ELEVEN

The dry leaves of an old, huge tree rustled, the slight breeze that blew was slowly becoming a wild wind, adding tension to the atmosphere. A woman dressed in black walked past a pile of dried leaves towards a nearby cave hidden in the yellow forest. She took a deep breath before entering.

Inside, the ground was decorated with broomsticks and coloured ribbons tied from one end to another. At the center was an altar, and seated there was an elderly woman in a black hood, her feet crossed before the decorated altar. Others present bowed to her.

The woman removed her slippers, knelt down, and bowed, her face touching the ground. "Hail, Mother Mayhem," she greeted, proceeding without lifting her head. "Pawn One has failed to submit, and Pawn Two has gone AWOL. The asset has been eliminated, leaving us back to square one, and we have only a few days left until D-day."

"Execute Plan B," Mother Mayhem ordered with a distorted voice. "And this time, bring me good news."

"Hail thee, for I shall not fail," the woman replied, standing and departing.

...

The atmosphere was thin, faint dust was everywhere, making it difficult to see. Shem struggled through the sandy desert, trying not to be blown away by the fierce wind sweeping across the dunes.

It was a miracle for him to escape Fury's wrath in his current state, knowing he was no match for her.

Four hours earlier...

"Come out, pretty boy, the fun is just beginning," Zhedra, also known as Fury, said with a crooked smile. She walked majestically, like a predator with its prey caught in a web. Shem, in poor condition, was determined not to give up yet. His main goal was to distract the psycho lady so I and Delyn would escape and call for backup. But he couldn't find Zhebel anywhere.

"Oh no, where is she?" he muttered under his breath.

Before he could react, Zhedra dragged him from his hiding spot and smirked.

"Now we end this."

Her claws and fangs grew, ready to tear into him. Shem closed his eyes, expecting the worst, but suddenly he was dropped to the ground. Opening his eyes, he thought someone had come to his rescue, but Zhedra had just flown off without a word.

As soon as she was gone, he continued along their path, realizing what had happened, he gasped "They took him. Oh no!"

...

Emergency bells rang as the ambulance arrived at the hospital. The patient was rushed to the emergency ward, accompanied by a few doctors and nurses.

"Mum, what happened to Clovet?" Lolly asked, trying to hold back tears as they moved to the waiting area. "Is Ferda right? Is Clovet really dead?"

Unable to answer, Bia sat on a bench in the waiting room, holding Lolly close. Ferda paced anxiously, hoping she was wrong and her sister was alive and well.

Hours later, doctors and nurses began to leave the ward. Bia grabbed a doctor's hand, tears clouding her eyes.

"Doctors, how is she?"

The doctor shook his head sadly, unable to speak. With that, Bia burst into tears and screamed at the top of her lungs.

"No! No, not my baby!"

Others in the waiting room and some nurses came to console her. Ferda was stunned. Clovet was really gone, and she wasn't coming back. But why? What had happened to her? She approached one of the nurses who had been in the room earlier and asked with a pained voice,

"But what caused her death? Just minutes ago, my sister was strong and healthy, but... what happened? She just... collapsed."

Tears streamed down her face, and Bia looked at the nurse, demanding an answer.

"Well, After examining the body, we found significant obstruction in her airways, which is impeding the flow of air. This obstruction is a characteristic feature of asthma attacks, where the air passages become inflamed and constricted, making breathing difficult." The blonde nurse explained

"An asthma attack?" Lolly asked, surprised, looking at Bia, who shared her disbelief.

"My sister doesn't have asthma," Ferda snapped, as though the nurse had said something offensive.

"I'll be leaving now. If you have any questions, please ask my boss," the nurse replied, catching Ferda's cold stare before swiftly departing.

Ferda looked around, wiping tears with a shaky hand. "Where's Dad?"

...

I heard the phone buzzed, I groaned in pain as I opened my eyes. I was in a completely unfamiliar environment. Strange, Was this Hades? No, it couldn't be. The Hades they teach us about in school doesn't look as nice as this.

I tried to sit up for a better view, but the pain in my head pushed me back onto the soft mattress. That's when I realized I was in a hospital.

The beeping of machines grew louder in my ears, surprising me. How did I get here? I looked at my hands, they were fine. I touched the place where Zhebel had stabbed me, and it was healed. Shouldn't I be dead? How did I survive this?

Then I noticed Jerry sleeping with his head on the desk.

"Dad?" I asked, surprised. It couldn't be real. I must be dreaming, or maybe this is some part of Hades that messes with the mind.

I groaned again, louder than before, trying to sit upright and waking Jerry from his nap.

"Oh, thank the heavens, son, Zack, you're alive," he said, almost in tears as he ran to hug me. "Are you okay? Any pain?"

"Yeah, my head is pounding," I said feeling a bit weird

"I'll call the doctors right away," he said, starting to stand up, but I held him back.

"Dad, I'm alive," I said, almost not believing my own words.

"Yes, I know," he smiled.

"No, that's not the point," I said. "I died. Zhebel killed me. How..." I tried to make sense of it

"The most important thing now is that you're alive and well," Jerry said before his phone rang. It was Bia, but he ignored the call.

"Who's calling?" I asked.

"It's Bia," he replied with a frown. "I guess she's not happy with the way I left."

"Come on, Dad. Answer it. The ringing woke me up, it must be important."

"I don't think I have the strength for any drama," he sighed, then looked at me with a smile. "I'm just so glad you're awake."

"How long was I out?" I asked, but before he could answer, his phone buzzed again. It was Bia, who sent a text. He read it immediately, looking surprised, then dialed her number.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"It's Bia," he said, still shocked. "Something happened to Clovet."

A few minutes later, she picked up and broke the sad news to him. Jerry was stunned, dropping the phone without even realizing it. This alarmed me, and I looked up at him, almost afraid, but trying to stay strong before asking, "What happened, Dad?"

"It's Clovet," he said, still in shock. "She's... dead."