Darkness pressed against Seraphyne from every side.
At first, she thought she was still dreaming. Her body felt heavy, difficult to move, as if the world had wrapped her in a thick blanket. But then a burning sensation started in her chest, sharp and painful, and instinct screamed louder than confusion.
She was underwater.
Her eyes flew open, but there was nothing to see except a dim blur. Panic surged through her veins. She kicked hard, arms pushing upward, her mind focused on only one thing: air.
Her head broke through the surface.
She gasped, a ragged, desperate sound tearing from her throat as she sucked in oxygen. The air felt cold, almost too clean, and she coughed violently, water spilling from her mouth as her lungs struggled to steady.
"What-" she choked, clutching the edge of the tub. "What happened…?"
Her voice sounded hoarse, unfamiliar to her own ears.
Seraphyne leaned forward, coughing again until the tightness in her chest eased. Water rippled around her, and only then did her mind catch up to what her body already knew.
She was in a bathtub.
But that didn't make sense.
The last thing she remembered was the plane.
Her fingers tightened against the smooth rim as memories rushed back like a storm. The roar of the engine. The nervous laughter of the crew. The endless deep blue sea stretched below. And then...
A violent shake.
Alarms rang continuously.
The pilot's voice broke over the intercom.
The Bermuda Triangle.
She had been excited, even thrilled. As a master chef known for chasing rare flavors across the world, she couldn't resist the chance to explore a place filled with mystery.
Stories said the waters hid unusual marine life and plants that grew nowhere else. With a team of guides and experts, she had gone there hoping to discover ingredients no one had ever tasted before.
Dying had never crossed her mind.
Her grip loosened slightly as the reality settled in.
"The plane crashed…" she whispered.
So why was she here?
Seraphyne looked down at the water around her. It was clear, almost glowing faintly under soft light. The tub itself was larger than any she had seen before, shaped with smooth curves like it had been carved from a single piece of pearl.
"Where am I?" she asked the empty room. Her voice echoed faintly, swallowed by the silence.
She shivered. Only then did she realize she was still soaked, her skin prickling from the cold. Reaching over the edge, she grabbed the nearest thing she could find, a robe draped neatly on a polished stand.
It felt soft, lighter than cotton, yet warm as she wrapped it around herself. She stepped out carefully, her legs slightly unsteady, water dripping onto the gleaming floor.
The tiles shimmered like glass, reflecting soft golden lights embedded in the ceiling. Everything looked… perfect. Too perfect as if they were enchanted.
"How did I come here?" she murmured.
Her heart pounded again, but this time not from lack of air, but from confusion.
Seraphyne wiped the moisture from her face and finally took a proper look around.
The bathroom was enormous, almost the size of her apartment back on Earth. Tall mirrors lined one wall, framed in silver that glowed faintly as if light lived inside them.
A counter stretched across the room, holding bottles and containers with labels she couldn't read. Their designs were sleek and elegant, some floating slightly above the surface instead of resting on it.
Floating.
She blinked hard, wondering if she was still half-drowned and hallucinating.
"This isn't real," she whispered.
But the cold floor beneath her feet felt very real. The robe felt real. The steady beat of her heart was real. Nothing here looked like anything she had ever seen before.
Back on Earth, she had visited luxury hotels and modern kitchens filled with the newest technology, but this place was different. It felt… advanced. Like stepping into a future she had only seen in movies.
A small sound broke the silence, a soft chime, almost musical, coming from the far side of the room.
Seraphyne turned quickly, her breath catching.
A panel on the wall glowed, displaying shifting symbols that looked like letters but weren't any language she knew. The light faded after a moment, leaving the room quiet again.
Her mind raced.
Was she rescued? Kidnapped? Dead?
The last thought made her stomach twist.
"No," she said aloud, shaking her head. "I'm alive. I have to be."
She moved toward the door, each step slow and careful. The handle wasn't a handle at all, just a smooth surface. When her fingers brushed it, the door slid open without a sound.
Seraphyne froze in the doorway.
The hallway beyond was just as breathtaking as the room behind her. Tall windows stretched from floor to ceiling, revealing a cityscape unlike anything she had ever seen.
Buildings curved like flowing ribbons, their surfaces shining under a sky tinted with soft violet hues. Lights drifted through the air, moving in steady lines like silent vehicles without wheels.
Her mouth fell open.
"This… this can't be Earth."
She stepped out, the door closing quietly behind her. The floor beneath her feet glowed faintly with each step, as if it recognized her presence. The air smelled fresh, with a hint of something sweet she couldn't place.
Somewhere in the distance, she heard voices, muffled, echoing faintly through the vast space. She followed the sound, her curiosity slowly pushing aside her fear.
The hallway curved gently, leading to a wide staircase that spiraled downward. The railing shimmered like liquid metal, cool beneath her fingertips as she descended.
Each step revealed more of the place. Paintings, or what she assumed were paintings, hung along the walls, but their images shifted subtly, like living scenes frozen in time. Strange plants grew in tall glass columns, their leaves glowing faintly in shades of blue and silver.
Seraphyne's chef instincts noticed everything. The scents, the textures, the colors. It was overwhelming, yet fascinating.
If this was a dream, it was the most detailed one she had ever had.
At the bottom of the stairs, the space opened into a grand hall. Sunlight, or something like it, poured through a glass ceiling high above, casting soft patterns across the floor.
And then she saw them.
People.
A small group stood near the center of the hall, dressed in elegant clothing that looked both modern and regal. Their conversation stopped the moment they noticed her.
Silence fell.
Seraphyne's heart thudded loudly in her chest as their eyes fixed on her, some curious, some surprised, and a few… wary.
One of them, a tall woman with silver hair, stepped forward.
"Lady Seraphyne," she said, her voice calm but filled with something Seraphyne couldn't quite name. "You're awake."
Seraphyne blinked.
"Lady… who?"
The woman's expression flickered, just for a second, before smoothing out again.
"You don't remember?" she asked softly.
A chill ran down Seraphyne's spine.
"I think," Seraphyne said slowly, "you have the wrong person."
The group exchanged glances. The air grew tense, heavy with unspoken words.
Then, from somewhere behind them, a deep voice cut through the hall.
"No," the voice said. "They don't."
Seraphyne's breath caught as the group parted, revealing a tall figure stepping forward from the shadows.
His gaze locked onto hers, sharp and unreadable.
And in that moment, Seraphyne felt a strange, impossible certainty, as if her life had just begun to unravel.
He stopped a few steps away, studying her like she was both a mystery and an answer.
"Welcome back," he said quietly.
Seraphyne's pulse raced.
Back?
Her lips parted, a question forming.
But before she could speak, a distant alarm suddenly echoed through the hall, sharp and urgent, and every face around her turned toward the sound.
And Seraphyne realized, with a sinking feeling, that whatever world she had woken up in... something had already gone terribly wrong.