Bloody Rose in the Garden of Peace

Chapter Two

Karma's POV:

My body aches, I'm in pain all over. I still feel the sensation of floating, of pressure, but it is not as intense as before. Remembering that feeling makes me shiver. It was one of the worst things I have ever felt. It will not take first place though, I have experienced many worse things, way worse things. But that's not important right now.

I am scared to open my eyes, to find myself in that place. That realm of uncertainty. The feeling of fear is always creeping within me. I never want to end up there again, and I will do anything to prevent it from happening. I take a deep breath, the air feels different, but it is a good difference. It makes my nerves calm down just a bit. Just enough to feel my body relax, and for me to understand what is happening again.

I get myself ready to open my eyes, hoping to be in a familiar place. I never pray for things but at this moment, "please God if you exist don't let me be in that realm again." I say, tilting my head upwards.

I chuckle to myself before I let my eyes flutter open one by one. It takes them a moment to adjust to the brightness, to the surroundings I am in. My body relaxes when I notice a ceiling. Something that didn't exist in that place. Finally, I'm out of there. I say in my head. Not even realizing or registering that I'm out.

When realization finally hits me my eyes go wide. I am in shock. I don't know how I got out or what happened. I rub my eyes thinking my mind is playing tricks on me. But my surroundings don't change. I blink, confused.

"I escaped?" I whisper.

I observe my surroundings once I calm down. I stare at the ceiling, waiting for it to disappear and for me to be stuck again, but it never happens.

I groan as I sit up, noticing I am lying on the hard stone ground. "Never thought I would be happy to be here," I say aloud, my words echoing.

This place always makes my skin crawl. The aura of it is unique, frightening, it is nothing I have experienced anywhere else. I hate it here and I don't even know why, not once has this place done something bad to me. But it feels like the hall is crowded by eyes staring at me, judging me. It feels like something or someone is waiting for my downfall. The thought of that alone makes me shiver.

I bring myself to my feet, wobbling a bit. It feels weird standing after floating for hours. I look in front of me and see I'm in a hall. It is eerie, just like I remember. Darkness hides in every corner of the hallway, the small amount of light barely illuminating it. The walls are covered in intricate designs, carved into the stone. A story is being told in the carvings but I have never been able to understand what it is saying. All that I get from the carvings, from the story, is that a royal family gets taken out, destroyed by some unknown brute force. It wipes out their family line completely. It could be true, or a lie, just some folklore people love to tell others. Many stories in this world are fake. Nobody ever knows what to believe. But whatever it is, I don't care. I have never figured out what this place is nor do I want to. Getting back home is my only goal right now. I need to make sure the village and its people are okay.

I begin walking down the hallway. "The main gate shouldn't be far from here," I say to myself, once again my words echoing down the hall. My eyes scan the walls once more, as I look over the story. A soft red light permeates the room through the luxurious windows. The windows are to the right of me. The wall has hundreds of windows, each one of them different. More designs are etched into the glass. They look like people, a family maybe. The first few I see are portraits of humans, ordinary humans. Though in this world that can be a disguise. Mistaking someone for a human can be fatal in this cursed world.

I continue walking down the hall analyzing each portrait I see. A couple more looked human, but they started shifting into something else. The portraits look like they are turning into demons. Or at least that's what I can see. I can't tell what kind of demons they are. Without seeing their powers in use or their actual colouring, not just plain glass, it is nearly impossible to figure out. Most demons look the same regardless of their strain. Many have the same look to them, but it's what their powers are that make them unique. You have to remember to never underestimate a demon with powers that are unknown to you. It's a mistake no one should make.