12
An oppressive darkness lay all around me. I couldn’t see my hand in front of my face, but I could feel the panic beat in my chest as the weight of that horrible blackness tried to crush my being.
My frazzled mind tried to recall my last memories. I’d been with Tristan on the forest path, and then nothing. Only this empty shadow that surrounded me. My clothes, too, were changed. I wore that beautiful white gown Chloe had presented to me, the purification outfit I would use against the box.
A chill came over me, and I wrapped my arms around myself to try to ward off the terrible darkness that attempted to suffocate me. “Tristan!” I called out. My voice echoed across an empty room. “Chloe? Gwill! Where are you? Where am I?”
A sound caught my attention and a strangely-shaped
