45
Standoff
Sometimes, winning means no one wins.
***
NERVOUSNESS, regret, doubt, and impulse: the driving factors of a thumping heart as my feet marched out of the plank as the ship touched the rocky mouth gaping on the walls of hellfire-lit Mist Canal.
To be honest, I expected it to look more secretive, discreet, or concealed. And yet, here it was, the gate of hell, widely stretching its lips to devour souls drenched in knowing filth and dirt in human’s volition.
The bittersweet notes of villainous intents fluttered across my earlobes as wind began to reject its course towards the entrance. By the line that separates hell from the rest of the world, I discovered how it felt to be feared by the winds itself.
The place was scorching hot.
As Mr. Yuan and I walked forward to
