A child-like giggle broke through the air, causing me to pause. My head whipped around the hall, trying to find the source. But all around me were wooden walls, lined with the sconces. White light flickered and shadows danced around me. Instantly, my guard rose, and I brought my dagger up. What was going on?

I took another step forward, and I felt my body relax into a combat stance. My front food slid forward, and my dagger reached out, ready to slash in a heartbeat. But as I did so, a strange feeling came over me. How did I know how to do that? I took a careful step forward and squashed the feelings. Now wasn’t the time for me to get lost into my own head.

My muscles tensed up, and my heart raced in my chest as I glanced around. So far there wasn’t anything there. But I couldn’t write it off as my imagination. That sound was too real. I took another step forward and listened carefully. But all I could hear was the sound of my heart thrumming in my chest. Step after Step, I neared the door that sat at the end of the hallway. My ears were alert, and my hands were ready to lash out. Thankfully, though, it seemed like nothing was coming.

I spun on my heel and turned my back to the wall behind me. That way, I knew for sure that I would not get jumped. I glanced down the hallway behind me and saw that all the scones had turned off, and the ones next to me were struggling to overcome the darkness that was creeping in. I took another step to the side, and I felt my leg brush against the door. Once I was satisfied, I reached out and my fingers grazed the dampened wood. It was slimy, much like the floor that I was walking on, and I was a little grossed out by it.

It took a second, since my eyes were locked on the dark hallway that led me here. But eventually, I found the metal handle. My fingers wrapped around the latch, and I pulled it back, and a heavy clank filled the air and rang in my ears. I gave the door a push and quickly covered the distance into the next room.

In the blink of an eye, I stepped into the room and surveyed everything. It was a large open area, filled with the same white lighting that had led me here. It came from the ceilings and chased away every single shred of darkness. The room was filled with what looked to be couches and chairs. But I couldn’t tell. They were covered in so much mold and mushrooms that only the shape remained.

The center of the large room contained a large fountain that was shattered down the middle. The intact half was a tiered cup system, which the lower half shaped into large bowls, that got thinner by the top. From the looks of it, I’d assume that it was once a beautiful fountain.

I pushed the door back behind me, and it closed with a heavy thud that echoed through the room. I clenched my dagger and glanced around. It would be common sense to assume that this was the central lobby because of its size. However, where was this person named Kharon at? I slouched against the wooden door for a moment as a sense of weariness filled my veins. It weighed me down immensely and in this moment I wanted to do nothing more than sleep. I took a deep breath of the musky air and pushed myself off the door. Well, as much as I want to rest, I won’t. I still needed to get to the bottom of things first.

There were a bunch of things to unpack here. First, I had a dream about a strange woman with emerald eyes. Then I wake up in a flawless bedroom that leads to a diapalated hallway. There was a note on the desk I woke up next to. The condition of the note tells me that it was placed there recently. But the rest of the area I’ve explored tells me that this place hasn’t been in use for quite some time.

This was perplexing. All things considered, it could have been a few days, or weeks, since that note was placed. But that also leads me into the most pressing question. Where the hell have I been? Again, I spiraled into more frustration. This just wasn’t fair.

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“Ah, it’s been ages since I’ve last seen that look on your face. What are you thinking about, my dear lady?” An impossibly smooth voice reached out towards me and yanked me from my thoughts. It was clearly a man’s voice. It seemed so familiar, yet I couldn’t seem to place it. My eyes snapped towards the man who had appeared from mid air.

He was clad in a flowing black cloak that seemed to twirl on the lifeless air. The hood was up, and shrouded his face in a deep darkness that even the piercing white light of the room couldn’t seem to cut through. However, a set of deep red eyes shone through the darkness that stared at me.

“Kharon I presume?” I replied as I tore myself from my stupor and gripped my dagger. I was ready to lash out if I needed to.

The man flourished, and a glove clad hand came from the depths of his cloak and it crossed the area where his chest should be. “The one and only. Now, tell me, my dear Calixa, how are you?”

The moment he replied, I felt a puzzle piece fall into place. My name was Calixa. A small shred of relief chased away some of the burden I was feeling. “I’m standing in the middle of a room I have no memory of. In front of a person who I can’t seem to remember, and in a place I don’t know. You tell me.” I leaned back against the door, blocking the view of the handle with my body. I was ready to make a run for it if I needed to.

“Since you’ve left us, I’ve watched this world change every day. I’ve seen the successor kingdoms rise and fall. I’ve watched the ruins of the capital crumble under the weight of time. Yet it seems like you are the same girl I’ve always known.” Kharon stood up, and his hand sank back into the folds of his cloak. “Though you have questions for me. Come, let us walk together, and I will answer them.”

The way he spoke to me felt so familiar. It was like a forgotten memory. No matter how much I tried to think about my time before this, I always came up blank. But his voice tugged on something that drove me nuts. I clenched the door handle for a moment longer as I pondered my choices. But eventually curiosity got the best of me, and I let it go. I needed answers, and he had them.

“Where am I?” I asked as I stepped away from the door. Though I was ready to walk with him, I was also ready to fight if needed.

“You are in the ruins of your palace, my lady. But to be further specific, you are in the capital of Asteria.” Kharon stepped back and twirled. His cloak danced in the air for a moment, before it fell back into place.

I chewed on his words as I fell in behind him. In my palace? In a country called Asteria? None of it rang a bell, yet it all seemed so familiar. “Would you believe me if I told you it didn’t ring a bell?”

The man in front of me glided across the ground. His head hardly turned my way as he spoke. “I would. It seems you have a powerful spell embedded within your soul that is cutting out your memories.” The words that came from him seemed far too relaxed for someone who just delivered some bad news.

“Well, where did that spell come from? Can I get rid of it?” Another wave of frustration built up inside of me at the new information. Why would someone want to block my memories? What did I ever do to them?

“Well, the answer is simple. The spell has your signature on it. So, you yourself are to blame. To remove it? Well, that is also simple. It’s a tiered spell, meaning that to unlock it, you only need to grow stronger. Though that begs the question. Why did you cast it on yourself?” Kharon’s smooth voice caressed my ears once more, threatening to lure me into a trance.

“If I knew that, do you really think I would ask?” Annoyance flared up with in me once more at his response.

“No, my dear Calixa. I already know the answer. Tell me, before you woke up, did you have a dream? Did you see a woman in a mask? Did she gaze at you with those piercing emerald eyes?”

I paused mid step, and I narrowed my eyes at him. How did he know about that? But before I could open my mouth, he spoke up again. “Now, again I ask you, why did you cast that spell on yourself?” He stopped and twisted his head around, and one of his glowing red eyes flickered in the darkness, much like a wink. In a heartbeat, the answer became obvious to me. That wasn’t a dream. There was something more at play, and I was going to get to the bottom of it all. No matter what it took.