Hall of Games [The Celestial Chronicles #1]

Chapter Twenty-Two: Stranger Within

  "Because no retreat from the world can mask what is in your face." 

 -Gregory Maguire "Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West"-

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Chapter Twenty-Two: Stranger Within

Cady couldn't see through the dense wall of mist swirling before her. She threw out her arms, but they were swallowed by the impending darkness. The smoke was blinding, choking, dragging her down a deep abyss that she could never emerge to see the sunlight again.

Suddenly, the suffocating smoke was gone and left her lying on a cold, stone floor.

Straightening up, she surveyed the room. It had no windows, only thick pillars holding up the shadowed roof, bearing the weight of the majestic structure like Atlas shouldering the sky for the rest of eternity.

A white screen was splayed on top of the dusty ceremonial altar, fluttering like a ghost. Strangely, Cady wasn't afraid. Instead, she felt intrigued.

Her curiosity got the better of her as she plodded up the asphalt stairs. The flapping curtain beckoned her closer, begging her to reveal whatever was lurking behind the screen.

With a quick swipe, the curtain parted, revealing a misshapen black stone.

It wasn't a stone but a pair of folded black wings, each feather glinting under the moonlight like broken glass.

Cady stumbled backwards. Her false sense of security was replaced by horror as the beautiful black wings unfolded themselves.

The creature's face was beaten into a mangled pulp. Its nose was long gone and was replaced by a cavernous hole. Its malicious eyes were purple beams in the darkness.

What made Cady scream wasn't the creature's scarred face, but the thing nestled between its arms like a new-born baby.

Josh's severed head rotated around until his brilliant green eyes found Cady's.

"Boo."

Cady jerked awake, screaming her lungs out.

A Celeslight flared, filling the dark space with a sudden, blinding light. Cady half-growled at it, blinking furiously.

"Dude, how in Trael's beard did you manage to get up there? And what in Yana's pants happened?!"

Lydia's voice was filled with wonder. When Cady finally came around her senses, she realized that Lydia was staring up at her with a mystified expression.

Cady sprawled on top of the wardrobe, her hair tangled and bedclothes torn. Their room was a mess. Papers and torn books were thrown all over the floor. Vases were upturned and flowers shredded. It was as if a tornado had decided to pay them a brief visit before wandering off again.

"Honestly, I have no clue," Cady said. It bothered her that she didn't have the faintest inkling how she got up on the wardrobe in the first place, or how the room was wrecked.

"I demand an explanation for this." Lydia folded her thin arms across her chest. "And you need to teach me how you climbed up that bloody thing in your sleep."

"Just help me get down, please?" Cady pleaded. Lydia rolled her eyes as she nudged a stool in place for Cady who clambered down at once.

"What happened?" Lydia eyed Cady from head to toe. "Did something attack you?"