I AM TRAPPED.

I try to break free from the colossal Zombie’s grip. But it is the power of hundreds of thousands of Zombies holding me down. And even more undead surround her from all sides, clambering to pull me into the mass of death. I unleash everything I can to escape. An explosion of fire and water and earth and metal and wood. Trees sprout out of the colossal Zombie’s arm as I tear my way out. A blast of flames erupt out, but another thousand Zombies move to bar my path.

I grit my teeth. I need to escape now. Normally, I would not be so hard-pressed to escape from this predicament. Even with all of the undead swarming over me, they cannot harm my body. My skin is like steel on its own, and with the School of Enchantment enhancing my protection, these Zombies cannot even pierce through even my clothes.

But still— they are not what I am worried about. I know that they are hardly a threat to me right now. The real problem is what is coming. A superweapon that is launched straight into the heart of Warmthkeep. One that is designed to obliterate all these Zombies into ash.

Is it something that I can survive? It is an experimental project taken on by Beihal and Seiled to counter this plague from another world. The two of them have merged the magic of Utana with Galgom’s technology to create this supposed weapon of mass extinction.

I clench a fist as I swing up, tearing through a dozen Zombies with that single punch. I raise a hand and close my eyes. There is no point mulling over mulling over my chances of survival. It is better not to take risks. With a deep breath, I pool my strength into a single Feat.

“Void Walk.”

It is the very first Feat I learned in this world. A power that relies on chance, yet has saved me on a multitude of occasions. The words itself envelope me. I find myself being pulled through space— as if space itself is bending at my whim, bringing me to safety.

In a flash, I open my eyes to find myself outside of the colossal Zombie. It turns in confusion, surprised at how I manage to escape its grasp. I do not stay to see how it reacts. Instead, I beat my wings and propel myself forward as fast as I can.

But from the corner of my eye, I see a flicker. A glimmer of light— a metallic projectile that is falling from the sky. It impacts the ground. And I close my eyes, opening my mouth.

Then the black blast erupts out, consuming all of Warmthkeep.

*****

The Demon charged after her.

Tian turned tails and made a break for it. Yao now took the shape of a bloated monster. A creature with a swollen stomach for a mouth, and the faces of men and women stitched into its chest. He bounded after the girl, bellowing as his voice echoed down every hallway and doorway in the Land of the Cursed.

“ThErE Is NotHing YOu cAn dO To ESCape YOuR FaTe, tIAn!” he laughed, running all forms like some kind of demented cockroach. “yOU shall forEveR Be cOnDemneD!”

His words were like a shrill shriek, echoing in the girl’s head. She turned corridor after corridor, trying to lose him. But no matter where she went, he followed. Even if she leapt down pits that turned into hallways, he’d come after, crawling on the ceiling, sending a tremor throughout the labyrinth.

It looked like nowhere was safe. The girl’s heart raced after her legs as she ran as fast as she could. She stumbled and tripped over the doorways lying on the floor. Some of them cracked open, like a trapdoor that would’ve swallowed her up if she didn’t look where she was going. And when she stared down into the empty darkness waiting for her at the other side of these doors, they felt safe.

Like they were sanctuaries away from the Land of the Cursed. She felt tempted to jump in. But she knew that there was nothing but despair waiting for her at the other side.

So she pressed on. She didn’t slow— not even to fight the Demon. He was too powerful her. She’d thrown a fiery rose its way, but the attack didn’t even slow him. All she did now was focus her dwindling Qi on escaping from the Demon’s jaws alive.

But no matter how far she tried to run, Yao would always find her. It didn’t matter if she thought she lost him. If she turned a corner before escaping down a junction of dozens of corridors, he’d somehow cut her off at a future path.

“Get away from me!” Tian screamed, propelling herself forward with a burst of earth and flame.

“NeVEr!” he yelled back as he ripped through the jade hallway in a ravenous frenzy.

In one single motion, the Demon crossed the distance between him and the girl with his mouth held wide open. Tian blinked, glancing back just in time to seed the crimson figure reach her. She pushed herself to the side with everything she had and took on a wide stance.

I have no choice, she told herself. I have to fight!

Yao twisted back to face her as she held out an open palm. The girl took a single step forward, moving in fluid motions, ready to strike.

“Liufan A—” Tian started.

And chomp!

The Demon clamped his mouth shut over the girl. And darkness overwhelmed her.

***

It had been a hopeless endeavor. There had been no point in even trying to escape. Destiny didn’t change. Her fate wouldn’t change no matter how hard she struggled. In the end, nothing really mattered.

Regrets. That was all that lingered. It consumed her. She wished she had done so many things different.

Stronger. If only she were stronger. Not just physically speaking, but if she had a stronger will, she wouldn’t have given chase to her master and trapped herself in the Seventh Heaven.

So many regrets. So many wishes. So many things could’ve been different. She wished she wasn’t still a child. She wished mother hadn’t died. She wished she was still safe in the comfort of her own home. She wished her father had been there for her since she was young.

She wished… she wished… she wished…

That’s not right, the thought crossed her mind. These are… wrong.

Tian’s thoughts were foggy. Her mind was clouded with darkness. But she remembered— she slowly remembered who she was. Who she had become.

Everything— from her master’s teachings to her mother’s kindness— it all rushed back to her. The grief. The pain. The sorrow. And the things she gained. This was everything she had known. This was her life.

She was Tian. No longer of the Liufan sect. The daughter of Liufan Tiao who died to save her. The student of her master.

Tian’s eyes shot open, glimmering in the dark. She recalled what happened. It had happened so quickly— she hadn’t expected it. All at once, she had been consumed by the Demon. By Yao. But he didn’t gobble her up, mashing her into pieces.

He simply swallowed her whole. And she knew why. Because there was nothing he could do to harm her. All he could do was twist her— corrupt her soul.

The girl cast her gaze over the darkness. She looked down at her feet, hearing a clatter of coins. Gold objects lay beneath her. A pile of it waiting for her like a treasure. They reflected the light glowing from her eyes, and she saw that they were empty in the middle.

Tian stepped forward, hopping off the pile of gold, uncaring for the treasure. Around her, she saw artifacts of power. Swords, glaives, spears, shields. An armor made of jade. A fan made of wind. It called for her. Promised her power.

But she shook her head, walking past it all. She reached the golden wall as the chamber around her trembled.

“Nothing you say or do can tempt me, Demon,” Tian said as she placed a hand against the gold surface.

It was like the world itself was shivering in fear. Her breathing grew still. She calmed herself, meditating as her mother taught her. Then she brought one foot back, and raised a hand up high. She inhaled as the chamber shook. The belly of the beast quaked in terror for what was to come.

“This world has been cruel to me. It has been harsh and I have been forced to fight despite it all. But the past has come and gone. All that remains is what is now. Wishes, regrets, wants— these are but empty thoughts. My mother’s memory— my master’s teachings— I will not let it all be forgot.”

The girl spoke, painting a circle in the air as a trail of light followed her fingertips. Glowing wisps that speckled the dark chamber. She clapped her hands together, and a ring of light expanded around her, before rapidly shrinking into her core.

“You cannot diminish what I have done, and I cannot change what I have become.” Taking a step back, she inhaled deeply and closed her eyes.

Qi coursed through her. Power that she had never felt before. It was a pure power— nothing like the raw, tainted strength that had been offered to her. Nothing like the corrupt riches that had laid at her feet. This power— it was the strength of her own will, nothing more.

Then her eyes snapped open, the burning glow within them shining twice as bright as before as she swung her hand up in a slashing motion, just like she had seen mother do it.

“I am Tian! And I cast you aside, Demon of Temptation!” she yelled as Qi exploded outwards. “Liufan Sacred Technique: Skysplitter!”

And the darkness split open. The golden walls broke apart like they were made of glass. The treasures that had been waiting for her in the darkness rapidly decomposed into a black dust. The girl went soaring up into the air, looking down as the room crumbled.

The golden world around her slowly shifted into a crimson. Then a jade green. Tian leapt out of Yao’s stomach. His body was torn open. The faces in his chest twisted in pain. The crimson face atop the corpulent body recoiled. But it was the mouth in his belly that spoke, bellowing as all the doors in the Land of the Cursed flapped open.

“YOU! HOW DARE YOU REJECT YOUR DESTINY!” he screamed as his tried to stop his innards from spilling out.

But Tian ignored his rage. She looked around as the labyrinth around her began to unfurl. The corridors moved and shifted, opening up and forming a brand new formation as she landed on the ceiling.

The girl looked around as the Land of the Cursed continued to shift. The flapping doors echoed like a cacophonous applause all around her— cheering her on. Finally, she cast her gaze back down at Yao.

The Demon stood on a moving platform as the rest of the labyrinth continued to recede and reform. He glared up at her, and she shook her head.

“This is not my destiny, Yao,” said the girl in a calm voice. Her words echoed louder than anything else in the Land of the Cursed. “My destiny is what I make of it. And I don’t see a future in this wretched place.”

Yao roared. And from in between the jade hallways, twisted things emerged as if heeding his call. They circled around me. They took shapes that the girl’s mind couldn’t comprehend. They wore masks that were the essence of fear. But she shrugged them off.

So much darkness. And she was but the little blip of light in it, keeping the shadows at bay.

“You cannot harm me,” she finished and spun around.

“I WILL CRUSH YOU!”

A bloodcurdling screech left the Demon’s mouth. He leapt forward, passing through the vast space that had formed between the floor and the ceiling. He soared through the widening gap as the girl continued to walk away.

She didn’t face him. Not even once. The girl didn’t acknowledge the Demon’s presence as his scream continued to reverberate in the darkness. And he never drew closer. The gap between them only continued to grow as he seemed to be trapped mid-air.

The girl only raised her head when she saw flying corridors recede back— as the darkness vanished and a light appeared. A giant arched gateway emerged, hidden beneath the Land of the Cursed. The very same gateway that she saw hanging in the sky. The gate of the Seventh Heaven.

Tian walked through the nothingness, heading straight for the exit. For the way out. She saw the world waiting at the other side— the land of mortals. Where Jhisie lay.

“COME BACK HERE!” Yao called out. His voice came out a sobbing mess. Like he was in pain. Like he was afraid of being alone again. “DON’T LEAVE ME IN THIS PLACE!”

The girl halted just before the arched gates of the Seventh Heaven. She glanced back just once, and in the darkness, surrounded by the other twisted souls of the Land of the Cursed. The bloated crimson body of the Demon had vanished. What was left was the appearance of a little girl who looked just like Tian, but with crimson hair.

The red-haired girl looked up at Tian with round eyes.

“Please, come back,” she whispered, clearly in pain.

Tian opened her mouth. Then smiled. “No.”

With that, she pushed the gates open and stepped through it. The cries of the Demon and the tormented souls called out after her— cursing her for escaping the labyrinth.,

“You will understand that I am right! One day you will see the folly of your—”

And the voice cut out. The girl was enveloped by a gentle warmth as she finally left the Seventh Heaven behind. As she took in the wonderful world of Jhisie. As she found her master lying in wait for her.

Finally, Tian finally left that nightmare once and for all.