1 Chapter 1: The Birth of a Phoenix

A hangover. Ortega wondered if that was how it was supposed to feel. Was this what that man meant? To be forgiven, was she to be tortured in return? If her ears weren't numb, she was sure she would hear the laughter of her voice.

She deserves this.

In fact, this was nothing compared to the crimes she committed.

But did it only take a simple headache and nausea to wither away her sins? Surely, there were more to come; this was child's play.

Ortega waited. She waited for an inevitable pain to strike in the darkness that surrounded her. When no harm came, she was confronted with confusion.

What mind games are they playing? She didn't know the answer to that question. Perhaps, being in this paralyzed state was her punishment, hoping to waste away her sanity—or at least what was left of it. And so, she resigned to her envisioned fate.

She wasn't sure how many minutes passed, but it felt like an hour had gone by—that is if time even existed in this place to begin with. Despite accepting the inevitable, Ortega hated the state she was in. As much as she despised her actions, what she hated more was the silence. It always staged the perfect ambience to muse on her mistakes and the could have beens. She loathed brooding over her memories; one of the things she had no control over.

Just as her mind slowly dived into her past, an unusual scent brought her out of her misery. Somehow, she could smell something nearing, something that was suspiciously similar to a smoke.

Instantly, the dark no longer seemed black, but of a lighter color. A grey that was eventually masked by a brighter color—orange. It swiveled around her with hues of yellow, and danced like flames. Every passing second, she could feel it drawing closer. Her body's immediate response was to flee, but gravity pulled her toward the ground, preventing her from escaping. As if it was possessed by an evil spirit, the seeming-like flames hastened toward her with intent.

As it did so, all Ortega could do was watch. She watched with wide eyes as the fire got closer. Suddenly, a sickening image was exhumed from the deepest part of her mind. An image she tried to lock away from her consciousness. The image of a pale-skinned woman with hyacinth-blue eyes hidden behind white sheets.