Standing on the upper edge of the stone labyrinth was a woman.
She looked like she should be on a throne, not in a cursed maze. She was tall and stood straight, with long black hair that had red streaks in it. She wore a dark red dress that moved like liquid blood. Her eyes shined red, like wine in the light of a fire.
And then there were her heels.
Each one was made like a blade. They were thin, metal, and curved like short swords.
You are just as good as I thought you would be, she said, her voice sounding smooth and dark like smoke.
Then she laughed.
A mocking laugh. One that knew too much, and cared too little.
Who are you? I called out, swallowing the fear in my throat.
She tilted her head, the edge of a smirk touching her painted lips.
I've gone by many names, child. But if you must call me something… try Eurydice.
The name struck something in me. It scratched at the edge of something I didn't want to remember.
She walked along the wall slowly. Her feet made a clicking sound every time her heels hit the floor
I'm not here to fight, Eurydice said. I'm here to offer you a deal.
She pointed one graceful finger at me. You come with me. Willingly. Stay by my side.
Then she gestured with a lazy hand toward Zuriel, Nikolai, the burned maze.
And your friends? I'll let them go. No harm. No more aswang. No more shadows.
I didn't answer.
Couldn't.
But why does she want me to come with her? Is it because of the Nephilim book? I don't even know why the book picked me.
A small part of me, deep down, wanted to say yes. I wanted to stop being afraid. I wanted to rest. But that feeling died when I saw her face twist into something from a nightmare.
Her human features rippled. For just a breath, I saw what she really was.
The illusion slipped, and I saw the truth.
A hairy, hunched monster with blood-red eyes and sharp claws. Her mouth split open, showing rows of jagged, wide teeth. Her skin was stretched too tight over her muscles, and her arms were way too long. I could even taste the smell of rot in the back of my throat
I gasped. Took a step back.
Zuriel grabbed my shoulder and pushed me behind him.
She's an aswang, he said sharply. Don't listen. They lie. They promise you safety, then chew your heart out while you sleep.
Charming as always, Eurydice muttered, brushing a curl behind her ear. You don't understand the bigger picture, Zuriel.
We understand enough, Nikolai growled. He stepped forward beside Zuriel, cracking his knuckles. How about instead of making deals, we just end you here and now??
Eurydice raised one brow, unbothered.
You want to fight me? she asked. Here, in my ground?
Then she smiled. She pulled a strange, mean-looking knife out of her sleeve. It shined like white bone under the moonlight.
The Talim ng Ligalig, she whispered.
The name hit like a whisper of thunder.
She slammed the tip into the maze floor.
Light exploded.
The world spun sidewayswalls, ground, sky tearing apart
We landed hard, scraping our knees on the salt. The maze was gone. In its place were the protective circle, the wards, and the old tavern floor. We were back. But seeing the salt made me worry. This could be a trick again.
Sir Nathaniel?? Lucien??!
Lucien's eyes went wide as he rushed over. What happened? You're back!!
But Nathaniel didn't speak.
His eyes weren't on us.
They were on her.
Eurydice walked through the mist as if it moved out of her way. Her blade heels made a clicking sound on the ground. The Talim ng Ligalig hung casually in her hand, pulsing.
Nathaniel's voice turned ice. Step back. All of you.
Lucien obeyed immediately.
But I stood frozen.
Eurydice's smile thinned.
You kept it, she said, her voice dipping low. The gem.
Nathaniel's hand hovered over the jewel on his hip. It had changed no longer glowing blue.
Now it burned red.
And the blade attached to it
Wasn't a blade at all.
A blade shaped like a boomerang. It wasn't made of metal, but out of teeth of aswangs dozens of them, twisted and yellow. They were sharpened by nature, not by a blacksmith. In the middle, a red gem beat like a real heart.
Eurydice's voice dropped to a growl. You wear the fangs of my bloodline.
Nathaniel didn't flinch. I wear justice.
They were my family.
They were monsters, he snapped. They slaughtered children and eat them . And now---
How DARE you! she screamed. Her fake look started to fade again. Claws grew from her hands, and her teeth got longer as she got more and more angry. You turned my own kind into a weapon against us!!!!
The wards around us trembled. Even the circle shimmered like it would crack.
Gehan swallowed hard.
Zuriel raised his wand.
Lucien was pale.
And all I could think was
What have we just unleashed?
The air smelled like old rot and blood. Mist moved around their feet like fingers trying to pull them down. The walls shined and never stayed still. Every hallway changed shape.
Then they heard it.
A faint thudding rhythm. Subtle. Alive.
A heartbeat.
Zuriel's flames crackled uselessly in his hand, the flickers dying almost as fast as he conjured them.
What the hell is wrong with this place???!! he whispered ,sweat dripping down his face. He held up his wand again, but the fire only flickered and died like a candle in a breeze.
Lucien put a protection spell over Gehan, but it was weak and shaky. A claw ripped through the air and broke the shield right away. It smashed with a loud crack, and Lucien yelled out. He stumbled back as blood dripped from a cut on his shoulder. I can't keep it up! he gasped.
Nikolai surged forward without hesitation. He moved like a storm fast, focused but the creature met him mid-stride.
Eurydice.
She wasn't human. Not anymore. Her body was bent over and covered in thick, black fur that was messy with dirt and blood. Her arms and legs were too long, and her claws moved at her sides like knives waiting to cut something. Her jaw opened way too wide, showing rows of sharp, rotten teeth. Her red eyes shined with a hungry look
She caught Nikolai mid-lunge and threw him like a ragdoll against the stone wall. He hit with a bone crunching thud and dropped, motionless.
Nathaniel quickly grabbed the gem on his belt. now it glowed red and beat like a hurt heart. With a smooth move, he called out the weapon hidden inside--- a sharp boomerang made of bone and Aswangs teeth. He threw it with a shout, and it cut through the mist very fast.
It struck Eurydice
and passed through her like smoke.
The weapon clattered to the ground
the walls beat like a heart as they moved. A hallway that used to be on their left was now on their right, and the torches flickered even though there was no wind. For a second, Gehan thought she saw stairs going up into the ceiling, but when she blinked, they were gone.
A whisper echoed down the corridor in a language none of them knew. Not loud. But close.
Nathaniel's eyes narrowed. She's using it… the artifact. The Talim ng Ligalig. It's not just a weapon. It's creating this illusion. And it's draining us.
It was already too late.
Gehan stood in the middle of all the mess. Her breaths were short and fast. Her arms and legs shook not because she was scared, but because of a feeling growing inside her chest
She watched Zuriel struggle beside her as his fire finally went out. Lucien was bleeding, and Nathaniel was gasping for air. One by one, they were losing. The worst part was that she didn't know how to help. A scream built up inside her, but no sound came out. Her mind couldn't handle it anymore, so she stopped trying to think.
Her heart tightened, and something else inside her opened up.
And through it all, Eurydice stood over them
A voice whisper into Gehan's mind. The same voice she been hearing that sounds just like her
(They will all die… unless you stop pretending you're one of them.)
The Book of Nephilim beat against her hip, then floated up into the air. The red eye on the cover moved its iris, staring at her as if it were alive. Glowing symbols burned across the front of the book. Her hand reached out, shaking as she moved it.
She didn't know what she was doing.
But she let go.
Something inside her woke up.
Her hair lifted, floating as if a wind were blowing through it. The symbols around the book spun like they were alive.
When she spoke, her voice echoed. It sounded like two
voices at once her own, and something much
darker.But she hadn't opened her mouth.
Her lips stayed shut.
And still, her voice rang out, speaking words she didn't know but could somehow say (UNKNOWN SPELL)
Zuriel flinched.
Lucien flinched and stumbled backward. He put one hand over his mouth, gasping for air as if something invisible were choking him. His eyes were wide with a new kind of fear that he couldn't even name.
Nathaniel's face turned white. No... no, he whispered. That spell was supposed to be sealed away!
Eurydice's body shook violently. Her fake skin cracked and fell away, and her illusions disappeared. Her monster flesh peeled back, burned not by fire, but by a cold, empty power.
No—NOT THAT! Not his spell! she screamed.
She staggered back. Her fur curled inward and the sharp teeth fell out of her mouth like old, dry bone. Her magic and her strength were being sucked away.
The dungeon reacted. Black blood began to leak from the walls.
The air smelled like metal and rot. A heavy beat echoed through the stone lit wasn't a heartbeat anymore, but something much older. It felt like a giant breath being drawn in. Something was watching. Something was waiting.
The void turned her illusion back on her.
And stripped her bare.
Zuriel stepped back, stunned. Gehan?!
His wand lowered slightly, but the magic at its tip still glowed. He took half a step forward--then stopped.
I…
He didn't finish. His mouth closed. His eyes refused to meet hers.
Lucien looked away completely. Shaking.
Nikolai stirred, just barely, but his gaze was locked on her.
Nathaniel stared.
And saw it:
(Her eyes. Still hers… and yet not.)
A flicker barely a moment like someone else blinked through her.
A second self, watching from behind her gaze.
It vanished the instant she looked down.
He said nothing for a long time.
Then finally
I always knew you were special, Gehan. Nathaniel said.
Zuriel stayed silent, his wand still in hand. Jaw clenched. He didn't speak not because he didn't care, but because he didn't trust his voice to say the right thing.
Lucien whispered, What… what are you?
Nikolai said nothing. But his eyes hadn't left her.
The illusion shattered.
The pulsing walls stopped moving. The corridors froze. The strange heartbeat that filled the air went silent. The mist thinned until it was no more than fog clinging to damp stone.
They were back in the real world.
Back in the true ruin of the dungeon.
Gehan's breath came unevenly. Her heart still raced, the echo of that strange power humming faintly in her veins.
Wait…
Her brows slowly furrowed.
Wait.
Her gaze drifted across the broken halls, the collapsed pillars, the ancient stone eaten away by time.
Then the thought finally surfaced.
Wait… we went this far? What happened i use the book right?
From the village
And yet…
They had been thrown around the maze, trapped in illusions, fighting Eurydice
But somehow they were already back here.
Her chest tightened slightly.
Something about that didn't feel right.