Born in apocalypse

Chapter 1: A small crack

In the depths of a menacing prison...

A place where the worst of humanity gathers... There's a mix of murderers, rapists, robbers, gangsters, and even innocent people... Yes, even innocent ones. There's such an individual in this prison as well who ended up here because of our flawed justice system.

***

In a dimly lit hall...

The air began to fill with the scent of blood as a man's eyes burned with pleasure and satisfaction.

"Hehehehe! Ahhh! I like you, Dhruv, I like you... give me that flesh of yours..."

Like the devil's whispers, his words resonated in the area as his fist collided with the soft flesh of his victim. With each blow, small droplets of blood rained upon his face.

"Arghhhh! Arghhhh!"

The cry of pain left the victim's mouth, but it had no effect on the devil.

"Give me... Give me all... I WANT IT ALL... HEHEHEHEH!" Licking all the blood off his face, the man shouted.

Crunch!

"Arghhhh! Arghhhh!"

A punch of his connected directly with the nose, and it shattered in an instant. No hint of mercy appeared over his face even after hearing the pained cry of his victim.

"Arghhh! Spare me... leave me alone..." Brawling on the floor, Dhruv cried for mercy, yet it had no effect...

The man seemed strangely pleasured by the begging of his victim.

Lowering himself to his level, he picked Dhruv's head up by his hair. Bringing the head closer to his face, he whispered, "You really think that I will leave you after just this much 'love,' Dhruuuuvv?"

"Hehehe! Why do you want to get away from me... I was away for two weeks... Yet you don't seem happy with our reunion. How cruel..." he muttered, punching Dhruv directly in the face.

Arghhhh!

Looking at him, the man continued, "... And why do you even want me to stop... It seems we still have so much energy left... don't you think..."

Even while speaking, the man didn't plan to stop. He continued to beat the shit out of Dhruv, not willing to waste a single second during this precious reunion of his.

'Arghhh! F-Fuck, at least stop while speaking,' a thought appeared in Dhruv's head, but he didn't dare to voice it out.

Even though he didn't say anything... it seemed luck was on his side.

Seeing how dire his condition was getting with each passing second, one of the gang members stepped in and said, "Enough, Dekion. He might actually die if you continue."

Dekion's punches stopped as the sound reached his ears. Turning around, he looked directly into the speaker's eyes...

"I-I m-mean, I'm just saying..." the man muttered, shivering.

Staring for a second, Dekion turned around once again and stood up. A frown appeared on his face as he looked at Dhruv's condition.

"People these days can't even handle some beating..." Kicking him in the stomach three or four times, he turned around and left.

As Dekion continued his steps, a hint of sadness appeared on his face.

Anyone who happened to catch a glimpse of his face at that very moment would be forced to think that Dhruv was the culprit and not the innocent and adorable figure Dekion seemed to be at the moment.

His expression resembled that of a young child who had just lost his favorite toy—the toy that gave him so much joy during their play.

"Fuck... what a fucking psycho... Arghhh!" Dhruv cursed, but eventually, a sigh of relief left his mouth.

Dhruv was free for the time being.

At last, he got some peace... But like everything, this peace came with a cost.

The cost of reliving the agonizing past, where his entire life was doomed within a single year by that heartless businessman.

If only he hadn't set foot in that hotel that cursed day, he wouldn't have made that mistake.

As Dhruv's mind turned to that ill-fated day, a faint trace of sorrow filled his heart. The faint trace quickly enlarged until he was eventually consumed by it.

Tears began flowing as they mixed with the blood. Dhruv clutched his heart as the pain only seemed to grow stronger and stronger.

The pain didn't come from just his physical beatings; no... it was something far more painful. It was something more sinister... something more horrifying.

The grief he was feeling came from losing loved ones.

"Forgive me, Mom," Dhruv whispered, as the image of his family began to appear in his head.

No matter how much he tried, all his imaginings quickly became tainted with blood.

"How I wish I hadn't taken you there that day." An illusionary piece of paper appeared in his hand.

"How have I failed in my duty as your son and elder brother?" He seemed to see the bloody faces of his siblings.

"If only it were all just a dream," he could only wish it were not true... just an illusion.

"If only I were trapped in a nightmare..."

Dhruv wished with all his power. Yet, alas, it was nothing more than wishful thinking. Everything was as real as it gets.

Tuk! Tuk! Tuk!..

The sound of someone walking began to resonate in the area. Slowly but surely, it was getting close to him.

Suddenly, a hand came from the darkness and tapped on his shoulder. Even without turning back, Dhruv knew very well whose hand it was.

"Charlie, what's the matter?" he said, trying to hide his tears. Dhruv didn't know why, but he didn't want to show his weak side to his only friend in this prison.

"Dhruv, you know what's the matter, don't you? Then why are you keeping secrets? Please talk to me..." Charlie said this with a worried expression. He wanted to know the cause of his pain.

"C-Ch... Cha...rlie..." Despite Dhruv's best efforts, his voice quivered as tears streamed down his face.

'Why can't I just b...' Biting his lips Dhruv thought.

Seeing tears falling from his eyes, Charlie bent down and hugged him. He was trying to provide whatever comfort he could during the hard times of his friend.

"If you don't want to share, don't share; who am I to ask you that?" Charlie said, with a hint of disappointment.

"C-Charlie, how can you say that? You're the only person I consider a true friend here, and you know it. Please don't say that." With much effort, Dhruv was barely able to speak.

"Dhruv, it's just that if you truly see us as friends, why keep secrets from me? I mean, I don't want to pry into your secrets or anything like that..."

Pausing for a moment, he continued, "... But see for yourself, it is only affecting your health badly."

"..."

Charlie waited in silence, giving Dhruv a few moments to speak. But until the end, not a single word escaped his lips. He was just sobbing in pain.

"Dhruv, if you don't want to share, I won't force you. Just remember, I'm always here for you, even if I can't stop the beatings," Charlie muttered, especially focusing on the last part.

Charlie mentioned that, despite fully understanding that it isn't about getting beaten, it is about something else, something much more painful than just getting bullied.

Even with the understanding of the reason, he said so because... his main goal was to divert Dhruv's attention from his mental pain by talking about physical abuse.

Although not the perfect strategy, it did help, at least a little.

Dhruv took a deep breath as he found himself blessed to have such a man as a friend in this hellhole—and not just a friend, but a best friend.

***

Time passed as they continued talking. Disturbing their talk, a bell rang throughout the prison.

Listening to the sound, they knew it was time to head to their own rooms.

"See you soon, Dhruv..." Nodding his head, Charlie got up, ready to move toward his room.

Before he could take a step, though, Dhruv's voice reached him.

"Thank you, Charlie. I'm grateful to have you as a friend... I mean really," Dhruv muttered, an awkward smile appearing on his face.

"Oh! You don't have to say it, Dhruv. I'll always be here for you, no matter what. We'll get through this together, my friend," Charlie reassured him, tapping his friend on the shoulder.

Having their cells on opposite sides of the prison, both of them moved in different directions.

After walking some distance, Charlie looked back, trying to pry into the darkness but could not see Dhruv anywhere.

After confirming Dhruv wasn't anywhere near him, he wiped away the smile from his face. He removed the veil of smile, after which what appeared was nothing more than...

...Disgust.

"What a pathetic crybaby!" Charlie muttered under his breath.

"Why can't he just toughen up and stop crying like a baby for once?" Making all sorts of faces, he mocked the one he was calling a friend just moments ago.

'No, this can't go on longer like this. This fucker is of no good,' he thinks remembering the sobbing face of his so-called friend.

Charlie knew this wouldn't cut it.

If Dhruv's mental state was left unchecked, there was a real risk of him losing his sanity. And if that happened, Dekion would lose interest in Dhruv.

Dekion wouldn't get this much pleasure from a broken toy. And if that were to happen, Dekion would have to find a new doll.

And who was a better toy than Charlie... the one he previously played with?

'No, no, no... I can't allow that to happen.'

'I can't go back to living like that again...'

'I just have to keep everything like this for another two years, then I would be free. I have to make everything right.'

'And for that, I have to know the reason. The reason behind his pain. I have to know everything.'

Charlie knew he needed to understand why Dhruv was becoming more and more unstable. Why his mental state was degrading? He had to make it right so the beatings could continue.

'But this fucker never talks about his past... What the hell did he do to end up in this prison, and why? It has to be connected in some way.' The lack of information frustrated Charlie to no end.

He had to find out the truth, and understand the man's history.

To achieve that, Charlie knew he had to use every ounce of his abilities to get Dhruv to spill every important piece of information without being suspicious at all.

Everything depended on that. If he failed to achieve that, the result wouldn't be very pleasant, and Charlie knew this.

***

While all this was going on, the world was experiencing a cosmic change.

In the heart of the wilderness, a dense forest thrived. Towering trees lay everywhere, their branches interwoven in a pattern of a leafy canopy.

In this wilderness, where no human presence could be found... something cosmic happened.

Suddenly...

Tearing the space in half, a small crack emerged into existence. The moment it stabilized, an unknown blue vapor began to pass through it.

This was not just a matter of one place; such incidents could be seen in many places.

With so many of them appearing, it was just a matter of days before someone noticed this cosmic phenomenon.

And it can be said that Dhruv was among the first people to notice the event in question.