Before I get started with the story, let me just say that this new story of mine doesn't mean I drop my others. As I get inspiration I need to act on it, because it makes me motivated and inspired to work on my older stories.

This is also a BIG experiment. You'll see why in a moment.
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“I didn’t mean it. I didn’t want to hurt anyone.”

Oh gods, I can still see it. All the blood, their bodies lying there in pieces, the words carved into the walls, and their faces.

Oh gods, make it stop!

“Please, don’t leave me here! I won’t hurt anyone again, just let me out!”

The last nail in the coffin is hammered.

“Don’t do this! It was an accident! I’m sorry!”

Dirt is shoveled onto my prison.

“D-don’t. Please. I don’t want to die. I wish I could bring them back! I would trade my life for theirs, but I can’t! PLEASE, DON’T DO THIS!”

The noise above recedes and I know no one is there. I’ve been left here to die. I am to pay for my sins with my life. I will die of hunger and dehydration, but not before I go mad. I’m not a monster.

I’m not a monster.

I’m not a monster.

I’m not a monster.

I’m not…

I don’t want to die, but if I die then I won’t see their faces anymore. I won’t replay the scene in my head anymore. I’ll be at peace.

“Ha… Haha… Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!” This isn’t a punishment! They are letting me be free! Geniuses, every last one of them!

I won’t have to remember this anymore.

I won’t have to.

I don’t want to remember…

”Your wish is my command.”
**********

“Hmm, another corpse just left here to rot.” I feel a sharp poke in my side. “Well, anything to fuel the fires.” I’m lifted into the air and dropped into something metal, causing me to groan slightly. “Oh? You’re not dead?” Whatever is carrying me is tipped over, causing me to fall right out. “Well, you probably will be soon enough, but I can’t throw you into the flames like this. Screaming tends to bother the spirits.” With a surprisingly gentle pat on the back the voice says, “Good luck out there.” The voice has a teasing tone, with a hint of superiority.

I hear a wheel squeak, along with footsteps. Whoever it was just left me.
**********

“He was over here.” The voice from earlier is back, this time sounding admonished. The squeaky wheel is back too. Ugh, that wheel. It pains my ears.

“Honestly Rin, I thought I raised you better. If you find someone in need of help, you should help them!” A new voice scolds the first. It’s a gentle voice, unlike the first.

“Sorry,” the voice actually sounds apologetic too, which is much nicer than her previous tones. “Ah, here he is!” The wheel squeaks some more and then stops abruptly, thank the gods for that. I feel a hand being placed on my throat gently. Silence for a moment. “There’s no pulse.”

“Nor is he breathing, I know. He’s alive though.” The newer voice sounds so certain that I’m alive. I don’t feel alive. I don’t even know what it means to feel alive. “Put him in your cart, we’re taking him home.” Once again, I am picked up and placed in a metal receptacle. No, not the squeaking monster. Please. “I’m sorry, just bear with it for now.” The voice whispers into my ear gently.
**********

Eventually I’m picked up and carried for what feels like forever. I don’t really care too much though, the squeaking is gone. I hear a door creak open and my head hits something, presumably the doorjamb, before being laid down onto something soft and warm. A bed, I think.

“Rin, I would like some tea. Bring enough for our guest as well.” The door closes after a moment. “I know you can hear me.” The voice says calmly.

I wish I could respond, but I have no idea how. How do people make words come out of their minds? Try as I might, the only sound I can muster is a light groan.

“Do not strain yourself. I can hear your thoughts just fine.”

My thoughts? I suppose that works. Everything seems so foreign to me right now. I know I knew how to talk at one point. It’s not the only thing I know I knew and can’t remember how to do! I don’t even remember how to see!

“Have you tried opening your eyes?” The voice says with an exasperated sigh.

…
…

I knew that.

I open my eyes immediately, and shut them again. Bright light is bad, why is it so bright?

“Try opening them slowly, let them adjust to the light.”

I do as I’m told and oh gods does it hurt! The light is blinding and I feel like my eyes are melting.

“Oh, stop exaggerating.”

Oh, okay. It does hurt though. Eventually my eyes are adjusted enough for me to realize that I was staring right at an orb, which is the source of light in the room.

“Alright, so you have your eyes open now. Perhaps you can turn your head to face me?” This, I remember how to do. I tilt my head to the left and see a solid white wall. “Wrong way,” she chuckles. Oops. Turning it to the right this time I see the face of my host. I should have been able to tell by the voice that it was a woman, but some men have feminine voices and I didn’t want to assume. She has short, purple hair with a black hairband and purple eyes. A strange red orb with what looks like an eye is positioned over her heart, with cords running to her head and wrists. She’s wearing a blue shirt with yellow heart buttons and pink collar, a pink skirt with faint flowery pattern and pink slippers. She’s kinda pretty. “You are a strange man.” She says this with a faint smile, it’s nice. I don’t remember the last time I saw a smi-

Smile. She’s smiling. Blood drips from her every orifice, her stomach, and her hands, but she’s smiling. The wall behind her is painted red with blood, her blood. So why?

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

A scream escapes me as an image fills my mind. I see nothing but that image. I don’t recognize that girl, who is she!? Why can’t I see anything but the blood and her smile? Oh gods, help me.

The image fades and I see the purple haired woman before me once again. Her face is worried and scared. “Are you okay?”

No. I’m not okay. Oh gods, did I do that to her? Why would I? Why would she smile about that!? Why?

“I don’t know,” she says to me. Kneeling down beside the bed she says, “I may not be able to read the entirety of your mind, but I can read your heart. You’re a gentle person who wouldn’t want to harm a soul. Until your memories return, or you think you can survive on your own you may stay here.”

Why? Why does she trust me? Is that what people are like? Do they just implicitly trust one another? I could be a monster!

“Stop that!” She snaps at me. “I said that I can read your heart, what you are deep down in your soul. I trust you because of what I can see.” She stands up and takes a deep breath. “I am Satori Komeji. Do you happen to remember your name?”

My name? I think it’s, Yuichi.

“Yuichi?” Another smile. I like it when this girl smiles. “I think it suits you.”

The door opens and I see another girl come in carrying a tray with two small cups on it. She has black cat ears and dark red eyes, with fiery red hair styled into twin braids and is adorned by black ribbons at the top and bottom of the braids. She’s wearing a black decorated dress with green frills. “Here’s your tea.” Her voice matches the one from earlier.

“Thank you Rin,” Satori says gently. “Leave the tea on the table next to the bed. We will get to it shortly.” The redhead does as told and leaves the room immediately. “Now then, If you would kindly sit up.”

Despite the protests from my body, I manage to do it. Just sitting up sends a burning sensation throughout my whole body, swinging my legs off the bed doesn’t help matters any. When was the last time I even moved? Oh, right. When I turned my head to look at Satori. Silly question. Speaking of silly and Satori, I must amuse her because she gave a little laugh.

“You really are a strange man.” She picks up one of the teacups and hands it to me. I’m a little surprised at how well my hands want to cooperate with me, gods know my legs didn’t want to. “Careful, Rin likes to make it scalding hot.” She takes her own cup and sits next to me on the bed.

We drink our tea in silence. I take the time to really look at the room. Plain white walls, a strange orb of light near the ceiling, a small table next to the bed, a larger table with two chairs next to it on the other side of the room, and a dresser with a mirror on it are against the wall opposite the door. It’s a sparse room, but it has a charm to it.

“Yuichi,” Satori says after finishing her tea. “I have an errand that needs to be taken care of, so I will have to leave you for now. But, please, make yourself at home here. When you are feeling up to it take a walk around the Palace.”

Thank you. She’s just accepting a complete stranger like me into her home. I want to repay her at some point, in some way. With a faint smile she exits the room, leaving me to finish what’s left of my tea.

I set my empty cup on the tray and slowly rise to my feet. Carefully, I start walking around the room. The pain I felt earlier is gone, but in its place is a sense of unease and vertigo. A few laps around the room clear those up though. Right now, I’m feeling pretty crazy. I don’t remember much, hell, I didn’t even know how to “see”. I suppose I should try and find someone so I can try and talk to them. Maybe if I hear more people talk, it’ll make more sense or jog my memory.

She called it a “Palace”, so there’s bound to be a lot of people and a lot of different rooms. Maybe I should try looking for the…
[] Kitchen/Dining Area
[] Foyer
[] Library
[] Garden