A

lone snowflake glided on the wind. It made its way into a warm meadow, where it rested gently atop Darek’s nose and melted away. Several more snowflakes followed in the same

fashion and soon the repetitious descent of cold droplets upon his face roused him.

Darek opened his eyes, blinking slowly. He stared straight up. At first he thought he was dreaming because whatever he was seeing made no sense. Far above him was another world. It was like he was looking down at the surface of another planet. However, he found it peculiar because, as he looked to his side, he realized he was lying in grass and dirt.

“Where am I? Is this heaven?” Darek pinched himself. “Ouch. I guess I must be dead.” He sighed. Using his sleeve, Darek wiped off the moisture from his face. He yawned as he stretched. Standing up, he brushed off the dirt from his clothes.

Everything was strange. The small meadow that he stood in was both warm and lively. To his left he saw a snowstorm raging in the tundra a few hundred yards away. To his right he saw a massive rainforest, its canopies towering high above. He had been to different planets over the course of his lifetime, but all of them had relatively stable climates. But here in this place, it was as though all the different seasons were woven together in a quilt. Each of the environments had different sizes as well. The tundra stretched for miles and he could not see the end of the rainforest. But the meadow was so small that he could see the full extent of it by spinning around.

Another thing that boggled his mind was the warm light that filled the meadow. There was no sun. Where did the light come from? He guessed it was beyond the rainforest.

Seeing as the tundra was much too dangerous to traverse, Darek headed into the rainforest. Following along the path, he cut down the thick vegetation with his daggers.

The forest was much more vibrant than Darek expected. Thousands of ants marched up and down the tree trunks. Chirps, tweets, and screeches from all sorts of birds resounded through the higher branches. Occasionally, he would see a small rodent dash away as he made his approach.

When Darek was deep into the forest, he heard the sound of rushing water. Anxious for a drink to cool his parched throat and dampen his cracked lips, he ran in the general direction of the noise. After running through some thick foliage, he reached a steep slope. He tried to slow down but ended up skidding down the hill. He completely lost his balance and tumbled over. Desperate to save himself from falling, he reached out his hand and grabbed hold of a vine.

Dangling from the vine, Darek turned his attention below. The sound of the water was not a river as he had hoped, but rather, it was the sound of the ocean’s waves battering the beach. The thought of drinking the salt-infested water made him cringe. He had never done it before, but he was sure it wasn’t going to be pleasant. Since he did not find what he was looking for, he attempted to climb back up.

The vine thinned and snapped. Darek groped along the side of the cliff, but he couldn’t find anything to hold onto. He quickly assumed a diving position, hitting the water with a big splash.

While treading the waters, he found shore not far from him. He swam toward the beach. As he reached the shoreline, the bottom of his shoe got caught in the rocks below. Darek shook his leg vigorously to break free. The harder he pulled, the more he was dragged back until he was completely submerged. Holding his breath, Darek looked down at his feet. It appeared that he had his foot snagged on a sharp rock. It took a moment for him to understand that it was a giant pincer clamped onto his shoe. He had been stepping on the back of a giant crab.

Luckily for him, the large pincer became greedy and, after releasing Darek’s shoe, now aimed for his pants. Darek panicked as several more giant pincers moved toward him. With his dagger, he frantically cut off the edge of his pants and tore off as much as he could in a hurry, so he could free himself. Then he stuffed the dagger in his satchel and swam for shore. Within moments, he scrambled onto the beach. Breathing heavily, he lay on his back to rest. He lifted his head and stared at the ocean’s surface. Three giant crabs stormed the beach. They would not settle until Darek was firm within their grasp. The pincers came clawing their way through the sand—until they were right on top of him. Darek let out a fearful yelp.

A female voice snapped, “Stop playing with our dinner!”

At that very second, the crabs shrank back, retreating into the waters.
Darek looked over his shoulder to see who was there.
“Darek? Is that you?” said the female voice. “What are you doing here?”
After recognizing her, Darek jumped to his feet. In a bout of excitement, he ran to her and embraced her. “Elize! I never thought I’d ever see you again! Is Slade here too?”
Slightly embarrassed, Elize replied, “Yes, he is with the others right now. I’m just here to watch over the food because—well, you never know when others will try to steal it.” Elize paused. “But what are you doing here?”
“What am I doing here?” said Darek. “What are you doing here? Are you dead too?”
“What? What kind of silly question is that?” barked Elize. “Of course I’m not dead! I haven’t seen you for so long and this how you greet me?”
“Good! You’re alive!” Looking bewildered, Darek asked, “Then where exactly are we?”
“You don’t know? This is Lacuna.”
“Lacuna? Is that a name of a planet? Never heard of it.”
Elize shook her head. “No, it’s not a planet. Lacuna is the gap between the two dimensions that exist in our universe. This is a limitless flat plane that stretches as far as the universe spans. Most of the land you see here isn’t native to Lacuna. It usually comes from being sucked into a black hole.”
“Ah,” said Darek. “So that explains it. The planet I was on was collapsing. Next thing I know, I’m here. I guess I got sucked into a black hole.”
“Really?” Elize sounded surprised. “Is that possible?”
“What do you mean? I thought you just said that things get sucked in here.”
“Yes,” said Elize. “Having stuff get sucked into this void is normal. But I never really expected a living being to survive a black hole. The only way I know for a human to enter Lacuna without dying is through a portal, which isn’t a normal occurrence.”
“Then how come everything here is intact?” said Darek. “Wouldn’t everything get messed up in a black hole?”
Elize shrugged. “That’s something I don’t know. To be honest, I don’t know much of this place. We only use it as our hideout. I assume most of the stuff here already existed.”
Darek sat back down. He was so caught up in the excitement of seeing Elize again that he forgot how exhausted he was from propelling himself through the waves. He took deep breaths, enjoying the smells of the beach. “You got any water? I’m really thirsty.”
Elize handed him the flask that was around her neck. “It’s good to see you, Darek.”
“Yeah,” Darek chortled. “It’s good to finally be here. This is the place, right? The place I’ve always wanted to go.”
“Yes,” said Elize. “Are you ready?”
“You mean—am I ready to join the Judges?”
Elize nodded.
Darek’s eyes sparkled. “Can I really join or are you just kidding around?”
“Would I kid about something like this?” Elize laughed and helped him stand. “There’s room for one more. It’s time. If you pass the test, you’ll be in. I’m sure Slade will be pleased. We’ll run it by everyone else and I think they’ll be fine with it too.”
“Speaking of which, where is everyone?”
“They’re out working on some cases. They’ll be back by nightfall.”
“Nightfall?” Darek looked up to the sky and still didn’t see the source of the daylight. “How can there be day and night?”
“Again, something I don’t know,” said Elize, shrugging. “But enough of that, how about you help me catch some dinner for tonight?”
“What do you want me to do?”
“Go back into the water and lure a crab out,” said Elize. “Simple enough?”
Darek laughed. “Making me play as bait? You remind me of someone else I know.”
“Do I? Well, you can tell me all about that later.”

A flickering campfire lit up a small clearing in a dim forest. A boiling pot simmered gently over the flames. Windzer rested upon a broken log, stirring up the pot and taking a few sips with the ladle for good measure. Though the forest was almost void of light, it was filled with the sounds of the living. Among other things, crickets chirped and owls hooted, forming an orchestral piece of the night. Windzer took a moment to stop and listen to the music of the forest.

Rubbing the back of her head, Azura groaned. She woke up with a rough headache and the pain throbbed all the way down to her neck. Her body was no longer in critical condition, thanks to her regenerative abilities, but she was left drained and dehydrated.

“You don’t look so good.” Windzer passed her some water in a pouch.
“You’re not one of good looks either.” Azura ripped the pouch from his hand and chugged down a few gulps. “How long have I been asleep?”
“We’ve been waiting for you to wake up for two days now,” replied Windzer.
Azura watched the campfire. As her senses began to awaken, she was startled by the other presence with them. “What is he doing here?”
“He? What are you talking about?”
“The dirty, no-good, lying, conniving traitor.” Azura tried to stand up but was pretty shaky. Having not used her legs for two days, they quivered as she leaned against a tree. With a disdainful look, she pointed at Sorren. “What is this villain doing here?”
Windzer laughed. “You already made your point before you pointed the finger.”
“It’s not funny,” Azura barked. “This psycho almost killed me!”
Windzer handed her a bowl of soup. “He didn’t kill you and he’s not trying to kill you now. Why don’t we drop the angry tone and sit down comfortably for a nice hot meal?”
Azura slapped the bowl out of his hands and it fell into the fire. “If he’s staying, I might as well be going.” When Azura pushed off the tree, she stumbled again. Windzer kept her from falling. She bowed her head as a gesture of thanks and started to walk toward the forest.
Windzer called out to her, “Are you sure? You’re in no condition to go anywhere. You don’t even know where we are. I’m telling you right now, this place is very dangerous.”
“I refuse to stay within five feet of him.” Then Azura left them.
“Are you just going to let her leave like this?” Windzer asked Sorren.
“Didn’t you hear her? She specifically doesn’t want me around,” replied Sorren.
“Wrong answer,” grunted Windzer, unsatisfied by his response. “You’re plotting something…I know you are. That whole scene with Darek, you could have killed her but you didn’t. And now I bet you’re worried about her condition, aren’t you?” Windzer took a quick sip of his hot broth. “Now, I don’t care if she hates you, you have to go after her. But don’t let her see you. Follow her from a distance and keep her out of trouble.”
“Since when do I take orders from you?” Sorren stood up.
Windzer smirked. “You say that, but you’re still going.”
“I might as well,” said Sorren, sighing. “But I’m not doing it because you told me to. Our temporary alliance is now over.” Sorren started to follow after her.
Windzer waved goodbye. “Until next time then.”
As he was leaving, Sorren said over his shoulder, “Before I go, I do have a question.” He paused. “What are you up to?”
Windzer put down his bowl. “You think I’m up to something?”
Sorren nodded.
Windzer laughed. “I’ll tell you what I’m up to if you tell me what you’re up to. If you tell me why you wanted Darek dead, I’ll tell you why I went to that desolate world.”
Sorren shrugged. “Forget I said anything.”
Azura limped through the dense underbrush. She had never felt this tired in her before. Yet her overly exhausted state was not entirely a product of her regeneration. She was emotionally torn, her body felt sapped of any remaining strength. She was depressed, distraught by the betrayal of trust. With every step she took, she wobbled and clung onto a nearby tree. Every fiber in her body ached, causing her to let out sharp howls every now and then. After taking ten excruciating steps, she paused from her short trek to take a much-needed rest.
A large stick fell from the heights of the forest trees. It plopped right in front of her. She studied it and found it to be the perfect walking stick: it was stripped clean of any splinters and protruding branches, and it was the right size for her height. Azura ignored the stick and went on her way, trudging through the branches and foliage.
After another short painstaking journey, she came across a small river. Tiny fish joyfully leaped up from the crisp waters. Though the river was small, the rushing flow could still sweep her away. While she pondered on her next course of action, she heard a loud crack. A tree on the other side broke down and landed right in front of her, conveniently giving her a bridge to safely cross over. Azura stared at the makeshift bridge. Then she crept into the cool waters, opting to wade through the stream instead.
Drenched, cold and shivering, Azura climbed to shore. She uncontrollably gasped for air and lay on the ground motionlessly; her body was now far exceeding the normal limits. Yet, in spite of all the pain, she didn’t want to stop for a moment.
Azura became increasingly worn out and cold as the night went on. The temperature began dropping; every breath that was huffed out of her mouth left a wispy trail. After three hours had passed, she had not seen a single settlement or hint of civilization; Azura became concerned. What if there was no one else around for miles? She had always imagined her last hour to be a glorious act of fighting villainy—not a restless bout with hypothermia.
No matter how hard Azura struggled to keep walking, her movement finally slowed to a halt. Her body succumbed to the exhaustion. She sat on the ground, unsure if she could go on. Walking gave her hope—the hope that, as she kept on walking, she may eventually find someone who could help her. But now that she couldn’t walk, no one would ever find her. For all she knew, they could be on a deserted world. And if that were the case, why bother going forward?
The night seemed to never end and the air only got colder. Her body quaked and the skin on her face started to go numb. She looked up and gawked in awe of the night sky. There was no moon with its guiding light, nor were there stars to lead the way. The sky was just nearly pitch black like she had been sealed up in a dark box. A vague glimmer of light did catch her eye, but it was distant and she knew not what it was or where it came from.
Then she heard sounds of laughter a short distance away. She saw the glow of fire breaking through the wall of trees before her. She scrambled across the forest floor on hands and knees. Azura desperately crawled as fast as her arms could pull her.
The sounds of laughter came from several dancing shadows and silhouettes around a large bonfire. However, once she reached the fire, she did not see a single soul. The shadows were from small trees swaying in the wind in the presence of the blazing fire. She had been tricked. But this was not a trick of nature, but of a man. Drained from her last spurt of energy, Azura passed out beside the warmth of the flame.
When she awoke a few hours later into the morning, she felt the heat of the flames tingling her face. She had not noticed it at night, but in the morning light, Azura could see that she was now within a clearing in the forest. With the bright rays shining down on her and the fire radiating before her, her clothes were much dryer. She was more comfortable than before. The spot she was in was tidied up; there was even a soft bed of leaves covered by a thick blanket for her to rest upon. Roasting over the open fire was a succulent piece of meat. A large bowl of water was prepared for her to drink. She looked at everything and sighed, wondering how to respond to this. She knew Sorren was still around, but his presence was too far away for her to sense.
Azura screamed aimlessly at the top of her lungs, “DON’T EVEN THINK FOR A SECOND THAT THIS EVENS ANYTHING OUT! YOU HEAR ME? YOU ROTTEN…”
She broke off, bursting into tears. Still bitter, Azura took the piece of meat and devoured it. After she was full, she had the urge to get up and continue the journey, but a fever was coming on and made it difficult for her to see straight; whenever she stood, she would get a dizzy spell and would fall to the grass. Azura gave in and remained quietly in that place to rest.
The next morning, Azura became sick. She coughed, sniffled and wheezed the entire day. She slept as much as possible, and whenever she awoke, she would find plenty of broth, food and water prepared, all ready for consumption. Each day was like this; she could not do much but rest and recuperate. During that time, the skies were overcast. The clouds relented from pouring down its harvest of rain, but remained persistent in darkening the land with its gloomy presence. It only helped to solidify Azura’s depression.
It did not last, however. After a week, the illness had passed and Azura felt better. She was still a little sick, but there was drastic improvement in her condition. On that day, even the clouds began to break away, leaving the sky only partly cloudy. Such a wonderful change in both health and weather warranted a stroll.
Slowly, she got up from her bed and stretched out; she took a deep breath and her mood was lifted. Her legs were shaky; having not moved much in a while, she felt like her body was getting too weak. A little exercise was tempting, but she was worried she might strain something. It was then that Azura took notice of the perfect walking stick, which was right there beside her. It wasn’t there yesterday, and it was almost as if Sorren knew she would be strong enough to start walking again. Seeing that she had already eaten his food and slept in the bed he provided, she figured she might as well use the stick.
With both hands firmly on the stick, she leaned on it; as expected, it was strong enough to support her weight. Azura took a few steps and was happy with how the stick made it much easier to walk. But she did not crack even the slightest smile. She was not about to give him any sort of satisfaction for his deed.
“I’m not going to thank you for anything,” mumbled Azura.
Using the stick as a crutch, Azura staggered around the forest, staying close to the clearing. She was from a tribe that respected nature, and by staying so close to it, she was able to regain a peace of mind, as if nature carried a piece of home to her heart. A cute little bird perched itself on a tree branch overhead. It chirped out a beautiful song. Azura beamed at it. Swelling up with warm feelings, Azura limped over to where the bird was and reached up to pet its back.
A loud growl from the forest startled the bird. It took off in a fright. Azura shuddered as the low growling pierced through the thicket. She stumbled back and fell off her crutch. A large beast hopped out of the trees, roaring at her. It stood nearly ten feet tall and had the form of a large silver gorilla, except with tusks protruding from its lips and devilish quills lining its back.
Azura had no idea what to do, for she could barely stand. She was paralyzed in fear and winced at the beast’s terrifying glare. It then howled in agony and fell prostrate before her.
“Sorry. There were a few of them. One managed to slip by me.” Sorren stepped out from the shadows and asked, “Are you okay?”
“No,” snapped Azura, scowling. “What are you doing here? Why not leave me to die?”
Sorren sighed and started to leave, afraid to get into a quarrel.
“Wait! Are you just going to walk away?” said Azura, reproachful.
“Well, what do you want me to do?”
Azura jumped to her feet and wrestled him to the ground. Leaning over his face, she slapped him and shouted, “What’s wrong with you? Don’t you have feelings or remorse? You think you can just run away from me? I’m so confused right now that I don’t know what to think anymore! One moment you try to kill me and next you’re tending to my needs! How am I supposed to continue to hate you if you don’t give me a reason to? Stop helping me so I can go back to HATING YOUR ROTTEN GUTS!”
Sorren grimaced. Her loud voice almost deafened his hearing. “I can see you’re angry.”
“Is that all you have to say?” she asked, calming down.
Sorren didn’t respond, but he looked away, unwilling to face her. Azura exhaled. The week of rest had dulled her temper and, gazing upon his current state, she felt awkward being angry when he was this calm. She released him and fell back onto the grass, still feeling a bit sore. She said, “Why’d you want to kill Darek? Is there a reason to your stupid insanity?”
Sorren sat up and said, “I’ll tell you—but first, let’s get you back to the camp.”
Azura’s face was flushed as Sorren picked her up by the shoulder and brought her back to the small campsite.
As soon as Azura was in a comfortable position, Sorren said, “This is kind of hard to explain. The simple reason is because there is a prophecy concerning Darek. It is said that he will be the beginning of the end. He will bring terror and destruction to our universe, unrivaled in the past, present and future.” He paused. “I have a duty to fulfill. I must prevent the disaster.”
“I’ve never heard of such a prophecy,” said Azura. “What if it’s not real?”
“The one who told it was a dear friend—I trusted him with my life,” said Sorren. “More importantly, Darek’s existence proves that it is true in a way.”
“It says his name?”
Sorren shook his head. “It doesn’t say his name, but it tells of his power. His power is…special. Let me explain. The Judges all have the power of the spirit. Through their channeled spiritual energy, they can manifest things in the real world. They are not doing anything to the real world other than creating something real for themselves. For Darek, what he manifests is a set of gloves. However, his gloves actually have the power to literally change the world—transmutation—if you will. Do you understand? For such a thing to exist is dangerous.”
“But if Darek uses it for good, what harm can there be?” said Azura.
“We never fully know the consequences of our actions. Even if he intends good, the result may be otherwise. With a power of such catastrophic size, a mistake cannot be afforded.”
Azura said, “Sure, he makes mistakes, but we all do. But he won’t do anything that he knows would cause harm to others. I don’t think he’s the one you are referring to.”
“Believing or not, does not change the fact that he—”
Azura interrupted him. “You still don’t know whether those are facts! Isn’t it wrong to make assumptions? What if it isn’t him all along? Then you pay dearly for your mistake! You may have wasted your time and effort in all the wrong places!”
Sorren considered her ideas and said humbly, “You could be right. I’ll admit that I am not one hundred percent sure. But at that time, I was afraid to let that chance escape.”
“Promise me this,” said Azura. “You will not kill Darek unless you are certain—without the slightest doubt in your mind—that he is the one. And if you uphold this promise, then I promise you that I will help you become a Hero. That is what you wanted, isn’t it?”
“So you’re saying that if I kill Darek, you won’t let me be a Hero?”
Azura smiled. “Exactly.”
Sorren glanced at a single blade of grass, looking deep in thought. After a drawn out silence, he said, “Being a Hero is very important to me. I will uphold this promise.”
Azura said, “Although I can’t trust you fully, I hope you can keep your word this time.”
Sorren straightened up. “I will do my best to regain your trust.”

The next morning was beautiful and cheery. The sky opened up, revealing the other world above them. There was not a single cloud in the space between the two worlds. The clearing was filled with radiant light and it made the woods look so gorgeous with its glistening drops of rain and dew that Azura almost thought she was still dreaming when she awoke.

Sorren was waiting for her by the side of the fire. “Are you good to go now?”
“Yup.” Azura nodded contently. “I feel great today!”
“Then I’ll be going,” said Sorren, pulling out the Currie from his robe. “I believe this is yours.” The Currie, upon seeing Azura, jumped ecstatically into her arms.
“Currie!” Azura lifted it up, rubbing its fur against her cheeks. “Where’d you find it?”
“It was hiding in one of the underground shelters,” said Sorren. “I grabbed it before the world collapsed.”
“Does this mean you’re not coming with me?” asked Azura, surprised. “I thought you said you wanted to be a Hero.”
“I didn’t mean now,” said Sorren. “I have some things I must take care of first. And I need some time to think things over, especially things concerning Darek.”
Azura folded her arms. “Then at least tell me where I am and where I should go.”
“Oh right, I almost forgot,” said Sorren. “This may be hard for you to believe, but believe it anyway. We are now in another dimension from our own, but it’s more of a gap between dimensions. You’ll see that it won’t truly follow the laws of our dimension. The weather may change erratically and even gravity and atmosphere may change from place to place. There are several ways out of here, but I’ll tell you the easiest way.” Sorren motioned for her to follow.
Sorren leapt high into the tree branches. Azura followed after him. By jumping swiftly from branch to branch, they were able to quickly ascend the trees. When they were at the highest point in the forest and could see beyond the vast number of trees, Sorren showed her a distant mountain.
“Behind that mountain is the home of the Judges, the Court of Verras. Since you’re a Hero, they’ll help you out,” said Sorren. “Darek might even be there now. Send him my regards—and my apologies.” Sorren turned to her and said, “Any more questions?”
“No, that’ll be all,” replied Azura softly. “I guess this is goodbye then.”
“For now,” said Sorren. “We’ll meet again. I’m not giving up on being a Hero.”
“Thanks for everything,” said Azura.
With no more words, the two of them went their separate ways. Azura headed for the mountain that Sorren told her about. Sorren, however, disappeared into the forest.
“Darek is the one without a doubt,” he said to himself. “The end draws near. Darek, by not showing hatred against me, you have passed my test. You are worthy of being the key to destruction. Be on your guard, Darek. Everyone will hate you. Everyone will want to kill you. I will do my best to protect you until you fulfill your destiny. I swear on my life, Darek—I will die before you.” CHAPTER 32 Peace at Last