Lyda did not sleep a wink that night or the following morning. The atmosphere of the cellar did not get any less dark or heavy after her mother took Adea away. Once the cellar door had been closed and the others were out of sight, Matthias snatched Lyda up by the front collar of her silk garment, stretching it as he hoisted her up and threw her onto the bed. Lyda cried out as her head banged against the wall and could only stare up at her father’s furious face, unable to hide her intimidation.Matthias had demanded to know what she was thinking when she threatened her sister’s life like that, but Lyda could only lie there in silence, shocked by what she had done, but no matter how hard she searched for the feeling, she felt no shame. Matthias stood over her, continuing to grill her relentlessly over her actions before finally questioning the n

Adea let out a scream as she quickly backed into her parents’ bedroom. She slammed the door shut and twisted the lock just as Lyda threw herself at the door. She banged against it ferociously, swearing and demanding her sister open it. Adea fell back onto the floor as Lyda began putting the knife through the door. She continued to scream, her head darting this way and that as if looking for a way out.In a matter of seconds, Lyda had broken the door to pieces. She kicked the splintered door off its hinges as she barged into the bedroom. Before she could look around the room for her prey, Adea leapt out from behind the dresser beside the doorway. In a fit of terror, she unwittingly threw a punch at Lyda’s face. Lyda grunted in shock and swung her hunting knife at Adea’s head. Adea ducked and ran out of the room as fast as she could, screaming at the top of her lungs as she charged down the

Adea groaned as her body was battered by the fall. That was when she registered the pain in her ankle, which shot up her leg when she tried to move. She must have sprained it in the fall. She then remembered the cracking sounds and realized that she was lying on top of a nest of something small, narrow and hard. Adea reached underneath her to grab one of the objects. It was almost too dark to see anything, but there was no mistaking the rock-like texture of a bone. She was lying in the rotting remains of a Human skeleton.Adea shivered and let out a squeal of disgust as she jumped to her feet, limping as she was unable to put the full weight of her body on her sprained ankle. That was when she looked around at her surroundings. It did not take long to realize that she had fallen into some sort of cavern, the only light coming from a small opening in the center of the roof where it flowed in like a spotligh

1891 Adea looked all around at her surroundings as she rode slowly through the tranquil, springtime woods. It was amazing to her how little twelve years’ time could change these mountains, yet her entire life had all but flipped upside-down and emerged into a whole new world. It had taken her almost a year to recover mentally from the shock of losing her entire family. Eran had since taken her into his family’s home, and soon after she had taken her vows, the two were finally married.Ever since the day they were blessed before the Spirits, Adea began the slow transition into a new life of peace. In a way, she felt as though one life had died and a new one had been born, but every Spring equinox, she would go back to her family’s cottage to pay her respects to the graves of her parents and her sister. 

A cold wind flowed slowly through the dark, stone corridor, carrying with it an unnerving moaning like whispers. From out of the darkness, a lone, cloaked figure stepped forth. Its robes were lined with mysterious hexagonal designs, and its ghostly white hands hung by its side. The figure stood still in the middle of the corridor as the moaning sound escalated as though something was drawing near.The walls of the corridor began to distort slightly as if the cloaked figure was staring right through the transparent shroud of something otherworldly. Without flinching or even so much as saying a word, the figure nodded its head and turned to walk back into the darkness.The trip through the pitch-black hallway was slow and seemed to last an eternity, the sound of the figure’s footsteps echoing loudly. Eventually, a faint light began to seep back into the atm