Adrian froze in mid-stride, shocked by what was happening only a few steps away. With a conjured glacier sword cocked over his head, Silas readied to cut down Lex. The omnipresent chorus filled the room, nearly deafening Adrian. Then the adeptus's eyes glowed magenta and his companions evaporated in a puff of smoke. As she stopped, unable to look away, Vincent tugged her arm harder.
"You don't want to be anywhere near this, let's get out of here." He shouted.
Lex rushed forward and jabbed his hand under Silas's arm, preventing the strike. As he latched on, Silas punched Lex in the face and launched him backwards. Adrian gasped in concern as Lex slid over a dining table, hurling all of the dinnerware across the floor, falling on his head. Then the adeptus turned and brandished his sword at Adrian from afar, a frosty mist poured from its jagged handguard.
"Die, for the betterment of this world." Silas hollered, his eyes frenzied.
With a sweep of his free arm, he summoned a cyan circle in front of his chest, about as tall as he was and twice as wide. It had many twisting, gnarled glyphs in each smaller circle oriented symmetrically on the cardinal axes. The symbols glowed brighter than the translucent outer shapes. The room grew darker, and the circle began to scintillate. Vincent's jaw dropped in shock and his grip on Adrian's arm eased.
Winding up, the adeptus flung his sword arm up and launched the blade over his head. The ice sword burst into dozens of razer-sharp shards hovering in a semicircle over Silas. Then each frosty tip aligned, directed at Adrian. With a devious grin, the adeptus dropped his hand. Vincent shoved Adrian aside and launched himself between her and the homing ice shards. The sudden heroism took her by surprise, as much as the arcane evocations.
"The Queen of Sin will fall. And you with her, you weak-willed coward." Vincent shouted at Silas.
The adeptus smiled with insanity. The cyan circle burst and dissipated. Then the old man braced as the icy daggers took flight.
"Bardocucullus!" Lex's voice boomed over the quieting chorus.
Like a wave rising from the horizon and crashing upon the shore, a shadow coalesced from the corners of the room into a chaotic, twisting sheet and dove down upon Lex, who was recovering from the attack. It swept around him like a cyclone and yanked his presence into the vortex. Then like a bolt of lightning, the shadow surged forth into the path of Silas's ice darts. As it struck the ground, the shadow unraveled and Lex emerged in his royal blue cloak and linen outfit, changed from his formal attire in the blink of an eye.
With the flick of his cape, Lex summoned a gale that swept across the room. Tables and chairs soared, silverware and plates smashed against the wall. Adrian panicked, covering her head as debris crashed all around. The darts exploded from the wind pressure and the particles were swept away in the gale.
Silas cackled. "Parlor tricks! I'm insulted you'd dare try and bring me down to your level.
After adjusting his gloves, Lex flicked his wrist and the winds stopped in a heartbeat. "I wouldn't waste the effort to dispose of vermin like you."
"I'm crushed. Though I can't help but feel the same. Excuse me, if you will, that I show you something new I've learned." Silas cast off his cloak. As he did, his black sleeveless vest revealed deep scars etched into his shoulders. "I have to admit, it took some practice."
From his hip, the fallen adeptus produced a dagger and carved a symbol deep into his arm, much like what showed on the cyan circle he summoned earlier. For a moment, blood poured from his wound, but it then quickly seeped back into Silas's body. Lex's face washed over with shock.
"Bardo, get her out of here." Lex tossed his cloak off and it darted into the shadows.
From the darkness near the ceiling, the cloak reappeared, fell, and wrapped around Adrian.
A snappy voice called out to Adrian all around her. "This ain't no time for layin' around. We gotta get going!" It was the cloak speaking to her.
As an orb of purple fire rose from the fallen adeptus's wounds, the world around Adrian faded. It felt like she leaped into a warm pool but didn't feel wet. Instinctually, she closed her eyes and held her breath, afraid she would drown. But the longer she held it, the deeper she fell into this body of water. She clenched tight onto the cloak, desperate not to pass out. Panic set in as her lungs burned from not breathing. With no other choice, her body forced her to exhale. Shortly after, as consciousness began to fade, she inhaled.
The sickly-sweet smell of death filled her nostrils and her eyes darted open. She was floating on the surface of an endless ocean, a faint purple void extended in every direction. The water was flat, calm.
"Boy golly, I thought we were gonners there," Bardo said.
Adrian thrashed to keep her head above water. Her dress was soaked and began to pull her down. The cloak clung to her despite abandoning any attempt to keep it held close. She began to tire.
"You look like you're having some trouble there."
"Yes. Help." Adrian managed to sputter as she struggled to keep her face from underwater.
"I thought after that nap you took; you'd have more energy than that. Well, just stand up."
Adrian wanted to curse at the stupid thing but had neither the energy nor the breath to spare.
"Here, like this," Bardo proclaimed.
An ethereal force swept her up by the hips and plopped her feet first, upon the surface of the water. It felt like she was walking on dry sand, despite feeling the small ripples, that were caused by her motion, smack against her ankles. She bit her tongue, and the pain confirmed she wasn't dreaming, or dead.
"What is this place?" Adrian looked around.
"It's where dreams come from. And nightmares too. Oh, and where life begins and ends."
"Did I die?" Adrian spoke with panic.
"No, no, I don't think you're dead. You'd know it, that's for sure. It's not a fun ride."
Adrian felt a shiver run down her spine and she pulled the cloak tight around her body. "Then how did we end up here?"
"That's a good question. I don't know. Usually, I whip through here in a moment. It's how I get from place to place in the real world."
Behind Adrian, a golden light ignited and lit the sky. Fearful, she turned, expecting some hell spawn to descend upon her. But in the distance, a lone figure sat upon a small bluff. A force then shoved Adrian from behind and she stumbled forward.
"Whoa, whoa, alright we'll go over there then." Bardo spoke with surprise.
"That wasn't me." Adrian insisted.
Like a leaf on the wind, Bardo whisked them upwards, and they soared toward the glowing figure. It felt similar to before, like she was floating through water. In less than a minute, they closed on the small bluff and the figure. As they got closer, Adrian better saw the shape of the figure's silhouette. It was the angel. The cloak careened toward the bluff but as they closed, a force pushed them and they bounced like a ball off a trampoline, landing at the foot of the cliff.
The sphere of light over the angel blinded. Adrian held her hand up over her face to blunt the pain of what was effectively staring at the sun. But she needed to know if it was him, even a momentary glimpse would satisfy her curiosity. Unable to make any details of the angel, and pain besieging her ocular nerves, she relented.
"Is it you?" Adrian called out. She knew it was a foolish attempt. If it really was him, the angel wouldn't be able to understand what she was saying.
"It is I." The angel's baritone voice boomed, echoing out through the nothingness all around. His accent was thick.
"If that is true, then you know who I am, don't you?"
The angel leapt from his perch upon the bluff and slammed into the water. The wave created caused Adrian to stumble back. Unable to keep her footing on the chaotic surface, she tripped and fell backwards. The angel walked forward, and as he did, the golden light upon the bluff dimmed. And she could make out his features clearly in the violet glow of the void above. It was him.
"I know. You who claims not to be my daughter."
Adrian wanted to argue, to set the record straight. But being in this strange place, with such an unpredictable character made her uneasy and she relented.
The angel shifted on his feet. "If you aren't, then how are you here?"
"How are you here, are you dying?" Adrian goaded.
"No. I am dead." The angel spoke matter-of-factly.