Priscilla beamed the most radiant smile she had ever smiled; her apprehensions and worries fluttered away like the leaves in autumn. "What do I need to do? When can I return?" Priscilla asked, the chirp of her voice betraying her excitement.


    Zae-Rin smiled at the girl''s excited chirp, her lips curving from cheek to cheek. "Patience, child. It will take time, unfortunately. For one, you need to learn to wield your power and of the world itself. There are countless things to teach you, miraculous wonders, and unheard-of beings that exist in your world beyond what your empire shows you."


    "Secondly, and this is the most important. It will take me time to gather enough power to break purgatory''s entrapment and set you free." Zae-Rin added softly, her voice a comforting melody that warmed Priscilla''s excited heart and prevented her from feeling disappointed.


    "Okay, Rin! I can be patient; I''ll listen to you!" Priscilla replied happily, a light tremble passing through her arms as they shook excitedly.


    "You spoke of power, but what kind of power?" Priscilla questioned, realization dawning on her. "You were the one that asked me if I wanted to be free, and I felt great power surging through me, but is there more to it?"


    Zae-Rin crossed her legs, her long-flowing gown rustling as she shifted. "Yes, child. When you agreed to my offer for power, you became something far more than a wretched, tormented soul. Now you have the power of creation dwelling within, an ancient pact that has protected the world for eons."


    "It''s a great burden and responsibility, but it is also the only hope the world has in its darkest days." She added somberly.


    "What do you mean?" Priscilla asked, her body arching forward with interest.


    Zae-Rin paused, her finger tracing the rim of her goblet. "It''s difficult to explain everything in words, child. There are some things I will have to show you instead. The world you know is incredibly tiny compared to the majority that exists. The wars of old brought ruin and separation; races fought and struggled for survival, and the landscape changed until it became incomparably estranged from the past. Those same forces now attempt at a resurgence."


    "There is good, evil, and all that lies between; they slumber or hide all for the sake of survival, whether of their people or their culture," Zae-Rin added. There was melancholy in her voice as the woman remembered her past and the history that once spread across the lands.


    "That can''t be." Priscilla uttered confidently, "The only other race now is the sand tribes, if one can even call them a race when they''re only darker skinned than the rest of us, but the rest of their features are just human."


    A glint of familiarity passed through Zae-Rin''s eyes, and she smiled, "You''re thinking of within the empire you called home, child. I talk of the world beyond the borders they branded their own."


    "Are you telling the truth?" Priscilla asked, her body arching forward until her face was nearly met with Zae-Rin''s own.


    Zae-Rin laughed, placing her finger softly against Priscilla''s lips. "Relax, child. Everything I said is the truth and something you''ll see for yourself."


    "But, but... The seas are forbidden!" Priscilla exclaimed, her palms pressing against the table as she lifted herself off the chair. "Nobody''s ever returned from beyond the boundary. The sand tribes guard the North and West with ferocity. The South has become a natural breeding ground for nobles to lounge in due to the South''s temperate climate and sandy beaches. And the East is a wasteland none dare to explore."


    "They tried to explore the south, only to give up when they clashed with the whirlpools that stretch across the Elisian Sea. That was the first and last expedition!" Priscilla was retelling the facts she knew as if they were the only truth, a side effect of her noble upbringing.


    "Merely the result of the war that ended all those years ago," Zae-Rin stated while taking a swig of her wine. "The seas became turbulent as the Pelagonites fled into the depths to escape humanity''s grasp. The whirling rapids became the last bastion that split the dominions."


    Priscilla blinked; understanding hadn''t dawned on her as she listened to Zae-Rin. To her, the empire was everything she ever knew, but to Zae-Rin, it was merely a tiny fragment of a far greater world.


    Zae-Rin laughed, seeing the girl''s confusion, "It''s alright, child. Let me show you the things you''ve missed out on. I can also teach you about your powers as we go." She raised her hand, swirling her fingers in a pattern of movement that rhythmically pulsed with energy; her eyes glowed with a verdant tinge that erupted into a blinding light.


    <hr>


    Priscilla opened her eyes, her feet pressing against the chillingly cold stone of a darkened cavern. Her gaze darted side to side frantically, "Where am I?" Her gulp echoed in the silent space, audibly bouncing off the walls.


    "Don''t panic, child. In order to teach you and to show you the world, using my power to manifest the past is the simplest method." Zae-Rin''s voice dictated, directly entering into Priscilla''s ears. Zae-Rin continued, "In the northern stretches beyond the seas that you know lies a craggy jungle of stone piercing into the sky; within its creviced ridges lie a series of tunnels filled with Shademauls. They''re mindlessly gluttonous creatures that dwell in the dark depths. If they return into the world, they will bring endless slaughter to the masses with their ravaging hunger."Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    "If thousands of them attack, do you have the courage to face them?" Zae-Rin demanded, her voice erupting in Priscilla''s mind.


    "I can try!" Priscilla replied with questionable confidence.


    "No, child. You will have the courage!" Zae-Rin huffed with unquestionable resolve.


    Before Priscilla could muster an adequate reply, a ghastly screech filled the cavern with its shrill noise. The quickened rustling of wings flapping at tremendous speed roared, bouncing off the walls from all directions. Echoing violently with a suffocating proximity that breathed down Priscilla''s back. Priscilla''s gaze darted toward the long-spanning cavern; it didn''t take long before she saw those glaring, bloodshot eyes piercing through the darkness and staring straight at her.


    ''Well, that certainly does look like something that would be named a Shademaul.'' Priscilla thought as the creature''s vile figure reflected into her eyes. Its leathered flesh, with its fish-like snout and elongated maw baring dozens of uneven, jagged fangs and the feathered wings on its back, quickly became a nightmare to gaze upon the closer it approached. Priscilla took a step back out of shock, but the creature reacted even more aggressively from the movement.


    "Fight it, child! Look inside you!" Zae-Rin''s voice sounded again, "There are eight laws of creation, the four elements of origin, the duality, and the truth and falsity."


    "Fire, Water, Wind, and Earth. Together or separately, they make the basis of the world and are the core you need to learn. And do not think of underestimating them, for they are the foundation of all life." Zae-Rin added pridefully, "Focus on yourself, resonate with the power, and try to extract one of them."


    Priscilla breathed in, feeling the stifling cavern air against her lungs, before exhaling. Her eyes closed, and she looked into herself, feeling the beating of her heart as the power circled her organs. She saw the swirling multi-colored lights that pulsed with every beating thump of her heart. Listening to Zae-Rin, Priscilla tried to resonate with the power and call them to her whim. The multi-colored energies inside her chittered when they felt her call, pulsating as they attempted to erupt from her body. Priscilla''s body felt a heavy burden as she coughed up blood, streaks of crimson running down her mouth.


    When the scent of blood wafted in the cavernous air, the Shademaul screeched with increased fervor as its wings fluttered rapidly. When Zae-Rin called it a gluttonous creature, she was not making light of the statement. Shademauls were the pests of the night with a penchant thirst for vitality.


    Priscilla tensed at the Shademaul''s noise but ignored it, insisting on following Zae-Rin''s command. She tugged at the powers inside her, feeling their warmth and trying to evoke them outside her body. The screeching jitter of the Shademaul intensified as it reached Priscilla, flying past her. Its wing passed by her cheek, a bony growth hidden on its wing, as it sliced her cheek and drew blood.


    Priscilla''s eyes jolted open as the shock struck her, her pulse and breath quickening. The cavern chilled as the air coursed around her, lines of power etched around her legs and feet, swirling with majesty. Her instincts kicked in as the blood dripped down her cheek. At that moment, she forgot that she was in Zae-Rin''s manifestation; the one thing Priscilla knew was that she had to fight.


    Wind surged around her feet, the markings that covered her glowing with ecstatic force. Priscilla moved her legs, shuffling with the wind as she bounced along the cavern. The Shademaul twirled in the air, rebounding off the opposite wall and returning for another taste of her flesh. However, before it could connect with her, Priscilla had already moved her position. It was akin to dancing with the devil; Priscilla moved freely with the wind, her agile steps feeling surreal to the girl who spent most of her life shackled and immobile. The Shademaul, on the other hand, felt nothing but mindless fury while being toyed by the girl.


    Priscilla continued dodging the Shademaul skillfully; every time its wings were a hair''s breadth away from her, she would twist her body, using the fluidity of her movements to bypass the attack. When she saw that the creature''s frenzy intensified, she charged at it, using the speed and force of the wind to push the beast against a jutting stalactite. It howled in pain as the stone pierced through its torso, blackened blood spraying across Priscilla and the cavern itself.


    "Damn!" Priscilla gawked as she heard the countless sounds, "Uhm, Rin. What should I do now?" Priscilla asked, but her question was met only by the sound of approaching Shademaul''s. Priscilla could only grit her teeth before heading toward the quietest of the tunnels in the hope that it would prove to be the safest. The wind picked up speed around her legs, carrying her like a leaf in a storm as she slammed into the tunnel full force. The Shademauls were startled by her sudden approach as she pushed them out of the way, their bodies crashing into the stone walls without retaliation.


    Zae-Rin sat in the gazebo and reclined while holding her goblet. Her eyes glazed over with an ethereal mist that covered her pupils as she spectated Priscilla. ''It is not enough, child. Shademauls are merely the most mindless of soldiers in their armies... You must do better.'' She thought.


    ''One day, perhaps you''ll scorn me for this; I''ll apologize then, child. But for now, you must put your life on the line. It is the only way you''ll be ready before their plans progress too far ahead.'' Zae-Rin drank, emptying her goblet.


    Her gaze frosted over as she spectated; Priscilla was struggling— a dozen fattened-up Shademauls pestered her to no end, leaving minute cuts across her body. The more she bled, the more they hungered. It was a vicious cycle of violence that kept putting Priscilla on a tense tightrope of anxiety.


    Priscilla''s impatience mounted as the creatures pestered her, sweat drenched her back with every attack the Shademauls launched. Her eyes began to burn with anger; tears formed along her gown as the cerulean blue took on a muddied crimson hue from all of the blood pouring onto it. "Damn it, will you stop already!" She roared as she tried to slam her shoulder into the closest Shademaul, only for it to dodge and Priscilla to wind up slamming into the cavern wall instead. "That''s it!" She uttered coldly, her eyes brimming with a fiery wrath. Her heart echoed her emotions, thumping with the same fiery wrath. Priscilla reactively lunged at another Shademaul, her hand extending in a claw-like vice toward its fish-like snout. The Shademaul jeered, its jagged teeth clattering with joy as it lunged toward her, opening its maw to bite at her hand. The foolhardy creature made a mistake as the moment its teeth came in contact with her flesh, a searing pain consumed it. Flames erupted from her hand, covering it in a blazing glow that enveloped the Shademaul in a scalding heat. Incineration was swift as the creature did not even have a chance to clench its maw for one final meal.


    Bonus Image, Priscilla and the Shademauls