The Suffering of Fools

I expected the seam to burst open and something evil to crawl from it. Fangs bared, eyes glowing with malice.

Instead, an Ancient One stepped from the shadows. Its garments were different from others of its order. When it spoke, something in the quality of its voice was soothing and compelling compared to the sharp dread the others of its order created.

"Lydia, you are deceived. The thing beside you borrows a face born of the first corruption," it said.

I froze. The whisper of mistrust that had always been there was like a gut punch now.

Noticing my disbelief, the Ancient One turned towards me and elaborated, "He is what we jailed. What is to be destroyed?" It stated as though it struggled to speak in a tongue understandable to me.

A warm breeze passed over me, and a sacred language murmured in my ears this time.

Light flared, blinding and pure, showing the figure morph into something neither male nor female, cloaked in a brilliance not of this world.

Its six wings unfurled like blades, and it looked through me with eyes like twin suns. Undeniably celestial, it cast a glow so wide that fear seized my throat.

My so-called mentor, who guided me through this place's unending madness, looked on unbothered and rolled his eyes. "I never understood why you got to look like this, and I had to suffer with this burden."

I glanced between them. Confusion rising to dread.

Several emotions played across my face. I didn't understand. I couldn't. He had been with me from the beginning. Someone I had grown to trust after a time.

"You foolish child," the angel continued, its voice laced with sorrow and wrath. You have been duped again."

The light from the angel reflected nothing off him. No cast shadow. No glimmer in his eyes.

The so-called mentor laughed. His lips curled back in a snarl. "You cannot stop what stirs now, Ancient One. She has broken the seal in her desperate little quest for freedom."

For the first time I saw him, the glamour gone to reveal what slithered beneath—ancient and malformed.

"He is not your guide. He needed one of your bloodline to free himself from his prison."

My skin turned cold. "You. You used me."

He turned, his predator's smile slicing across his ruined face. "And you let me. So eager to belong. Desperate to matter. Did you think divine truth would lead you here? I fed you half-truths and riddles—the crumbs you needed. You cracked the seal yourself. Simpleton."

Rage bloomed in my chest. Thick and red and burning.

"You instructed me and helped me." My eyes flashed with hurt.

"I furthered my purpose." He lunged at me, faster than my eyes could follow.

The angel flashed forward, its presence like the blazing corona of the sun. "You're not welcome here. I have unmade your kind before, and I will do so again."

The former mentor laughed, rising to meet the angel mid-strike.

Air shattered around them. Light flared from the being with six wings, and I realized it had been helping me all along. The way the light fell, the sounds.

Dust rained from the ceiling as the alcove shook with their battle.

Part light, part shadow, I could barely track them with my eyes.

When it looked like my former mentor might gain the upper hand, the sigils in my arms ignited. I turned to stare at the palms of my hand, which now burned molten gold. A surge of power like liquid sunshine coursed through my veins like it needed an outlet. I stared with horror and awe as white light erupted from my hand.

The angel seemed to sigh with relief. It spun, and its sword dipped into the light, casting a wide arc against the being that shouldn't have been released.

It felt like I was being ripped in two as the angel cast my light forth.

The face I'd known for what felt like an eternity looked toward me with such sorrow and pity that I almost believed he had cared. He reeled and howled as the angel's blade found his heart. Then, like smoke through a sieve, he vanished into the fractured wall, the black ichor receding, and silence once more claimed the chamber.

"Did you just defeat the dark one?" I asked quietly, shame eating at my core.

The Ancient One turned to me, blade dimming in its hand, its chest rising and falling with exhaustion. "That... was a mere fragment. A shadow. The true one awaits."

My knees buckled, and I sat hard against the floor, drawing my knees to my chest as the last embers of adrenaline flickered. "How could I not see it? All this time... I trusted him. I- he taught me how to fight and survive."

The angel's gaze softened. "He taught you to fear and obey. Not to truly see."

Tears burned hot in the corners of my eyes. "He taught me purpose. That I could be more."

"You still do and can," the angel said. "All you've endured only makes you more valuable to us."

I scrubbed a red eye. "What now, then?"

"Now, we make true allies." The angel raised a glowing hand before I could ask what that meant. The air rippled and split. A portal shimmered into place, humming with power, emitting a calming wind.

A new place stretched on the other side—sleek glass and steel. The scent of night and cold metal filled my nose. A far cry from the ancient dungeon in which we stood.

"Where is this?"

"Earth. Sort of. Not the one you know. Another training ground of sorts. Crosscorp headquarters. Neutral ground for those whose blood is touched by the divine."

"I'm going back?" My voice broke, more hopeful than I'd been in two years. "After everything?"

"Not back. Forward." The angel nodded to the gate. "You'll find others like you there. One in particular is... well, let's say he's expecting you."

I stood on shaking legs, heart still bruised from betrayal. "What's his name? So I know who to avoid?"

The angel gave a faint smile, then straightened. "Where's the fun in that? Besides, he doesn't know it yet, but he's going to fall for you. Hard."

I said nothing, weighing my thoughts. The man who brought me to this world was a liar, and the mentor who trained me was a liar. The thing in front of me... I didn't trust myself to make any judgment, but wherever I was going had to be better than here.

I stepped through the portal.

The world that greeted me was sharp and stunning. Beyond it, a city of light pulsed against the darkness. I barely had time to process the transition before another figure appeared next to me. After the hell I'd just been through. I didn't even flinch.

The terrace stretched wide, its edges glinting under the faint glow of moonlight. I shivered, not from the cold but from the sheer magnitude of my situation. Behind me, the portal flickered and closed, severing the tether to the darkness I had just escaped. My chest tightened, and I fought the urge to collapse. What lay ahead was a world unknown, and it felt surreal beyond belief.

A figure emerged from the haze. His steps deliberate.

I tensed, instincts honed by my trials in the pit and the betrayals of her so-called mentor.

"You must be Lydia," the figure said. His voice carried an edge that spoke of authority. "I expected a soldier. Not a divine soul."

" And you are?" I asked.

He stepped closer, hands in pockets, every move measured. "Someone who doesn't get fooled easily. I'm here to help you find your footing."

I shot him a deceptively saccharine look. "Footing in what, exactly? Another test. Another game to see how far I can bend before I break?"

His smile didn't waver, but his eyes darkened. "No, Lydia. This is not a game, it's the beginning of the war you've been preparing for, even if you didn't realize it."

At the end of the terrace, a vehicle that floated upon nothing approached. I watched as my new would-be mentor stepped into the interior of the space mobile.

Another offer for a ride into the unknown.

I shrugged and stepped forward.

I'd already taken the devil's ride.

What could go wrong if I chose the other?