Leticia opened her eyes.
Silence. But not the kind that brings peace. It was a dead silence—heavy, suffocating. There were no sounds, no direction, no sense of time.
She had expected to see fire, darkness, the execution block, the executioner… anything but this.
A dense white mist swirled around her, creeping along the ground as if it were alive. No walls, no sky, no horizon. Just nothingness.
Leticia frowned. Her body felt strange—light, yet unnaturally rigid. She tried to take a step—the mist parted gently, yet its density was palpable against her skin.
"Am I alive?"
Memories struck her like a sudden blow. The execution, the axe, the sunlight. She was supposed to be dead. But this… this did not feel like death. Leticia froze, then heard breathing. She turned sharply.
A girl stood before her. They stared at each other in silence.
The girl was strange—golden hair, an unfamiliar style of clothing. What kind of fabric is that? Too light, too loose-fitting.
Leticia narrowed her eyes. Nothing like this existed in her world.
At the same time, Aya looked at her with wide eyes.
Before her stood a pale girl in a tattered dress that resembled old European gowns from period films. Her long black hair was messy, and her ruby-red eyes were cold, as if evaluating her.
"Is this a joke? A cosplay? Or…"
Aya took a step back.
— Who… are you?
Leticia slightly narrowed her eyes. The girl's speech was… wrong.
The pronunciation, the rhythm—it was strange, as if from another world. Yet she understood the words.
— I could ask you the same, — Leticia replied cautiously, studying her. — My name is Leticia.
"She has an accent?" Aya thought in surprise.
— And you? What is your name?
— Aya, — she replied, not taking her eyes off Leticia.
— Where are we? — Leticia asked.
— I… I don't know, — Aya swallowed nervously. — The last thing I remember… I… She stopped, the horrible realization settling in. — I died.
Both of them froze. The words seemed to solidify reality, piercing through their consciousness like an icy blade. Aya clutched her head, her breathing becoming unsteady. Her heart clenched, panic spreading through her chest. Everything inside her screamed that this was impossible, yet her body trembled from the inescapable truth.
— No, no, this is insane! I must be dreaming! — her voice cracked. — Or this is a nightmare? Or…
— You died too? — Leticia asked unexpectedly, her tone unnervingly calm.
Aya snapped her head up, her brows furrowing in confusion. The chaos in her mind reflected in her wide eyes. She couldn't comprehend—what did this mean? Her thoughts darted between trying to make sense of the situation and the fear of the unexplainable.
— "Too"?!
Leticia nodded slowly.
— I was executed.
Aya went pale. Her mind refused to accept it as reality, but something cold clenched her heart.
— Executed… — she echoed, her voice trembling.
The word sounded like it belonged to another era. She examined Leticia more closely—her clothes, her way of speaking. This… couldn't be a coincidence.
— Where… where are you from? — Aya asked cautiously.
Leticia tilted her head slightly.
— From the Valchart Empire.
Aya blinked.
— From… what?
She had never heard of such a place. And now she understood too. They were from different worlds.
Where were they?
The mist began to shift. It swirled, as if reacting to their realization. Leticia tensed.
She took a few steps, closely observing the fog around them. Its movement was too deliberate, as if controlled by an unseen force. Leticia reached out, and the smoky swirls recoiled from her fingers but did not dissipate. She slowly ran her palm through the air, trying to grasp something tangible.
Nothing. Only cold, empty air.
— This place… is watching us.
Aya turned sharply.
— W-watching us? What?
Leticia clenched her fists.
— It's… waiting.
At that moment, the air trembled.
A whisper. Faint, distant, but alien.
Both girls froze.
— Did you hear that? — Aya whispered.
Leticia nodded slowly.
The mist around them began to move faster. And both of them felt it—another presence.
Not each other.
— We… need to get out of here, — Aya exhaled nervously.
— Yes, — Leticia replied curtly.
They had no idea where they were.
But one thought now lingered in their minds:
They were not alone.