White Empress, Ashes of Love Sequel

Chapter 19

"Bai-Long."

Her eyes fluttered open, blurry blue light surrounding her as she blinked hard to clear her vision with no success. Bodies surrounded her, their outlines visible but muted, almost as if one could see through one person to the other behind and on and on.

"What happened?" her voice was strange, echoed and distant as the bodies pressed closer. "Where am I? Who are you?" she asked as she tried desperately to bring them into focus.

"Bai-Long."

Multiple voices whispered around her, causing her to turn in all directions. No distinguishable faces emerged, but they all seemed to stop as a collective group before one stepped forward into the circle.

"Bai-Long." The voice belonged to a woman, the tone like music, flowing and soothing.

"Who is Bai-Long?" she asked, peering closely at what should be the woman's face.

"You cannot stay, Bai-Long. You must go back again. This will be the last time," she said.

"The last time? How many times have I come here?" And why can't I remember ever being here? she thought.

"Even now, they still conspire against us. Reveal yourself to them. Punish them for what they have done. You will be forgiven."

"Forgiven for what? What have I done?" she asked, looking around at the blurred mass surrounding her.

Something cool touched her cheek. The distinct feel of fingertips that left a prickling sensation behind, causing her to raise her own hand to touch it.

"You will be forgiven," the female voice repeated before a multitude of voices began chanting the same words.

"What did I do?" she asked again before the blue, glowing mass disappeared around her, leaving her in darkness before it became a physical pressure surrounding her, squeezing tightly.

Her arms pushed against it, her feet and hands clawing through it, pushing up, trying to dislodge whatever was holding her.

She opened her mouth, gasping for a breath and filling it instead with...dirt. She increased her efforts, clawing frantically with her hands and using her feet to push up until one hand broke free, encountering nothing but air.

The rest of her body was propelled up and out by a sudden thrust from below, causing her to fly through the air before landing with a thump in the thick grass.

Her eyes scanned her surroundings, a slight breeze moving the fronds of tall grass before something white and wispy blew across her vision. Her hand raised to move it and froze as her fingers wrapped around it.

Hair. White hair, pure and pearlescent and fairly glowing was resting in her hand. She gave a tug and winced at the pain. Apprehension filled her as her hand frantically touched her scalp, grasping and pulling the long strands forward to view.

A loud gasp came from her throat as her fingertips poked through the strands. Perfectly formed nails and no dark stain marring them...

She raised her other hand and a gasped again at the object she was holding.

The arrow, or at least the portion that stuck out of her chest fell to her lap. Her pristine, white, fabric covered lap that should be brown and stained, but it was not.

"What is this?" she whispered on a shaky breath, looking around.

I'm dreaming, she thought, trying to calm her racing heart, her...racing heart. Her hands reached up, touching her chest, feeling for pain or a hole or the rest of the arrow and there was nothing, only the rhythmic pounding of something that shouldn't be functioning at all and yet it was.