He drifted into sleep, this time, the darkness engulfed everything. No ground, no sky, just endless void. The shadows circled like silent vultures, hungry, without a sound. But there was something else too, a distant whisper that echoed through the endless void, something familiar, a deep sense of regret. The language Daigo couldn't understand—yet it chilled him to his core.
He looked around, searched the darkness, but found a glowing pair of eyes, illuminating the void with purple light, it looked like they were watching him, watching every move he does, like seeing Daigo from his shadows.
Then he heard it—his name, called from nowhere and everywhere-
"Daigo..."
He gasped awake, drenched in his sweat. Trying to catch his breath like he had been running nonstop. The sunlight filtering through the curtains eased up the mood a bit. He stayed on his bed for a while.
Then he stood up and got ready for school. This was his final exam. He looked at the time-
"7:30—"
His exam started at 8:00
He rushed down the stairs, without tying his laces, he grabbed his bag and ran to his school, forgetting that earie dream... for now.
As he entered through the school gate, he heard some students,
"Hey... that guy. Isn't that Daigo?"
"Yeah... he looks like he has seen a ghost."
"I heard he gets some cursed dreams or something."
Daigo sighed, putting his hood on.
"If only they knew..."
He muttered. "These dreams... they're getting worse. I can't focus on anything, not even my studies".
He walked down the hallway, entering the exam hall.
Weeks later, when the results came, Daigo stared at the result sheet—
Below average, lower than before.
But all he could sense was a strange sense of relief.
"It's over... for now."
He decided to take a shortcut home. An old, narrow alley, barely wide to fit two people at most. It was dark. Daigo walked as he was lost in his thoughts and engulfed in darkness when he heard a sudden bark—
He had stepped on a dog's tail.
The Barking turned into a chase. The three dogs charged at Daigo as he ran like a madman, as if he fell, it could mean the end of his life. He tripped on the uneven ground but somehow caught himself. He ran until he found refuge under a flickering street lamp. The dogs eventually gave up, leaving him panting against the cold metal pipe.
That's when he noticed something strange.
His shadow was stretching. At first, he thought he was hallucinating; it was because he was dizzy or didn't breathe enough, but he was proved wrong when the shadow took form and stood before Daigo.
The Purple Eyes from his Dreams.
Daigo stepped back questioning, "W- what... is this?"
The shadow stepped closer, Its voice seemed somewhat calm to Daigo.
"I've watched you", He said. "The most feared person that night, Daigo August."
"Who... are you?" asked Daigo, trembling in fear.
"Who am I you ask? I am the one who haunts you in your dreams, The one who lives in your fear..."
A silence, then came the voice—
"I... am the Abyss", and for the first time, Daigo realized the nightmare had followed him into reality.