ASCEIA KEPT RUNNING, against her will. Her legs were aching and she can hardly breathe properly. She can’t track how long she was running but for her, it felt like forever. She was going further away from the sea, her naked body exposed to the scorching heat of the sun, and it felt like the oxygen in the air was thinning out. While she was running, she also witnessed the horrors of humans being slaughtered by the creatures of the trench; they were torn to pieces and feasted on. She, a sercean, was invisible to the beasts, they just ran past her like she was nothing.

She desperately wanted to help but she have no power over the drug that was still in her system. She then realized that she was fighting for these people since the day she stepped out of the water, trying to stop these deaths from ever happening. But she failed, she was not there the moment it came. She blamed herself for the deaths of innocent lives. Her eyes just watered, and tears streamed down her cheeks. She felt hopeless and alone.

And after hours of running, she reached the field of corn where her body gave up and she ran out of breath. She dropped to the ground, panting, sweating, and thirsty. Her vision was blurry and she was about to pass out. Her mind craved to run again, but her body wasn’t cooperating, in return, she felt pain and discomfort all over her body.

She closed her eyes and used her telepathy. “Goddess Aesercean,” she repeatedly called for help.

“Asceia…”

In that darkness, Goddess Aesercean, in her sercean form, appeared right in front of her.

“Help me…I can’t stop her alone.”

“Yes, you can. You need to go to the cave, use it to amplify your telepathy, and stop this. Go save the world.”

The command of Goddess Aesercean overrode Yrevia’s orders. It was the only thing she wanted. She opened her eyes and wiped her tears. She hummed the Song and started drawing the water around her and drank it to quench her thirst. She took a deep breath and started walking back until she gained enough energy and ran again. She was kilometers away from the sea but she was determined.

Hours passed and she reached the coast. There were no signs of terrestrial life anymore, only pieces of flesh and dried blood were left. It was a bloody massacre. The place looked abandoned. She took a deep breath and noticed the newly hatched beasts from the deep emerging along with the waves. But before they could even step into the sand, she manipulated the water and shred their bodies to pieces. The beasts shrieked and their flesh and cartilaginous skeleton were dissolved in the water.

She didn’t waste any second and rushed to the water. She went into transformation, it was painful but she endured everything as it also helped her regain strength and heal her burned skin and wounds on her feet. She swam, with her influence on the water, she was like a lightning piercing through the water. Along the water columns, she came across several beasts. She used all of her force and tore them to pieces, preventing them from any chance of healing. After a few minutes, she reached the cave where she was once imprisoned. She was about to swim in when suddenly, she noticed the presence of serceans behind and surrounding her.

She turned around and found out they were the Elders of the Order, possessed by the banished serceans. The only one missing was the Crown of the Order, Yrevia. They immediately attacked her. The sercean wearing the body of the Father of Floraceans, manipulated the kelps wrapping its arm and sent them for her. The Mother of Faunaceans threw some memraes. And the Father of Senticeans threw its sharp spear at her. And before their attacks could even reach her, she controlled the water that changed the course and destroyed the kelp, spear, and memraes in the process.

She then made gestures with her hands, and with all of her force, she made a strong water current that swept and dragged the parents away to the deep. She was panting when she looked around to ensure she was alone. And right that moment, Goddess Aesercean appeared again beside her.

“That was good, Asceia. You’re getting used to your powers. Come on now…follow me. And I will tell you how to beat Yrevia.”

Goddess Aesercean led the way and they both went inside the cave. She followed her into one of the branching paths of the cave, to a chamber she was never been into. She listened to her carefully as she started sharing the only way to end Yrevia’s madness. It wasn’t easy, honestly, but it was worth a shot. Until they stopped inside a circular chamber in the deepest part of the cave where bioluminescent and vine-like organisms were abundant on the ceiling and floor.

“Place yourself in the center.” Asceia swam to the center and closed her eyes. “Remember, nothing is impossible inside the mind.”

The bioluminescent vines from the floor and ceiling felt Asceia’s presence and they started moving, reaching for her. They wrapped her tail, arms, and head. It wasn’t too tight and not too loose. Right there, she gasped when it amplified her telepathy. It was stronger than the helmet she used in the laboratory. Suddenly, she felt like she was everywhere. One by one, she connected her mind to the serceans and formed it into one big network where they all share their skills and thoughts. No barriers between their minds and just one big united consciousness.

But as she inhabited their minds, she sensed Yrevia’s presence inside them. Unexpectedly, she grunted when a strong punch landed on her stomach, throwing her away to the pit of endless darkness. The next thing she knew, she was alone in the blinding dark, in her human form and naked. She heard echoing chuckles of Yrevia from all directions. Lurking and watching her. She kept looking everywhere, trying to locate her, but she was nowhere in sight.

“I’m surprised you freed yourself from the drug.” She heard her scoff. “You think you can beat me here? The power of the cave will not sustain the energy you need to take me down.”

An invisible force whipped her back and legs. She lost balance and the excruciating pain that enveloped her body made her drop to her knees. She held onto her left leg and felt her blood flowing out of the lacerated wound. She felt her presence behind her again, she quickly looked over her shoulder, but there was nothing but darkness.

She was shaking as she endured the pain. She punched the floor and it released ripples of light that painted her surroundings. She once again looked around and finally, she found Yrevia just meters away from her. She was holding a sword and smiling at her. And they were both standing on the surface of the endless calm ocean, just like how they first met.

“Familiar?” Asceia smirked and she stood back up.

“Your funeral, Asceia.”