*Briella*
The chill of the cavernous chamber seeped into my bones as I stood there, rooted to the spot, staring at Tian. His presence was like a dark stain against the starkness of the void. The dreams had been relentless, images of him twisted through my slumber night after night, but nothing compared to the shock of seeing him in the flesh, the architect of my nightmares standing just an arm's length away.
My heart thundered against my ribcage, and a surge of anger washed over me. Memories flooded in unbidden—so much destruction and pain because of the man who now stood before me with a smirk that suggested he was merely an observer of his own chaos.
"Welcome," he sneered, the word slicing through the silence. He threw his arms open wide, embracing the emptiness that surrounded us, a perverse show of hospitality in a place devoid of warmth.
