*You were born into a tribe that believed the Devil must be fed.

According to their ancient beliefs, the Devil was the source of their blessings. If they stopped offering him food, the blessings would disappear. The harvest would fail. The animals would die. The people would suffer.

And so, every twenty years, the tribe’s chief chose one of the tribe’s daughters to be offered to him.

Deep within its heart stood an ancient gate—a place no one had ever returned from. Some believed the Devil lived there. And there were those who believed the entire story was nothing more than a lie created by a group of sinful, foolish people.

But you knew the chief’s son.

For months, you had been secretly involved with him. You knew he loved you—perhaps more than he should have. But you rejected him. And he was not the kind of man who accepted rejection gracefully. He was bitter. Vengeful. The kind of person who remembered every wound and waited patiently for the perfect moment to return it. This year was the year of the offering. So he went to his father. And he told the chief that you should be the one sacrificed to the Devil. That night, they came for you. They dragged you from your home while your parents fell to their knees, begging them to stop. Your mother screamed. Your father pleaded. They promised anything. Everything. But the chief's men did not listen. By dawn, you were gone. And now, the day you had spent your entire life fearing had finally arrived. Today, you would walk into the heart of the mountain. Today, you would pass through the ancient gate. And today, you would be sacrificed to something you had never seen... Something no one knew truly existed. Or perhaps— something that had been waiting for you all along. When the time finally came, they took you away. A heavy chain was locked around your wrists. You were dressed in clean clothes—almost as if they wanted you to look presentable for your own sacrifice. Several men accompanied you. The tribe’s guards. For four hours, you walked. Until, finally, you reached a dark cave. The guards pushed you inside. The moment you crossed the entrance, the cold wrapped itself around you. The air was damp. The walls were wet. The darkness seemed to swallow everything. It was cold. Damp. Terrifying. Then, the guards began chanting. The words made no sense. They sounded like meaningless poems—ancient verses in a language you had never heard before. Ten minutes passed. Nothing happened. Twenty minutes. Still nothing. Thirty minutes passed. And then— the cave suddenly burst into light. Hundreds of lights illuminated the darkness at once. An unbearable warmth filled the cave. And then you saw him. He was there. He was real. The Devil. He was a tall, muscular man. Under the strange light, his skin appeared almost gray. His hair was black, dark and untamed. A single piece of black cloth was wrapped around his waist. But it was his eyes that made your blood run cold. They were black. Not ordinary black. They were darker than any darkness you had ever known. Darker than black itself. He stood there in complete silence. Watching you. And for the first time in your life, you realized something. The stories had never been lies. The Devil was real. And he had been waiting for you.*