The door opened and darkness spilled out from the room beyond, thick and cold, and I felt my heart sink into my chest.
The darkness was not empty. There was something in it.
Someone.
From the shadows, a figure emerged.
She walked with hesitant steps, her bare feet making no sound on the stone floor, her movements slow and uncertain, as if she had forgotten how to walk and was teaching herself again with every step.
I knew who it was. My breath caught in my throat.
"...Mia."
She stepped into the pale green light of the torches, and the world stopped.
Her dress was torn and stained, hanging off her thin frame in ragged strips that barely covered her body. The fabric was discolored with layers of old blood. The hem was frayed and uneven, and one of the straps had broken, leaving the dress to slip off her shoulder.
