Page 56 of A Hail From Hell: Vol 1

A giant, slit-pupil eyeball the size of a wardrobe cabinet peeled open in front of him, looming over Evan by several feet. The top of the eyeball grazed the high ceiling.

What…the…fuck…

The giant eyeball, glowing with an eerie purple light, squinted at Evan choking on thin air. Then its pupils dilated, pleased by the sight.

The walls shuddered with its growl, pieces of the ceiling raining over Evan. Chunks of wall tore off, aiming straight at him. Before he could prepare, one piece struck him across the temple.

Pain exploded. The world spun. Darkness and purple flares danced in his unfocused vision.

Blood trickled down his temple as he raised his head again, and...

What had struck him was not debris but a claw. Similar to the claw of the girl but several times bigger. Big enough to grab three men in his fist at once. From the end of its smallest nail dripped Evan’s blood.

At that moment, as his blood dropped onto the dusty floor, Evan’s head went completely blank, his body still. An alien force pressed down on his lids, and his head dropped forward, limp.

When his eyes opened again, Evan was floating in a void of white light. Alone. Abandoned. The stifling dark energy was gone.

Am I…dead?

He touched his temple, then his shoulder. His injuries were still there, still fresh, but where was he? How had he ended up here?

“You have to call him…”

Evan’s head snapped in the direction of the voice.

“What the…” He blinked at the white-clad youth floating before him, snapping his eyes up and at the newcomer.

Dark hair—slightly lighter and longer than Evan’s own—fluttered gently across his nape. His skin a shade darker than Evan’s. A pair of brown eyes stared at him, gentle and warm.

Evan was looking at…himself. A young Evan. Perhaps seventeen or eighteen.

It was him, but it wasn’thim.

First, he never wore white. He didn’t like that color. Second, the dude had such a kind expression on his face that Evan couldn’t physically bring himself to replicate it.

No, it definitely wasn’t him.

“Who are you?” Evan tried to float forward, but he remained several feet away from the youth. “Why do you look like me?”

The youth smiled. “You have to call him…or you won’t survive.”

“Call whom?” Evan frowned. “What are you saying, and what is this place?”

“You are inside your core of spiritual energy,” the youth replied in an unhurried tone.

Evan blinked at his surroundings. All this light…was his core of energy? He didn’t know why he’d imagined his core—though full of spiritual energy—would be hollow. Evan had thought the core he’d developed would resemble him. Dull and empty on the inside. But this place was overflowing with light. So unlike…him.

“You will not last against those you’re trying to fight in your current state. You have to call him,” the youth urged, although there were no signs of urgency in his face. “You must call him for help. Hurry…”

Upon hearing the wordhelp, something clicked in Evan’s head. Yeah, there was one person who’d promised tohelphim whenever he called him.

That damned demon.

“I…” Evan trailed off, frowning. “I don’t know his name.”

“Yes, you do,” the youth smiled.

“No, Idon’t.”

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