Trapped in a world of darkness, I am lost. I cannot find my way out. There is nothing. No walls, no barriers, nothing. In this vast, wild space of nothing, I am losing my mind. How do I get out? How do I escape?

X

There are strange sensations disturbing me. They make me nauseous. They make me lose my calm. Go away! Stop! The sensation does not heed my cries. It swells and overtakes the tiny section of my mind that struggles to hold on. I do not know what it is. But it makes me sick.

X

End it. I just want to end it all. The silence. The darkness. I am trapped. I need to get out. Let me out. There is nothing here. Nothing. Not a single thing. I feel like giving up.

X

There is a voice. I cannot hear what it says but the sound is a lifeline in this darkness. I hang on to this voice and tell myself to survive. There must be something out there I can look forward to. There is a chance for me. There is hope.

X

My mind is buzzing. Vibrations galore. As though bees have made my skull their new hive. It is a warm hum. Resounding in wave after wave of tiniest ups and downs. It feels weird. But it does not hurt. That is of comfort to me.

X

“She will wake up.”

“You are wasting your time here.”

“She will never be a waste of my time.”

“You are the most stubborn vampire princess that has ever existed.”

“Far from it.”

“If you will not leave, I will take you by the neck and drag you away.”

“You can try. But you will fail.”

“I will not go easy on you.”

“Be my guest.”

“Hwang Pan Ni!”

“Kwon Yuri!”

A blast of heat explodes around me. Naturally, I flinch. But the heat dissipates and I relax once more. A gasp.

“Did you see that?”

“There is nothing to see.”

“You numbskull. Your senses have been dulled by the fog of lust.”

“I have not been blinded by lust as much as you have been stupefied by wimpy, sappy human love.”

“She is an immortal now.”

“That is irrelevant. You love her like a human would.”

“How is this in any way human? I am a vampire. She is the Erika.”

“Your love is desperate. Like a human.”

“My love is eternal. Like a vampire.”

A deep, long sigh floats overhead. “You win. I am washing my hands off your pathetic, grovelling love.”

Another blast of heat hits me and it comes too close for comfort. It hurts.

“She moved!”

“Look—at—you. You have lost your mind.”

“She moved. I saw her flinch.”

“If she did, it is because you burnt her. It was her body moving in response to injury.”

“She is conscious. Her mind has healed.”

“Her mind has shattered. Miras could not read or draw thought from it.”

“Miras has never encountered such a situation before. There is no prior case study for comparison.”

“Your denial is no less epic than your royal title, Princess.”

“I am not in denial. I will prove it to you. Look.”

An intense wave of heat sweeps over me, most intensely on my . Ow, ow, ow.

“Did you see that?”

“I . . . I did.”

“I am not delusional. She moved.”

“And her face. She was hurt by your flames. She can feel pain.”

“Pain. Holy vamp. I should have used pain. I tried everything but pain.”

“She likes pain? What a match the two of you are.” A snicker. “One is a pain in the . The other likes pain on her .” The snicker grows into laughter until another blaze flares around me.

“I am displeased, Kwon Yuri.”

“Go ahead. Say my name again. I am not afraid of you.”

“Call for Seo. I need her analysis.”

X

“The Erika’s consciousness is trapped.”

“What do you mean?”

“Her mind may have healed under the protection of a cocoon-like mechanism but it appears to be trapped in the very mechanism that enabled it to heal.”

“How can she break through the cocoon?”

“Studies show that a suitable trigger may be able to give the mind enough momentum to have a breakthrough.”

“Send an invitation to Miras and Sintix.”

“Yes, Ms Pink.”

X

Soothing waves of calm ebb like the tide. Spectrums of colour flash through my mind. There are magnetic pulls to the north, the south, the east, the west. All directions. Tugging yet not touching. A cool sensation settles over me. It chills me from the outside but I am not cold. Little wriggly worms are squirming around my consciousness. I can almost see them, but they are still hidden by a wall. A barrier that keeps everything away while I float inside. Like a baby.

X

“What else can be done? What stronger triggers can there be than Miras and Sintix?”

“Ms Pink, have you considered doing something she loves?”

“She loves me, and I have been here from the moment I healed till now.”

“Something you shared, perhaps?”

“Something we shared . . .”

“I have thought about it since yesterday and the more I think about it, the more I think it may work.”

“What is it? Say it now, Seo.”

“.”

“?”

“.”

“I did not think of that.”

“The last analysis revealed the Erika’s energy is charged by pulses of emotion. Since the consciousness is impenetrable, the other entrance would be the physical.”

“I should have thought of it earlier. I will attempt it now.”

“In that case, I shall take my leave, Ms Pink.”

X

There is warmth. There is heat. It is all around me. It wraps my mind. That warmth touches me. It glides over me. Then it stops and simmers like a gentle stew. My mind senses growing heat over my body. The gliding resumes, then stops and short bursts of heat explode behind me.

The impact jolts me. Oh, oh, oh.

The gliding heat is back. It glides over behind me, over to the front, down my sides to the bottom, and back again. It speeds up, to the point where my mind registers only a cocoon of warmth all at once. I am at peace. Then it stops. And multiple bursts of heat strike me from the back.