Alû

  There’s always a time where something catches your eye. Whether it’s a toy box, a cool new looking video game, or a piece of chocolate on the shelf. Some things that catch your eye can be something very good, but other times it could be a very dangerous thing. For instance, that demon you spotted in the alley way on your left.

Ever since that night, I couldn’t get the figure out of my mind. This… this feeling. What is it? Fear? Am I scared? I don’t understand a single thing that’s happening right now. Lying in bed, I could hardly think, but I had no choice. I had to get up, for my mother was calling my name, Aestrial. 
“Aestrial! Get up! I’m not saying your name again! This is your last warning!” Her yellings were always loud. Way too loud. I don’t remember her calling my name before, but with how loud she yells, how did I not hear her? I must have been in a deep sleep.

As soon as I got dressed, I stumbled down the stairs. I tripped and face planted onto the wooden floor. Before I could get up, a massive headache emerged. It hurt to move. However, I was certain I didn’t break or sprain anything. After a few seconds of lying on the floor, my mother came around the corner from the kitchen and looked me  right in the face.
“What the hell are you doing on the floor? Get up!” It was my mother’s voice softly shouting at me.
I wanted to get up, but again, it hurt to move. I decided to move anyways. I stretched my arms out on the wooden floor and tried to push myself up. Every inch I moved, something ached. Once I was completely up off the ground, my mother looked at me like I died or something. I looked up at her and asked, “What’s wrong?” I was confused. Did my hair look bad or something?
“You’re bleeding!” My mother shrieked.
‘“Bleeding? I don’t feel anything. Where am I bleeding?” I said, putting my hands up to my face rubbing my hands around to see if I could feel any blood against my fingertips. I felt blood for sure. I could feel the blood dripping from my eyebrow. With my fingertips, I traced my forehead near the blood. I felt a hole in the corner of my head. Above my right eye, under my blue hair, right on the edge of my forehead. My eyes widened as I shrieked in the inside. There was nothing there. Just a hole. I thought to myself, “How did I get this? I don’t remember getting hit here.”
My mother blankly stared at me with wide eyes. Bigger than my own wide eyes. I could tell my mother was eyeing the hole on my head. She quickly grabbed my arm and dragged me. I took this hint as this was something very serious. I understood that if you are just simply bleeding and there’s a scab and you don’t freak out about it, but this, this is something different. The hole was very entombed into my skin. I let her drag me, but I didn’t know where she was taking me.
She finally spoke and said, “What did you fall on?” I couldn’t think. I didn’t know the answer to this. I didn’t realize how hard I hit the ground. I made a halt, pulling my arm back from my mother. I heeded in thought to myself, “Wait. Maybe I didn’t hit the ground.” I attempted to turn around back to where I fell while my mother tried taking my arm back. Her fingers slipped over my arm and completely failed trying to grab it. I finally found why there was a hole in my head. There was a simple nail on the ground coated in my blood. That would explain as to why there was a huge hole in my head and as to why it hurt like hell. The things I don’t understand is, why is the nail on the ground and not stuck in my head, and how did that not pierce my brain? I wonder if my mother was thinking the same thing.  With my fingers, I bent down and picked up the bloody nail and held it in my hand.

That’s when it all started. My mind wasn’t where it should be. I was in some kind of trance, or dream, or realm. Who cares what you call it, this wasn’t earth…. Was it? With what i’m staring at right now, I do not believe I am on planet Earth. The demon was back. Staring me in the face. It was the same demon I dreamed about last night. The same one that was in the back alley way. At least I assumed it was a demon. It was no human, unless they were in cosplay. Although, that would be a pretty damn good cosplay if this was a human. The eyes of the unknown stranger was pure red. Crimson red like a vampire. His skin had dark aura as his body, with an outline fiery red. This could be no cosplay. I also knew this wasn’t earth due to the fact that there were aurora shining everywhere you’d look. It may have looked like an old city, abandoned town, but there was light. There was aurora that felt alright to touch. It felt smooth, only when touched it would disappear and form again somewhere else. It wasn’t like the fiery black and red floating everywhere.
I felt uncomfortable standing here. With the red eyes gazing upon me, it was creepy. I didn’t know what I was getting into. The stranger walked closer and my heart started to pump. I didn’t know what to do. The stranger was getting closer and closer to me, I couldn’t move. It was as if someone was controlling me, not allowing me to move. Only breathe. While froze in place, I could hear someone mumble words. Perhaps it was the stranger that lies before me? “Alû…” I couldn’t hear it quite clear. Was he saying Lu? All you? What was he saying. After hearing his next words, I knew what it was. The stranger whispered very slightly, “...Name…” Whether the creature was fluent in english or not, I knew this was his name. Alû. It was a strange name indeed, but I knew it was a name because I studied demons for a project back in the 8th grade. Alû was a demon. I don’t remember much, but I do remember that the Alû demons are succubus’s that have no mouth, lips, or ears. Was this really an Alû demon? This demon had a mouth, lips and ears. Alû demons are not particularly evil, but it’s extremely rare to know of one who is good. I was confused. Why was this Alû demon talking to me? I hoped it wasn’t one of the demons that were evil, however, if this Alû demon was nice, why would he talk to me?
It was as if the demon knew I was scared. As the demon started walking to me, he began walking slower. I could see it in his eyes that he knew I was scared.
With just a soft whisper, the demon said, “Do not… Be Afraid.. Child.. Let us be civil.. Just talk…” Once he was finished speaking, I couldn’t help but shake. The demon was now point blank from me. I shivered even more. I was no longer comfortable in this area, even with the lightened aura floating everywhere. This didn’t feel right. I couldn’t help but close my eyes. Whatever happens, I didn’t want to see. I was too afraid to open up even a little peak.  Suddenly, I felt… warmth? My shoulder was very warm, but I didn’t know why. What was this? I opened my eyes to look.
Once my eyes were opened, everything came back to normal, only this time I was no longer in the same room as I was before. I was moving, but my body was not physically moving. With my eyes open, I could see that white. Was it the ceiling? … Could it be that I was finally on a stretcher, or whatever you call those things? Was I one of those people? I turned my head over to the left and saw someone with a white mask. This confirmed my location. I was in the hospital. The male wore a white hat, white shirt and pants, and blue gloves. This was definitely the hospital. Only, I felt fine. Why was I on this stretcher? I tried moving my legs and feet, check. They worked fine. Then my arms and hands. Check. They also worked fine. I already moved my head, so why was I on here?
“Don’t move! You’re going to be okay!” One of the doctors yelled out. The hell i’m going to be okay. I don’t see anything wrong in the first place!
I blurted out, “Why am I here? I feel fine.” The doctor responded with a simple response,
“Please lay down. “ and put his hand on my shoulder to keep me from leaning up.
I couldn’t stop thinking whether or not to try and escape. I knew that would just end in exhaustion. I obeyed and laid there like a good kid. Of course, I let out a sigh.

By the time we got to the room, my mother was already in there. Along with my sister, Esterial. We were twins. I were to have a brother only he died in my mother’s womb. Us three were all in my mother’s womb at the same time. Only two of us made it out alright. Only, my sister was the strong one. She was very flexible as she did gymnastics, parkour, and wrestling. She was, a bit strange. I was the smart one. With all the knowledge. Of the household, I was the smartest one. I knew I was smart only because I was 16 and was a senior college student.

I could see my sister wiping away her tears beside my mother. Both were sitting only my mother was leaning over as if she was going to cry. It was hard to tell whether she was crying or not because she was bent over. I could feel the stretcher being sat down, and a bed across from me being adjusted. The doctors picked up the stretcher and gently laid me on the bed. I still had no clue as to what was going on. I felt fine. Not only that, but I had to use the restroom. Was bad timing.
My mother lifted up her head and asked, “How are you feeling?” For the millionth time I was fine.
When I told her I was fine, she just blankly stared at me as if I was lying and continued to ask questions to me. “Do you hurt? Are you sure you’re okay?”
All I wanted to do right now was ignore her and get up to go pee.
“Mother. I feel fine. I promise. I… don’t even know why i’m here.” I spoke.
“You fell. You landed on another nail. You ran from my grasp to do something and you picked up the nail that you fell on. Once you caught sight of it, you fainted once more, only, you smacked the wall. There was another nail in the wall from the painting that we still haven’t hung up. You know the painting that dad was supposed to put up, but broke a part of the frame and came up with his idiotic plan to stick a nail on the opposite side of the frame to keep the two pieces together? Well, that backwards nail went through the exact same place on your forehead where you got hit by the first nail. “
That’s right. I remember now. I fell on a nail. I understand there’s a huge hole in my head, but I don’t feel anything, do I have to be here? She did state I fell on another nail though. I suppose there might be something more to it then I think.
I lifted up one of my hands and started bringing my fingers to my forehead, but before I could touch anything, my mother shouted out, “Don’t! Don’t touch it!” Remember when I said she has a loud voice? Well, this scared me almost half to death. I’m pretty sure the others next to our room could hear this. Even the look on one of the doctor’s faces looked as if they peed their pants.
“Why are you crying Esterial? I’m okay. I’m fine. I promise. ” You could still see the tears in her eyes when I asked that. It almost looked like her tears multiplied, as if her crying intensified.
My sister looked up at me and dreadfully with her petrifying face and couldn’t acknowledge my words. It didn’t seem to comfort her at all. She spoke back to me and stuttered, “I thought you were dead. You.. you wouldn’t get up. As soon as you fell again and hit another nail, we thought you’d be dead for sure. Just moments ago we found out that you’re still alive. We… we are grateful that you are still alive. I.. I…” She couldn’t finish her sentence. Her tears began to further fall down her face. I wanted to comfort her badly. Screw this hospital, let me out. Let me hug my sister. Please.
“Sister. Come here. Please…” I didn’t know what else I could say. I felt horrible enough that my sister was in this much tears. Losing me was like losing her own life. I was more than just a sister to her, even besides us being twins. We were one.

To be continued...