Three days had passed since the ritual.
Kaelis had been subjected to countless rites in the underground chambers of the floating city — preparations meant for the trial that awaited him.
His body was covered in red runes that seemed alive, pulsing with strange energy across his arms, hands, back, and face. No matter how much he tried to wash them off, the marks would not disappear. It was as if they had been carved into his soul, not just his skin.
In the narrow, cold, and dark cell, Kaelis survived by eating pieces of raw meat, brought by silent devotees. No one spoke to him. His tongue felt like lead, and his limbs as if chained by something invisible. He couldn't react, speak, much less fight against what was being done to him.
From time to time, the priest would enter. He spoke in an archaic language Kaelis could not understand. With each invocation, new runes would appear on his skin, drawn as if they were sprouting from within. He felt something slipping away — or being born — inside him. It was as if the words were shaping his spirit, rewriting his will.
Lying on the freezing floor, Kaelis waited for time to pass. Then, finally, the cell door opened. The priest entered, accompanied by four masked devotees. Without saying a word, they shackled him and lifted him to his feet.
The group proceeded through the ever-deepening corridors of the city's underground. The silence was broken only by the echo of footsteps. Kaelis felt they were approaching the edge of the city suspended over the abyss of the Sky Below.
"The day of your trial has come, Hadriel."
"Today, you will face the challenges of the Inverted Cathedral. You will prove your worth before the Heart God. And finally, be blessed."
Kaelis shut his eyes, feeling a shadow pass through his soul.
"Inverted Cathedral? What kind of madness is this...?"
They soon reached a massive metal door at the end of the corridor. As it opened, cold wind struck them like a blow. Their robes fluttered; Kaelis's hood was pulled back by the wind, revealing his rune-marked face.
The priest's hood was also partially blown back, revealing on his nape a set of circular runes forming something that resembled a black sun. Before Kaelis could look more closely, the priest covered himself again.
Outside, a narrow stairway without handrails descended into darkness. Looking down, Kaelis saw the void of the Sky Below. A chill ran up his spine. For a moment, he thought about pushing the priest and running — but his body still wasn't entirely his.
Deeper and deeper they went, until Kaelis finally saw the structure: the Inverted Cathedral. Gigantic, gothic, just as imposing as the city's cathedral, but built upside down beneath its shadow. White flames burned in lanterns scattered along the path, casting a ghostly glow on the black stones.
On the final step, they reached a bridge leading to the main entrance: a massive double door embedded in the central tower of the inverted cathedral.
The priest and the devotees moved ahead and knelt before Kaelis. From his cloak, the priest drew a silver dagger — the same one Kaelis had seen days earlier atop the ritual table.
He unshackled Kaelis and handed him the blade.
The dagger was beautiful, with a hilt adorned by a ruby crystal that seemed to pulse like a heart.
"O Chosen One... your trial shall be to face the levels of the Inverted Cathedral. Each level will bring a judgment. You must judge, sacrifice your identity, and in the end, receive the divine blessing."
"For you, this is the beginning of your story as a deity..."
The priest paused. His gaze was solemn.
"But for some... this is the end of the road."
Before Kaelis could react, the devotees pulled hidden daggers from their robes — and slit their own throats. Blood splattered on the stone floor. Bodies fell like puppets without strings.
Kaelis stepped back, horrified, the dagger trembling in his hand.
He wanted to scream. To run. But his body was frozen.
The runes on his skin burned. The priest simply rose, looked at the lifeless bodies, and then turned to Kaelis, smiling with serene madness.
"For you, this is the path of salvation. Proceed, Hadriel. Save us from our sins. And bless us with your justice."
Without waiting for a response, the priest turned and climbed the stairs, retracing the entire path they had taken to reach the Inverted Cathedral. In a few minutes, he vanished from sight.
Kaelis fell to his knees.
His body trembled. Tears fell uncontrollably. He felt trapped, as if those three days of silence had erased something within him. But now, without the priest's presence, it was as if his soul had returned to dwell within his body.
"They're insane... all of them are insane... Why?!"
It took several minutes for him to recover. He thought of his family — his father, his mother, Zoe and Michael. They were waiting for him in the real world.
He took a deep breath. He could try to escape now. But something was pulling him. A silent and inevitable call, like gravity.
He gripped the dagger tightly, removed his hood, and stepped toward the Inverted Cathedral.
As he touched the heavy double doors, a chill ran down his spine. A dark presence lurked beyond that threshold.
But there lay his only chance to return. To survive. To go home.
With effort, he opened the doors. They closed behind him with a muffled thud.
Darkness swallowed him — until spectral flames lit up, revealing the first level: an endless corridor, its walls lined with broken mirrors.
As he walked, Kaelis saw the fragmented reflections of Hadriel's childhood, the true owner of the body he inhabited.
Playful moments with his parents. A smiling sister. The first kiss.
But the faces were blurred, erased, as if they had never existed.
At the end of the corridor, he reached a wide chamber. At its center, a stained-glass window rotated in the air. Each panel displayed a memory — laughter, songs, pride... and distorted faces.
"What is this place...?" — he whispered to himself.
Kaelis wondered, and as if the answer came to him, a monstrous, nearly demonic figure walked out of the darkness toward him.
It was a Wax Figure, an androgynous, melted monster with eyes made of dripping candles.
Kael immediately drew the dagger and assumed a defensive stance; however, the monster did not attack. On the contrary, it approached Kael and pointed to the great stained glass spinning above their heads.
"Three memories. Only one is true. Choose..."
"Or lose them all."