Even after we crossed the portal — or whatever that thing truly was —, I remained dazed. The feeling that overtook me before passing through that liquid barrier was still intense, as if it had sunk deep into my being.
It was something hard to describe, almost impossible to put into words. Honestly, I doubt anyone could understand without having experienced it themselves.
If I had to describe it in any way, I would say it's like holding a taut rope over an abyss—and in the end, the choice of letting go or holding on always depends on you. Somehow, my instinct decided to grab it, as if it already knew that was the only option.
Honestly, I can't even explain exactly what happened. I just have a strong feeling that this is connected to the new anomalous power I've acquired. The problem is, I still have no idea what it really does.
At first, I thought it had opened a portal to an alternate dimension, different from the one I'd been in until then. However, I quickly discarded that idea, as something inside me told me it wasn't that simple.
There was a greater complexity, something that defied conventional explanation. If I had to describe it based only on what I felt when crossing over, I'd say that it wasn't a new dimension, but rather the very reality I had always lived in — and yet, somehow, different.
However, everything had turned into something I couldn't control, even though I was the one who held the rope that somehow could've taken us to that place. Incredibly contradictory, I know, but honestly, what could I do? I'm not an experienced anomaly, and I haven't even completed six months on this path yet.
I gently looked up at the sky, letting various thoughts intertwine in my mind. Although Victor and Arthur were talking behind me, I decided to ignore them for the moment, searching for some kind of clarity.
"Haaa..." Victor sighed, his exhaustion evident in every word: "Why is it that strange things always happen when the [Angel of Death] is around? Is she some kind of magnet for trouble or something?"
As soon as Victor's words reached my ears, I turned toward him. My face, as always, remained impassive, not showing any emotion. However, when he noticed my gaze and turned toward me, I saw a slight tremor in his body.
Well, I guess he finally understood how rude it was to call me a "Magnet for problems" especially considering he's the one who seems to attract dangerous situations all the time.
Arthur didn't respond immediately to Victor's words. He seemed lost in thought, his eyes fixed on the sun burning above us, its flames intensifying the destruction around us. My Alter Ego continued to beat its powerful wings, pushing us upward as we slowly flew over the city, now in ruins.
The scene below was a portrait of chaos, buildings collapsing, streets devastated, everything in a state of complete desolation. The flight seemed to be the only stable thing amidst the storm. My Alter Ego guided us toward the top of the building where the flower was supposed to be... or at least, that's what we believed.
However, as we got closer, the sight that appeared was bleak. What had once been an imposing building was now just a pile of rubble, destroyed by the serpents that had ravaged everything in their path, leaving nothing but ruins and devastation behind.
While my attention was focused on the building, a voice suddenly came through Victor's communicators, which had somehow come back to life and returned to his ear.
He was surprised to hear the sound and touched the communicators cautiously, probably recalling what had happened the last time: "Victor? Can you hear me?"
"Emily... is it really you... this time?" Victor asked cautiously, his voice tense as he touched the communicator in his ear with a slight hesitation.
"What the hell do you mean by that?" Emily asked, confusion evident in her voice. Her eyes narrowed as she continued: "I should be the one asking that. Suddenly, you just disappeared, and I couldn't locate you at all. What the hell happened?" Concern and discomfort were clear in her expression, while perplexity seemed to be reflected in her words.
Victor let out a deep sigh, the sound of air escaping his lungs echoing through the surroundings. His gaze shifted to the sky, as if searching for some answer or relief.
When he spoke, his voice was noticeably calmer, a clear contrast to the agitated tone he had before: "Cut me some slack" he said, his shoulders relaxing: "I had a near-death experience just a few minutes ago, all because of these communicators"
Emily, on the other end, remained silent, clearly overwhelmed by confusion: "...?"
Ignoring the incident, Victor turned to Arthur and soon noticed his distant look. Furthermore, Arthur was strangely silent, with a confused expression on his face, as if he were lost in his own thoughts.
Intrigued by the sudden change, Victor stared at him for a moment before asking: "Why did you suddenly go so quiet? Did something happen?"
My gaze naturally shifted to Arthur. Honestly, I was curious too. Besides, Arthur was definitely the brains of the three of us. No offense, but Victor, being more muscular, didn't stand out so much intellectually.
Of course, I wasn't saying he was dumb or anything, just that, when it came to complicated matters like anomalies, he preferred to leave it to the experts, trusting others' judgment.
"...You know, Victor, maybe you're not that wrong" Arthur commented, turning his gaze toward me, as if weighing his words before letting them out.
I did the same and stared at him, trying to understand what was going on. I mean, why the hell were they suddenly so against me? Saying I was a magnet for trouble? Honestly, I didn't feel responsible for the things that happened since I became an anomaly. Sure, I'd been at the center of two events that almost led to the extinction of the planet, but I'm absolutely sure I wasn't to blame for any of it.
I felt Victor about to say something, his lips moving slowly, as if he were trying to form a word. But before any sound could escape his throat, a deafening roar reverberated around us, cutting the air like sharp blades.
The moment my eyes turned, even though I knew I didn't really need to look, something colossal shot toward us with unnatural speed.
The creature, an abomination, looked like a wolf, but its skin was entirely made of volcanic rock, black and cracked, with fissures from which blazing flames emerged, as if its flesh was a cauldron of magma.
The enormous beast opened its mouth, revealing rows of teeth as sharp as stalactites, and with a brutal motion, it grabbed the head of my Alter Ego, transformed into a Wyvern, its jaws sinking with a terrifying snap, as if it wanted to crush his soul along with his body.
Abruptly, we were thrown away from my Alter Ego and began plummeting again in a dizzying free fall. However, this time, the ground was inescapable, a dark and relentless abyss closing in mercilessly.
I briefly glanced up, seeing my Alter Ego being dragged by a massive magma wolf, its fiery claws tearing apart the buildings around, leaving behind a trail of destruction.
The monster's roar echoed, reverberating through the city as the buildings crumbled under the brute force of its fury. There was no longer any illusion of help coming from there, and it all seemed like just another part of the game. The imminent impact? Just another step toward what was to come next.
I didn't have much time to think, so I did what came to mind without hesitation. It was something I'd never done before, and I didn't even know if I'd be able to pull it off, but the thought of letting Victor and Arthur be shattered against the cold concrete didn't leave me any room to consider another option.
The action came almost like a reflex, as if it was the only logical response to the imminent chaos. I wasn't afraid; I just knew that if I did nothing, their fate would be sealed irreversibly.
I quickly focused my senses on the shadows that Arthur and Victor were casting as we plummeted toward the ground. Using my ability, I opened a portal in Victor's shadow, a simple, almost automatic process, like something I'd done countless times before.
However, when I tried to do the same with Arthur's shadow, something peculiar happened. I felt the portal in Victor's shadow slowly closing, as if it were being pulled back, while at the same time, Arthur's shadow began to open.
In short, I was trying to open a portal in both shadows simultaneously, aiming to take them to the world of shadows. But whenever I tried to open one portal, the other would automatically begin to close.
As we neared the ground, I realized I needed more concentration to keep both portals open. At one point, I noticed that by trying to open both at the same time and gradually expand them, the process seemed to work. I decided to stick with this path, keeping my focus and precision.
Just before we collided with the ground, I managed to open both portals with precision. Arthur and Victor had their hands raised in front of their faces, probably in an instinctive attempt to protect themselves, but of course, that wouldn't change the outcome.
However, before their bodies hit the ground, both were swallowed by the portals, passing through them as if the ground didn't exist. In the blink of an eye, they were thrown directly into the world of shadows I had created.
Well… on the other hand, I was already struggling to open two portals, and the idea of opening three was simply impossible. My body, without bones or organs, was a malleable mass, seeming to melt under the pressure.
When I finally hit the cold asphalt of the street, a wave of tension ran through what was left of me, as if the impact had caused a distortion within my own form.
And in the next second, I spread out on the ground, my soft substance sprawling into a shapeless heap, with no resistance, like a pudding falling from a great height.
The scene, grotesque and inevitable, was like a formless substance crashing against the concrete, completely out of control. I was the pudding, crushed, without structure, unrecognizable.
I didn't feel any pain. The sensation of having my body smashed was strange, but somehow it didn't bother me. I was there, without any feeling except that strangeness, as if my body had disconnected from everything around me. How can I explain it? I didn't care that much. Maybe the fact that I didn't feel pain made me a little numb, or maybe it just made me more distant from situations like that.
Both portals closed exactly when I splattered on the ground. Well, I already knew that would happen. The opening of the portals depended on my concentration, and I can't say I had the slightest chance of keeping focus after smashing against the asphalt.
However, before I could even think about what to do, I felt a surge of energy run through my body, and soon it started to regenerate, as if the destroyed parts were reconnecting almost instantly.
Piece by piece, my body began to recombine, as if returning to its former shape. My face, which had been completely disfigured, slowly regained its familiar features, soft and pleasant to the touch.
The process didn't take even two minutes. In an instant, I was smashed on the ground, completely vulnerable; in the next, I was sitting, with my usual look—normally indifferent—while reflecting on the madness of the sensation of having my body crushed against the asphalt, with some parts completely shattered. The memory of that impact still seemed to pulse in my mind, like a distant echo.