Fear Attacks' where he would get too scared to move, and his teeth would chatter, rendering him speechless. A small scratch streaked down his left forearm, probably the cause of that bloody mess on the door frame.


Hiroshi: Takeshi? Um, anyone there? Hellooo?
Takeshi: T-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t....


I rolled my eyes and looked for something to comfort him. Maybe try to play a little music to calm my nerves too? I walked over the the piano and looked down at it. That's when I realised. Is this... these keys are fake! It's a solid piece of wood! I pulled the stool out and looked around under it, to see if it was hiding a door. Nothing, except a key with 'Library' written on it in the strangest handwriting I had ever seen.


So, I looked for the library. Of course. Well, on my travels in the house I managed to find two bathrooms. I wondered why it needed two bathrooms. I mean, on opposite sides of a massive house, fine. Right next to each other, not so fine. First one had a shower, I found some soap. Honestly, I'm the only guy who would ever enter and abandoned house and take soap. I have Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, and seriously, some of the things I do are just unrealistically stupid. Mainly picking up everything that could ever be useful. Oh, and everything that won't be useful, as long as I can carry it. So I took soap and a Philips Screwdriver. I don't know why, they just seemed like they'd be useful.

Eventually I reached a door that the key fitted into. It was the door on the right of the main hallway, where me and my friends had stood before they vanished. I turned the key, and pushed the door gently open. A cold draft blew through, and I tiptoed inside, closing the door fast before the air changed round noticeably. I knew that I would have to move fast, as Takeshi could get worse once he was sat like that. Especially with a wound that drew blood in such a big burst. I found a table covered in papers. They seemed freshly moved and read though. A cup of coffee laid on the table near them, still warm. While Takeshi had run off, was someone making use or the kitchen?! What was going on?! I found a key in the papers, and checked the label. Bedroom. Well, maybe that room would offer some clues to where the hell I was. Just then, I looked up. For a second I wanted to laugh, but then I realised. It was real.

What kind of black magic is that?! I ran like hell. Straight out of the door, straight up the stairs, and for the room Takeshi was in. If someone was in danger, I was sure he would spring to action. I wrenched the close open. Nobody in it. I heard the thing come up the stairs, and I closed the doors, sat and waited. What the hell was that... how does it even exist?! And where has Takeshi gone now?! For the first time in my life, I was terrified something was coming for me.

I held my breath for longer than I ever had before. The thing, whatever it was, had changed my mind about the house. Hell, it had changed my mind about the linearity of existence itself! There was a bloody huge blue demon in this house, that was for sure. How and why though, were damn good questions. That I doubted I would answer. After what seemed like an age, he shut the door and walked away. His footsteps got quiet unnaturally fast. They were gone in a few seconds. Considering they sounded like he had been stood outside the closet, he was either took massive steps or had pretty much disappeared. Either way, my face was blue and now was the time to check he was gone.

Gently, I pushed the closet door open. Nobody there. I sighed and climbed out. Takeshi's handkerchief laid on the floor. I picked it up. Still warm... where had Takeshi gone?! Well, as long as the monster was leaving me along I was happier. I carefully shut the door and crept out. There was no telling where that thing was. Time to see what the bedroom has for me... maybe I should follow Takeshi's lead and hide in there until someone comes for help. Then again, did he actually tell anyone we were coming here?! Knowing Takeshi, I bet nobody knows where we are... I eased the door open and climbed the stairs, careful not to make a sound. I didn't look round in case when IU came back forward the thing was there. Seriously, it had appeared from nowhere. Well, if monsters exist, they must be able to do some things we didn't know about. Like scare the crap out of me, maybe. With shaky hands, I put the key in and turned. As soon as it was open, I crept in and shut the door behind me. I would have locked it, but I had a feeling I hadn't seen the last of the blue thing. Walking round the room, I noticed one strange thing after another. There were 2 beds in here. And to be honest, I doubted that monsters like that shared houses. Also, the huge clothes closets were empty. And the book shelves. As I paced the room wondering what to do next, I noticed some scrape marks on the floor. Unsure of what to expect, I pushed the rather scruffy bed along them, and found a trapdoor. As my normal self, I lacked the common sense to leave it and ponder the huge dangers. I quite simply looked too far and fell.

I found myself falling down a surprisingly hard set of stairs. Surprisingly quiet and clean too. At the end of them, I brushed myself down and wiped my nose. Picking myself up, I looked back and had to shield my eyes. The entire room was pristine! Whatever this thing was, it sure as hell knew how to clean stuff. The whole room was tiled white, and cleaned to the point of shining. And he had a piano in here. Besides the fact he wanted to kill me and my friends, this monster wasn't so bad!

Although, it seemed he missed a spot. There was a stain of blood on the piano. Blood. I decided to clean it and see what was beneath it. There were arrows on every key pointed right to the 3 keys covered by blood. I decided I had nothing to lose, and poured my soap on Takeshi's handkerchief. Wiping the blood off, I soon found myself using more soap and bit by bit cleaning the piano. It seemed dull compared to the rest of the room after all, and I always loved to clean. As I stepped back and looked at it, I realised cleaning it and seeing that reflection right behind me had just saved my damn life. Once again, I ran like hell.

He was back. Chasing me like a mentalist, I burst through the door and launched myself away from his clawing hands. Running upstairs, I had an idea. A way to almost tire him out. If blue monsters that had to duck for two metre high doorways and leap up three steps at a time were actually capable of getting tired. For crying out loud! He keeps on going! I wasn't sure how much longer this blue thing could keep up for... Or how much longer I could go.

For some reason, he didn't chase me down the stairs. I didn't hear anything of him. Thank God... lost him. I walked back to inspect the numbers on the piano. Even as I began to register them, something came through the door and the massive thing made it's whereabouts perfectly clear. It had doubled back and forced me to go the other way! I dived for the steps, and saw him turn and run at lightning speed, especially for something of his size. I decided there and then that those black eyes and dark blue features where that of a male. The Ao Oni... sweet Jesus, why did Takeshi say we should do this?! Instead of running up the stairs and playing along with him, I took a look at the piano and ran after him. Turning, I went down the stairs and into the room I had found Takeshi.

Once again, his footsteps became silent. A loud noise of fury rang through the house, anger of being tricked. Not quite a roar, more of a shout. The thing almost seems human... I wonder if it ever was...  Clearing my mind of such ridiculous fallacies, I crept back to the piano. Checking he was nowhere to be seen, I read the numbers. 239... Walking round the room, I was sure this lead to something else ridiculous. What did I do last time? I'm sure it will be something similar... He's not the smartest of monsters, he can't be doing something different every time. Does this thing move? I gave it a try, the piano was bolted to the floor. My screwdriver had no effect either. Looking round, I found a couple of bookcases and a desk. Going through the things on the desk, I found nothing but a key marked Cell, once again in the most awkward writing I'd ever come across. Moving the desk, nothing. A process of elimination. Everything I'd seen before, I tried again. Nothing under the piano, nothing under the desk. Nothing hidden in between books on the shelves. I lent against one of them, all this running and searching beginning to tire me.

It gave way instantly, and I had my answer. A safe behind the shelf, built into the wall. Okay, 239. What could be in here? I got up and prepared my shaky hands to try open the safe, then realised something. Firstly, it was digital. A little modern to say the house had been abandoned. Second, there were four digits. As an intelligent being, I was fairly confident that 239 did not have four digits. And the third unusual thing, was four symbols chalked onto the wall above it. 6 sided shapes. Like rectangles, each missing an area in the shape of another rectangle. These were meant to make a 4 digit code?! I was truly stumped. I took a seat at the desk and drew them out, and wrote 239 down next to them. It was then that I realised how tired I had grown. He's wearing me down. isn't he?! I bet that's why he keeps vanishing... Determined to make it out alive with my friends, I kept working.

I could have sworn I had been here for hours trying to get this damn safe open! I had an urge to try and crack it with force, but was sure I'd end up breaking something else. 239... what the hell could it be?! I looked back to the piano keys. It was just then I noticed their shape. Am I really so stupid to not see it?! Why didn't I try that before? Taking a sheet of paper and an old pen from the desk, I traced the shape of the piano keys and the numbers on them. Returning to the safe, I rotated my sheet and read the numbers on it.

By turning it, I realised that the shape of each key and it's number could be turned to match a symbol on the safe, and make a new number! The first symbol fit the 9, upside down. The first number of my code was a 6... it all became clear from there. 6329 was the code I eventually got, after a couple of tries. It clicked open. and another one of these damn keys was the reward to hours of work. Scrawled on it was Bedroom.

Two bathrooms and two bedrooms?! How much does this guy need? I walked out to search. Only one door left to check, and it clicked open. I saw something glint on the top of a cupboard. As my normal self, I had to have that shiny thing! Pushing a chair over, I gleefully grabbed the thing. A cigarette lighter... that would definitely come in handy! I jumped down and heard a sudden, loud, familiar, cute squeak.

Hiroshi: MIKA?! You're okay!
Mika: You scared me!! Sort of, but terrified! That monster...
Hiroshi: Yeah... how can something like that exist?
Mika: I know, right? It's just impossible... we all ran off and got separated! I'm sorry we abandoned you, you just chose the wrong time to go!

Mika and I giggled and embraced. Giving her a reassuring pat, I realised she was shaking. Trying to comfort her, I decided it would be best if she knew what had happened.

Hiroshi: Um, Mika? I've been chased by that thing and I have news.
Mika: Ooh! What is it?
Hiroshi: There's a way to avoid him! Just move round as much as you can! Tire him out! But don't get tired yourself... I was chased earlier and I was terrified he would get me!
Mika: Okay, so just run?
Hiroshi: There really is no other way, he's not the kind of thing to fight. Well, unless you're Takuro. Then you can do anything.

Mika gave a giggle. It seemed to have worked, she had stopped shaking.

Hiroshi: Well, I found another key. Want to come with me?
Mika: Ack! Not with that thing going round! I know how to get away now anyway, thanks though!

We hugged and said goodbye. Now  to find a cell... Wondering why on earth he would need a cell, and what would be in such a thing, I walked down the stairs and through the door behind them. It was the only place I hadn't been and seemed like a sensible place to find a cell anyway.

Walking round, I found a locked door and what seemed to be a sort of sparring area for a martial arts practiser. If this monster had ever been a human, we were frighteningly similar people. Not daring to go into it, I walked past. There were gaps in the flooring and places it sagged. Falling down one of those could result in a confined space and his mystical ability to appear out of nowhere. As I walked past, I realised that this was a dead end. From the position I stood and the awkward angle of the lights, part of the wallpaper seemed darker. As I neared, it stayed.

That's not a shadow... the wallpaper has something behind it! Fearing the discovery of the monster again, I swallowed my fear and found the shard of smashed plate I had picked up before. It seemed perfect for this. Carefully slicing the rectangle of wallpaper, I discovered a door. The handle was cut out though, so it fitted behind the wallpaper so well.

Now... if I was a knob, where would I be? Deciding the best place to look was a room back upstairs I hadn't checked, I left the door and ran back.

Climbing back up to the very top of the house, I opened the door and looked round. That door looks identical! I took my screwdriver and began to take it out. Just as I was about to finish, the door behind my opened. Nearly crapping myself, I bolted round and stared, ready to throw something and run.

Hiroshi: Takuro?! You're okay?
Takuro: Just, yeah... Have you seen anyone else?!
Hiroshi: Um, Takeshi earlier. He was too scared to talk though.
Takuro: God, he needs to man up! He's the strongest of us! I told him to stay and help but he ran like a sissy!
Hiroshi: Um, help with what?
Takuro: Distract the thing! Mika ran and I threw a load of stuff on the ground to keep him with me. Takeshi ran too, and it lunged for him! Put a gash in his arm but he ran away him Mika... I had to stop it on my own! It ran away after!
Hiroshi: Okay... Well, thanks! Um, you should go and check downstairs. I haven't seen Mika yet.
Takuro: Sure thing mate! I'll try find her!

Takuro ran off and shut the door. I rolled my eyes and returned to work, convinced he was going to screw something up. Triumphantly returning downstairs with the door knob at hand, I screwed it into the door and opened it. Once again, carrying ridiculous things was coming in handy. No lights in here. Turning my lighter on, I found a candle and lit the room a little more. A small amount of light seeped out from under the bookshelf, and moving it aside, I found yet another damn hidden door! Opening that one, I found a room with more of the bright white tiling and over powerful lights hurting my eyes again. In the middle of the room, dividing it on half, was a giant string of bars. And a door. Taking out the key, I tried it into the lock in here and opened the huge barred door. Perfectly fitting, I slid the door open and looked on the floor. There was a key on the floor. I gladly took it and looked round.

Immediately, I slammed the gate shut and locked it. He was back.

Hands shaking like mad, I locked the door and leapt back. He swept for me as I did so and nearly caught me round the stomach. I lay on the tiled floor and panted with fear as his giant eyes looked down.

I could have sworn, there was something behind the gaze. He was staring right into me, past my skin and into my very soul. Crawling against the wall, I made sure I was as far from him as possible. Edging across staying parallel to me, his hands shot out. I let out a yell of fear, not knowing what he was doing. Fuck, he's grabbing the bars! If he breaks them...

A thunderous clanging reverberated through me as he shook the bars like a madman, trying in vain to move them. I was terrified, but sat assured the things were going nowhere. Thank God for that... He gave a horrendous growl and left me. Hyperventilating from fear, I sat there and calmed myself. I need some rest... Seeing as he couldn't get me in here, I decided to make this my safe spot. A place to come and hide from him when I needed rest. Hopefully it wouldn't be that long before I escaped, but I needed a plan just in case.

Walking back out with shaky legs, I walked through and noticed something in the book shelf concealing the door. Another one of his damn keys. Well, half of one. It had been carved down the middle, right through the text and all. Completely illegible. Well, it was time to see what this key from the cell did! Holding it to the candle I had lit, I could just about read the word Basement in the normal writing, barely readable scrawls on the key.  

Running back, I decided that the basement would probably be the door I had passed earlier on my way to the cell. Pushing the key in, I clicked the lock and pushed the door open. Before I could see what was beyond it, a horrific scream echoed from upstairs.

Hiroshi: MIKA!
I ran back out, sprinted upstairs and shouldered the door open. As soon as I saw it, I knew I was too late.
She was sprawled on the floor. I couldn't see much of her body, but I had a fair idea of what was going on. The Ao Oni was in between the two of us, bent over her. Her screams were keeping it distracted from me, but to be fair I'd rather it had me in that grip. The floors were stained in blood and shreds of clothes and I had a good idea what the massive thing was doing to my girlfriend. Reaching for a lamp, I quietly took the shade off and tore the plug out, before hurling it into the back of his head. I slammed the door, jumped down the stairs shouting all the way in a pathetic attempt to distract him from Mika.

As a door crashed off it's hinges and flew over my head, I realised I was being followed. Running back, I sprinted for my safety zone. The massive blue bastard was running properly now, and as I entered the room he slammed the door open behind me with such gusto that it blew the candle out. Desperately searching for the door, I found it just in time and leapt in, and locked the gate. Crawling back against the wall, I watched in horror as he shook the bars, growled and roared in my direction. His body was dripping with blood and his eyes flooded with burning rage. Tears were flowing down my face as I stared up in horror at the monster that had just claimed Mika. There was no way she had survived that thing. I've lost her...

Sitting in the jail cell, I watched as he shook the bars and screamed in my direction. I was frozen to that spot with my fear yet shaking as I cried uncontrollably for Mika. You're going to pay for this... Eventually he ended his horrific tantrums and left me alone to cry for her. Even as he left the bars it seemed he was still very angered. And using whatever little intelligence he had to get something back against me. He slammed the door and I heard him slide the bookshelf back over it. That door had bloody better open this way too... I waited a couple more minutes then crept out, and tested the door. No way open this direction. A one-way door. Shit.

Getting to work, I acted my normal self. Sitting there, I worked with the screwdriver and plate shard, slowly cutting and unhinging the wooden door off the frame. Easing it to the floor, I cut a few notches into the bookshelf and dug my nails in as hard as I could, before sliding it open. Feeling pretty damn good, I walked down and casually flicked the lighter, hitting the candle dead on. Walking out, I became more serious and began and creep toward the basement door. The door I had stood at as I heard her death scream. No. Stop it. Plenty of time to feel like this later. Now is the time to save myself and the others. Pushing the basement door open, I walked in. God, it's cold in here! I could see my breath as I wrapped my arms round myself and shivered.

Looking up at the massive shelves, I decided his ideas were getting old. A key on a shelf, and some blindingly obvious scrape marks on the floor near a shelf against the opposite wall. Sighing, I moved it and looked blankly at the empty wall I was met with. Looking round for clues, I tried the other shelf. For God's sake, couldn't he do any better?! Seriously, I was bored of these puzzles he laid for me on the path. Behind the shelf though, was a safe. As my normal strange self, I had remembered the number from the old one with ease. Dialling in 6329, I tried to open it. Nothing. Looking round for clues, I was met with a room of high shelves and grey brick walls.

Checking the door, I found a shelf, table and chair in an otherwise rather blank room. Something was glinting again on the top of the shelf. Cogs whirred in my mind as I searched for some solution, and I got one, albeit a rather childish trick. Taking a chair, I scaled the shelf and grabbed the item. It was another screwdriver... a flat headed one this time, for screws with a single line to unscrew them by. Interesting... and shiny! MINE! Pocketing it, I took the chair through the door and tried to reach the high shelf. Must... have... shiny things! I knew I was absolutely insane to risk such a nasty fall and alerting the monster, but I still wanted it! Once I had seen an object that shouldn't be under my possession, I wanted it. I let go of the chair completely and held onto the shelves. Eventually, I reached the top. Um, this is fine and dandy and all, but how the hell do I get down?! Oh shit. I realised I'd trapped myself on a ten foot high shelf without the guts to jump. I took the shiny thing and checked. It was another key, saying Basement Cell. Just then, I heard a familiar voice and jumped, nearly falling from the shelf.

Mika: Hiroshi?! What are you doing here?!
Hiroshi: MIKA! YOU'RE ALIVE?!
Mika: Somehow... wait! You saw it?!
Hiroshi: Some. I threw a lamp and got him off you! I wasn't going to go in and fight it, I'd have got us both killed!
Mika: Well, I guess I understand. You couldn't fight.
Hiroshi: Mika? You okay?!
Mika: WHAT DO YOU THINK?! THERE'S BLOOD DOWN MY FRONT AND I CAN SEE MY BONES!
Hiroshi: Christ, your arm! I never noticed! Um, let me get down and I'll help!

Mika looked up with those shining, innocent, sweet eyes and then casually kicked the chair. It fell to the ground with a clang and she tilted her head as if to sarcastically apologise.

Hiroshi: Um, are you going to show me another way down? I hope so. I'm sort of stuck here now. Um, Mika? Anyone there? Helloooo?

My eyes widened as she stared. Her body began to shake and she dropped the key she was holding. Our eyes stared into each others. I could see my own reflection in them, and then realised. Oh God... they're going black. Two black eyes were looking back at me, blinked slowly and looking into my soul. I knew damn well what I was about to witness and her eyes began to bulge, and her body grow. The girl I once knew was turning blue and purple, her face distorting into an insane smile and her clothes dropping. Deep down, I would have killed to see them do that before. Now, they revealed a large blue body, coated in rippling muscles and unmistakably evil-seeming features. A black tongue poked out and licked it's newly formed lips, and a devilishly familiar voice rolled over it's massive teeth.

Ao Oni: I tried to warn you... and your friends. Why did none of you listen? Even when your friend with the red hair said otherwise? You don't care for him... and I can tell him that. In fact, my other side, the one that chased your friends away, is going to do it right now. Actually... why don't we swap places?!

The disgusting replacement of Mika gave a hysterical giggle and morphed back into her body. I shuddered in horror as I watched, wanting to throw up. How the hell is it doing these things?! The original walked through the door. The one that had chased me before, the one that had claimed Mika. The two of them bowed and 'Mika' skipped away to the other door, the one I hadn't been through yet. Now I was stuck alone with the monster that had taken my girlfriend away from me, with no way out except diving for the floor and killing myself. Which, against deceiving and killing my friends, seemed like a decent alternative. Just as I considered it, the morphing monstrosity beneath spoke too. It's words were quite sophisticated, actually very beautiful. But the mocking tone they fell from his mouth in taunted me horrifically.

Ao Oni: Well... look what we have here. You're in quite some mess Hiroshi, aren't you? I'd better help out then...

He gave a deep laugh and grabbed my shelf, then pushed. I felt my stomach turn upside down as the shelf toppled and fell against the others like dominoes. Books were pushed into the air by the blast of wind as the shelves smashed into the ground, and I was trapped on top of this all. Books flew up and down, and even sideways, striking me from more directions than I could flail my arms. Somehow, I just avoided trapping any limbs and made a dive for the side. Sliding along the stone floor with my legs bent round over my head, I rolled over, got up and ran. Coming to a stop, I realised I was trapped. He's got me this way and Mika went the other! Deciding to put it down to sheer agility, I ran straight for him. Forgetting I had all the speed and agility of a brick, I fell and bounced off the wall. Dazed, I went in a few circles before realising I'd effectively fallen across the room and got past him. And I didn't look like a moron at all! I sprinted back for my jail cell, eager to get back in there and be safe from the massive oaf.

I shouldered the basement door and ran for my life.

Running down the corridor, I made a turn and burst through the door. Diving for the bookshelf, I slid it off and ran into the room, leaping over the now detached door. Turning to shut the door, he sprinted into the room, mouth agape.

Yelling, I slammed the gate shut and held it there as I fumbled for a key. No... no... not it.. there! My hand shot up to lock the gate. Just as it clicked to confirm my safety, and he looked ready to explode, Mika walked through the door.

Mika: The others have been informed. We have Takeshi under control now. Takuro is loose. I asked him to go as far as he could and hide, and he complied.
Ao Oni: Good. You stay here with this slimy bastard. I don't trust him alone. He's a slippery one, I'll give him that. But even he won't find a way through this one.

The massive purple thing stared down at me and laughed, before leaving the room, getting 'Mika' a chair and letting her watch me.

Mika: So... Hiroshi...

The way she said my name sent shivers down my spine. It was still Mika's voice, but that mocking tone was driving me insane.

Hiroshi: What the hell is with you?! You're not Mika. You never will be.
Mika: Well... I guess that we can't be friends!

She turned with a high pitched 'Hmmph' and phased me out. I knew she was trying to fool me. Get me working as if she still cared, and let myself get played into a trap.

Hiroshi: You don't fool me. You're a moronic, inhuman, pathetic creature. And you'll never be Mika or anything we had together. So shut up.
Mika: Haha, you think I care how you feel?
Hiroshi: I can tell you do. Easily.
Mika: Not for the reasons you expect me to...
Hiroshi: You're so funny, I'm forgetting to laugh. Seriously. I just want to die laughing here.
Mika: There you go again, wanting to die. I saw you try to jump from the shelf before. And I'm not as stupid as you're thinking.
Hiroshi: Maybe not stupid then. You're primitive, that's it. You don't make up complicated plans, or think for yourself.
Mika: Not very nice, are you?
Hiroshi: You tore my girlfriend apart and raped her dead body! Then you took it over like some sort of parasite. Of course I'm not going to be nice.
Mika: There's more to me than you're thinking. For a smart kid, you're being stupid. Go and play with your toys. Or whatever it is you keep taking from my shelves.

Holy crap, my things! I forgot them! I turned from her and checked. A few keys, two screwdrivers, the shard of plate, and a few more keys. Basement cell. What could this lead to? Trying to think of a way out, I looked round. The flawless walls were not as perfect as I'd thought. They had horrible cracks in some places and a few pipes were exposed. I was sure that by breaking enough, I would find some sort of ridiculous method of escape. I pulled out my screwdrivers and set to work...

Making sure that she didn't get too worried and call for the Ao Oni, I pretended to examine my screwdriver. I was glancing from the corner of my eye, over to an exposed pipe and holding the Philips Screwdriver. Without warning she stood up and jumped at the bars, shaking them like a mentalist. My head shot up as she shook at them and began to turn purple, growing and growling at me.

Mika: I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING!
Hiroshi: What?!
Mika: You're trying to break the wall...
Hiroshi: Well, what's behind it?! And no, I was not.
Mika: It's straight through to that arena, stupid. Now stop whatever you're doing or I'll get him!
Hiroshi: Actually, I wasn't going to. Even now I know where it goes, I'm not going to break the wall.
Mika: Oh?
Hiroshi: I'll just do this.

I swung my arm out and round, and stuck the screwdriver into the pipe and wrenched it out again. Thankfully, the pipe had still been working and it was under pressure. Half the wall came out as it popped it's rivets and loosened the pipes round it. As Mika squealed at the huge cloud of steam and dust upon us, I held a hand over my mouth and opened the cell. I ran past her, exited the room and locked the door. Now this next cell will have to be my safest spot... I hope she doesn't just break the door.

Panting in fear, I ran down the corridor, trying my best to quieten my steps in case of the Ao Oni being near, not wanting a repeat of that last escape. That was too close... Pushing the door open, I walked down and climbed over the bookshelves, admiring the amount of mess I'd made. This and the fact I just blew a whole wall through... He's going to go insane when he sees. Wait a minute... the wall came down! Shit! I broke into a much faster pace, realising I hadn't trapped Mika in. As soon as she recovered, she would walk straight through the bars I'd left open, take my key, and walk out into the arena that I'd opened a shortcut to. Oops.

Reaching the new door, I pushed it open and looked round. Another door straight across and a bigger, fancier one to the left. It was covered in a slick black-brown wood, with frames laid in some rather luxurious velvet. A wood sign on it said Annex. It seemed that the house just never finished. I'd seen some pretty damn impressive rooms already but this was new. What else does this place have waiting?! I then remembered this guy was a fan of keys and locks, and I had no Annex key. An obvious solution came through - The safe behind the bookshelves! It must have the Annex key! Walking through to the next room, I found myself in blackness. Leaving the door open for a little extra light, I flicked my lighter and found a large cell. Walking up, I tried the key. Perfect fit. Basement cell, here I come. I entered and found a candle, lighting it and looking round. The room was mostly lit now, and a light switch was clearly revealed in here too. Smiling, I flicked it. SHIT! Instead of the lights coming on, the room blew a huge draft, the candle went out and the door slammed. I ran to the gate and shut it, sure I knew what was coming. For God's sake... he does love to scare me...

The door clicked and I held my breath. Every heartbeat sounded louder, enough to actually alert him. I took a very slight gasp, and a growl resounded right in front of me, breath pretty much melting the eyebrows from my face. Mother of God! I thought Takuro was bad...

I moved as quietly as I could against the wall, and sat there praying he would leave.

Another growling sound. He was now holding the bars right in front of me. I crept back hoping he wouldn't hear. Suddenly realising, I went back forward and wrenched the key out. He heard the jingling sound, and shook the door trying to pull it off the hinges. The draft had died down now so I lent over and tried to find the candle, lighter in my shaking hand. Flicking it, I saw what was after me. The candle had a thankfully large flame and I could just make out the outlines and shining eyes to the Ao Oni holding the bars to the door. It was what was next to him that worried me. Mika was stood there, edging closer to the candle and looking across at me, with a rather disappointed expression. Burns had flushed her normally very pale face deep red and her hair was a mess.

Mika: Why did you do that, Hiroshi? You're confusing me. Who's side are you on? Mine, or his?
Hiroshi: I'm on my own side. You're another of him. What kind of idiot do you take me for?!
Mika: Well, I guess we're not friends.
Hiroshi: You're dead. Stop trying to trick me. It's pathetic. You're a pathetic attempt at a monster. And you'll never be my Mika.

Mika looked down and sighed. What the hell is he trying to do?! It's not fooling me. The Ao Oni was staring at me through the bars. Grinning. Suddenly I realised what one part of his presence there could mean, alerted to the possibility by my stomach rumbling. He's keeping me a prisoner in the cell I locked... I bet he knew I'd lock it. And now I've no way out. Shit. His face contorted into a bigger smile than normal, bearing massive grey and black teeth.

Hiroshi: So, um, when are you going to leave me alone?
Ao Oni: You're an idiot, do you know that?
Hiroshi: Um, I have realised now what you've done.
Ao Oni: So, who's the stupid one now?
Hiroshi: Any chance that I can, you know, just think of something and get out? Your stare is a little annoying.
Ao Oni: You're not leaving. It was your idea to lock yourself in.
Hiroshi: I was afraid of that.
Mika: And no breaking stuff this time. You're not getting away after what you've done.
Hiroshi: Hey, I wasn't the one saying we should come here. Takeshi was.
Ao Oni: Yes, but who wanted to go in and prove I didn't exist? You.
Hiroshi: So, what? Trespassers must die? Can't you just put up a sign? Or lock the front door? You seem to have plenty of locked doors round here. One more couldn't hurt.
Ao Oni: If you escaped, you'd tell about me.
Hiroshi: And nobody would come here again.
Ao Oni: They would.
Hiroshi: Nobody will come after a psychotic seven foot monstrosity like you.
Ao Oni: And they'll bring a bulldozer.
Hiroshi: Oh... So you're scared the house will be destroyed?
Ao Oni: That's why I attack. People want to destroy my house. Do you know how that feels to me?
Hiroshi: Well, if you let me out and give Mika back I won't tell.
Ao Oni: You're lying. I let someone go before. Two weeks later people came to board the windows.
Hiroshi: Yeah, I saw that.

I was beginning to understand why I was being chased. If only I could talk him into letting me free... or at least leave Mika alone.

Hiroshi: Come on, I'm different to the other people. Haven't you noticed yet?
Ao Oni: You're not getting out. If you were so different, you would have been different enough to not come into my house. You've gone round taking my stuff, opening locked doors, cutting wallpaper down, and taking my things. And now you've even gone as far as blowing my water pipes and knocking a wall down. So yes. You're very, very different. I should really get you out before you break any more of my things, but there's no fun in that. I'll watch you myself. Mika, find Takuro and Takeshi. They're wanted. As for you, Hiroshi, you're staying here. Little brat.

I was amazed. He's a hell of a lot smarter than I thought... Looking down, I checked through my remaining belongings again. A few screwdrivers, keys, a lighter and a piece of smashed plate. The key to this cell and the Annex key were my main concerns. What the hell's in that Annex?! Maybe talking more would help. I sure as hell couldn't break these walls down like the others.

Hiroshi: So, was this your house?
Ao Oni: This whole thing? Yes. A long, long time ago.
Hiroshi: When? Do you remember the year?
Ao Oni: Hundreds. I've walked these corridors ever since. We all have. Well, I'm the only one out right now.
Hiroshi: We? Who are the others?
Ao Oni: My family. My wife and children. They're all down in the depths of this place.
Hiroshi: What do you mean?
Ao Oni: Solve more of my puzzles and I just might show you.
Hiroshi: I can't do that unless you let me out of here. Please?
Ao Oni: Trust me, there's always a way. You're a smart one, spend enough time and it'll come to you.
Hiroshi: Spend enough time and I'll die.
Ao Oni: Well yes. But you've evaded death's claws so far haven't you? Annoying one, you really are.
Hiroshi: So, somewhere in here, is a way out?
Ao Oni: Yes. Find it before I get bored and kill you please.
Hiroshi: Wait, is this some sort of entertainment to you?
Ao Oni: Sure is. Now get to damn work.
Hiroshi: You love watching me solve stuff, don't you?
Ao Oni: Don't get too self centred. If it gets to your head you'll not open a single door. I'll get back to being scary now.

Just then, a loud rumble echoed down the corridor and into the room, through the door Mika had left open. She burst into the room panting, her face still deep red from the steam in the pipe I stabbed.

Mika: That Takeshi's a slippery one. He ran off. Says it's all his fault.
Ao Oni: And the other... Takuro, I believe he was. How's he?
Mika: He chased me! Something in his eyes. He's going mad.
Hiroshi: He's already gone mad, trust me.
Ao Oni: Are you going to sit talking, or are you going to find a way out of this room?

I looked round again. There was some blue writing on the wall, barely legible, especially in the candlelight. a little light was coming from the open door but I still had no way of reading it. Next to that was, from what I could see, a childishly scribbled drawing. Of a person behind bars. Is he mocking me? Did he plan this? Looking round, I glanced back to the candle. There was a piece of paper beneath it, blank on both sides. I examined it closely and considered it's uses. Moving on, I pocketed it and looked at the bars. Making sure not to get too close to the massive Ao Oni watching me closely, I peered at the bars he wasn't too close to. They were completely blank, and from what I could see of the ones near to him, they were too. The floors and ceiling were completely blank, except for a single lightbulb, fairly loose. I placed the candle and it's metal stand on the floor, then stood on the stool that the candle had been placed on. Reaching up, I managed to unscrew the bulb. Climbing down and pocketing it, I looked back. The Ao Oni wasn't giving anything away, his solid black eyes glimmering as he watched me try to get out.

I looked round as he watched me carefully. Those huge black blank eyes gave nothing away as I tried to find more random things to help me leave. Looking back through all I had, I wondered. Can I escape yet? Am I holding the way out and not realising? How about those? I looked down at the paper and the lighter fluid. I'm out of my god damn mind. Making sure he didn't see what I was doing, I poured lighter fluid into a makeshift paper cup. I'd watched this stuff being used before and knew what it did when not released slowly from the nozzle. I was effectively holding a makeshift bomb in my hands. The paper was getting wet and I didn't have much time. I threw it at the Ao Oni, followed by my outstretched arm flicking the lighter before pulling it back through the bars.

His yells reverberated round the walls and through my lungs as he ran from the room. I opened the bars and ran, jumping round Mika as she bulged and turned purple. Feeling sorry for the poor bugger after the story he'd told me, I cleared my mind of the Ao Oni's sadness, and thought back to everything he'd done against me. Like doing that to Mika, using her against Takeshi and Takuro, and hurting Takeshi like that.

I sprinted through the rooms and tried to outrun Mika who was now coming for me. Leaping out of the door and running down the corridors, I burst out from the basement gasping. Fumbling through my keys I locked it, paused for breath then strode upstairs to find a safer spot. Learning from my mistakes, I knew not to lock myself anywhere. It was only a matter of time before Mika broke the door down and ran after me. A sudden bang, closer behind me than I expected, alerted me that she had done so.

Trying to find an escape, I bolted up the stairs, nearly cracked my nose on the now apparently locked door through which I had seen Takeshi, then ran for the nearest one, where Mika had been lost. Trying to forget, I yanked the door open then ran in, still dizzy from my nasty hit.
Maybe from the collision and hitting my head, maybe from the blood on my nose, I fell. Looking down and round I realised what had made me fall. The ground was slippery in something, and whatever it was it had a rather unusual smell to it. Kind of made me feel like something was up here, but at the same time smelled quite nice.

Looking over, I retched as I realised what I was sat in. Blood and other bodily fluids were leaking from a limp body. Fuck. At least the Ao Oni was not following me in here... Mika's body was coated in scratches and her nails were still dug into the floorboards, her teeth clenched to the point of blood seeping from her mouth. A sudden high pitched whimper alerted me to the fact Mika was, just, alive.

Hiroshi: Shit! You're alive?!
Mika: Ur.... Hir-- oshi?

I carefully scooped her torn body up, crying as I watched it creak apart where her leg was nearly severed. Mika's face screwed up in pain and her eyes leaked a tear, not the first one after all she'd been put through. Placing her down on the bed, I brushed the hair from Mika's shimmering eyes and put a hand on her cheek.

Hiroshi: I-- I'm sorry. For everything.
Mika: Not your fault... Nobody's fault...
Hiroshi: Then I'll get revenge. You won't die for nothing, girl.
Mika: Please... don't get hurt. Not you too. See what he can do?
Hiroshi: I'll rip him limb from limb for destroying you.
Mika: Hiroshi, don't get yourself hurt. I want you to get out alive...
Hiroshi: What's the point? I can never love again if I lose you.
Mika: You'll have to learn how.

She reached up, gave me one last warm hug then lay down, smiled and went limp. I sobbed over Mika's body as her eyes glazed. The girl was the greatest I could have ever known. Or ever could know in the future. Her bravery in such pain and wisdom through such struggle had lead me to believe there was something out there to be done. Some better world out there. A world without Mika sounded nightmarish, but I'd lost a parent and that seemed like the end of the world too. But even after that horror, I had somehow picked myself up and found a better time. I'll recover.... somehow. For now, I sobbed over Mika's gentle body. The Ao Oni will pay for this. I swear on it.

How long was I in that room crying for her? Maybe hours... I will never know. But one thing from then on was for sure. That I was not going to fall prey to that monstrosity, not become a stupefied  victim to his mind games, not suffer endlessly in emotional turmoil. Moving Mika up a little, I placed her head on the pillow and dragged blankets over her. Closing her near-white eyes and drying my own, I left the room with shaking hands but a bolder heart than ever.

Down the stairs, round the left, through to the basement, across to the left and back to my cell. I had just about figured out the scribbles on the wall now. Peering through the bars, I realised I was right. The mysterious figures were perfectly clear numbers when the bars hid certain lines. 5376. And now, to figure out where the hell 5376 was to go...

Walking round, I surveyed my surroundings with the utmost care trying to see something similar to what I had seen before. These 4 digit codes all seemed to belong in safes, though finding the little safe had been a complete accident last time, on the wall behind a shelf. Although if this one was behind a shelf I had my work cut out, there was only one room with anything on the walls down in the basement. Walking back to the room I had found that chair to reach the higher shelves in the main room of the wretched smelling place, I found the little bookshelves in there, grabbed one end and pulled. Nothing, not even a slight clunk to suggest I had gone the wrong way. Pushing yielded the same result, nothing. It was firmly planted on the ground by it's own weight, which I would have guessed at about four hundred kilograms though this was not the time to play guess the weight of the bookshelf. However heavy this was, the high shelves back in that other room must have weighed a good three times what these ones did, and the Ao Oni could move those out from under my feet with ease. The shelf in front of me now would have been feather light if he came in and hit it. Maybe then I could probably see behind it but to be honest I'd rather avoid him for a while now.

So, the shelf was a dead weight to me. Of course that didn't rule out him being able to move it but I doubted he'd just block me if I'd been able to get this far. His puzzles were complex and built by an evil sentience no doubt, but he wasn't complex enough. Not enough to create several leads off into dead ends, certainly. Right? Hopefully not... If this thing was capable of such an evil task, what the hell could I be drawing myself into? A rather sudden clunk under my feet grabbed my attention, and I turned straight to the door. What did I trigger this time?! Turning back slowly I realised I needed to calm my paranoia before emotion got the better of my psyche. I felt like such an idiot. Getting so scared I'd mistook a wonderful turn for the better for a new nightmare.

The second shelf had moved. Oh. Feeling a little sheepish and rather triumphant, I thanked my ridiculous luck when it came to leaning on shelves. Looking around and behind it, my heart fell. It seemed every good move I made led to something else that threw me through another bad situation. A blank wall was resting behind it, the air thick from a rotting patch of dampened wood behind the next shelf along. Stepping back with a hand on my mouth, I wiped my eyes and tried to cope with the stench. This is even worse than the rest for this damn basement! Did something DIE back here? Or someone... Then, the thought ran through my head of what I could be near. I put my hand on the wall to think and recover from my shock of that smell, when it got worse. Again.

As soon as my hand was firmly on the wall, said wall shifted away beneath my sweaty palm. Well, not exactly wall. Wallpaper. The space behind was blank and as my eyes darted around, I realised it was bulging out. As if some source of gas behind it was pressurised, pushing out on the paper. The paper fell back and as I tried to regain my balance, it tore at the edge. The nauseating stench sweeping out blinded me for the tears welling up in my eyes and the air rushed out. That's why is stinks down here. He's storing something in here that's not exactly sporting a great aroma... Holy shit, it's getting worse! Falling, I felt my head collide with the spongy floor. Hurling myself off of it, I darted my eyes round the room to see what the hell was making that smell. Realising, I doubled over and threw up.

Opposite to me, the other wall was stained brown-grey with yellow fluid coating every crack. A pile of bodies stacked halfway up the room, half decomposed into some sort of shit coloured mush. Every here and there, it got worse. The entire pile of rotten people was dotted with purple patches. It seemed that a large group of people had been killed, their bodies infected like Mika's. Every here and there, a distorted head was stuck out staring at me, penetrating my soul. Their mouths were agape, some missing lower jaws. The stench from those gaping maws was overpowering and I leant down to throw up again. Some of the heads were craned out, trying to pull their piled up fused bodies towards me in some attempt to infect me. Or eat me.

Apparently these things still had functioning stomachs, as they tried to open their jaws round each other like some sort of human snake. Some heads were sucking on the back of others trying to eat each other, and one of the heads had a single arm available to grab a head near it, and it squealed as it desperately tried to wrench it out for a meal. Fuck... These things will eat anything. My point was emphasised as one of the head's eyes grew wide and it spun round, sniffing the air before taking a bite out of a fresh pile of another body's shit. Around the massive body was a pool of yellow-green thick fluid, a mix of rotten tissues, bile and piss. Some heads were down drinking it or biting into the floorboards that had softened and rotten under the liquid.

If I was capable of throwing up again, I would have done but my stomach was drained, and it's contents were seeping down the room, at a tilt from the mass of the thing opposite me and the rotting floor creating a slight slope. One of the creatures raised it's head to sniff, before straining it's neck out to consume off my vomit. Trying to take my mind off the slurping sounds and overpowering stench, I looked around the room to the other walls and clutter on them. A few papers, yellow hard hats and a pile of boards. These were the people that tried to board the windows! They'd tried to board the windows and close the house for demolition, now doomed to an eternity of hopelessly trying to consume each other's bodies, excrement and even the rotting floorboards.

Looking round, I pulled my glasses off and wiped them, the hot steamy room coating them in yellow green condensation. Breathing, I was suddenly hit by the realisation of what was in this air. I stumbled back and left the room before I was hit by a disease, although even now I probably had a few in my lungs already. Trying to slide the shelf back in place, I gasped for breath. No safe or numbers in there. Just a pile of people eating each other, and some hats. Behind me, a squealing sound pierced the air and reverberated through my lungs. Followed by another, and another. The room around me began to blur and my ears rang. After about a minute of their sonic onslaught, it died down and was followed by a deeper, lower growl from almost directly above me. Did they just call him?! I ran from the room and hid under the pile of smashed shelves and paper in the main room and a desperate attempt to hide from the Ao Oni.