Darkness. Silence. Emptiness. Still room-temperature air. And a grey brick path, paradoxically visible in the vast and absolute darkness surrounding it.
Somewhere on it, a person lying on it drew a ragged breath. Looked around, confused and scared. They saw nothing but a path stretching endlessly in both directions. They stood up, still confused, and started shouting, trying to call out anyone or anything. Yet, the Abyss kept its silence. They started walking. Time passed, the wayfarer wandered further and further, and at some point stopped trying to get a response from cold and indifferent nothingness. Thirst, hunger, sleep—none of that troubled the lonely wayfarer. Only the maddening emptiness, silence, and loneliness started to slowly corrode the mind.
A day passed. A year. A century. A millennium flew by. Epochs came and went, and still the wayfarer continued the path, slowly losing human form, literally turning into a shadow of themself. Or was it all merely the sick and twisted illusion of the mind that was falling apart?... No one could give an answer. Neither did the wayfarer, who has already lost their name and most of their life, whose mind barely exists to fulfill the only goal—move forward.
Yet, nothing lasts forever, and this longing torture ended as well. Something has changed. Wayfarer got used to the still scenery so much that a sudden glimpse of light made them freeze for days. Or was that only minutes? Yet, the shock passed, and the wayfarer started running for the first time here, and their mind, as if awakening from a lengthy dream, began to gradually piece together at least a bit from shards it became.
Gradually the small light grew into a bonfire, blazing in the middle of the Abyss aside from the road like a beacon of hope for an agonizing mind. Around it, four shadowy figures had sat, carrying on a dialogue. Wayfarer knew this, despite at that moment they were silent. The wayfarer, who turned into just a shadowy silhouette of themself, was stunned by the scene. One of the figures sitting around the fire, resembling a female silhouette, was the first one who reacted to the newcomer.
"Oh, gentlemen, we have a newbie!" - She waved welcomingly to the wayfarer—"I haven't seen a newcomer for such a long time, and now there are five of us!"
Another figure, which looked like a sphere with something similar to arms at side, muttered: "Yeah, haven't seen new faces for a while—at last something entertaining, and I won't be forced to listen to you at least for a bit…"
The other two figures, one in the shape of a mantis and the other a male silhouette with four arms, didn't utter a word, though the male one turned towards the wayfarer, as if studying them, then slowly nodded and scoffed bitterly for some reason. The mantis, at the same time, seemed like a monolithic statue.
"My name is Lili, this spherical bore is Khan, old man called himself old Robert, and our insectoid friend never introduced self, though we've been here for… A while I'd say. What about you, young shadow?" She asked with evident interest.
The young shadow, as the wayfarer was called, couldn't answer—the prolonging isolation had simply stolen the ability to speak, at least for now. Lili gave them an understanding hum and sat aside, pointing at the spot near her. The young shadow silently sat down and started gazing into the fire. It seemed to help gluing the mind back together. Its dance was mesmerizing, too alive for such a still and cold place. Flames blaze from seemingly nothing, always shifting and cracking quietly, yet never leaving the circle of bricks, which marked the borders of the bonfire. Silence fell over the group once more. However, the one who referred to herself as Lili hummed, "I am growing bored, and nobody is eager to talk. Well, I guess I'll introduce myself to the newbie properly and begin with my story…"
The one who was called Khan only groaned heavily.
So, it took me much longer than I expected, but here it is. In my mind, there would be several more chapters, hope I'll write them. Huuuge thanks to @writingwithoutconfidence for helping and being inspiring friend! Stay tuned with good vibes! :3