Wren and May concentrated for a moment; it was different the way magic worked at that place. But it didn't take a lot of it. In fact, May felt that she had flicked her magic for a second when it happened. It couldn't be explained; it was a simple shift in the atmosphere. Like the feeling people get when they are watched in the dark. And the duo felt the presence on the plateau along with them.

  In the sky, a fog bow appeared. The view of the sky became breathtaking; what was once a broken and dark patch of different things became a profusion of a million stars. The fog bow swirled serenely. May felt her leg shake, so she pinched herself and tried to calm down. She didn't dare to look to the side, but out of the corner of her eye, she looked at Wren, and he was as paralyzed as she was.

  May heard a sound that was like someone had pulled the air in. A sound of the very first breath. And for a minute, the silence ruled the place. Even the stars stood still in the sky. The girl couldn't see where it came from, because it seemed to have come from everywhere, a voice that said:

  "Who are you...? Why are you here...? Why disturb... my... sleep?"

  "Lord Chaos," May said, and she got on her knees. She heard Wren doing the same. She hoped he wouldn't try to crack a joke. "I'm a simple witch, my name is May. I follow Lady Hecate. This is Wren, he's a wizard and devoted to lord Aether. We're here to ask for something."

  The voice let a sound out, and to May, that sound was the closest thing to a laugh that would come from Chaos.

  "You want something? I shouldn't be surprised; that's what you humans always want. You're always coming and asking for something. Some favor." Chaos stated. "But you're not always willing to give something in return."

  "We will meet your demands, lord Chaos. In exchange for your help." May's eyes were glued to the ground. The girl didn't dare to look any other way. She wasn't used to feeling afraid, not while fighting monsters. Not even facing the weirdest things. But this time, it was different.

  "You may not like what I'll ask. How can you concede so easily? You must be desperate. But please, tell me what you want."

  "We were trapped, my lord. We want your help, bridging your dimension to ours."

  "Hum. This is such a request, child. I see what you want. The price shall be equivalent." Chaos pondered for a moment. "It's interesting for you to come here. Knowing that the lines between righteousness and taboo can be quite adjacent. Don't you think so?"

  "I don't think we're doing something wrong, my lord. Our motives are fair."

  "You should know better than this, " they always say. They always have their reasons. All of their wars are holy. But what is about being right or wrong, if not a mere point of view? I would say that the person who trapped you had their motives, too. And I would say they probably believe they were doing what they think is fair."

  May felt the presence that shifted around her; it moved and observed and watched her every reaction.

  "Honestly, they probably have their reasons, and in a sense, I shouldn't be talking about right or wrong. What I believe is right is because I believe it's right for me, and according to me. But I don't come here expecting an act of benevolence or that you would even entertain getting us out of here for nothing. I'm ready to accept whatever you ask in return."

  "Hum, so blindingly you throw your life in the hands of a deity you barely know. Don't you know we all have our whims? I believe you read the stories, even though most people mistake me for something I'm not. You ask for something, something that I find easy to do. But using magic, I'm sure you're well aware of the rules of this world. Cause and consequence. There are some things that, when you destroy, you create a chain reaction of destruction. But the opposite can also be true. If you manage to create something out of nowhere, you might create an unexpected chain of events."

  "I'm familiar with that concept. I don't expect you to be permissive or ask for something low. I know that I'm asking for a thing that might have immeasurable impact."

  "And yet you've come here. You knew everything. You were aware of the cost. Tell me, child, are you that desperate to get out of that place?"

  "Yes, I am."

  Chaos pondered for a moment. If not for his chilling presence, May would have thought he had gone away.

  "Do you always carry that tarot deck with you? Do you mind taking one card? And I'm the one asking the first question: will you get free?"

  May placed her hand on her deck. It felt warm to the touch; something was different about that reading.

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  "The Chariot, upright. In fact, I will find success getting out of the maze."

  "But what will that choice lead you to?"

  "The Hermit, reversed." May bit her lower lip before she added. "To loneliness."

  The deity, once again, was in silence. When he spoke, in his voice, there was the hint of something, that May couldn't identify what it was.

  "The last one, child. And what will be the price?"

  May felt her hands shake while she placed them on the deck and picked one card. Her intuition pointed to the truth about it all; she knew the card even with her eyes closed. She knew it even before she picked it up. There was no other card she could've pulled out. Not at this moment, not at this place. There was only one answer ahead of her, but she had to keep moving.

  "The Tower," May said, and for the first time, in the presence of the deity, she turned her head to the sides, looking for Wren. His eyes were closed, and the sweat dripped from his forehead. May continued: "Upright. Disaster and destruction, intertwined. Trauma." May stopped for a moment, but even if she didn't want to, the last word slipped from her lips. "Chaos."

  The air became still. It was like the world was trapped in place, unable to move. The magic itself stopped flowing. For a moment, the girl became aware of every little thing that surrounded her there. Most of the time, the tarot messages could be cryptic, full of hidden meanings and interpretations. But at this moment, everything was crystal clear to May.

  "Now you have your answers. You're fully aware that if you take it on, you will be able to get out of here. But you know that it will lead to a path of loneliness and sorrow. And you know well that accepting the price will lead to disaster and destruction. A fractured mind. I don't think I have to say it, but considering everything here and your own knowledge of magic and divination. Are you aware that you're bound by this destiny?"

  There are things in life that one might not even stop to consider. May wasn't surprised when she heard herself, the words that slipped from her mouth.

  "Yes, I am."

  "And you will still choose to pay the price?"

  "Yes, I will."

  May felt something in her chest; it burned. She felt a kind of force that pulled and bound her. Words ran fast in her mind, thoughts she couldn't contain. If they were slower, she would have grasped visions of the future, different dimensions, and alternative realities. But it was one glimpse, and for a moment. And it was too much for a single mind to distinguish it. The girl knew something deep down inside her had changed, even if she couldn't say what. Maybe it was about her own nature.

  "It's done and complete. Now you two have the capacity to get back to your original place. You need to follow one of the roads that connect this plateau to other places here. You may choose any road you want; they all lead to the same place, albeit some are longer than the others."

  May thought for a moment before she said:

  "I thank you for your help, lord Chaos." But as the words left the girl's mouth, she wasn't sure if the entity had heard her. The presence disappeared, and the sky was normal again. The plateau was covered in silence, as she took in the experience of meeting with an ancient being.

  May looked at Wren, and the man was still in the same place, frozen.

  "Hey, Wren. Are you alright?"

  Wren looked at May, his eyes as wide as possible.

  "You ask me if I'm alright? May, are you insane? How are you so cool with all that? Didn't you feel that presence full of animosity? I'm scared that you could talk so freely in front of-" The man stopped mid-sentence.

  "That's fine, I was able to do it because I had prepared myself. Nothing scares me if I'm able to see in my mind what's coming. It was better than I had expected. There was the chance of him not only not helping us, but also trapping us here. So considering all, I think it was a good result."

  "You say that, but I'm not so sure. And what was the thing about, you know, about what you did?"

  May looked away for a moment, lost in her own thoughts. Wren followed her gaze to the mountains and formations of the place.

  "Hey, let's get back to the Casino. I need to help Karina as soon as possible. I hope we pick the shortest path."

  The avoidance didn't go unnoticed for Wren, but he didn't press May much on the subject; after all, they might have a long walk back ahead of them.

  They chose a path randomly, mostly because all of them looked the same. May pointed to one of the paths and said:

  "Let's just go by intuition, and mine is telling me that this is the best one possible."

  The strangest thing about the path was that, even though it seemed that they had walked a lot, every time they looked back, the plateau seemed to be still at the same distance. In fact, they could say that nothing in the landscape appeared to change at all.

  "I think it's fair to say that I hate everything about here. How can we not know how far we are? It's insane. And you keep telling me that we can't use magic, but we already talked to Chaos."

  "It's a matter of respect, you should know that. When you use magic, you're channeling the strength of the deity you're tied to. It's better not to bring forces from other deities to the domain of another one."

  "It's just that I could be making both of us glide all the way through this damn path. I bet we would've already arrived at the place we're going. Now I thought about another question. Where are we going anyway here? Is it a door to, you know, to our original dimension or anything?"

  "It's not exactly a door, it's more like a breach. A place where the dimensions overlap. I don't know how to explain it better. I have never seen one. But I guess we'll be able to tell when we're at the right place."

  "I feel like I told you a million times, but you don't know how much I hope you're right."

  "I know, I'm simply confident. You can trust me, Wren."

  Wren thought for a moment, and when he was about to say something, May pointed.

  "I guess it's here, look."

  And right in the middle, a magical circle on the ground glowed ominously.