"Demon."
"Devil."
"Curse."
My aunt's words landed with every strike of the cane. Wood cracked against my back, my shoulders, and and my arms. I didn't move. Didn't block. Didn't cry out. Every hit felt like hell.
I couldn't fight back;fighting back would only make it worse.
So I lay there on the floor, face pressed to the cold boards, breathing in dust and blood, listening as she emptied her hatred into me. I could almost not feel anything,, as this had become a routine.
"You curse, you poison this house," she spat. "You poison this village. You should never have been born."
The cane snapped in her hand, but it didn't stop her; she proceeded to beat with her hands, punching and hitting furiously.
After she was satisfied, she then stopped;walked away, leaving the house and shutting the door.
I waited until her footsteps faded. Then I pushed myself up, bones aching, skin burning. No tears. Tears never came anymore.
I then got to work, cleaning the house; it wasn't going to stop the beating, but at least it got me to eat.
Born in a magical world without magic, where magic was regarded as a blessing of God, I was regarded as a curse. "The Devil's Curse", they called me.
I AM NULL.
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^^A thousand years ago, the five great kingdoms waged a war that nearly erased existence itself. It was a war without root or reason , a smoke with no fire. When all life was on the brink of extinction, a golden light descended from the heavens, blessing the world with a gift called Magic. A millennium later, the story became legend a tale whispered through generations. Peace reigned across the five kingdoms.....until a child was born in the Kingdom of Abyssline.^^
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"Disappear"."Just disappear"."Do everyone a favor and vanish, would you?"."Come on, just be erased like the mistake you are."
Different voices echoed in Null's head as he walked through the streets of Abyssline. Whispers trailed him; glares followed his every step. Yet he couldn't care less ,all he could hear were the voices clawing at his mind.
He dragged himself along the narrow streets, turning down an alleyway and slipping past a cornered house. With effort, he climbed over a fence, landing hard on the other side. Pain pulsed through his body, but he stood anyway and kept walking, his barefeet on the cold ground.
The sound of rushing water guided him forward. Soon, the dark stone walls of Abyssline gave way to the serenity of a hidden forest. Sunlight filtered faintly through a canopy of emerald leaves, scattering gold dust across the moss covered ground. At its heart stood a waterfall that spilled into a clear pool, surrounded by trees swaying gently in the wind. The trees were of different sizes but had one thing in common ,on each branch were an umbrella shape formed from different leaves as if coming together to cover the forest.
Among them, one towered above the rest , vast and ancient. Its branches stretched wide and strong, each level shaped like a great umbrella, as if shielding the forest beneath it. The trunk was scarred but proud, its roots gripping the earth like a guardian refusing to fall. This forest glade felt like heaven to him.
Null began to climb. His frail body trembled, but his movements were practiced. He'd done this before many times. He slipped once, twice, scraping his palms against rough bark, but caught himself with the vines that hung like lifelines from the branches.
When he finally reached the top, the leaves had formed a big dome like shelter, a natural roof that blocked out the world above. Hidden beneath it was a small wooden structure barely a house, but enough for him. A place he had built with his own hands. A place that didn't hate him.
As he lay inside, his breathing slowed. The voices that haunted him grew faint, fading into silence.
Then a single voice ,gentle and familiar broke through the noise.
"It's okay, my friend. Keep living — Fight for your freedom."
The words echoed softly in his heart, easing the storm within.
And for the first time that day, Null closed his eyes and slept.