The place where Scorch woke up is the realm between heaven and hell. They call it the Lost World or the Invisible Maze, where Veena resides. Yes, she lives there, not in hell, because of her mixed bloodline. Sometimes, other creatures call her the Empress. She holds the highest position in the council, which Scorch doesn't know because he doesn’t really care about the council. He secretly goes against the rules, but when he saw Veena alone in that world with only her pets, he felt lucky. At least he knew where he belonged, unlike Veena. Yes, she is a demon, but there’s a part of her that is witch and has many other creatures in her bloodline.
Both of them could win if this were a contest, as they stared at each other without blinking.
"What?" Veena said incredulously. She was surprised that an angel didn't know how to go back to heaven.
"Then go back to Earth," she said, continuing to look at her painted fingernails. If he didn’t know how to go back to heaven, she was sure he knew how to go back to Earth. But when she saw Scorch scratch his nape and look down, she was shocked.
"Please don't tell me that you don't know how to go back to Earth either," she said, looking at him sharply in the eyes. He just looked away.
"Uhm... I did?" he said hesitantly. In just a snap of her fingers, Veena was in front of him with crossed arms and a furrowed brow.
"Are you really an angel?" she asked, because in all her life, this was the first time she had seen an angel who couldn't go back to either world.
"I am, but I don't travel a lot, and I guess I'm not interested in going back and forth from heaven to Earth," he said. Veena straightened up her posture but still looked at him. When she saw he was serious about not knowing how to go back, she had no choice but to help him. Because, just like she said, she wasn’t heartless, and being here in this place, other creatures might die.
"Fine, I will help you go back to Earth," she said, then turned her back to him.
"Without any conditions?" he asked, because most demons are willing to help, but there’s always a condition. He didn't want to take a risk again.
"Without any conditions. You see, I'm not like the other demons, if that's what you're thinking right now," she said and sat in the fountain again. She couldn't understand how an angel couldn't go back to heaven or even to Earth. She thought it was the most foolish thing she had ever encountered, because most of the creatures she had punished could return to their world, even if they were weak. But Scorch's case was different—he belonged to heaven and was guarding a human on Earth, yet he couldn't go back. What was happening?
"Why to Earth? Why not to heaven?" he asked as he walked towards her and sat in the fountain too.
"Even if I have an angel's blood, it doesn't mean I can go to heaven. My demon's blood is stronger than the other, so I'm still a demon," she explained to him. He just nodded his head and looked at the petals, until he suddenly felt like he was burning again and his vision became blurry. He didn’t want Veena to notice, so he bowed his head, closed his eyes like he was sleeping, and hoped for the pain to go away.
Veena thought about the places they needed to pass through to reach the portal to Earth. Many different things waited for them. If she were alone, she could just create a portal to Earth, but with an angel, they couldn't enter her portal, or else the angel would die. She had no choice but to take the long journey with him. She had the blood of a fairy, which meant that once she promised something, she couldn't take it back. Right now, she regretted saying she would help him, but punishing other creatures hurt her because they were a part of her too. For once, she wanted to explore other places. Being alone in that kind of place made her sad. No one stayed by her side except one. To her, demons were the cruelest creatures of all because they were the ones who made things complicated. Believe it or not, she didn't want to be a demon because demons could only love other demons; they didn't have the right to choose who they would love. Other creatures hated them too. Even when she just wanted to be friends, they would run far away from her. That was the number one reason she decided to live in the Invisible Maze—so that no one would see her unless she needed to punish them.
Veena wanted freedom from the demons, while Scorch wanted freedom from the angels. Different creatures, but they wanted the same thing: freedom. But freedom always comes with one condition, and that’s sacrifice. The world is unfair for all creatures, but only those creatures can change that. Can Veena and Scorch change it? Are they going to have the freedom they want? Even they can’t answer those questions. Besides, Scorch was worried about Elena because she was alone at their house. That’s why he wanted to go back to Earth as soon as possible. He wanted to do his job smoothly, and nothing could stop him from doing that. Things can become very difficult if you make one small mistake, and that mistake will make everyone judge you, just like what happened to Scorch when the council brought him to her—or so Veena thought.
"Hey, Scorch, let's go," she said, tapping his shoulder. Scorch raised his head and nodded. They stood up and walked.
"The last time I checked, there's no exit in this place," he said, looking ahead. She shook her head and replied, 
"You’re wrong. There’s an exit from this place. It’s a portal that will lead us to unknown places, and any creature can enter those portals," she explained, then stopped.
"This is a dead end," he said, but she didn’t reply. Instead, she touched the wall, and a small swirl of light appeared in the middle. After a few seconds, the swirl grew larger. She looked at him.
"Follow me," she said, then entered the portal. Despite his hesitation, he followed her. When he finally passed through, he saw her standing in a place surrounded by darkness. Unlike the Invisible Maze, this place was completely black. He tried to walk toward her but didn’t bump into any walls. He thought this might just be an ordinary dark place.
"Let's keep going," she said, then walked ahead, and he followed.
"Where are we? Why is it so dark here?" he asked, looking around like a kid at a carnival.
"You know what... Since we met, it seems like the only thing you do is ask questions," she said, walking ahead of him. He continued his habit of scratching his nape and followed her.
If only he didn’t feel so weak right now, he would teleport back to Earth or fly back to heaven. But he knew he couldn’t do that because of his condition, and he was still clueless about it. He already knew he had accidentally disobeyed the rules and that the angels would punish him if he returned to heaven. But why did he still feel weak? He couldn’t move his wings or use his powers. He wanted to ask Veena, but she seemed annoyed with his constant questions. If he weren’t so weak, they wouldn’t have to take this long journey to Earth.
"Walk faster, will you?" she said. He obeyed and walked faster, but something made him trip and fall to the floor.
"What are you doing on the floor?" Veena asked as he stood up.
"I tripped on something," he said, looking at the floor, trying to find what caused him to fall.
"He’s playing tricks again. Listen, any voice you hear, ignore it, and anything you see, don’t touch it. I repeat, DON’T TOUCH IT. Come on, let’s keep walking," she said, walking again. Even though he was confused, he decided to follow her instructions.
He was new to this world and didn’t even know such a place existed, but he was amazed that some places had only one color.
"Scorch, Scorch, come here," a voice called him. He chose to ignore it, just as Veena had said.
"I know you want to be free from the rules, and I can grant you a wish," the voice said. It was tempting, but he still tried to ignore it.
"Why are you listening to a demon when you’re an angel? Don’t listen to her. She’ll just trick you," the voice said again. This time, he couldn’t ignore it.
"It doesn’t mean she’s a demon that she’s bad, and it doesn’t mean I can’t be with her because I’m an angel," he said to the voice, as he couldn’t take it anymore. Just because she was a demon didn’t mean she didn’t have the right to be around other creatures like him.
"Really? Then wish for something, and I’ll grant it. Anything you want, just tell me," the voice said. But just as he was about to speak, Veena appeared in front of him, startling him.
"I already told you to ignore the voice," she said. After she spoke, different colored strings appeared out of nowhere, filling the space with shining, colorful threads. It now looked beautiful, but a white string appeared right in front of him.
"Touch the string, and you will see your destiny," the voice said again. As Scorch was about to touch it out of curiosity, a soft hand stopped him.
"Don't. If you touch it, your destiny will change," she said, worry etched on her face.
"Don’t worry. If I touch it and my destiny changes, I don’t care because I am the one holding it, not this string," he said, smiling at her. Then a laugh interrupted them.
"You are a smart one, aren't you?" a man said, appearing on their left side.
"Who are you?" Scorch asked, and Veena rolled her eyes.
"The name’s Linus. Welcome to the Strings of Fate. Be careful walking in this place because once you touch any string, a curse will befall you," Linus said, laughing again.
"Linus, stop scaring our guests. My name is Lynne, Linus’s twin sister. Just be careful when walking; the strings are very fragile," Lynne said, smiling at them.
"Thank you for the reminder," Veena said, and Lynne nodded while Linus winked at her, making Scorch furrow his brows.
Linus and Lynne are guardians of the Strings of Fate. These strings are not ordinary; they hold a creature’s future. Linus ensures that no one breaks the strings, though he is quite playful, while Lynne makes sure the strings are bright and in their proper place. Guardians of Unknown Places can be cursed creatures or half-creatures. Their sole job is to guard and care for a specific place. Linus and Lynne are half-angel, half-fairy. The Strings of Fate are crucial for every creature because they connect them to loved ones, friends, and special individuals. However, you cannot see your own strings; only Linus and Lynne can. The white string Linus wanted Scorch to touch was a fake, as he enjoyed playing games with the creatures who entered their realm.
As Scorch and Veena continued walking, Scorch, being the clumsy angel he is, accidentally brushed against a light green string while pointing out some dirt in Veena’s hair. Veena and Lynne’s eyes widened as Linus’s jaw dropped. Scorch had not just brushed it—he had broken it. Linus and Lynne held the now-gray and cold strings.
"Veena, I need your help fixing this before the whole string turns gray," Lynne said. Veena grabbed Scorch’s wrist.
"What do we need to do?" Veena asked.
"You need to find the dark blue string with a light green bow," Lynne said. The two ran in different directions to find the specified string while the twins did their best to keep the color of the string they were holding. Once the string turned completely gray and cold, it meant the creature’s future would be tragic, and they would live in misery. They needed to find the destined creature and hope they met without complications to restore the string to its original form and position.
Veena used her telekinesis to locate the string’s aura, while Scorch ran around, exhausted since he couldn’t use his powers.
"Veena, Scorch, hurry up!" Linus said as he felt the string turning icy gray.
"Found it!" Veena said. She used her fairy powers to hold the string like Linus and Lynne and teleported it beside the broken string. Scorch ran to Veena’s side, and they watched as the twins cut the dark blue string and connected it to the light green string. Both strings shone brightly, and the light green string returned to its original color and position, with a dark blue bow on it, meaning they succeeded in saving the creature’s destiny.
"What will happen to the owner of the string?" Scorch asked the twins.
"It will be fine, but they will meet a little earlier than they were supposed to," Linus said, cracking his knuckles.
"I'm sorry about the string," Scorch said.
"Angel to angel talk: Scorch, please don’t do stupid and clumsy things in other places," Lynne said, causing Linus and Veena to giggle while Scorch looked down shyly.
---
Elena looked out of her window with sadness in her eyes. It had been a day since Scorch had disappeared, and she was scared—scared that the hellhound might attack her again. She was relieved that no creature had attacked her. She stood up from the couch, grabbed her jacket, keys, wallet, and cellphone, and went outside. Before she left, she locked the house. She decided to buy some groceries as her cupboard and refrigerator were empty. Since the weather was chilly, she chose to walk to the grocery store. On her way, she bumped into someone.
"I'm sorry," she said, looking at a guy in a red hoodie. The guy removed his headphones.
"Watch where you’re going," he said, putting his headphones back on and walking past her.
Elena shook her head and continued walking. The park near her favorite café caught her eye, so she smiled and went inside. Some children were playing, and she sat on a swing, feeling the wind on her face. She enjoyed swinging, a pastime she loved since she was a kid. The park was beautiful with its old and small trees. As she observed, she noticed the guy leaning against the old tree, looking at something. She followed his gaze and saw five kids playing tag. The scene was peaceful until she froze in shock—the two kids running were hit by a truck. People gathered around, and the parents of the kids went nearly crazy. The guy who had bumped into her earlier approached the scene and then walked away. Elena could hardly believe she had witnessed such a tragic accident. The kids were too young to experience such cruelty.
Instead of going to the store, she went back home and to her bathroom, where she lay in the bathtub, trying to relax. The accident she had seen felt like a new nightmare that would haunt her. She was startled by the sound of a vase shattering against the wall. She hurriedly dressed and went downstairs.
"Who’s there?" she called, even though she was scared, knowing no one would protect her since Scorch was gone. She switched on the lights and saw nothing but the broken flower vase. However, a single dark red rose with a card on the coffee table caught her attention. She went closer and read the card.
It read:
"I'm sorry."
The handwriting was beautiful, but who could have left it there? Was it Scorch apologizing for leaving? And why was there a broken vase?
She looked closer at the vase and noticed drops of blood on the floor, making her want to vomit due to the terrible smell. Despite the stench and the mysterious note, she hoped no one would harm her since she was obviously unable to protect herself.