Then, a sudden, unexpected shift shook the cavern's atmosphere. A strange, indefinable sensation that everyone seemed to perceive simultaneously. It was as if the air itself had grown denser, charged with a malevolent energy that prickled my skin like an electric current. It was impossible to describe in words, but something about that sensation felt… twisted, unnatural, as if the very space protested its presence.
My entire body shuddered under the impact of that sinister, unknown entity. The same happened to the monsters, who suddenly knelt as one before the circular hole in the cavern's ceiling.
The figure descending slowly through that portal had a far more humanoid silhouette than those beasts: it stood about two meters tall, clad in armor black as the deepest night, reflecting the torchlight with metallic glints, and its eyes glowed with a violet hue that seemed to pierce the soul. A long, sharp, sinister tail swayed behind it with hypnotic movements. Its skin, pale gray and partially covered with ebony-black scales, blended perfectly with the cloudy sky visible through the opening.
Standing there, trembling uncontrollably, I felt like an insignificant spark before a hurricane, utterly vulnerable and defenseless against forces beyond my comprehension.
Desperation flooded me like a black tide, drowning any trace of hope.
The mysterious figure landed with feline grace on the stone floor, and as it did, it exerted a suffocating pressure that spread through the entire cavern. It was as if gravity itself had intensified, and I found myself struggling to stay upright, my trembling legs threatening to give way under my weight.
After what felt like eternal seconds, I gathered enough courage to look back at the center of the cavern.
—Lord Cylrit? —the most muscular monster greeted reverently, remaining knelt beside my mother, a mix of fear and confusion in its cavernous voice.
—Where is Emilia? —the newcomer asked with an icy voice, facing one of the creatures that had terrified me moments before.
—I'm here, my lord —she replied with servility, still kneeling but slightly raising her head in a gesture of submission.
—Excellent. Listen carefully —the being called Cylrit stood tall, his soft but authoritative voice spreading like a chilling breeze through the cavern—. In one month, prepare the three with the highest scores for their imminent harvest. The Rulers desire new offspring.
His words sent shivers down my spine like snakes of ice, despite the distance between us.
—Understood, my lord —my mother replied with a reverent bow, her shoulders visibly more relaxed, as if she had just received news that eased some secret concern.
I felt the paralysis of absolute terror coursing through every fiber of my being. Had I heard correctly? The three with the highest scores? Arceus, Reinhardt, and… me.
My heart sank into my stomach like a stone in a bottomless well, and I knew with crushing certainty that I had to flee from there as soon as possible.
I turned and ran as silently as my trembling legs allowed, when suddenly, the being called Cylrit turned his head and looked over his shoulder.
For a fraction of a second that stretched like eternity, his piercing gaze cut through the tunnel's darkness where I was desperately fleeing. I felt him finally shift his attention, but in that fleeting moment, his ice-cold eyes locked onto my back with the deadly precision of a supreme predator, as my body visibly shrank under the weight of that inhuman stare.
There was no doubt: he knew I was there.
Upon finally emerging from the tunnel, the cold night wind slapped my face like a blow, and under any other circumstance, it would have been unpleasant. But after what I had just witnessed, that icy caress felt like the sweetest balm.
However, after running hundreds of meters at full speed, my body, subjected to unimaginable stress, succumbed to a violent attack of uncontrollable tremors.
I fled across the barren earth and debris as fast as my small legs allowed, until they finally gave out, and I fell to my knees, hunched over myself, breathing with painful difficulty amid wrenching sobs.
What had I just witnessed?
Those monsters were infinitely worse than any nightmare my childish mind could have conjured.
All the adopted children… were dead.
Were we food for those creatures?
Did we exist solely to be devoured?
No, it didn't seem that simple. The way those beings spoke didn't suggest they saw us as mere food. They seemed to assign us a far more sinister and transcendent purpose.
Were we raised and killed for pleasure, then?
No, that didn't make sense either. They called us "merchandise," so our bodies clearly had some kind of value… But what?
I couldn't grasp the full horror of the life I had been immersed in all this time.
I stifled a wrenching sob and wiped my face with the sleeve of my uniform to dry the tears flowing like uncontrollable rivers… I had been desperately trying not to cry in the face of that disturbing reality, but now it was nearly impossible to hold back the torrent of emotions flooding me.
I could no longer deceive myself or continue living as if everything was fine. I couldn't let my companions, my siblings, march toward a horrific death without knowing the truth.
We had to escape. Flee as far as possible from that hell disguised as a home.
Rage, anguish, impotence, and betrayal hit me simultaneously as I recalled everything. My entire body shuddered as I began to sob uncontrollably.
No… Mama. The word turned to bitter ashes in my mouth.
Faced with the crushing truth, tears began streaming down my face like a devastating torrent that had finally broken the dam. My face lost all color, and every muscle in my body trembled as my throat released a wrenching cry of pain that I immediately stifled with my bloodied hands.
Clenching my teeth until they creaked and holding back the sobs threatening to choke me, the tears kept flowing ceaselessly. My hands shook violently, and my breathing became a series of ragged gasps that burned my lungs.
I cried with rage and sadness until no tears remained. I felt humiliated for having naively believed I had a mother I could trust, when in reality, she was part of a machine designed to lead us to our deaths.
I opened my hands forcefully, digging my nails into my palms until they bled, as another scream of pain escaped my parched throat. Fury and suffering waged a fierce battle in my shattered heart as I mourned everything.
I cried and cursed the whole time, refusing to believe this was real. As a sister, as a daughter, I only wanted to protect my family, the few people who mattered to me, to keep them happy and safe.
I was a prisoner of an immense, indescribable rage that burned with the intensity of an erupting volcano.