Dawn was breaking over the snowy borderlands. Ficky's frustration had reached its boiling point. He had seen this despair before—the memory of his past lover turning to ash still burned in his mind like a phantom limb. He couldn't let history repeat itself with Aya.
He gripped her chin, forcing her to look into his golden eyes. "Don't make me feel guilty for you. Tell me, do you remember anything?"
"Why even ask if you're just going to torture me like this?" Aya shot back, her voice hollow.
"I'm not torturing you," Ficky growled, his grip on her hands tightening to ensure she couldn't bolt. "I'm trying to kill whatever is torturing you. As long as I'm by your side, I won't let you die."
"Let me go!" she shrieked.
"Look at me! I'm going to break this spell!" Ficky's gaze intensified, but Aya fought back, squeezing her eyes shut. Yuda's influence was like a lead weight on her soul.
"Tch. Frustrating," Ficky spat, finally releasing her. He headed for the door, his tone turning icy. "Fine. Let's go, Aya. We'll find other coins. Forget that one."
In an instant, Aya's demeanor shifted. Under the complete thrall of Yuda's magic, she smiled brightly—a terrifyingly cheerful contrast to the previous tension. "But what about Yuda?"
As Ficky swung the door open, his fears were realized. Yuda was standing right there.
"Good morning, Aya," Yuda greeted softly.
"Good morning, Yuda!" she chirped back.
Ficky immediately stepped between them, his left arm barring Aya's path. His claws slid out, glinting in the morning light. "A vampire like you shouldn't be allowed to breathe. I'll find a way to save her that doesn't involve you."
"Typical," Yuda muttered. He reached into his thick jacket and tossed something at Ficky.
Ficky caught it and flipped it over. "A coin? The one she was talking about?"
"Yes. Take it. I was worried it would stain me anyway. Wolf on the front, Devil on the back," Yuda remarked with a devious smirk. Ficky looked down; the coin depicted a horned devil.
"I've found you both," Yuda continued, stepping forward. "Care to guess what I'll do next?"
"You're only here for Aya. That's why we're leaving," Ficky replied.
But Yuda was faster. He shoved Ficky aside and pulled Aya into a tight embrace, his hand firm on her hip. "Shall I return her to how she used to be?"
"Don't you touch her!" Ficky barked, grabbing Aya's hand to pull her back.
Yuda didn't let go. Instead, he tightened his hold until Aya groaned in pain. He leaned in, his lips inches from hers, flaunting his control and his 'love' for her.
"You disgusting low-life vampire," Ficky hissed, wrenching Aya away so hard his fingers left marks on her skin.
"So, you don't want her back to normal?" Yuda taunted. "Or are you going to try the same trick? Another sweet little kiss?"
Ficky remained stoic. "I know there's more than one curse attached to her. I'll find a way without your 'help'."
"Impressive. I didn't think a wolf's brain was capable of such logic," Yuda mocked.
"STOP IT!" Aya screamed, standing between the two men. "Why are you fighting? Yuda has the same goal as us!"
"She's right," Yuda added smoothly. "I want to go home too. Why don't we team up? We just need to double the coins to ensure we all get out."
"No! I refuse. We are nothing like you. Let's go, Aya!" Ficky turned, dragging Aya away.
As they walked, Aya felt a strange mix of relief and crushing anxiety. Yuda watched them go, a small, knowing smile on his face.
"Eternal Space."
The words hit them like a physical blow. The air vanished. The wind stopped. It felt as if they had been dropped into an invisible, airtight vault.
"In the end, you're so easy to catch," Yuda's voice echoed in the void. "You were too late to realize who I am—and who is really hunting Aya."
For decades, the Replica World (another world) was nothing more than a ghost story. It was said that those who entered were trapped forever, and those who managed to escape died shortly after. But everything changed when a mysterious force destroyed the Replica World from within, allowing the survivors to spill back into reality, bringing with them permanent, awakened powers.
They are known as The Cursed Ones. Yuda Troy is one of them.
His pale, aristocratic face and ruby eyes were the marks of a high-tier vampire—not as raw as a demon, perhaps, but far more cunning and persistent. And as a Cursed One, he possessed the Eternal Space: a pocket dimension severed from reality.
Inside this void, Yuda continued to provoke Ficky. "Are you really that fond of this ugly girl?" he sneered.
"You have a foul mouth for a gentleman," Ficky retorted, his killing intent radiating like heat.
Yuda clicked his tongue. "So wild. This is why I dislike brutes. Your clothes are bland, you lack elegance, and you call yourself a 'protector or bodyguard'? Huh?"
"Shut your mouth," Ficky growled. The provocation was working; Ficky was drowning in his own rage.
"Good," Yuda whispered. He turned his attention to his puppet. "Aya, come here."
Under his spell, under the hypnotic thrall, Aya began to walk toward the vampire. Ficky grabbed her shoulder to hold her back. "Aya! Snap out of it! Don't listen to him!"
Aya looked back at Ficky, her eyes vacant and hollow.
"Come to me, Aya," Yuda beckoned. "Don't stay with him."
Aya moved again, her mind lost. Ficky pulled her back roughly. "I won't let you move just because of his nonsense. A girl... so easily led astray. You remind me of someone I'd rather forget," he grumbled, his grip on her harsh.
"Don't be so rough with a lady!" Yuda barked, genuinely offended by Ficky's lack of decorum.
"Ha! You're just using her, yet you act offended because I'm rough? I'm done with this." Ficky locked eyes with the vampire. He stopped walking and a dark, triumphant smile spread across his face. "You made a mistake locking me in here, Vampire."
A low, grinding sound—the screech of metal on metal—echoed through the Eternal Space. Suddenly, the asphalt beneath Ficky's feet transformed into liquid steel, spreading rapidly until it reached Yuda.
"You think I need my feet to attack?" Yuda sneered, finding himself stuck.
"Who said I was going for your feet?" Ficky replied coolly.
BAAM!
The iron floor reacted to Ficky's will, snagging Yuda and slamming him violently against the metallic surface. The impact was brutal.
"I know you're immortal," Ficky said, turning his back on the wounded vampire. "But I'll always look down on you because you're too slow to dodge me."
Using the sheer force of his magic, Ficky tore a rift in the Eternal Space and carried Aya out.
They emerged far from the border, back in the City of Light and Dark. Ficky found a small, secluded hut and laid Aya down. Her eyes were still wide and staring—fixed in that eerie, vacant expression.
"Tch. Always like this," Ficky muttered, clutching his throbbing head. He needed to break the spell. He used the ultimate leverage: their bond. "This is an order. Tell me everything you know about that vampire."
"Yuda Troy... ergh!" Aya's eyes flickered with a momentary spark of consciousness, but she immediately doubled over in pain, clutching her branded shoulder. The curse from Yuda was fighting Ficky's command.
Ficky sighed. Even the Master's order was being rejected by the vampire's hex.
"Hey! Stay with me!" Ficky slapped her cheek lightly to keep her from drifting away. He grabbed a thick jacket and wrapped it around her shivering, cold body. "Hold on! Don't you dare die!"
Aya's eyes stayed open, but her consciousness was fading. That was when a voice echoed from inside Ficky's mind.
"You should be doing more than that," said the entity living within him.
"Stop startling me," Ficky snapped internally.
"What are you talking about?"
The entity was a Demon. It was a secret Ficky had kept from Aya since the beginning.
"A kiss isn't enough," the Demon hissed, its voice a dark temptation in the quiet hut.
"Claim her body. Sleep with her. That is how you overwrite a vampire's mark."
"Excuse? You're crazy!" Ficky muttered aloud, feeling like he was losing his mind.