Silence is the void of any sound or movement, and it comes in different forms. There is the physical silence, the kind that exists in space when not even a pin drop can be heard. But even then, you can hear the burning of the stars. The wind caused by vortexes that swallow fellow planets with hunger and greed. Those deep, dark, endless pits that can never be filled. A portal that leads to the unknown. Black holes. And the crashing of destroyed planets as they are ejected out through the canal. Soccer-like beasts that, just like their brothers, create chaos wherever they are seen. The white holes.
And then we have the mental silence.
The kind that kills, repairs… breaks… connects… builds… and destroys people over and over again.
"Humans… a complicated bunch really. To love a human is to live on an iceberg. You never know when they'll melt, when you're walking on thin ice, when to comfort and when to give space, when to nag and when to… let go. They are… unique, each and every one of them… although… they are W.E.A.K. So frustratingly fragile it's pathetic. And yet, unlike mindless beasts that ruled the top of the food chain — why? Because instead of them adapting, they change the environment to adapt to them. It's stupid yet smart.
You can wake up now."
Gasping, she awoke to meet none other than… a demon. No, he looked different, like the living combination of a white hole and a black hole. He was tall — to her he looked at most seven feet — but she could feel it. He was the guardian of the verses. The power, the confidence, the elegance, and the aura was too much. She felt as if she would die if she stayed too long.
"Sigh… you humans don't value your lives at all."
"What do you want? What do you mean? Who are you even? What… what are you?"
"Expected. You don't even know me, but you should have guessed, haven't you, Yunxia?"
"How do you know my name?… Are you some angel or something?"
"No, I am no angel. That title would be an understatement of what I am."
The being walked towards her, a soft warm smile playing on his lips.
"You may call me… the one who watches most of the void. One of the masters of the verse… THE LAST COMPANION."
"THE LAST COMPANION? What do you mean by that?" She stared at him with awe and surprise. She knew meeting such a being couldn't be explained, and she wondered how she even got here in the first place.
"Alright, human, that's enough. I'll send you back to where you belong — or at least from there, you should be able to find your way back to where you belong."
With a snap of his finger, she disappeared from the void.
"Oh my, it seems I forgot to explain some things to the human. Sigh… silly forgetful me. Though with the amount of luck she has, I doubt it will affect her… much."
And with that, he/she disappeared from the void.
When Yunxia awoke, she found herself behind two ghosts. They were riding a boat — same as her — being led down the river of life and death. Soon, they reached a large gate surrounded by graves and crawling crows.
The person in charge of leading them through the river stepped off the boat, talking to the two Cerberus dogs guarding the gate. The gate swung open with a creak, and they were let in.
Crossing the threshold, they were enveloped by a cloth-like sensation and then a bright red light. Rubbing her eyes, she found herself in the middle of a ghost town. The sky was blood red, with two moons: one blue and one pale white. Ghosts of different kinds, monsters of different sizes and shapes, zombies and other nightly creatures roamed the town. There was clearly an established hierarchy here, where humans and weaker spirits were slaves, and night creatures like vampires and werewolves were of higher status.
They were led to square-like platforms, and a bell was rung.
Bang, bang, bang.
All the lower-ranked ghosts, spirits, and zombies rushed off, hiding into their houses, barrels — anywhere they could find. Even ghosts passed through walls trying to avoid the catastrophe that was yet to come. Meanwhile, the newcomers who were unaware of anything going on just stood there staring in awe as people fled like chickens about to get slaughtered.
Suddenly, a cold sweat ran down their spines, and they turned to meet a pale figure standing at the corner with a grin on his face. Soon, the whole area was covered with bats, crows, and the stench of corpses.
And on the little stage stood at least ten humans, six ghosts, and two beast kings. No one from the lower races was there. Yunxia, healing in the midst of the crowd, observed with quiet calculation. She needed to know her surroundings — potential opportunities and risks.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
At first, it sounded like the heartbeats of the people on the stage. Later, they realized even their heartbeats couldn't sound as loud as that. Footsteps approaching. They could see heads. Glowing eyes. Pale skin. Dark skin. Blue skin. They knew what was coming. They feared what was coming. The stench of bloodlust lingered in the air, yet neither the crowd nor the escort could move.
Yunxia took deep breaths, trying to calm her heart. From the aura they were exuding, she knew this matter wasn't simple.
The escort stepped forward, greeting them politely with the curtsy of people of high rank. The dust that had gathered from people fleeing finally dissipated, revealing Frankensteins, different vampires, zombies and even ghosts — beings who looked human yet had lifeless eyes like they'd been plucked from their sockets.
The vampires, however, had hair colors ranging from platinum blonde (almost like Yunxia's) to ebony black. But they shared one thing — fangs and deep ruby-like eyes, as if blood itself had been used to craft them. Just looking at them could leave someone hypnotized for hours.
The zombies, on the other hand, stank like blood, with skin colors ranging from blue to black-ish, pink-ish, and green-ish — but they all had the same smell: death. Rotten corpses. From their looks alone, anyone could tell they were Frankensteins' creations.
Each guest was escorted into a large dark castle, while the new recruits were taken through the back door to a crappy room where they were handcuffed and sent to the stage for the big auction.
Soon, all the guests arrived. The hierarchy was clear:
• Vampires — strongest
• Werewolves
• Frankensteins
• Zombies
• Ghosts
• Humans — lowest
The differences were obvious. Vampires looked at the humans with disgust. Even the werewolves looked at them like predators stalking prey. But the humans weren't scared. They wore black robes — but the scent of pure human blood gave them away, making the atmosphere tense.
On one hand, the vampires wanted to devour them, but on the other hand, they knew if they killed the humans now, the werewolves would have an excuse to attack — and those two races had been feuding since the beginning of time.
Spirits didn't mind much, as their race was scholarly and rarely violent, except for rare vengeful cases.
Zombies lacked brains and emotion; they were probably there to maintain face or fulfill duties to noble lineages.
Frankensteins were more interested in mingling with their own than participating in politics.
When the grandfather clock struck 1:01, the auctioneer stepped forward — a man in his mid-20s, dressed elegantly. From his brownish-red eyes, you could tell he was a half-vampire. And from the confidence in his voice, you could tell he had strong backing to host such an event.
"It is time for us to begin the Annual Blood Moon Auction," he announced, clapping once to gather attention.
"Let us begin