See What You Want to See

I came to and found myself standing in a White Corridor. It stretched on forever, vanishing into an endless, pale abyss. On either side of me, rows of rooms that looked suspiciously like prison cells—complete with heavy iron bars—lined the walls.

There wasn't a single light source in sight, yet the place was blindingly bright. It felt real enough, but there was a floaty, ethereal quality to it that made me feel like I was stuck in a weird dream.

Olivier started walking. Alpha followed right on her heels, and Rose and I scrambled after them to make sure we didn’t get left behind in this creepy hallway. With every step the beautiful adult Elf took, she seemed to shed years. By the time I could blink, she’d shrunk down into the form of a little girl.

The tiny Olivier phased right through the iron bars like they weren't even there and crouched down in the corner of a cell.

"Once upon a time, young children with no one to call their own were gathered here," Alpha’s voice said, echoing through the infinite corridor.

She started walking again.

Suddenly, those empty cells were packed. Boys, girls, humans, Elves, Beastkin... the only thing they had in common was that they were all way too young to be in a place like this.

"The children here became the test subjects for a certain experiment."

Alpha stopped in front of one of the cages.

There was a girl inside. She’d clearly lost her mind; she was thrashing around the cell like a caged animal, trying to outrun an invisible agony. She slammed her head against the stones, clawed at the walls, and rolled across the floor in a desperate, frantic heap.

Alpha kept moving.

The next cell held a girl drenched in blood. And no, it wasn't just from self-harm. Her skin was literally splitting open, the victim of some freakish, internal mutation. Dark, rotting ichor dripped from the wounds.

I’d seen that black, decaying look before.

"Possession..." someone muttered. I think it was me.

"Most of the children died because they couldn't adapt to 'it,'" Alpha said, her pace never slowing.

The next cell was empty. Well, empty of people. There was nothing left but blood-soaked walls and a single, desperate handprint smeared across the floor as if someone had been dragged away while begging for help.

Alpha didn't stop. She just kept walking as similar horrors played out in cell after cell. Kids suffering, kids dying—it was a conveyor belt of misery.

"This is horrible..." Rose whispered, covering her mouth as if she were about to be sick. I couldn't help but agree.

I noticed one common thread in how they died, though. The girls all looked like they were suffering from Possession right before the end. The boys, on the other hand, never changed; they just died.

"Only a tiny handful of girls were able to adapt," Alpha noted.

Finally, she came to a halt.

Inside this cell was a slightly older Olivier. She wasn't injured, and she didn't look like she was in pain. She just sat there, hugging her knees in total silence, staring at the cell across from her.

The opposite cell was a slaughterhouse. One second it was covered in blood, and the next—as if someone had just swapped the scenery—it was sparkling clean with a new girl inside. Then the suffering would start, the girl would die, and the cycle would reset.

The little Olivier just watched the whole thing, day after day.

"How could anyone do something this cruel?" Rose asked, her voice trembling.

"Why don't you tell us, Acting Archbishop Nelson?" Alpha asked, turning the floor over to him.

Nelson looked away, stammering for a few seconds before he finally managed to mutter, "We needed power to oppose Demon Diabolos..."

"That’s the Cult’s version of the story, anyway. Regardless of the truth, Olivier did eventually manage to sever the Left Arm of Diabolos. She was one of the lucky few who adapted to 'it.'"

Alpha started walking again.

"You keep saying 'it,'" I cut in. "What are you talking about?"

Alpha paused for a second to answer. "Diabolos Cells. That’s what we call them. To fight Demon Diabolos, they decided the best move was to hijack the Demon’s own power."

"The power of Demon Diabolos...? I thought that was just a fairy tale."

"None of us were there to see it. We only know what the history books claim. If you want to keep thinking it’s a fairy tale, that’s your business."

Alpha shrugged and kept moving.

"I’m not here to debate ancient history. In the end, even these memories are suspect. Who knows how much is actually true? Memories fade over time. They get reshaped into whatever the person wants to believe."

We passed cell after cell.

Eventually, the rooms started becoming empty. Olivier continued to grow until she was a beautiful young woman. Up close, the resemblance to Alpha was uncanny. It was like looking at a carbon copy.

"Once she’d grown up and mastered the power of Diabolos, Olivier was given a mission."

"The Subjugation of Diabolos?" Rose asked.

Alpha shook her head. "That’s the official story, but we’ve judged it to be a lie. Most likely, Olivier’s real mission was the Collection of Diabolos Cells."

"Stop spouting nonsense!" Nelson barked. His face was bright red as he glared at Alpha. The Black-clad Woman immediately grabbed him by the scruff of the neck, making him let out a pathetic gueh sound like a squashed toad.

"Even after she gained her power, Olivier stayed loyal to the Cult. We aren't entirely sure why, but we believe it’s because she truly, honestly wanted to bring peace to the world by defeating the Demon. She helped them because she thought it was for the greater good."

Olivier stepped out of the cell.

She was clad in armor now, a sword hanging from her hip as she prepared to set out. Looking at her face, I had to agree with Alpha's theory. Olivier really did want peace. Her expression was a mix of grim resolve and genuine hope.

As she walked down that infinite White Corridor, her path began to glow with a dazzling, white light.

"But the Cult’s goals were different," Alpha said.

The world was swallowed by the light.

"The Cult didn't want peace. They wanted to privatize that power for themselves..."

The world of light shattered like a falling mirror, and a new reality rushed in to fill the cracks.