The foulest smell entered my nostrils the second I set foot in the Crooked Castle. It was like... the yolk of rotten eggs had been poured onto expired rabbit stew. I didn't even know what that smelt like, but if I had to guess, this would be it.

I realized there had been no guards at the entrance--and even now, as I entered the castle, no soldiers could be found trying to get in my way and prevent my progression through the castle. I would've thanked the gods, had an axe not swung suddenly and nearly chopped my neck off.

I managed to dodge it, but only slightly by rolling forward. Too bad I set off another booby trap trying to dodge the first one.

A gigantic foot appeared out of nowhere and swooped down all its force on me. As a resulting of panic, I swung my hands in the air as though this would save me. Except, it did.

Tentatively, I looked up and realized my magic had come to the rescue. Light had froze the foot from finishing the stomp on me. I... didn't know I could do that.

This time, I stood up, cautious and aware. I didn't dare set another foot forward without inspecting where I was stepping first. I analyzed the ground and came to realize that the stone brick floor had a secret pattern that I had to follow if I wanted to survive... a pattern that I couldn't quite determine.

All I knew was that I couldn't step forward unless I wanted to get decapitated by a halberd or crushed by a giant's toe.

I took a left. Thankfully, nothing came at me. Unfortunately, I still couldn't figure out the pattern I had to follow to save my neck.

I scanned the floor even more, hoping for something to show, something that would show me the way so I could get out of this big hot mess.

I stretched my leg in the righthand direction, then decided it was much too risky, so I halted and pulled back my foot. My gaze did nothing but continue to examine the floor like my life depended on it. If I really thought about it, my life did depend on this.

I went for the tile in the middle. Bad move, though, because I nearly got my head chopped off again, except I managed to dodge the ax that was swinging for me.

Phew. That was a close one.

Then I placed my foot on the righthand tile and thanked the gods when I found every bone in my body still intact. So... left, right, middle?

I put my foot on the middle tile now, and braced for impact. Except, there was no impact. There wasn't even a noise. I was safe. Furthermore, I'd figured out the pattern.

I continued following this pattern until I reached the other side of the entrance room. Now the big, loud doors were all the way across from me. I was safe. I was alive. But I wasn't free. Not yet.

I pushed open the next set of doors slowly. Thankfully, these ones didn't creak. When they opened, the room within looked like yet another puzzle. But as I examined it a little more, I realized this were just an ordinary hallway.

No axes. No booby traps. No giant feet.

I crossed through it with ease. Huh. This made no sense. Why would they put that first booby trap and think nobody would get through?

I reached the other side of the room when three doors suddenly appeared. And then I realized it. This was a puzzle.

The door on the very left read "1" on it, in red paint. In blue paint, a very sloppy "2" could be seen plastered on the second door. The "3" on the third door was scratched out, but still legible and in green paint.

Huh. So red door, blue door, and green door... Which should I go with?

I'd assumed one or two of them would contain traps, while one would contain another room, safety. But how was I supposed to know which contained which?

My gut was telling me to go with the scratched out door on the right, because it seemed more used. Then again, those scratches could've been from some ravenous creature on the other side of it. My heart was telling me to go with the blue middle door. My impatience was saying just go with any.

So I went with the one that neither my heart nor my gut desired; the red door on the left.

I turned the knob and the door creaked open. I didn't step inside, but instead waited for the door to fully open and reveal its contents.

Except, it was just a room. A dark room. With nothing. Nothing but a chair at the very end of it. A turned chair. That could possibly have a monster behind it. The chair was facing a window, which displayed the red sky and the bloody clouds of the Realm.

I would have closed the door and turned away, except a voice stopped me dead in my tracks.

"Hello, Mr. Castro."

My heart sunk. My brain scattered. My face tightened. Sweat rolled down from my brow. A chill shivered down my spine, and every bone in my body felt like jelly.

"I've been awaiting your presence for quite some time now," the voice continued. "I'm so glad you could make it."

The voice was eerily calm, but at the same time pierced through my skin and broke my bones. It was almost like... the mere sound of this person's voice could murder an entire village. And it was terrifying.

"I heard you wanted to kill my master, Downfall. Well, isn't that something?"

It took me way too long to realize where the voice was coming from: the chair that faced the window. The chair that sat at the very end of the room I was standing right in front of. The chair that was only about ten feet away from me. The chair that could easily turn around and strike me, depending on this person's skill. I hadn't really practiced reflexes with Simon so I wouldn't doubt it if they were too quick for me. They sounded experienced.

"I'm guessing you're the Chosen One. The Sapphire of the Sea chose you, didn't it? The Sapphire that I created, the one that was stolen from me by the humans. That means you work with the humans. That means we're rivals."

The voice was slowly slipping from a tone of peace to a tone of anger, hatred. It was so subtle, though, I could hardly notice it, distracted by the word: rivals. It stung me somehow.

"Oh, yes, enemies we are. But trust me, I don't want to hurt an innocent, confused little thing like you. I'm much too kind for that. So I'll tell you what. You work with me, and I won't kill you. How 'bout it?"

My eyes went wide. My heart sunk even more. I couldn't control the rivulets of sweat that were rolling down. More like rivers. Everything around me seemed to shrink except for the chair, that chair that was so harmless, so inanimate and so incapable of doing anything to me, but behind it lurking a monstrous being that was capable of everything.

"Well, I don't have all day. You better choose now or never. If it's never, then I'll kill you. If it's now, you can live a long happy life here in the Crooked Realm. I won't do a thing to you. None of us will."

Us meaning Downfall, my biggest threat. The world's biggest threat. The one person everyone, even monsters, fear.

I had to keep reminding myself why I was here: for the world. For Emma. For Willow. For King Richard. For Vex. For Jake. And yes, even for Simon. For the people I cared about. For Grandma. For Targan. I was here because I was given a duty, despite not knowing anything about it.

And I had a choice: take on that duty and fulfill my destiny, or disappoint billions of people who live in a world of terror everyday. Who will continue to live in terror until I end that terror.

And half of it was sitting right in front me, in a dark room, facing a window. On both ends, we equally had a lot of power. I could turn invisible. I had a huge sword. I had magic.

But if this is who I was thinking it was, then this person had a lot, too. Given their master, they were the second-most powerful creature in the Realm, next to Downfall, the other half of the terror.

I thought long about my response before saying, "Greetings, Thwart."

It was simple but powerful. It allowed me to enter the room. It gave me the strength to face my biggest enemy: not Thwart, not Downfall, but fear. Of dying. Of losing everything. Of losing Grandma.

And somehow my legs didn't feel like jelly anymore. My bones were fixed and my heart was no longer sunken. My face loosened and the sweat dripping down it eased its pace. This wasn't comfort. This was bravery.

I inched closer to the chair. I prepared my hands for magic. I double-strapped my bag around my neck, and felt the items in there. The Lady-Stopper. The mini sword. The potion.

At last, the chair turned itself.

Facing me wasn't just a monster. It was a hideous beast, with eyes that were greener than goo. Its teeth were crooked and yellow, nearly the color of Emma's hair. Its face was distorted and looked like shredded monsters parts. It looked somewhat like a spider, long legs stretching themselves out as multiple green eyes appeared suddenly. It was dark, it was ugly, and it was most certainly ravenous.

I tried to hide my fearful expression at the sight of the revolting creature, but I couldn't. I made a sour face, like I'd just ate something rotten, and backed away slowly.

"Not what you were expecting, huh?" Thwart's voice was no longer calm nor angry, but sounded like a million voices in one, distorted and frightening. "This is me. Thwart. Downfall's rightful servant."

I tried to look away, but I couldn't. Instead, I closed my eyes as I dug through my bag for the mini sword or the Lady-Stopper or something. And then a sudden weight hit me, sending me flying. I toppled over my own self and hit the floor with a loud thud.

Every part of me ached immediately. It felt like hell. Every inch of me from my feet to my scalp burned. I opened my eyes and gasped. I was sitting in a pool of blood. Trying hard not to gag, I made Light appear and was about to attend to my wounds, except I was hit again, and this time pierced with something pointy.

Blood spewed from every angle of me. This was it. It was over. I was gonna die.

And then I saw it. Thwart. Looking at me.

"Didn't I tell you?" It said. "Now you have to pay the high price. And I really thought we could be friends. Tsk. Tsk. It's a true shame."

Thwart raised its sharp leg, preparing to squish and puncture and murder me until there was no Chosen One left. No savior left. Nothing.

I closed my eyes and waited for death to happen. It was the scariest thing in the world. Knowing I would die, and just waiting. The taste of blood made me gag several times before it became normal at this point.

It. Was. Over. I was over. The world was over. Love was over. Life was over. Everything I knew was over.

I had disappointed the world. Nothing mattered anymore.

And then everything went black as the life I knew was sucked away from me...