Fantasy | Magic | Adventure
If one day a door appeared in front of you.
Would you decide to open it or ignore it?
One Door. One Choice. A destiny?
Cassandra has decided to open it.
A bolt of lightning ripped roughly through the heavens. The light cast by the gaping wound was dazzling, fierce and inescapably wonderful. In the starry brightness was the outline of a door, and as it slowly opened, Cassandra was released into a new world. It was a forgotten world, one that had been wiped from her mind, yet it echoed like a precious memory.
Her body hurtled down. She fell helplessly through the night skies, unable to think of a solution and unable to save herself. Despite the immediate danger, she gazed longingly at the myriads of stars adorning the night.
The door through which she had entered this new place closed again before disappearing forever, sealing her in the vast unknown. Now she could no longer go back. She looked away from the beguiling stars and regarded this world, which would become her own. The few words that came to mind could scarcely describe the reality they reflected. Greatness. Splendour. Prestige. Power.
A shimmering castle of extravagant proportions towered fearlessly over its walled city like a supreme ruler. Its rich and iridescent whiteness spoke of quiet dignity and magnificence. A huge road cutting across the town linked the castle with the distant horizon, indeed so distant was it that the long stony road seemed endless.
Cassandra kept on falling and the ground was now getting much too near. Something needed to be done quickly.… She flapped her arms and legs frantically. Her hands caught hold of a decorative banner hung over the avenue, but the rope gave under her weight. Her fingers gripped a new lifeline: a string of paper lanterns, but one end came away. Terrified and powerless, Cassandra was plunging headlong through nothingness.
She lost height quickly, too fast for her liking. She landed painfully on the ground and bumped along for a few metres. Her heart was beating hard; she could feel her skin tightening and her vision blurring. She could no longer move. She no longer wanted to move. Her eyes remained stubbornly shut, unable to face the unknown and, above all, unable to accept the terrifying reality.
She had left her world. Her home. Her family. And there was no way back.
There was a heavy silence everywhere. All that Cassandra could hear was her own breathing. Her panting breath was as strong as a gale in her ears. At last, she opened her eyes and looked up at the darkness. The stars were glowing wonderfully to welcome their new guest.
Determined to explore this unknown world, Cassandra rolled onto her front, putting her weight onto her arms. As she was getting up, her heart at once lost all sense of rhythm, racing excessively and skipping a few beats. She clasped her head between her hands, hoping this would help her to stop panicking.
A great many strangers—too many—closed their defensive ranks around her. Their faces were either closed or showing looks of astonishment and expressions she could not read. They were all gazing at her, studying her, and trying to figure her out as if they were dealing with a freak of nature from outer space.
They were dressed in long white coats, suggesting they belonged to some sort of organisation. Most of them were openly displaying their lethal weapons. Fear had taken root in Cassandra’s mind and was fast spiralling out of control.
What should she do? What could she do? What were they going to do to her?
A man slowly approached her. He smiled reassuringly. The great gentleness apparent in his every movement was obvious proof of his good intentions. Nevertheless, Cassandra stepped back. She could not trust the first person who came along, however handsome he was.
She staggered back awkwardly, feeling lost, scared, and distraught, lost, lost, completely and deliriously lost in a whirlwind of unanswered questions. The attractive man knelt in front of her and, with a welcoming hand, he beckoned her to join him.
‘Hey.… Don’t be afraid. Are you alright? My name’s Kadjin.’
His tone of voice was genuinely kind. Cassandra found her trust growing little by little, winding its way through her firmly rooted fear. She put a trembling foot forward. Only one. The last one. Before regretting it for ever.
A fist grabbed her forcibly by the collar. Stunned and petrified, all she could feel was something very strong dragging her away. She did not know how to respond, apart from being annoyed with herself for her lack of suspicion.
Her aggressor tightened his hands around Cassandra’s neck. She struggled, gasping for oxygen, but her frail frame was no match for the man who held the power of life or death over her. Suffocating and powerless, she recalled the face of her closest relation, the most dearly loved member of her family.
The lack of air interrupted her train of thought and deadened her mind. She had made her choice. She had left her old life behind forever; she had decided she would no longer be a lie. This choice had cost her the one thing she held most dear. She had abandoned her grandmother, preferring instead to chase shooting stars and catch hold of her dream, without considering the consequences or gauging the cost of such boldness.
Her attacker grunted.
‘Would you just look at that? A child fallen from the sky! Who sent you here?’
Crushed in his ruthless grip, Cassandra was unable to reply.
‘Who sent you to our world?’
The vice-like grip tightened. His threatening behaviour was reducing her chances of survival. Her heart was screaming out. Her Opram stone was booming. She was not just a lie. Her life amounted to much more than that. She had not yet reached her goal. Nevertheless, one question constantly echoed in her mind.
Had she really made the right decision when she left her old world?
