Kill The Luna

52

The tiny flame of the lighter flickered wildly in the damp, heavy air of the cavern, casting long, eerie shadows across a sight that made the blood instantly freeze in my veins. Right in the center of the dark chamber stood a massive, heavy table made of rough, ancient stone. Thick iron chains, covered in deep layers of dark rust and crusty brown stains, were bolted heavily into the stone edges, dangling limply onto the floor. Fresh, wet blood was smeared across the flat surface, dripping slowly down the side in a sickening trail that pool on the gravel below.

A cold sweat broke out across my entire body as I slowly raised the tiny light toward the jagged cavern walls. My chest heaved with shallow, terrified breaths. The stone walls were completely covered in deep, violent gouges—marks left by powerful claws that had frantically torn into the hard rock. It looked as if dozens of desperate people had spent their final, agonizing moments struggling against the chains, fighting with everything they had to break free from the stone altar.

My bare feet stepped backward, my toes crunching softly against a mess of shattered objects scattered across the dirt floor. Broken pottery, ancient iron tools, and ruined fabrics littered the ground in every direction, making the space look like a violent war had been fought inside the shadows. The air smelled heavily of old copper, rot, and dark magic.

*Wait... this place isn't just a regular hideout,* I thought, a wave of pure horror hitting my brain like a physical blow. *This looks exactly like a chamber used for twisted, bloody rituals. People were dragged down here by force.*

A sudden, terrifying thought clicked in my mind, making my knees tremble so violently I could barely stand. *Was she planning to chain me to that table? Was Elda trying to use my blood for one of these sick rituals?*

I couldn't bring myself to look at the gruesome stone altar for a single second longer. The crushing weight of the darkness seemed to close in around my throat. I had to get out of this nightmare immediately. My gut instincts had never lied to me before, and they were screaming at me now, reminding me of the ultimate truth—I never, ever should have trusted a single word that came out of that woman's mouth.

With a frantic snap of my thumb, I shut off the lighter, plunging the cave back into total, pitch-black darkness so no one could see me leaving. Turning on my bare heels, I launched my body forward, sprinting back toward the narrow exit path with all the speed I could muster. But panic blinded my steps. Just as I reached the bright mouth of the cave, my shoulder slammed with tremendous force into a solid, unyielding figure standing right in the middle of the opening.

The violent collision knocked the wind entirely out of my lungs, and I went flying backward, crashing painfully onto the hard gravel of the floor.

Before I could even scramble back to my feet, a bright, blinding flash of light exploded through the darkness. Three heavy tactical flashlights clicked on all at once, their brilliant white beams cutting through the air and locking directly onto my terrified face. I shielded my eyes with a trembling arm, blinking through the glare to see Elda standing right at the entrance, flanked closely by the two mysterious men in black.

A slow, cruel smirk stretched across Elda’s face as she looked down at my shivering form, her eyes glinting with a mocking amusement. "Well, well," she murmured, her voice dripping with a smooth, chilling sarcasm as she stepped closer. "It seems like someone has been trying very hard to do some sneaky spying and escaping tonight."

The sheer betrayal broke something inside me, and a wild, desperate rage took over my fear. "No! Stay away from me!" I shouted, my voice echoing loudly off the stone walls as I pushed myself off the dirt, glaring at her through a wall of angry tears. "You completely deceived me! I knew it! I knew I never should have trusted a single thing you said, you blood-forsaken liar!"

Elda didn't look angry at all; instead, she let out a soft chuckle and put on her usual, sweet smile, adjusting the sleeves of her black jacket with complete calmness. "I didn't lie to you about anything, Fedora," she countered softly, taking another slow, intimidating step into the cave. "I distinctly told you that I was going to protect your life. And right now, the absolute best way to protect you... is to protect you from your own dangerous self."

Her expression suddenly hardened, her eyes turning as cold as ice as she gestured toward the ancient stone table behind me. "Even after all the extreme measures your father and I took to bind your power, you still found a clever way to break that master bond. You are a walking time bomb. If we don't put a stop to this once and for all tonight, you will just find another way to break our restraints again in the future."

"No! I don't want anything to do with you or your sick plans!" I screamed, backing up until the rough stone wall scraped against my spine. "Just let me go! Let me leave this place!"

Elda slowly shook her head back and forth, her lips pressing into a flat, unyielding line. "I am truly sorry, my dear, but I simply cannot let you walk out of here. It is completely impossible, and it is never going to happen."

"What did I ever do to deserve this?" I demanded, my voice cracking into a broken, sobbing whisper as I pressed my hands against my chest. "I have never hurt a single innocent soul in my entire life! I have never done anything bad or wicked to anyone! So why are you doing all of these horrible things to me? Who on earth did I offend to warrant this nightmare?"

Tears of hot frustration spilled over my cheeks, blurring my vision as I gestured wildly to the dark chains around us. "What is all of this supposed to mean? You are brutally punishing me for an ancient crime that I didn't even commit, a crime that I know absolutely nothing about! I don't even understand what this stupid prophecy is about, or what the curse does to my blood! All I have ever done since the day I was born is face the horrible consequences of things I never chose!"

Elda looked down at me from the shadows, her features softening into a look of fake, unsettling pity as she reached out a hand. "You will understand everything very soon, my love," she whispered, her voice chillingly calm.

She slowly turned her head away from me, her eyes locking onto the two large, muscular men standing right beside her. Her face went completely blank as she gave them a sharp, final nod.

"Chain her up."