The eye didn't shift or blink. It only stared, idle and silent.
I dragged in a breath through gritted teeth, the dry air scraping my throat like sandpaper. My ribs ached with each inhale, and the muscles in my limbs trembled with a distant numbness.
Around me, the plastic swords stood with an eerie stillness.
There were a myriad of different designs. No two swords looked alike. Some were entirely glossy, some had foam handles, and some looked like knock-off versions of movie props. The colors of the swords were also erratically different and unique.
The whole backyard looked like a graveyard of discarded dreams.
Still lying in the dirt, I forced myself onto my stomach and planted my palms against the ground. My arms shook as I pushed up, each movement a slow, grinding battle against my own body.
Just as I nearly got upright, a bolt of pain lanced through my legs. I collapsed with a grunt, falling back to my hands and knees.
Right as I was about to stand straight, a violent pain shot through my legs. Instantly, I buckled and fell onto my hands and knees.
Beside me, my attention was taken by the sound of a soft thud.
From the inside pocket of my jacket, something had slipped loose. It rolled once in the dirt and came to a stop near my hand.
A glowing orb.
It pulsed gently, as though breathing, and within it swirled countless colors.
I blinked at it, my mind taking a second to catch up.
'Oh, I forgot about that. The specter orb that Cacophony made.'
Reaching out my hand, I picked it up.
Earlier, I'd put it in my jacket pocket before we started running. Even in all of the chaos, somehow it didn't slip out before now.
"Argh."
Through a tinge of pain, I forced my weight down and sat with my legs crossed.
The orb sat warm in my palm, humming with a steady rhythm. I stared into its core, watching the colors swirl. Blues slid over reds, greens kissed yellows, violets blinked in and out. There was a strange unity to them. They didn't mix, didn't bleed into each other, but flowed perfectly alongside one another.
It was similar to an ever-turning kaleidoscope.
I exhaled slowly, breath rattling as it left my lungs. The intense pain in my legs slowly dulled to a throb.
Every nerve in my body urged caution. I didn't feel safe. I didn't feel stable. But for the first time in what felt like hours, the chaos around me wasn't demanding my immediate attention. Nothing was chasing. Nothing was cracking open or unraveling. The eye watched, yes—but it did not move.
I didn't trust this stillness. I knew better than to believe it would last. But in this moment, the sheer act of pausing felt like defiance.
So I allowed myself to relax a little. I wouldn't call it a proper rest, but I needed a moment to breathe.
Though I didn't feel safe or comfortable, I allowed myself to relax just a little.
I prefer to think of it as a small act of defiance, but the real reason was far less elegant.
If I ignored the screaming ache in my bones, the weight dragging at my limbs—
'Something inside me might snap... I really might break...'
I raised my eyes toward the sky.
The eye hadn't moved.
It still watched from above, a motionless sentinel.
'What's stopping you from killing us right now? Why won't you act?'
The thought drifted into my mind, but I had no answer for it. I also had no clue how we could escape from this situation. Our plan had failed. Instead of ripping apart the subspace, we awakened the guardian of this accursed place.
At least, that's what I'd assumed that ungodly creature staring down at us was. I had no way of being sure.
It appeared so suddenly, but it's more likely that it's been here from the beginning.
That made the most sense.
Its presence was the apparent cause of my intense bleeding, but my nose had bled earlier.
At that time, I'd written it off as some minor, unimportant occurrence, but now I realize that that thing most likely caused it.
Even before the sky cracked open, as the creature slept, its sleeping presence still affected my body.
My gaze lingered on the eye's iris.
That's when I noticed it.
Within the iris, a myriad of colors spiraled beneath the surface.
Swirling slowly in a messy, strange pattern just beyond comprehension.
Yes, it was just like the orb that I held.
While they weren't identical, the similarity was far too great to be ignored.
I leaned forward slightly, holding the orb higher, matching it against the sky. As I compared the two, I became even more certain of their connection.
There was definitely something there. If I somehow managed to figure it out, then that might be the one clue that we needed.
That'll be the breakthrough that we need to get out of this dire spot. Somehow, this single clue will be the key.
Just like in a storybook.
Somehow.
Suddenly, a voice cut through the air.
"It's the same", Cacophony said.
Her tone was as calm and imperious as always, but there was no mistaking the wear in her voice.
She was still sitting beside me, one hand clutching her wounded side. Blood soaked her palm and dripped down her hip in small red beads. Both of her arms were covered in gashes and lesions from the spell that she'd cast earlier. Now, just like me, she'd been covered in blood.
Her eyelids sat half closed as harsh breaths escaped her lungs.
Even through it all, her sharp ruby eyes showed no signs of faltering.
"I'd misjudged it at first," she continued, tilting her head to look up at the sky. "But now I'm certain. I know what happened to this place. I know why all of those people vanished."
I glanced at her, slowly, and I lowered both of my arms back down to my sides. My lips parted slightly, but ultimately I had nothing to say.
The question of what had happened to the people who once lived here was something that I'd brushed under the rug. I figured it was something that we wouldn't need to worry about until after we'd left the subspace.
That way, I'd also be able to forget about it and go on thinking that the people had simply been whisked away to some unknown place. Then, after we escaped, there might've been a chance that the people who once lived here would be freed from wherever it was that they vanished off to.
'The Vanished.'
I wasn't sure when it was that I coined the term in my mind. The term sounded far more bleak than I'd intended. But, then again, the name itself also showed a small hope when looked at from a different angle.
Something that's vanished has a chance of returning.
Maybe that was why I settled on that name. That fragile hope.
The idea that this wasn't the end for those unlucky enough to inhabit this street. That they weren't gone for good, just hidden. Lost and waiting to be saved.
I closed my eyes and nodded my head.
It was better to keep that line of thinking over some bleak alternative.
Cacophony's eyes didn't leave the sky. Her expression was blank.
There was tenseness in my chest as I awaited her next words.
From her demeanor, I had a feeling that she already knew the words she wanted to say. Still, for an unknown reason, she didn't give them to me immediately. In her mind, she was deciding something.
She wasn't mulling over clues or pondering, after all, she already had the solution. Whatever she was deciding, it was likely for my sake... and that made me even more tense.
But then, without fanfare or hesitation:
"All the people who lived here and all those who lived in the places where the Null Streets passed through before now—"
She inhaled.
"—they've all been devoured."
Her words struck me like cold water.
"Devoured?" I repeated. A chill ran through my spine, branching out to every inch of my body.
I stared at her, hoping—no, praying—that I'd misunderstood the meaning of her words. That there was some dramatic clarification coming. Some technicality I'd missed. Some clever exception that would relieve me of the emotion gripping my heart.
But she gave me no such relief.
She didn't sugarcoat or brace me for impact. It was all the plain truth.
In response to my question, Cacophony nodded once, slowly.
Cacophony spoke in a slow and deliberate tone, ensuring that every sound that came from her mouth, every movement of her body, could be understood perfectly.
"The Null Streets is not a mobile spell as I'd assumed. As I mentioned beforehand, that would've been an extremely difficult task, and so our enemy went with a different approach. Instead of a spell, something alive has infected and altered this street."
I grimaced as she spoke.
A detail that I'd ignored sprang to the forefront of my mind.
'When I touched the invisible wall earlier, I felt a pulse coming from inside it.'
Before, I didn't think it was that big of a deal. I didn't really get what was happening anyway, so I pushed past it, but now the indication was clear. I should've taken that as a sign.
Cacophony tilted her head down and met my gaze.
"A ghost. That's what's truly haunting this street."
With her free hand that had been resting in the dirt, Cacophony pointed toward the orb.
"Earlier, I mentioned the specters were lesser ghosts, but allow me to explain the key difference."
I nodded my head.
"Specters are remnants," she said. "Fragments of emotion. They are regrets that slipped loose at the moment of death and took shape. The souls that they had once spawned from are now gone. What remains of those souls is merely a memory of the dead's desires that may never be fulfilled. Specters cannot be considered alive."
The orb pulsed gently in my hand, as if listening. I stared at it intensely as Cacophony spoke.
"But ghosts," Cacophony continued, her eyes returning to the sky, "they are very different. Unlike specters, they are closer to being whole."
Whole?
I glanced at Cacophony with a confused expression.
She shifted uncomfortably, but it wasn't caused by my staring at her. I wasn't sure what was causing it, but she seemed to be getting more tired... Like her body was being drained of energy.
She took a breath, shallow and wet with pain.
"To become a ghost, a soul must die in the grip of such immense regret that it refuses to move on. The strength of that regret acts like an anchor, binding the rest of its soul to this world. So, unlike a specter, a ghost has a soul of its own and can be considered alive."
Cacophony raised a hand to her temple. As she did, I noticed something. Her skin, already pale, was losing its glow, and strands of her crimson hair clung to her forehead with sweat.
'Was she that sweaty a few minutes ago?'
"That is why ghosts hold a certain level of intellect... and also why ghosts are so dangerous." She continued. "Remember this lesson: all power in this world comes from a single source. Its possibilities are endless, and its limits virtually nonexistent. It is what creates the very breath of life for all creatures that walk this earth, even the gods themselves."
I tensed as I clung to her words.
Her ruby eyes gleamed with seriousness, and her beautiful features, though dirtied, expressed a shocking sense of clarity.
"The soul. That is the source of strength for everything that exists in this world. With it, the impossible becomes possible."
Cacophony lowered her hand and rested it on her lap. Her eyes—though dimmer than before—still held their terrifying clarity.
"And ghosts," she went on, voice thinning to a rasp, "not only have a soul, but are beings made entirely of spiritual energy."
The orb in my hand pulsed once more, its glow casting a soft shimmer against the crusted blood on my fingers.
"That's why they come in all kinds of forms," she continued. "Some wear the face they had in life. Others twist into nightmares that reflect their pain or their obsession. Some are massive—towering, grotesque things, while others are nearly invisible, whispering voices in the dark."
She gestured vaguely at the air around us.
"And each one carries a power unlike the last. Their regrets shape them. Mold them. Twist their very existence into something far different than when they were alive. Each ghost is born with a unique array of abilities. Some can walk through walls. Some can fire off powerful blasts of energy..."
Her voice dipped.
"And... some suck the life out of neighborhoods and warp entire streets into self-contained prisons... like this one."
I swallowed hard and glanced around the backyard again—the stillness of the swords, the suffocating air, the unchanging eye above. All of it suddenly came into focus.
My hands trembled.
Cacophony went on, slow and certain.
"I doubt a ghost this powerful simply appeared overnight. Most likely, our enemy discovered this ghost in its infancy and recognized its potential. They then fed it souls. Over and over again. Each time it consumed someone's soul, it grew stronger. Over time, its form itself began to shift, and eventually, it became what we see today... An unimaginable horror capable of destroying entire settlements of people."
Up in the sky, the horrific eye stared down at us with seething resentment. Distrubingly beautiful hues danced within its iris as a brutal brand sat in its sclera.
That brand... That childish mark... If Cacophony was right, it was left there by her mystery enemy.
Was that their way of taming the ghost and asserting their ownership?
I spoke in a worried, low voice. "And the people who lived here? When you say that they were devoured... You mean that their souls were eaten by this ghost..."
Cacophony didn't respond immediately. For a long time, she just stared up at the eye in the sky.
Then, softly:
"Yes, that's exactly what I mean. After the ghost grew strong enough to haunt settlements, the master likely didn't bother to monitor it any longer. They no longer needed to after all. The ghost could fulfill its main purpose, hiding my coffin from the wider world, and grow stronger by devouring souls without any input from them... To explain the moving of the Null Streets over time, either the master comes back every so often to move it themselves, or the ghost is capable of moving on its own."
A long silence stretched between us after that.
I closed both of my eyes.
The neighbors. The kids. The strange family whose child got accepted into FIU and went wild decorating their home. The happy stranger showing off their personality by setting up a cat-themed mailbox. And all of the others.
They're all gone.
Eaten by this thing.
Swallowed into the belly of something incomprehensible whilst never understanding what was happening.
Struggling hopelessly as the essence of their very lives was forced out of their hands.
My stomach churned, but nothing came up. My body didn't have enough left in it to retch.
And then, like puzzle pieces slotting into place, the realization struck me:
"We're inside it," I said aloud.
Right now, the subspace that we were trapped within was far more than a simple loop. Cacophony had mentioned that there was likely a set of rules that governed the space. Even if this place was created by a ghost and not a spell, the general idea remained the same.
Up until now, I'd been focused solely on the rule regarding the looping, but there was something else far more horrifying working in the background.
As I thought, a fit of coughs suddenly overtook me.
I coughed wildly into the palm of my hand, and when I removed it, what I saw confirmed my suspicions even more.
My palm was covered in blood.
The second rule governing this space regarded the devouring of souls. In short, any creature within this space will have its soul slowly digested.
Like the looping, it's a passive effect that is always active, but when the ghost awakens, the digestion speeds up.
The evidence would be the side effects of having your soul slowly eaten, the strange pressure, and the internal bleeding.
Once more, I gazed upward and saw the eye of what I now knew to be a ghost. Now, though, I think I understood a bit more of what it was thinking underneath its glossy pupil.
"It's not even worth it... It doesn't have to break whatever rule has been set upon it... As long as we stay here... We'll be digested."
That had to be the case; otherwise, I wouldn't still be coughing up blood. Even with the backyard's protection, we weren't completely safe.
It only lessened the power of the ghost to a manageable amount, but it didn't completely cancel it.
Cacophony glanced over at me, but I wasn't really speaking to her. Still, she did nothing to disprove my statement, which meant that it was true.
I clutched my hair, teeth grinding together.
How?
How could a situation as bad as ours somehow manage to get even worse?
The truth of our situation was far worse than anything I'd thought up.
From the very start, from the moment that we exited the graveyard, we were trapped on a street haunted by a vile ghost. The ghost's ability allowed it to loop the street we were walking on infinitely. Combined with the fact that over time it could devour any soul within its domain, that ghost was a truly unstoppable foe.
Even if you thought of a way to outsmart it and break free, that wouldn't be enough. All that managed to do was awaken the slumbering ghost's consciousness and lead to an even more direct attack.
And then, that led to this mess.
Effectively, we were trapped within this backyard without anywhere else to run to. If we tried to leave, the eye would erase us with its heavenly light. If we stayed in place, we'd be digested and have our souls eaten.
An unwinnable battle.
That's all this ever was.
All of this—every sick twist—was orchestrated by the enemy Cacophony spoke of.
They were the one who crafted this trap.
The kind of enemy who didn't need to lift a finger to kill you. A sick and cunning opponent that left no room for error.
They'd rigged the game so utterly in their favor that anyone who played could only be called an ignorant fool.
And now, a pair of ignorant fools had waltzed right in. Acting big and bad without anything to back it up.
Loss was the only possible outcome for us.
Cacophony suddenly spoke again, her voice slicing through the despair in my chest like a blade of ice.
"Stop looking so pathetic."
She shifted with a wince, blood now painting a line down her thigh, dripping from the tears in her side. Her pale fingers trembled slightly as she pushed a strand of blood-matted hair from her face.
"If you're going to die," she said, "then die with dignity. Not like some whimpering animal in the dirt."
My jaw clenched. I stared at her, wanting to argue, but I didn't have the will even to do that.
Whatever words I could've said were stuck in my throat.
Cacophony glanced at me with narrowed eyes.
She leaned forward and extended her arm. In a swift motion, she grabbed my collar and pulled me closer.
Soon, we were so close that our foreheads touched.
I stared into her eyes, two pure red vortexes.
Cacophony's breath fanned across my face, hot and shallow, but her grip on my collar remained unshakable.
Her voice trembled, not from fear, but from the weight of purpose behind every syllable. "This very world will soon be within my palm. My words hold more weight than you can imagine. From the moment that I declare it, it becomes true. And, I have already said that we will escape. That's it. That's all there is to it."
The words slapped me harder than her glare ever could.
I blinked, stunned into stillness. Her blood smeared across my collar. Her body was trembling. Even ignoring the anemic light beaming down on us, her face was terribly pale. Her breaths were weak.
It's like she was dying...
So then, why?
Why does she have so much determination?
I wanted to scream and flail.
This was it; there was no point in fighting anymore. We'd lost, and this terrible enemy had won. They'd crafted the game and played their pieces to perfection. None the wiser to their genius, we'd tried our best and lost.
That's right, I couldn't do anything.
I'm a weakling, a mundane, everyday human.
I should scream and flail and cry and curl up in a ball.
And what did the grand Empress do to try and inspire me? She spoke meaningless words without anything to back them up.
There had been no magic in her words, no charm or spell. Just conviction—raw, blood-soaked, and undeniable. She, who had spent decades alone in a coffin, who had woken in a world she no longer recognized, who had every right to despair more than anyone—
Was choosing not to.
I couldn't think of any deeper meaning or logic to it. Maybe it was simply the will of the strong trumping any and all situations.
'That's just something that people are born with. Not all of us were lucky enough to be graced with such conviction.'
"So that's it, then..." I muttered, voice thin as paper. "Checkmate in two moves. Trapped in the belly of a ghost. Surrounded. No exits. No tricks left. No backup coming. Even so, you won't give up... because you simply don't want to."
How foolish. There wasn't a single ounce of logic in her words. She was the one who explained the true nature of our situation, and yet she refused to acknowledge the obvious conclusion from all of that information.
God, it was so obvious that even a toddler could've understood it.
We're going to hopelessly die here.
Dying a dog's death.
I continued to ponder the Empress's words and became more irritated.
It was absurd. Insulting, even.
To stare down something ancient and incomprehensible, in a situation so hopeless that the very concept of hope was rendered null and void, and declare that escape was inevitable. As if it were just a matter of deciding it. Like that was all it would take to ensure victory.
She was delusional. She had to be.
There was no way that she could believe such a foolish and naive idea.
But her hand still clutched my collar. Still held me close. And her eyes—those damned eyes—never wavered. They reflected a determination that put the eye staring down at us to shame.
I couldn't even look at them directly; I forced myself to look away.
In response, Cacophony pressed herself even closer. Our noses smooshed against one another.
'I've never been this close to another person in my entire life...'
She was invading my personal space, my area, in order to infect me with her folly.
Her message was clear, even without words.
'Look at me.'
A simple declaration.
I grimaced, but I had to obey. Even as I cursed every word that came from the Empress's lips, I couldn't ignore her. Some called me to her, forcing me to acknowledge her presence and command.
Shakily, I shifted my gaze and peered at what was right in front of me.
Two circles of gemlike crimson that took in everything that existed in the world in a display of absolute averice. They gleamed and shone even in the dead grey illumination. They refused all deterrents and remained beautiful.
'Dazzling... Annoyingly dazzling...'
"Are you even listening to yourself?" I said quietly. "We lost before the game even started. We walked into a trap built by something that sees us as insects. It's already won, so give it up... We're just dragging out the ending."
My voice cracked as I said it, and I hated that. It was pathetic and sad. I showed no resolve. There wasn't any strength in my words.
Cacophony didn't reply.
Her silence dug into me more than any insult could have. She was still right there, forehead against mine, breathing slow and shallow, bleeding freely—and yet she said nothing.
Because she didn't need to.
She'd already said it all.
Saying any more would've been a waste of breath. A folly beneath an Empress.
I ground my teeth.
'Don't look at me that way... What do you expect from me? I can't do it, I just can't! Mindlessly believing in your words. Clinging to some dim hope...'
I spoke softly, attempting to vocalize the dark swirl in my mind, "You're insane..."
She didn't reply, but I didn't expect her to.
Should I be feeling some strong urge to survive right about now? Is that normal for most people?
Panic? Desperation? That clawing instinct to keep breathing, to cling to life no matter what. Is that how I should be feeling in this moment?
Within me... That feeling is small and fleeting... Within my chest, there's something hollow... Am I missing something? No, there's no way. Other people have it far worse than I do, and they're just fine... So, that must mean that I'm complete. I'm fine. Perfectly fine.
Then I should be feeling all of those emotions, right? I should fight to survive and see another day.
I was doing fine before when I was running around with the Empress. That counts, doesn't it? Even if I was just going with the flow. Even if I was just getting swept along. At least I did something, right?
...
Really, though, I just... I can't... Even if I got up and kept fighting... What would come of it?
I should fight so that I can go back to my normal life... Back to school... Back to empty afternoons and dinners eaten in silence.... Back to a crappy house where I live alone... Back to the nothingness of my days, where joy is small and fleeting.
What kind of life have I been living until now?
I've yearned for more and never gotten anything of value. Joy comes in brief, diluted flashes, and even those feel borrowed. Every smile is weak and thin, and every hope has an expiration date.
Actually, my life doesn't have any kind of anchor.
In my mind, I don't have any memory or face that makes me want to scream, 'I want to live!'
'What about that girl from the bench on my walk to school. We talk sometimes... But, isn't that just me bothering her with my nonsense? She's nice, so she won't tell me off, but that doesn't mean she enjoys my rambling.'
'What about Charlotte? We've been in the same class since elementary school... And yet, not once have we had a proper conversation... The only times we talk are when she has to chew me out for something dumb.'
'What about my neighbors or classmates? Maybe someone from a store I frequent? How about some stranger online?'
My eyes widened.
When I think about it, I don't have much connection to anything on this earth... This world doesn't hold much worth to me.
I don't have any roots.
I don't have any loves.
I don't have any deep purpose that compels me.
There isn't anything precious.
As I stared deep into her ruby eyes, I was left with nothing. My arms hung loosely at my sides as I was left empty.
I stared at nothing. I thought about nothing.
And yet—
As if hearing every thought unravel in my skull, Cacophony exhaled, slow and steady. Her breath ghosted across my lips, warm despite how deathly pale she looked.
And then, quietly—like a verdict passed down from a higher force—she spoke.
"You have me."
The words stopped the chaos in my mind like a slammed door. I blinked.
Her voice didn't rise. She remained calm and regal.
"I thought it was obvious and went without saying, but I'll voice it anyway. From this moment forward," she continued, "Veri, you are no longer alone."
She pressed her forehead harder against mine, blood slipping from her brow to mine like a seal. Her eyes bore into me—not with kindness, not even understanding, but with pure, ironclad conviction.
"I don't care what this world gave you. Or failed to. It doesn't matter what joy it denied you, what meaning it kept from your grasp. Your past is unimportant to me. I only see what stands before me, right now, in this instant."
My breath hitched.
"I'm not the world," she said, voice sharp as glass. "I am your Empress. And if you cannot find anything precious to fight for, if even after straining your mind you cannot find anything of value, then fight for me."
The absurdity of it burned in my chest like acid. My first instinct was to scoff, to flinch away, to shove her off of me and curse her for thinking I could be that kind of person.
But I didn't move. My entire being was being pierced by her ruby stare.
"Veri! Follow me! Give yourself to me! Dedicate yourself to me, and I will show you a world far grander than anything you imagine. I will show you a world that gleams and shines effortlessly! A world worthy of fighting for and protecting!"
"You're insane," I whispered again, barely audible.
Cacophony's lips curled—not into a smile, but something more dangerous.
"That's perfectly fine. From my point of view, you're just as crazed."
We sat silently for a breath, Cacophony's gaze filled with expectation.
It wasn't an expectation leaning one way or another. There was no pressure placed upon me as to how I would reply. Both 'yes' and 'no' were equally valid options.
All she wanted, all that she expected, was a response to her words. A declaration of what I would do.
And for a long while, a silence hung in the air.
...
It was broken by a loud, booming laugh.
A wild, cracked sound that tore itself from my chest without permission. It felt like someone had set fire to my ribs. Pain flared through me, raw and electric.
Cacophony's eyes widened. Her grip slackened. She pulled back just slightly as I raised a trembling hand to my face.
Pulling back, I covered my face with my hand. I dragged it slowly down, clawing at my skin like I could tear the fear away.
My heart stuttered as the wind picked up slightly, rustling the blades of grass around us.
In the face of the Empress, who hadn't broken yet, I had no choice in my next actions.
"I'm crazed, huh? I almost forgot that fact. Charlotte has called me crazy more times than I can count, but I totally forgot!"
My shoulders were trembling, and my fingers were so sweaty that I could hardly hold onto the orb I'd been clutching. But those were barely even details worth mentioning.
"I've lost before, you know. I've lost games, fights, exams... but this...?"
I uncrossed my legs, a drop of blood dripping down from my nose.
"This is not how I go out."
I forced myself upright, even as every fiber in my body told me to stay down. I drew myself up like a puppet yanked by its strings. I raised my chin. Straightened my spine.
"In the name of every neighbor that got swallowed up. Every family that vanished. Every stray soul lost in this monster's gut—"
I grinned through bloodied teeth, letting the madness slip back in.
"—The two of us are not going to vanish."