Agent Sophia Black, assigned to protect her best friend, the President's daughter Ashley Graham, encounters a daunting situation as their trip from Ashley's college takes an unforeseen and chilling turn, exposing them to the mysterious Spanish relig...
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"It is a Karakuri," my mother said softly "the only way you can solve it is by figuring out the correct sequence." She finished, gently placing the wooden piece in my small hands
"What's inside?" My high pitched voice asked, looking up to my mother from my hands.
She smiled, "The world is full of unanswered questions, beyond all limits or reason... the answers await," her cool hand lifted to my chubby cheek "just like what's in that box."
The echoes of our footsteps reverberated through the castle's corridors as we ventured deeper. Shaking off a memory, I turned to glance at Leon.
His eyes had darkened in the dim light of the castle, and specks of blood stained his face and clothes, remnants of the villagers he had been forced to confront. I grimaced and averted my gaze, not wanting to imagine the horrors he had encountered to reach us.
After a few minutes, we came to a halt in front of what appeared to be a worn wooden gate. Ahead, a splotch of crimson stood before the door. Leon reached for his binoculars to get a closer look.
"Huh. Courtyard's gotta be through that gate." He said the binoculars were still on his face. "Don't think our hosts are gonna roll out the red carpet."
My attention shifted from the gate to the figures standing beside it. Men in black robes lined the walls, some donning peculiar helmets, and all of them wielding antiquated crossbows.
"Crossbows, huh. Something tells me they don't want to be friends." I said, still looking at the robed men. "Let's keep moving."
Leon nodded, stowing his binoculars and drawing his firearm. I followed suit, ensuring the barrel of my gun remained pointed at the ground.
Ten minutes of cautious advancement felt like hours, the strain on my legs growing palpable. As I ascended the final few steps of a staircase, a sudden noise shattered the silence. An explosive blast rang out nearby, prompting both Leon and me to duck instinctively.
"No way! They have catapults?!" Ashley exclaimed, her arms shielding her head as debris rained down upon us.
Surveying our surroundings, I spotted a massive wooden catapult atop one of the smaller towers ahead.
A blinding orange light caught my peripheral vision, and I turned just in time to witness a fiery projectile hurtling our way.
"Look out!" I yelled.
The fireball crashed into the adjacent tower, causing it to shudder violently, its stone walls disintegrating like a shattered dream. I reached out, trying to grab Ashley's hand, but she was wrenched away by the force of the explosion.
"Ashley! Leon!" I screamed, my voice swallowed by the inferno's roar. Smoke and dust filled the air, choking me as I frantically searched for a way over the wall of rubble and loose stones that now separated us.
