Under the crimson moon
In a forest of dry, gloomy trees, whose bark glows with a reddish light, lies a young girl with black hair. Her figure is slender, almost emaciated, with her ribs and collarbones visible beneath her pale skin. A black dress, worn by time, barely covers her body. The fabric, torn at the sleeves and sides, offers little protection against the breeze, while its frayed edges flutter gently with each gust of wind. Everything about her appearance speaks of prolonged neglect.
All around her, the bare branches stretch toward a starless sky, whose only companion is an enormous, misshapen moon, swollen and possessed of an unreal, almost magical beauty.
The girl remains lying on the ground, unconscious, until her eyelids begin to twitch. Slowly, her reddish eyes open, revealing a lost gaze that wanders from side to side. A thick fog of confusion clouds her senses, as though her consciousness were struggling to emerge from a dream far too deep.
Finally, after several seconds that seem to stretch into eternity, she manages to sit up. She plants her hands on the earthy ground and struggles to raise herself, blinking repeatedly as she tries to shake off her drowsiness.
"Where... where am I?" she murmurs in a delicate voice, still heavy with sleep. "How did I get here?"
She turns her head to one side and then the other, desperately searching for something familiar, but finds nothing except trees with twisted trunks, bare branches, and bark stained with that unsettling crimson glow. There are no paved roads, buildings, or signs of human presence. She cannot even remember how she ended up in such a place.
A feeling of anguish tightens around her chest. At first, it is little more than uneasiness, an unpleasant premonition she cannot explain. However, as the seconds pass, her fear grows until it becomes difficult to breathe.
The silence is oppressive, broken only by the occasional caw of a bird flying across the sky, making the girl's desire to escape all the stronger. She carefully examines her body. Her limbs feel strangely heavy, almost foreign to her. A persistent tingling runs through her legs, while her arms respond with agonizing slowness. She tries moving her toes and then bending her knees, but every movement seems to require a disproportionate amount of effort, as though her body had forgotten how to obey her.
She is about to examine her surroundings again when a sharp stabbing pain shoots through the left side of her neck, forcing her to squeeze her eyes shut and bring a hand to the painful area. Her fingers cautiously feel her skin, searching for a wound or swelling that might explain the sudden pain. However, she finds nothing obvious, even though the discomfort persists.
With no other options, she gently massages her neck, pressing her lips together to keep the discomfort at bay. She remains motionless for several minutes, waiting for the pain to subside while her mind struggles to make sense of the succession of inexplicable events.
Fortunately, the stabbing sensation eventually disappears. The girl lets out a sigh and lowers her hand. Although she still has no idea what she is doing there or why she feels so weak, she has no intention of staying in that forest. She wants to go home and pretend this is nothing more than a bad day.
With renewed determination, she struggles to get to her feet and prepares to take a step forward. However, her legs suddenly give way, and her body pitches forward, causing her to fall face-first onto the ground with a dull thud, raising a small cloud of reddish dust.
For a moment, she remains sprawled on the ground, stunned by the pain and surprise. Nevertheless, the discomfort from the fall is soon pushed aside when she feels that unpleasant tingling in her legs once again. Unable to help herself, she tilts her head to look at them in disbelief. Her legs are trembling uncontrollably, as though they have lost all their strength.
She tries to support herself with her hands and push herself up, but barely manages to lift her torso before collapsing again. Once more, she plants her palms against the earth and pushes with all her strength, managing to raise one knee. A second later, however, the other buckles beneath her weight, and she ends up falling onto her side.
She tries again and again, without success. Every failure fuels her desperation, and fear begins to cloud her judgment. She does not even stop to catch her breath; the moment she hits the ground, she tries again, convinced that she can do it.
Her face, now covered in reddish dirt, contorts into an expression of anguish. Her hands tremble as well, and her eyes are slightly moist, although she cannot tell whether it is because of the pain, exhaustion, or terror of having lost control of her own body.
On her eleventh attempt, she finally manages to stand up. For a moment, she remains upright, her knees bent and her arms extended to either side to maintain her balance. Her legs are still trembling, threatening to give out at any moment, but she feels that simply managing to get to her feet is a small victory.
Determined to try moving forward, she raises her gaze, only to freeze when her eyes meet the glowing fuchsia pupils of another girl. The stranger watches her in silence from a distance of barely a few steps away, making Adalyne feel as though her heart has stopped beating.
"Ah!"
The sudden shock is enough to make her lose her balance and fall backward, hitting her head against the ground. She does not even have time to lament the new blow. Fear overwhelms her so completely that she begins scrambling backward, clumsily dragging herself across the earth.
"Who are you?! Where did you come from?!" Her voice comes out shrill and hostile.
"Relax! Relax, I'm not going to hurt you!" The stranger raises both hands, showing her empty palms, and lowers her gaze slightly to avoid intimidating the girl.
There is genuine concern on her face, a stark contrast to the terrified expression of the black-haired girl.
"My name is Kellie. I'm a demon girl who lives in a nearby village," she explains in a gentle voice. "I was passing through here when I saw you. I didn't mean to scare you."
After a brief pause, she takes a few gentle steps forward until she is at a reasonable distance from the other girl.
"Do you need help?" she asks, cautiously extending a hand toward her.
The black-haired girl does not respond. She remains frozen, unable to tear her eyes away from the strange figure standing before her. From a distance, Kellie appears relatively normal, with her fair, delicate skin and casual clothing: a pink sweater that leaves her shoulders and part of her collarbones exposed, paired with darker shorts, long stockings, and boots decorated with a thick pink fur trim.
However, upon closer inspection, her peculiar features become apparent. She has pale pink hair that cascades in waves down to her waist. A thick pink tail emerges from her lower back, swaying naturally. Two ears sit atop her head, constantly turning in search of sounds and reacting to every movement, while a white horn, resembling that of a unicorn, grows from the center of her forehead.
The girl waits for the image to disappear, for her mind to finish waking up and return her to a reality she can understand. However, the other girl remains right there, watching her with a mixture of patience and concern.
A costume? A hallucination? A prank in the worst possible taste?
None of the explanations makes any sense.
"Are you okay?" Kellie asks, tilting her head slightly. "You seem pretty scared. You really don't have anything to fear from me."
The kind smile accompanying her words only serves to bewilder the girl further. After a few seconds of hesitation, she lowers her gaze to the outstretched hand. She has no reason to trust this stranger, especially after such an encounter. However, she cannot afford to refuse the only help she has found since waking up.
Reluctantly, she extends her arm and accepts Kellie's hand. Kellie gently pulls her up, helping her stand with insulting ease. The black-haired girl looks at their joined hands and then at the stranger's face suspiciously. Unable to restrain herself any longer, she pinches her own hand hard.
The pain is immediate and perfectly real. Startled by the discovery, she loses her balance, but before she can fall, Kellie catches her under the arms and steadies her with astonishing speed.
The girl feels embarrassment beginning to compete with her fear as she realizes she must look like a complete idiot, unable to stay on her feet and pinching herself to check whether she is dreaming.
"I... um..." She looks away, pressing her lips together. "I-I'm fine. It's just that... my legs don't seem to want to respond to me." She glances suspiciously at her own limbs.
Kellie also looks at the girl's legs. Her expression becomes thoughtful as she notices how thin they appear, although she makes no comment about it.
"Don't worry. I'll help you," she assures her.
The girl looks at her incredulously.
"How...?" She does not get to finish the question.
In one unexpected movement, Kellie lifts her off the ground and settles her in her arms, carrying her bridal-style. Instinctively, the girl clings to the stranger's neck, terrified at the thought of falling again. The ease with which Kellie has lifted her is almost more bewildering than her ears, tail, and that horn.
Kellie, for her part, lets out a little giggle at the look of utter bewilderment on her companion's face.
"This will be easier. You don't seem able to walk very far right now."
Without giving her much of an opportunity to protest, she begins moving between the trees, holding her firmly to keep her from slipping.
Adalyne remains rigid in her arms during the first few steps. She is not accustomed to being carried like this, much less by a stranger who seems to have stepped straight out of a fantasy story.
"Where are we going?"
"To my village," Kellie replies without stopping. "You might be sick, so you can stay there while you recover. I'm sure we'll find a way to help you."
Her tone remains kind, but something changes in her expression as she turns her gaze toward the trees. Her smile fades slightly, and her fuchsia eyes take on a chilling seriousness.
"Besides, the forest can be dangerous at night," she adds. "I don't think you want to stay here long enough to find out."
Adalyne feels a shiver run down her spine. Until that moment, she has been far too focused on her own difficulties to pay attention to her surroundings. However, upon hearing those words, she immediately shakes her head. She does not know who Kellie is, but given the circumstances, accepting her help seems like the least frightening option.
"By the way, you still haven't told me your name," Kellie says, her smile returning.
The girl turns her gaze away from Kellie. In the distance, the silhouettes of several houses begin to emerge, the first sign of civilization she has seen.
"My name is Adalyne Diane."
Thank you so much for reading! I hope you enjoy the story — I'll try to bring you new chapters as soon as possible.
If you have any questions, feel free to ask me in the comments. ♡
