Gu Ma laughed softly as she stood in the ruined chamber, the sound echoing unnaturally through the broken stone and twisted roots that had grown over the place.
"So it ends like this," she said with a satisfied smile. "Lan Meiling. The great holder of Imperial Qi. Reduced to nothing by a simple servant of family."
She turned her gaze toward the angel.
The angel was bound to a tall black pole planted into the ground like a stake. Her hands were nailed above her head, forcing her wings to spread wide. Feathers stained with blood hung limply, twitching now and then as if reacting to pain that never ended.
Her head drooped forward, slightly disfigured golden hair clinging to her face, breath shallow but stubbornly alive.
Gu Ma walked closer, her footsteps splashing softly against the shallow water that had flooded the hall.
"An angel," Gu Ma murmured. "A real one. Who would have thought this world would offer me such a gift."
