The long corridor Sofia had just walked through finally ended at a wide fissure hanging over an abyss in the underworld. Dark red light brushed across her face as the scorching wind of hell curled gently through her golden hair, making it gleam in the shadows.
Sofia stood tall at the edge, her eyes tracing the scene before her jagged black stones, twisted obsidian arches like bent bones, and the remains of massive structures that once seemed inhabited by demons.
In the far distance, a castle towered.
The structure was vast, majestic… and silent.
Its walls were made of layered black glass, reflecting the crimson glow like rippling infernal water. But among that gleam were cracks. Impact marks. Deep gouges like something far greater than any demon had raked its claws across them.
Sofia stepped forward.
Each of her steps left tiny blossoms of golden light on the dark ground, blooming briefly before fading away.
