Since time immemorial have there been three levels of existence. The first is the formation of all that is good. Its denizens were born from light, their will the mightiest of all. In their presence, deceit is revealed, truth stands strong, and bonds are strengthened.

Their counterpart came from the darkest depths of evil. Its land is twisted and burned. Vile creatures stalk it, terrorising any who venture near. Their bodies are the strongest of all that live. They delight in pain and chaos, twisting words to break relationships apart.

In between these two extremes lies a midground. It grew from the essence of both, influenced by their differing values. In this was birthed the first soul, the first truly free being. It gave rise to others, those who would live and die. Their actions, and those of the world around them linked them close to one or other of the levels. When their bodies passed, so too would they pass to the level that resonated with them most of all.

These souls empowered each other level. The heavens grew brighter, as its denizens threw lavish attention to the souls. The hells craved the feeling of control over them. They twisted and broke those cursed to their realm, birthing more monstrous beings.

The first soul noticed this. In its unique position, it could move between the other realms freely. It saw the lush fields of the heavens, with ever singing birds and eternal fruit bearing trees. It experienced the savage landscape of hell, with rivers of molten rock and metal. And it saw both as places worth conquering.

It made an army of souls, ones to wage war on both. With its unique position it could simply grow new soldiers, its level unable to sustain any other beings for a long time. In turn, the campaigns harmed both heaven and hell, brutally cutting them down whilst it's power grew. It tore the light and dark, using shreds to empower itself further.

In a desperate ploy, heaven and hell set aside their eternal feud. They formed a united front, catching the First Soul off guard. Its armies were routed, itself captured. But in its uniqueness it could not be killed.

A prison was made for it. Hell formed an infinitly large shifting labyrinth, filled with traps to contain it. Heaven created an impenetrable barrier, one that nothing but pure good could ever cross. The entrance was forgotten, all traces of the First Soul removed from existence. With its army lost, the truce fell, hell and heaven warring again.

Millennia later, a newly formed devil explored the deepest recesses of reality. It came across an ancient door, a clear impossibility in its view. All of history was recorded, branded into its brain upon creation. And yet there was nothing about a clearly crafted door.

A young angel came upon the devil in its own exploration. But in place of battle, they chose to examine the door together. To their surprise, they found the lock required both an infernal and a celestial touch. Together they opened it, curiosity outweighing caution.

As it opened, the barrier blazed before them. The angel touched it, feeling its power. It could tell it was containing something. But it was archaic, and easily dispelled with the changes since its creation. Beyond it, they saw the ever shifting labyrinth.

As the devil approached it, the labyrinth reacted. It formed a straight line, a figure appearing at its end. It walked towards them, smiling almost kindly. They let it approach, burning with questions. It came into arms reach, moving with a flash and grasping their throats.

They struggled against the First Soul's grasp, its smile turning into a mocking sneer.

"Finally, free after so long. Thank you. I will be sure to pass on your regards."

It slowly crushed their essence out, feeding on the shreds that remained. It had failed in its misson once before. It would not do so again. All would fall under its rule.

###Lone Prisoner

It is the only step painted that alarming red, not to mimic the color of stop signs, instead being the origin that stop signs had copied. All sets of stairs had a red step if there were fourteen or more of them, and contractors went out of their way to ensure a floor didn't start at a thirteenth step.

It was all nonsense and today, Blake decided that he would prove it once and for all. He shook his head as he watched the other kids cautiously step over it and jeer at others as they approached it. They're all imbeciles, Blake thinks. I'll show them.

He marches up the steps with a backpack full of incomplete homework and a face full of snark. His foot approaches the 13th step, and he slams it down as growing expressions of horror surround him. He wasn't expecting anything to happen, especially anything immediate so his eyes widen when a shockwave ripples out away from his footfall.

Time freezes as the ripples spread outward like a stone striking the surface of an invisible surface of water. With everything around him frozen in place, the 13th step becomes an open door downward, and Blake's center of gravity is shifted forward, causing him to tumble through it.

His arms pinwheel and he screams as he falls over, but his falling soon transitions into a float like a leaf becoming detached from a branch. He glides lazily in a slow spiral, a light shining from above him and a featureless abyss surrounding him.

He approaches a round symbol on a floor and rights himself, setting his feet down in the circle. The light above him is illuminating the circle and a few feet beyond. The surrounding abyss is no longer featureless as a deep-blue horizon glows at an unknowable distance.

Blake notices two things immediately. The first is the decaying remains of a skeleton in the circle next to him. The second is a figure standing between him and that blue horizon. He can't see much more than a vague outline but it many times larger than him with its yellow eyes floating in the darkness.

"Do not be afraid, little boy," says the creature, its mouth opening and displaying white fangs affixed to the darkness. The shape of the mouth gives an impression of a great wolf.

Blake stands taller and grips his bag straps, pulling the backpack tighter against him. "What are you," he asks.

"I'm a prisoner, of course. Wrongfully, locked away by my cruel masters."

"But what did you do to get locked away?"

"Nothing, unless you count being the largest wolf a crime. I wasn't locked away for anything I did. I was locked up for what I might do! I just hate being punished for something that hasn't even happened. How is that fair?" The wolf growls, baring its teeth as it looks away from Blake.

"Well, that's not right," Blake replies.

The yellow eyes snap back to Blake. "I'm glad you agree, because you can fix this grave injustice!"

Blake turns back to look down at the skeleton next to him. "What happened to this person," he asks, gesturing down to it.

"Oh, they were awful, no better than the masters that locked me away here. Instead of releasing me and allowing us both to get out of here, I had to sit here and watch them waste away, trapped and slowly dying from thirst."

"That's terrible," Blake agrees, while looking at the yellow eyes that move up in down in a head nod. "While how do I get you--us out of here?"

"You just have to break one of the lines on the seal around you."

Blake kneels and looks over the design. There is an encompassing white circle with intricate swirling patterns across its center. "What do I do?"

"Just scratch out any part of the lines," the wolf replies eagerly.

Blake reaches towards the outer rings and scrubs away a section, causing a break in the line. "Like this?" he asks, looking back up to the wolf.

"Yes, perfect," the wolf replies. His eyes narrow and his stature quickly shrinks down to the same height as Blake. The eyes are more normal sized now but still glow a dirty yellow and begin moving towards the light.

"What's your name?" Blake asks.

"Well, a long time ago, they called me Fenrir, but I don't think that's necessary now." A shoe steps into the light, then a kid with a backpack walks into the circle.

Blake's eyes grow wide as he stares at the mirror image of himself, the only difference being the yellow eyes, a contrast to his blue. "Why do you--" Blake starts before being shoved out into the shadow.

Fenrir grabs a small piece of bone and lays it over the broken line before turning back to see Blake's glowing blue eyes floating in the shadows.

"Hey! What are you doing?" Blake demands. He tries to step back into the circle but the light burns and smoke peels away from his form. He watches with horror as Fenrir flies back up like Peter Pan with outstretched arms and legs.

Not-Blake steps up to the 14th step as the other students look at him in horror. He just narrows his yellow eyes at them, and they scatter. He pulls open the door and steps into school.

This prompt was also a combination of this WP:

https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/comments/ye2rlv/wp_the_13th_step_in_your_school_is_known_to_be/

“Here for tonight’s Ted talk is the author of ‘Heaven and Hell are just a marketing scam’ so please give them a warm welcome.

They strode on stage, a rather bland looking person by any real measure, the type that one wouldn’t pick out of a crowd or seemingly remember having passed them in the hall.

The most dangerous person ever paused, the clicker in their hand and looked out at the audience. The world wasn’t ready for it but they deserved the truth and who knew how long it be before the forces of heaven and hell tried to lock them up again.

“Any being that cannot stop evil is not all powerful”

“Any being that can stop evil but doesn’t isn’t all good”

“Any being that fails the first two isn’t worth worshiping”

And so it began, a lessen on why good and evil as they believed it didn’t really exist.

The lost one. The anathema. The only one ever refused entry to both Heaven and Hell. The one who angered both God and Satan, for perverting their followers. The one destined to forever wander the darkling planes.

On one momentous day, the angels came to present themselves to the Lord, and Satan also came with them. The Lord asked Satan, "Why have you come here?"

Satan stood proud, unbowing before the Lord. "We have much to discuss. The anathema nears the end of the darkling planes. Their icy depth will give way to the formless void, and he will soon gaze on the face of the waters."

The Lord brooded. "The Lost One turned my saints ordinary, and following, turned your demons holy. Many have repented and come to me. We are both weakened. In this state, fear may settle on creation."

Satan glanced sharply. "Your own book says to fear not a multitude of times. Guide me."

The Lord gazed at Eternity, at his demense, the vastness of the universe, formed at His command. With His hand he measured the heavens. All was in place.

Firmly to Satan, the Lord spoke. "We have had been at odds since before the foundations of the Earth were laid. But yes, now there is fear. Are you aware of what the anathema can do, should he truly reach the end of the planes, stark in their terror and icy depth? He could speak the forbidden words."

Despite himself, Satan blanched. "But.. that would…"

At that moment there was a sudden silence, then appeared a smoking furnace and a burning lamp, which moved around the Throne room of Heaven. At the same time, a vastness blossomed in the Deep, where formless void took shape. God and Satan stared at each other, both aghast. Then as one, they whispered "It has been said. Let there be light, and there was light."

​

(Sort-of a continuation of this tale).

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There I was, at the place known as"Forbidden Rite" no one knows why it was called that it just was. Every angel in heaven along with most angels from earth where called, us and the demons. It was a strange place intertwining heaven and hell but still out side of Earth. In the center was a marble platform on its edges where six demonic pillars, a celestial chain wrapped around the outside of them and in the center was a seal no one could recognize.

God and Satan put us in formations encircling the platform. Turns out we weren't the only ones confused, the demons didn't know exactly what was going on either. After a few minutes of waiting the seal suddenly started to break, there was a bright flash of light. Everything on the platform was gone in place was a strange man wearing a black and white comedy mask what looked to be a brown robe of angelic design torn on all the edges the hood was up so you couldn't see any part of his head all I could see as of limbs was only abit past his hands and feet that were covered heavily in grey bandages.

"Hello! It's been so long... too long, any of you remember me?"

No one responded to the question.

"Fine, I'll introduce myself again. My name is Ru the Ever Changing or as you like to call me, Choas."

"We are here to destroy you and purge from this world-"

Before God could finish Ru interrupt.

"I am only a natural part of life let's take an example. Simple can be complex but complex never simple. When the simple is complex this makes an some sort of error in thought and concept, making one thought many things at once in the present. This makes the present very unstable leading it to become as chaotic as the future which will destroy the past, with that time collapses."

"That is why we can't allow you to exist. We imprisoned you once we can do it again."

"I was bored that day. I'd like to see you try again."

Then around Ru reality warped, bended, tore. The distortion spread quickly to us, we were helpless as our bodies were mutilated and minds crushed.