The Echo of the Forgotten Temple

The air hung heavy. Water dripped. A leaky faucet, the sole sound. Lya's small hotel room. Thin walls barely held back the city's noise. A jumble of motorbikes, voices, a monk's chant. Her backpack slumped in a corner. Crumpled maps, a worn diary peeked from messy clothes.

Travel always meant escape. Though Lya wasn't sure what she fled. Perhaps routine's predictability. Others' expectations. The emptiness that trailed her. Cambodia: just one more place to belong.

That morning: thick, hot air. She sought a lesser-known temple. Off the tourist trail. The local guide spoke its name with dread. A place forgotten, even by gods.

"Few venture there," he'd breathed. "They say the temple... holds secrets." A nervous smile.

That sparked Lya's curiosity.

The lost temple's heat. Deep in Cambodia's jungle. It wrapped Lya like a shroud. Insects buzzed. Leaves rustled. A faint breeze. Sweet, damp jungle scents. Heavy with humidity, mystery. The air: thick. Earthy aroma of dense growth. It clung to ancient walls. Lianas, moss covered them. Silence reigned. Only her boots echoed. Against uneven stone.

Lya's heart beat faster. Not just from the walk. Something deeper. A premonition nested in her chest. The temple seemed to call. Not just with ancient silence. A whisper echoed in her mind. Vibrating. A distant echo within. Physical. A subtle shiver. Down her spine. A light pressure at her temples. As if the air held a forgotten frequency. Emotionally: inexplicable pull. Melancholy longing she couldn't place. Like returning to a place never known. Yet somehow... hers. Softly. Persistently. As if the stones murmured her name. A strange feeling. Tingling skin. Tightness in her chest. Unexplained warmth. It drew her into the shadowy depths. Where worn walls guarded secrets. Time had tried to bury them. In vain.

Shadows danced. In her lantern's weak glow. Revealing fragments of faded murals. Tales of gods. Otherworldly creatures.

Impulsively, Lya left the group. A narrow corridor beckoned. A silent invitation. It led to a forgotten chamber. The air: colder, denser. At the center: a stone pedestal. Covered in inscriptions. They glowed faintly. As if breathing their own light.

Touching the pedestal: a surge of energy. Through her body. Goosebumps. A dizzying mix of hot and cold. Her heart pounded. Almost painful. A knot of fear, fascination tightened her stomach. The world blurred. A swirl of light, shadow. Intense vertigo. The air vibrated. Static electricity. A deafening buzz in her ears. Her body floated. Between conflicting sensations. Burning heat. Beneath her skin. Icy cold. Down her spine. Fear gripped her chest. Yet, a hypnotic allure. As if on the verge of discovering something forbidden. Grand. Her breath hitched. Each inhale a struggle. To hold onto a reality fracturing. Into shards of light, darkness. As if reality itself unraveled. Tearing her from all she knew. No time to scream. To run. To understand. Only the sensation of being pulled. Into the unknown.

When Lya opened her eyes: the world had changed.

The sky: surreal violet. Speckled with unknown constellations. Forests of giant trees. Leaves shimmered. Shades of blue, green. They stretched endlessly. On the horizon: silhouettes of floating cities. Winged creatures streaked the air.

Confused, frightened, Lya tried to grasp what happened. Her heart hammered wildly. Cold dread spread. Icy shivers down her spine. Her hands trembled. Unable to find purchase. Her breath: uneven. Broken by anxious gasps. As if the air was suddenly insufficient. Her eyes: wide. Desperately searching. For something familiar. But everything felt alien. Distant. Heightening the fear. Disorientation.

The temple vanished. The jungle's sounds replaced. By an ethereal silence. Broken only by wind whispering. Through luminous leaves.

"A dream?" she thought. Clenching her fists. Trying to anchor herself. To reality.

But the touch of strange earth. Beneath her fingers. The biting chill of the air. Left no doubt.

She was no longer in her world. And somewhere, golden eyes watched. Hidden in shadows. Silent as the approaching doom. Lya felt an inexplicable chill. As if the air whispered secrets. She couldn't understand. Unease. It dissipated as quickly as it came. Leaving only a vague echo. That something watched. Unseen. Silent.

Then Lya fell asleep. Abruptly. Right there. Lya lay on cold, sandy ground. When she opened her eyes again: it was day. The sky above: strange. Tinged green. Two moons hung on the horizon. The air: metallic scent. The silence: still heavy. Broken only by the wind's whisper.

She struggled to her feet, pressing her cold hands into the uneven surface of the earth, only to feel an unusual lightness in her limbs-as if all the very essence of her being had shifted. It felt like gravity was playing tricks with her, making each of her moments less effortless than they could have been by the very nature of the laws governing her. A bit stiffly and confused, she drew herself into a standing position, her ground somehow no longer so firm beneath her, her legs a little shaky as if removed from the very grasp of the same world.

In the distance, they formed dark shadows moving quickly and assuredly forward. Cloaked in hoods, they hardly could be distinguished against the strange light of another world that suffused the landscape. The atmosphere was spiked with expectancy, and with their getting nearer, an eerie tension filled the air around Lya. The shadowy figures that approached sent chills down her spine, but at the same time she could not quite shake off the feeling that this, too, was part of some inevitable process. They were coming, and she could do nothing to stop whatever fate now possessed its paths.

Lya's heart was racing with fear that overcame her, yes, but also with something else, something deeper she didn't know how to name. It was a bizarre feeling, a near unnerving confidence that coursed through her veins, as if the very essence of herself was speaking to her. No matter how absolutely terrified she was, a gentle voice deep down inside her told her she was meant to be here — this moment, this place, had been waiting for her all along. As though the fates had decided on this ever since she had first entered this weird world. And while the moment weighed on her, she felt an odd sense of purpose.