It never came. Instead, I felt wind rush over my body as a loud bang rang out in the temple's courtyard. I couldn't tell what was happening. Then I felt a large and familiar hand place itself on my shoulder. From that hand came a warm sensation that slowly made its way through my body, healing me. It made me feel unbearably itchy as my shattered bones removed themselves from my lungs, allowing me to breathe properly again. I could finally move, albeit only slightly. It was progress, though. I looked up and saw my father crouching next to me, his usually calm face twisted in a mask of pure rage. He wasn't even looking at me. His stare was boring into the statue that was struggling on the ground, the statue that had once toyed with me, the one that had shown me the reality of my situation. It was laughable, really. This statue, which had once been an object of terror for me, was now struggling in the same way that I had been moments prior.
I watched as it unsteadily made its way back to its feet and started towards my father in some desperate attempt to catch him off guard while he was healing me. It hadn't even taken three steps before my father had disappeared from my side, the heat from his palm still lingering. He had appeared directly in front of the statue, catching it off guard, and threw another punch at its cracked face. The punch connected with a deafening crack as the statue's helmet fully shattered, revealing its face. I couldn't see it well, but it seemed like it resembled the face of the eyeless head, which had once held the blindfold tied to my wrist. The only real difference I could see was the fact that it had eyes this time. They were carved deep into the white stone of her face and inlaid with onyx gemstones in place of her irises. That was all I could see, though, as my father's fist had already slammed into her chest, sending her flying backwards again.
"How dare a mere state of a dead god hurt my son!" I heard my father yell, his voice booming out louder than any blow, shaking my body to its very core. I had never seen him this angry before. I didn't even realise how powerful he was. He was like a terrifying force of nature that had taken a human form. Soon I saw a green aura flicker to life, wreathing my father, and I watched him step on the air, and it seemed to obey him, forming a foothold and allowing him to shoot forward like a bullet. His other foot fell, landing on another invisible foothold, taking him higher as if the world itself wanted to give aid to my father's wrath. The statue didn't even have the time to stand up as my father had arrived with his leg out, letting his foot slam into its face. It slammed into the ground again, the crater around it growing deeper with each blow it took. A twisted mix of glee and disappointment welled up from the depths of my stomach, reaching up through my body and to my mouth. I let out a small, almost inaudible giggle that made me feel dirty. It was a feeling that was utterly foreign to me. Before I could think about it further, I heard something shatter and saw that deep in the crater my father had obliterated the shield the statue had been weakly holding in front of its face.
My father was saying something, but I couldn't hear it over the cracking of the floor and the sounds of his blows raining down on the statue. He wasn't yelling anymore either, which was arguably even scarier than if he were. I tried to pull myself closer to the scene to catch a bit of what my dad was saying, but I couldn't move my arms or legs. They still seemed to be shattered. At this point, I didn't even want to hear what he was saying; I just wanted to relish the statue's suffering. I wanted to watch the movements and struggles of the statue slowly cease as the 'life' drained out of it. In fact, I wished I was the one who could finish the stupid construct off, but all I could do was lie there and watch as my father slowly dismantled it piece by piece, not even bothering to bring out his weapon. His fist slammed through the statue's last remaining leg, and I think the statue knew it was over at that point. It had given up; it wasn't even bothering to put up a fight, and honestly, it pissed me off.
With one final blow, my dad's fist went straight through its face, causing it to shatter into dust and letting his hand slam into the ground behind it. He wasn't even breathing heavily as he lifted his body up, still straddling the top of the now inanimate statue's torso. He slowly got up from the ground and gave the statue one last kick, for good measure. I watched, enthralled, as he made his way back over to me and picked me up. I felt the warm mana continue flowing from his hands and flood into my body, healing me once again. "Are you okay, kiddo?" I heard him ask, his eyes, once filled with boundless rage, now looking at me with deep concern. I honestly didn't even have the energy to speak, so I just nodded numbly in response. He smiled, I assume to help me calm down, but I could see that it never reached his eyes. He was incredibly worried, and for good reason. I had almost died because of my stubbornness and my impatience. I had gotten incredibly lucky that my father had somehow found me… Actually, that begs the question: how did he know I was in danger, and how did he find me? He was walking to the door when this thought crossed my mind, and before I could even think the question through, my mouth had opened.
"Hey Dad… How did you find me?" It just slipped out, causing him to look down at my face.
"Huh?" he replied before continuing, "Didn't you know?"
"Know… what?"
"That most big families put trackers on their kids' smartwatches that keep track of their locations, vitals, and the noises around them and alert their families when they're in trouble." That shocked me. I honestly don't remember writing that into my novel. I mean, looking back on it, it made sense. This world was incredibly dangerous. Mirror Challenges could appear anywhere, so knowing where your kid was and if they were okay was probably a bare minimum safety precaution for most families, not just the important ones. I just nodded in response. I was too tired to do anything else now. The last thing I could remember before my eyes slid shut was my dad kicking the temple gates open and stepping through them, basking me in the light of the afternoon sun.