Zoe's eyes fluttered open, her breath coming in sharp gasps as though she had just been pulled from the edge of death itself. **Goddamn it.** She groaned internally, feeling the weight of her body pressing against the cold ground. Her limbs felt heavy, disoriented, and unfamiliar. It took a moment for her mind to catch up with her body. She was alive... but how? Where?
The last thing she remembered was chaos—the wolves, the fight, her sacrifice, her dying breath. But now, she was here. Somewhere else. **Dead... but not dead?** Her thoughts swirled in confusion. Was she trapped in some kind of afterlife? Or had something brought her back?
She blinked, trying to clear her vision, and that's when she saw her.
A woman stood in front of her, a stranger, staring at her with sharp eyes. Zoe froze, her heart pounding in her chest, every instinct telling her to move or defend herself, but she was too weak. Too confused. The woman looked... calm, but her presence was intense, and Zoe felt an overwhelming sense of unease.
"Who are you?" Zoe's voice was hoarse, barely a whisper. She tried to sit up, her hands shaking as she pressed them into the ground, but the weight of her body felt wrong.
The woman didn't move closer, just stood there, observing her. "I'm **Aliss**, a guardian to the princess," she said, her voice firm, though there was an underlying warmth. She studied Zoe for a long moment, her eyes unreadable. "You're awake. That's good."
Zoe's pulse quickened as she tried to make sense of this woman's words. "Princess? Guardian?" Zoe repeated, confusion filling her voice. She had no idea who this was or why she was being addressed in such a way. "I don't... What's going on? I should be... I was..."
Aliss nodded as if she understood. "You were dead. You gave your life for someone else. Now you're here, and that's all that matters." Her eyes softened, but the intensity of her presence didn't waver. "And now, I need you to listen to me. There's a lot at stake. I'm here because of **Dust**."
At the mention of his name, Zoe's heart clenched in her chest. Her breath caught in her throat. **Dust**... That name, the man she had barely come to understand, the man who had shared something with her before everything shattered. He was the one she had fought for, and now it seemed like he was lost to her, gone forever.
"What happened to him?" Zoe asked, her voice barely above a whisper, her throat tight. She needed to know, even if she was terrified of the answer.
Aliss's gaze softened, but there was a hardness to it. "He's... changed. He's chosen a darker path, Zoe. **Asmolgan**. He has taken the mantle of a demon lord. And now... the world is at risk. We need to stop him, but there's still a chance. He can still be saved, if we act now."
Zoe recoiled, her breath catching painfully in her chest. "No... no, that can't be true. Not Dust. He wouldn't—he couldn't—"
"I know this is hard," Aliss interrupted, her voice calm but firm. "But the truth is, Dust is gone. **Asmolgan** is what's left now, and he's a force we can't ignore. The demons are already moving."
Zoe shook her head desperately, the words feeling like they were suffocating her. She didn't want to believe it. She didn't want to accept that the man she had come to care for had turned into a demon. But as she looked into Aliss's eyes, she knew there was no denying it.
"Why are you telling me this?" Zoe asked, her voice barely above a whisper. "What do you want from me?"
Aliss's expression softened, but she didn't let go of her resolve. "We can still save him, Zoe. But you need to understand that there are bigger forces at work. **Asmolgan**... Dust... he has been corrupted. But he can still be reached. And you—your connection with him—may be the key."
Zoe felt her head spin. She didn't know what to believe. She didn't know if she could help Dust or if it was already too late. But she also couldn't deny the pain in her chest, the feeling that she had to do something, that she couldn't let him go.
"I don't know what to do," Zoe said, her voice trembling. "I don't even know who you are."
"I'm someone who understands this world better than most. Someone who has seen the darkness and the light. I've seen what happens when people are pushed too far," Aliss replied. "But you're not alone in this, Zoe. We're all fighting for the same thing: to stop the demons and bring back the light. To stop Dust... and to make sure he doesn't bring about the end."
Zoe took a deep breath, her mind whirling. She still couldn't make sense of everything, but one thing was clear. She couldn't just sit back and watch. She had to try. For Dust, for the world, for herself.
"I'll help," Zoe said, her voice firmer now, despite the fear and uncertainty that still gripped her. "But I need to understand. What do we do now?"
Aliss nodded, her expression resolute. "We find **Dust**. We bring him back, and we stop the demons. But first, we need to understand where the demons are gathering. And that's where you come in."
Zoe swallowed hard. She was terrified, but she wasn't going to back down. Not this time. She owed it to Dust, to herself, to try.
Zoe's body trembled as the weight of the truth crushed her. Her tears fell freely now, a flood of emotion that had been building ever since she'd woken up. She couldn't help herself—her heart ached for **Dust**, the man she'd barely known, yet had come to care for so deeply in such a short time.
She curled up, pressing her hands to her face, trying to muffle the sobs that racked her body. **Simon**—the thought of him made her stomach turn. He knew where she was. He knew everything about her. What if he was already watching? What if he was coming for her? **God**, what was she supposed to do?
Her thoughts tangled, chaotic and painful, as images of **Dust** flickered in her mind. He had been so kind, so different from everyone else she had met in this world. He had been a person she wanted to believe in, someone she felt she could protect—yet now, hearing what Aliss had said, it felt like a cruel joke. **Dust** was lost. He had turned to the dark side. He was no longer the man she had met.
"How could he change so much?" she whispered between sobs. "How could someone like him... become like this?"
Aliss stood silently by, letting Zoe cry. She knew there was nothing to say, no comforting words that would undo what had happened to **Dust**. The path he had chosen was irreversible—**Asmolgan** was no longer the man Zoe had known.
When Zoe finally calmed herself, wiping her face with the back of her hand, she spoke again. Her voice cracked, barely audible. "I know him. Just three days, but… I know him. How am I supposed to help him now? I'm just a player in this game. I'm not his sister. I'm not even anyone important."
Her words were quiet but filled with the kind of sadness that only true loss could bring. She looked up at Aliss, her eyes red from crying. "I'm in the game, but I'm not in the real world. I don't know how I can help him. I'm not even sure if I can."
Aliss's expression softened. She took a slow, measured step forward, her voice calm but unwavering. "You may not be his sister, Zoe. You may not know him as others do, but you have something that no one else has. You've shared a bond with him. Even if it was only for a short time, it was real."
Zoe shook her head, fighting back another sob. "But I'm scared. I can't do this alone. And Simon—he knows where I live. He knows how to hurt me. I'm not strong enough to fight him or stop him. What if I lose everything I've just started to care about?"
Aliss regarded her carefully, her gaze piercing. "You're not alone, Zoe. None of us are. And if you truly want to help **Dust**, then you have to believe that there is more to him than the demon he has become. You can't let fear hold you back. If he has any chance of redemption, it will be because of people like you."
Zoe's heart clenched as she absorbed Aliss's words. It felt impossible, and yet something deep within her stirred—a faint ember of hope, however small. She hadn't been able to protect **Dust** before, but maybe, just maybe, she could still help him.
"I don't know if I can do what you're asking me to," Zoe whispered, feeling defeated, but there was a spark of determination in her voice now. "But I'll try. For him. I'll try."
Aliss gave her a nod of approval, a slight, encouraging smile playing at the corner of her lips. "That's all I can ask of you, Zoe. I believe in you."
Zoe took a deep breath and wiped her eyes again, the weight of the decision still heavy on her shoulders, but now she felt a little less alone. She still wasn't sure how she would manage, or even if **Dust** could ever be saved, but one thing was certain: she wasn't going to give up on him.
Got it! Here's the revised version incorporating Aliss's past connection with Dust, and how she couldn't help him when he lost his sister, adding more depth to her emotions and motivation.
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Zoe sat, her tears finally starting to subside as she tried to make sense of everything. She had learned so much in a short time, but it only made her feel more lost. **Dust**—the person who had changed before her eyes—was someone with a past she couldn't begin to understand.
Aliss watched her closely, a sadness in her eyes that Zoe hadn't noticed before. She could see Aliss was holding something back, emotions that ran deeper than she had let on.
Aliss took a breath, her voice soft but steady. "Zoe, there's something you need to know. **Dust**... or who he used to be... he wasn't always like this. We have a history, but it's not just about this game."
Zoe looked up, her confusion still evident. "What do you mean? You know him?"
Aliss nodded, her gaze distant. "I did, once. When we first played together, before all of this happened. I knew **Dust** back then. He was... he was different. He was someone I knew, someone I cared about. But, things changed. People made him disappear, and that was when he lost his sister. It's been five years, and I couldn't do anything about it."
Zoe's heart ached for Aliss as she spoke. It was clear that this was painful for her, a part of her past she couldn't change. "Wait... he had a sister?"
Aliss's eyes darkened. "Yes. A sister. And when **Dust** was pulled into this game, she vanished. He... he was never the same after that. That was the last time I saw him, before everything got twisted. The same people who made him disappear also took her away, and I couldn't do anything. I didn't have the power back then to stop it."
Zoe sat in silence, her mind racing. This was so much to process. **Dust**, the person who had seemed so lost, so angry, had once been someone else entirely—a person with a life, a family. "But you knew him. You... you liked him, didn't you?"
Aliss's face flushed slightly, but she didn't look away. "I cared about him. More than I should have. But back then, I couldn't protect him. I couldn't stop the people who took him, or his sister. It feels like a failure, honestly. I'm not proud of it."
Zoe's eyes softened. She couldn't imagine what Aliss must have felt. To lose someone you cared about, and then watch them become something unrecognizable—something dangerous. "So, if his sister is out there, do you think we can find her?"
Aliss nodded slowly. "I think so. **DeeDee** is part of my team. She's a master at finding people, tracking them no matter how hidden they are. She can find **Dust's** sister. If anyone can do it, it's her."
Zoe felt a flicker of hope. **DeeDee**, an expert at finding people—maybe this was the break they needed. But there was still so much uncertainty in her heart. "But what if we can't? What if we never find her? What happens to **Dust** then?"
Aliss's gaze softened, her voice filled with determination. "We will find her. And if we do, maybe there's still hope for **Dust**. Maybe, if we can bring his sister back into the fold, we can save him—bring him back from the darkness."
Zoe looked down, tears welling up again. She had only known **Dust** for a few days, but it felt like he was already someone she couldn't bear to lose. "I don't know how to help him. I'm not his sister. I don't know how to reach him."
Aliss placed a hand on her shoulder, squeezing it gently. "You don't have to be his sister, Zoe. But you do care about him. That's enough. If you want to help him, we need to find his sister first. It's the only way."
Zoe nodded slowly, wiping her eyes. "So, what do we do now?"
Aliss's expression grew serious. "We go back to the castle. I'll arrange for **DeeDee** to start the search. We'll need all the resources we can gather. But I won't let him stay lost forever, not when there's a chance we can bring him back."
Zoe stood up, a sense of determination building within her. "Then let's go. We need to do everything we can."
As they prepared to leave, Zoe couldn't shake the feeling that their journey was only beginning. There were so many unknowns ahead, but she couldn't.