Chapter 3 - Start Again

They stuffed her mouth with some cloth to silence her. At least it was clean.

Her limbs were also taped. And they dragged her back to the van.

She was right, they were somewhere near the mountain areas.

She watched as the sceneries changed before her very eyes, from large expanse of plains planted with various crops, to a valley so beautiful, she thought she was in a fairyland.

Her eyes unknowingly sparkled, and she nor the men around her noticed it.

Everyone got out of the vehicle and started to walk, as it cannot travel any further.

This beautiful sight reminded her of an anime movie.

Sparkling clear blue water from the flowing river, a wide expanse of lush green from grasses and leaves of trees, with flowers of colors of pink, blue, white, red, and violet scattered across it.

In the middle of this valley was a cave opening.

However its outside was marked with strange markings of mixed but organized alignments. From what she could see, all of its sides had it.

What in the world is that for?

Her wavy black curls stuck close to her face as she started to sweat.

Soon they approached the structure, and she was thrown inside it.

Nothing cushioned her fall, and she felt a pang of pain likely from scratches on her knee and arm.

Freaking ruffians, she muttered under her breath.

Her unchanged yellow dress now clucng close to her figure as she soaked on her sweat, especially her back area.

She felt sticky, and she hated it.

It would be uncomfortable to stay in her current position.

So she stood up but struggled. It was only after a few tries that she was finally able to stand back up again.

Soon, she directed her attention to her sorroundings.

The air felt kinda wet and stuffy. The cave's sides were wet too. Its 'floor' beneath her feet looks especially slimy in some areas but still had some dry but rough rocky areas, like one she was dumped into.

As she looked at her back, she noticed shadows looming over the entrance of the cave.

Great, now she surely can't get out using that place. Maybe there's some backdoor? She thought jokingly.

But her mocking face suddenly stiffened, and her facial expression vividly changed into one of shock and she covered her mouth with both of her handa to prevent an audible gasp from reaching the ears of those people standing outside.

I mean who knows?, she thought.

Luckily she wasn't afraid of the dark.

There's always another way. She shouldn't be staying here awaiting for her doom.

She has to do something about her situation and the least she could do is try.

She thought hard as she tried to cheer herself up to have the courage to move her steps forward, down leading to the dark path ahead.

Her heart felt lighter when she thought of the possibly of a successful escape.

She must stay strong. For freedom.

As she moved her steps forward, soon, her form was enveloped by the darkness and only the sounds of her steps echoed inside the dark cave.

...

She didn't know how long she had walked, or how far she was from the entrance of the cave by now.

Fuck, she doesn't even know if a day has gone by out if this cave.

She paused for a while to catch some breath.

Who would have known that this cave was actually so spacious and long. On the outside, it looked quite small.

She had climbed up and down, walked left and right, for numerous times she could hardly remember the exact way she passed through.

There were forks within, and she had opted to always choose right, but for a few times, she had to go to the left path as the right one's path ended with a wall. Not exactly the exit she was looking for.

What shitty luck is this.

There was no light inside the cave, so she can only depend to her hands, being guided by the sides of the cave. It was hard, yet she pushed through.

She only wanted freedom and peace, but she somehow found herself in a dramatic scene. She didn't ask for this!

She was not in for some fun, and even if she was, definitely not this kind of fun.

She had made it this far, she can't just stop now. With this, she continued to move forward with her sore limbs.

As she struggled to walk with her aching legs, she suddenly lost her footing and went down the slippery slope, quite literally.

A shout echoed across the cave, and anyone listening to it might have thought that someone saw a ghost or something.

She tried to grab a hold of something, anything, with her hands, but it had long been sweaty and her efforts were all for naught.

As her body slid down, she suddenly felt herself suspended in the air, and soon she felt her body falling downwards, fast.

It was weird but at the same time exhilarating to not see anything, and your other senses was suddenly put into use full force.

She could feel and hear the air whizzing past her, as she dangled in air, unable to do anything to stop herself from falling and possibly being turned into minced meat.

The vision she pictured in her mind was gruesome and it left a bitter taste in her mouth. Pweh!

Something is telling her that she will soon reach the ground, and as she awaits for her impending doom, she closed her eyes and thought to herself, indeed, what shitty luck.

Blood and brain splattered from her head as her body lied lifelessly on the ground. Blood flowing out like an endless stream from under her dead body.

Her body had fallen sometime ago, and one could swear that she heard bones cracking.

Out of the corner of her left eye, a tear fell out, the third and last one in her lifetime.

With her death, unbeknownst to her, those strange carvings outside the walls of the cave, suddenly emitted a blinding blue light.

This was all seen by the Cheng family who'd been standing outside the cave from a certain distance.

Finally, the offering has been served. They are safe. They thought themselves.

It was Father Cheng who turned away first. Unable to bear such sight.