Gone to the Place of Foggy Dreams

My Fault, My Greatest Fault!

Starfire screamed in horror as she beheld the lowermost hall filled with roaring scarlet flames that consumed everything in sight. Within the flames, shrieking in agony and wailing Raven's name like Robin had described from his nightmare, were more of the wraiths. All of the slots lining the third hall were empty, and it seemed that the hall's residents had been ripped from their slumber by the hell the corruption had unleashed. Blood poured out of the vacant slots and onto the floor, combining with the acrid stench of burning flesh and making Starfire gag.

She flew as fast as she could between the flames and the burning humans, noting that men, women and children were all flailing about madly as inner fires consumed them mercilessly. As Starfire flew closer to the end of the hall, she barely reacted in time to avoid a purple burst of energy sent zooming into her path.

With a yelp of terror, she landed on the ground as several tall, demonic men and women in black robes ran at her, bellowing something guttural that not even she could understand. The monsters pointed at her and waving their hands at the burning wraiths, and after a moment of confusion, Starfire understood what they were implying.

"No!" she screamed them, paralyzed with horror. "I did not do this, I swear! I am innocent!"

They all roared at her in response and began charging more purple orbs. Starfire put up her hands in self-defense, and accidentally let loose a blast of her own emerald energy that sent her assailants crashing harshly against the burning walls, where they remained limp and lifeless.

The Tamaranian girl gazed in horror at the casualties she had wrought, and whispered madly to herself, "This is not happening...this is not happening! Even if they were not human, I just..."

She did her best to continue to zoom down the hall, desperately looking for a way out. With the screams of the burning humans behind her, Starfire knew that she would be trapped if she couldn't escape soon. All she could see at the end of the hall was another massive door, made of some sort of blackened metal, and with harsh vermillion Azarathian runes engraved on it.

"Here lies the Third Azar, deceived into believing that the woman she so graciously offered sanctuary to, and the half-demon whelp that she unleashed in the sacred city of Azarath, would not bring forth the terror and destruction that her people so deeply feared."

There was no bar preventing this door from being moved, and when Starfire tried to open it, it swung open with an ominous creak, revealing a pitch-black room lying just beyond. She quickly went inside and slammed the door behind her, hoping that the poor creatures down the corridor wouldn't try to come after her.

Her moment of peace was shattered when the whole room erupted into more scarlet flames, the fire licking up all the walls and corners. A screeching clang was heard behind her as the massive door locked itself. At the far end of the room, a massive grey figure erupted from the flames, a monstrous female entity with billowing gray hair, a tattered white robe, a mouth filled with nasty looking fangs, and two hate-filled pale eyes.

The thing roared at Starfire, and, using its massive ghostly hands, sent multiple bullets of purple energy zooming her way. Starfire was barely able to evade the attacks as she desperately held on to her talisman, not knowing what sort of safety it could provide. Running around the room was barely enough to avoid the monstrous woman's attacks, the purple energy exploding everywhere.

Starfire looked the thing in the eyes and asked her pleadingly, "Please, why are you so angry? Surely you do not blame me for what is happening here!"

Just as she finished speaking those words, the woman bellowed at her again, and pointed behind her. Starfire whirled around and saw that an illusion had somehow spawned out of the fires. She recoiled as she took the horrible image in.