Blood on the Cards

The next trial came faster than I expected.

I hadn’t even recovered from the bridge over the pit before the Aces dragged me into another chamber. It was smaller, darker, the air thick with smoke and the metallic tang of blood. Iron torches lined the walls, their flames sputtering weakly as if afraid of what they illuminated.

At the center of the room was a circle. The floor was painted with intricate symbols, crimson lines that twisted together like veins. At the very heart of it sat a single card, glowing faintly: the Ace of Spades.

The sight of it sent shivers down my spine.

“What… what is this place?” My voice trembled, echoing off the stone.

Spades stepped forward, his cold gray eyes locking on mine. “Your second trial. A test of will.”

“Will?” I asked, though dread was already crawling up my throat.

“Your mind,” Spades clarified. “Your strength. Your ability to hold yourself together when everything around you crumbles.”

Before I could respond, Joker’s laugh rang out, sharp and gleeful. He clapped his hands, spinning a dagger in his palm like it was nothing more than a toy. “Oh, this is my favorite one! The Queen against her own demons. Will she fight them? Or will she let them eat her alive?”

The torches flickered violently, and suddenly the circle glowed brighter. The air vibrated, heavy with unseen energy. I staggered back, but Spades’ voice cut me down like a whip.

“Step into the circle.”

“I—I can’t—”

“You can.” His tone was merciless. “Or you’ll die here.”

My chest tightened, but I forced my legs to move. My body screamed in protest as I stepped into the glowing circle. The moment my foot touched the painted lines, the air shifted, pressing down on me like an invisible weight.

And then… it began.

The smoke thickened, twisting into shapes—shadows that clawed their way out of the darkness. My heart stopped.

They were people.

My mother. My father. My friends. Faces I thought I’d never see again, twisted into mockeries of themselves, their eyes hollow, their mouths twisted into cruel sneers.

“Why didn’t you save us?” my mother hissed, her voice sharp and venomous.

“You let us die,” my father snarled, his eyes blazing with hatred.

My knees buckled. “No—I tried—I didn’t—”

“You’re weak,” one of my friends spat, stepping closer. “You don’t deserve to live when we’re rotting in the ground.”

Their voices layered over each other, a storm of accusations, tearing into me like claws. My chest heaved, my breaths shallow and frantic.

“Stop,” I whispered, clutching my head. “Please stop—”

But the shadows only grew louder, closer, their voices echoing like a chorus of demons.

Outside the circle, I could hear the Aces. Hearts’ voice was mocking, amused.

“Look at her. Falling apart already. Cute.”

“Shut your mouth,” Clubs snapped, his voice sharp with anger. “She’s fighting.”

“She’s losing,” Diamonds said coolly.

But Spades’ voice cut through all of them. “She’s still standing. That means she hasn’t lost yet.”

I wanted to scream at them, to beg for help—but something inside me snapped instead.

I clenched my fists, forcing my body to stop trembling. The shadows clawed at me, their hands cold as ice, their words venom in my ears.

“You’re nothing.”

“You’ll never win.”

“You’ll die like the rest of us.”

“No!” The word ripped from my throat, raw and defiant. I lifted my head, my voice shaking but fierce. “I’m not nothing. I’m still here. I survived when I shouldn’t have, and I’ll survive this too. I won’t die here!”

The circle pulsed with light, burning away the shadows. One by one, their screams filled the air as they dissolved into smoke, until I was alone again, trembling but unbroken.

Silence fell.

And then the circle dimmed.

The card at the center—the Ace of Spades—vanished in a flash of light, leaving behind only the faint scorch marks of the trial.

I staggered forward, collapsing to my knees outside the circle. Sweat drenched my skin, my body trembling violently, but my heart was still beating. I was alive.

The Aces stared at me.

Spades’ expression didn’t change, but his eyes—those cold, merciless eyes—held something new. Something I couldn’t name.

Diamonds’ smirk faltered, just slightly.

Clubs knelt beside me, steadying me with his strong hands. “You did it,” he said, his voice rough, almost… proud.

And Hearts? He just grinned, tilting his head with dangerous curiosity. “Oh, you’re going to be fun.”

But Joker’s laugh was the loudest, echoing through the chamber like a promise of chaos.

“Oh, my sweet Queen,” he said, his grin stretching wide. “You’re learning how to play. But the deck…” His eyes gleamed with madness. “…the deck hasn’t even begun to deal its deadliest hand.”

And for the first time, I realized—

The trials weren’t just about survival.

They were about breaking me.

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