Chapter 1: Prologue

They came in the middle of the night, though for Eira, it was impossible to tell what time it was. Her cell had no windows, and there seemed to be no rhyme nor reason to the schedule that the masked people came. They always asked questions, pricked her with needles, and flashed lights in her eyes. Their actions followed no pattern as far as she could tell.

Yet this time was different. This time, they brought a straitjacket and a standing gurney; Eira was being moved.

So, they’re finally going to kill me. I hope it doesn’t hurt too much.

Eira had no fight left in her; only the hope hop her next life would be better. Removed from the cell, she was wrapped in the jacket and restrained to the gurney. The hallways and passages were bare and utilitarian. The bright lighting forced Eira to squint after so long in the dim cell. Yet, she held her head high.

“Eira, a pleasure to see you today. Are you excited?”

The man who spoke to her was Michael, the one in charge of her present situation. However, she did not answer him or otherwise acknowledge his presence.

“The silent treatment? That’s fine. You don’t need to talk to express how excited you are for the final procedures.” Michael gestured at some masked people, “Get her prepped.”

Eira was removed from the gurney and strapped into a wooden chair with leather belts. One of the masked people forced her mouth open and bound a metal rod into it while another mounted an intricate crown to her head.

An electric chair, then? Well, it will be quick, at least, but not painless.

As the men finished tying her in, one spoke to Michael, “We’re all set, director.”

Michael nodded, “Excellent. We will be in position in just a few minutes. Rejoice, Eira; you’re being given quite the opportunity with this project.”

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Eira fixed her eyes on him, determined to look him in the eye when they killed her. If she did not have something in her mouth, she likely would have used her last breath to curse him; after all this time, he had the gall to call her death an opportunity. That comment finally made her snap, and her shoulders began to shake with maddened laughter.

“We are in position; start the process.” Michael was unaffected by her psychotic gaze and ordered his followers to proceed.

Pain wracked her body as though her nerves were burning, but she merely laughed. The masked people were saying something, but she could not hear it through the haze of her lingering awareness. Then, the fog cleared.

When Eira opened her eyes, she found herself in a strange place. Gone were the masked people. Gone was the chair and all the metal bits. Gone was Michael and all of the pain he had inflicted. Looking around confusedly, she beheld herself, or rather, selves. Several copies of her, and each one was slightly different than its fellows. Nevertheless, they all stood around in a space that seemed to stretch onward into infinity.

Before she could make sense of what was before her, those duplicates began to fade. Starting from the furthest, they winked out of existence one by one. Like a wave washing away a sand castle, her copies were disappearing.

“I see. It looks like they managed to do it… How bold of them.”

Whirling around to face the sound of the voice, Eira beheld her face. Unlike any others that had differences, this one was a perfect mirror image.

It held up its hand to stop her from speaking, an act which she mimicked; then, they both spoke together, at the same time, “Well, this is rather unfortunate, but congratulations. I’ll preserve you, at least, even if it’s too late for the others. Good luck, Eira, and congratulations on becoming a Demon.”

Eira’s main body vanished from space, and her reflection, now formless, turned to face a particular point.

“The last one sure is taking a while to manifest….”