*Modern day
Location: Zen; ASYLUM 7X0X
The four friends sat in a circle, each thinking of what they could do to get out of the place they were currently in.
"Is this some prison? Does this mean the other crew made it? What of Nayowmi?"
Everyone stared at Astherielle. Her deduction was actually what every one of them had been thinking but refused to voice out loud.
"I don't know. She might be with another team by now. Back to the first stage." Zera replied, her eyes wandering on each of her friends.
She had been too grateful that the four of them made it. It didn't occur to her to look for Nayowmi until Astherielle said something about it.
"I'm sure she's fine, right?" Jaspreth sounded worried. And they should be too. After all, even when she had known about the reward, how was she to know that they didn't?
"She should be." Beatrix eyed her friends. "This can't be the end for us."
Zera nodded. She agreed with Beatrix. This was far from being the end for them. She couldn't accept it even if someone told them otherwise.
This was not how they were going to end the game.
Getting on her feet, Zera neared one side of the glass wall. She could hardly see anything beyond the fog from outside. It was too thick and unmoving. The chance of her catching a glimpse of anything was impossible.
"There are always loopholes," she muttered, reciting what the other girl from the opponent team had mentioned before they were spiraled into the prison they were at. "We just need to find them."
"Yeah, but how?" Jaspreth immediately countered. He didn't want to sound like the hopeless guy but seeing they were inside some crystal box, they could only wait for a miracle.
This was the part where they actually needed one.
Zera turned to him, a determined look on her face.
"That's what we have to find out. Are you willing to go down like this? We might not be fighting any monster right now, but we are also stuck. The chance of us getting out of this stupid game has come close to zero."
"You were the one who refused to follow the rules." Jaspreth coughed. He looked away, pretending to have choked on something.
"I'm not going to say sorry for that," Zera claimed, her eyes fleeting towards Astherielle and Beatrix. "I may not like having to follow my father's legacy, but for some reason, I can't help but voice out what I find as unjust and act on it, even if it may seem childish. Should we just blindly follow the game without fighting for our right to know what's really going on?"
Beatrix put her hands on both sides, slowly pushing herself to stand. When she was back on her feet, she eyed Zera, folding her arms over her chest.
"I can see and understand where you are coming from, but Z, look where it got us. We're not in our realm. I'm beginning to understand that now. We have no control over here. See?" She gestured at their prison, her gaze never leaving Zera.
"We're trapped because you wanted to fight for our cause. Thank you, but how do we get out now?"
Suddenly, tension arose among them as Zera and Beatrix stared at each other; neither was willing to back down.
Astherielle stood up as well. She stood between the two, eyeing her friends. She felt disappointed that they had come to this, and they were only at the beginning of the game. They have yet to reach the middle.
"Guys," she said softly, fist looking at Zera then towards Beatrix. "Can't you see what's going on? Are you two willing to argue over something we can no longer change? Could we all just move forward and figure out how to get going from here?" she paused and turned to Zera.
"Challenging the authorities of this game can only bring us harm, Z. I'm sorry. I'm not trying to take Bea's side, but indeed, look where your rebellion got us."
Zera didn't say anything. She just held Astehrielle's gaze until the latter broke eye contact and focused on Beatrix next.
"Yes, you're right, Bee; we are in this mess because Zera wanted to understand why we're here and what's really happening. I know we all shared that bewilderment and wanting to know at the start. But, this isn't the time to start pointing fingers. We can't let something like this come between us. Do you hear me?"
Like Zera, Beatrix also didn't say anything. Her eyes glanced towards Zera. The resounding silence that followed had Jaspreth clearing his throat. He eyed the three girls.
"Power hug?" He encouraged them, smiling sheepishly as he caught their stares.
Zera took a deep breath, catching Beatrix's uncertain gaze.
"Fine," Zera breathed. "I'm sorry. This was my fault. I didn't mean for it to happen."
Blowing a sigh, Beatrix crossed the space, separating her and Zera. She then pulled her into a hug.
"I'm sorry, Z. You know how I am when I get frustrated." Zera chuckled.
"How could I forget? Fin Collins will forever be scared of you. He's never going to get over that."
Beatrix chuckled, causing the tension that had started from before to dissipate.
Fin Collins was an unfortunate lamb sacrificed to Beatrix's frustration. It only happened once, but Zera witnessed how the poor guy couldn't even look at Beatrix after that incident.
Astherielle clapped her hands. She was about to run towards her friends when a golden mist had sprung from her feet. It slowly encased her in a golden circle, the warmth of it almost suffocating her.
"Um, guys," she gulped, her body slowly absorbing the golden energy that had her hair flying all around her face as well, her feet being lifted off the ground, leaving her no choice but to spread her arms to keep her balance. "Please tell me this is something normal."
Zera, Beatrix, and Jaspreth watched as Astherielle glowed goldenly; even her eyes were shining in gold. She was bathed in it.
Zera stepped forward, but Beatrix held her in place, pointing above Astherielle's head. She followed it with her gaze.
A silhouette of a bird had formed above Astherielle, spreading its wings. In its wake, a mellow hum resonated in their prison, gradually echoing loudly like a singer belting out a high pitch song, which had created a small crack on one of the walls.
Beatrix noticed it too, inching closer towards Zera and whispering in her ears.
"Is this the part where we need to brace ourselves for what happens next?"