BLOODBOUND FATE

"Calista! Smile! You know that a smile is what you should show while you walk the runway! Are you ready? You're next. Good luck my sweetheart, we are doing pageants for almost a decade.... so I know it is just a piece of cake to you."

I smiled at Ms. Gina, our production team member or should I say my ALMOST mom...... I have a pageant now, and this is not just an ordinary pageant. This is an international pageant, and the winner will receive 100,000 USD. If I win, I will surely be able to pay all of my family's debts.

"And now...... Let us all welcome! Calistaaaaaa Vespeeeraaa!"

"Good luck, sweetheart!" Ms. Gina said as she smiled at me.

When my name was called, I immediately walked to the front just like I always do. Pose here, smile there. There were so many people. Not only the people here are watching, but the whole world.

I faced the camera and immediately changed my aura. This is one of my signatures to win. "Good evening, Ms. Calista... Your question is from....... Mr. Atticus...so.... here is your question."

I closed my eyes and felt the question being spoken by the host so I could think properly.

"If the world stops....."

I waited for what the host would say next but...... it felt as if the world really stopped. When I opened my eyes, none of them were moving. I closed my eyes and opened them again, but it was still the same. I don't know what is happening. I looked around, but everyone truly was not moving not even time, their breathing, the lights, the birds. Everything stopped. What is happening? Why is it like this? Am I dreaming?

"Ca-calista?"

I turned around and saw Ms. Gina. She was moving too, but her face did not look confused or scared about what was happening to the world.

"Ms. Gina! What is happening? Why aren't they moving?"

Ms. Gina did not answer me, and her eyes filled with tears. "Calista... it's really happening again... the prophecy...." she said and her face is like she have seen a ghost. "You need to be careful... you need to come with me... you will understand it later...."

"What do you mean? Ms. Gina-"

But before I could finish what I was saying, we heard a loud explosion. Ms. Gina immediately grabbed me and held the emerald green pendant on her neck. It suddenly glowed, and my eyes widened at what was happening.

"Ms. Gina...."

She did not answer me, and my attention shifted to the loud explosion we heard. We saw a woman, she is wearing a black clothes, black lipstick and black make up.....she also have four black shadows on her sides. She looks like a witch but doesn't have a witch hat. The woman seemed to be looking for something until her attention turned to us.

"Oh! well well well..... Calista, my darling.... come to me, to us! To your home."

"She is not coming with you! Stay away from her or I'll make a force," Ms. Gina said with anger on her face.

"What is happening?" Despite their sharp glares, I was still able to ask even though I was already scared and confused.

"Ohh... she still don't know huh! Don't worry, hun, you will understand it later when you come with us. But... if you don't... well, we don't have a choice but......"

I saw her raise her hand, and it glowed. It looked like she was holding a black diamond. It was sparkling and very beautiful, but.... terrifying.

My heart pounded violently as the black diamond pulsed in her hand, as if it were alive. The air around us grew heavier, pressing against my chest until it became hard to breathe. I took a step back without realizing it.

"Calista," Ms. Gina said in a low, urgent voice, still standing in front of me, shielding me with her body. "No matter what happens... do not listen to her."

The woman laughed softly, a sound that echoed unnaturally through the frozen space. "Still protecting her after all these years?" Her eyes slowly moved toward Ms. Gina. "You know you cannot hide her anymore. She is already reborn by the prophecy."

"I promised it to someone...." Ms. Gina replied firmly. "And I will keep that promise even if it costs me my life."

I looked at them, confused and terrified. "Promise? Hide me? What are you talking about? I don't understand any of this!"

The woman's gaze returned to me, and her expression softened almost lovingly. "You will, my dear. You were never meant to live an ordinary life. This stage, this crown you desire... it is nothing compared to what awaits you."

The black diamond glowed brighter, and suddenly the ground beneath us began to crack, thin lines of darkness spreading like veins across the floor.

Ms. Gina reached for my hand and pressed something cold into my palm. It was a pendant identical to the one around her neck.

"When the time comes," she whispered, tears streaming down her face, "trust yourself, you will understand."

Before I could ask anything, the shadows surged forward, stretching toward me like claws.

I screamed. I tried to move, but my body felt frozen in place. This is my end......

Then..... A powerful voice thundered through the entire area, shaking the air itself.

"STAY AWAY FROM SARINA! OR I WILL MAKE SURE YOU WILL ALL DIE! ALL OF YOU!"

The shadows instantly froze mid-air, as if struck by an invisible force. The woman's eyes widened in shock, and the black diamond in her hand flickered violently.

I gasped, my heart pounding.

"Sarina...?" I whispered, confused. "Who is Sarina?"

The voice echoed again, closer this time, stronger filled with authority and rage. The light around us trembled, and cracks spread through the frozen world.

The woman clenched her jaw. "So... you've finally found her."

Ms. Gina tightened her grip on my hand, her voice shaking. "They know now."

I stood there, surrounded by fear, power, and questions I didn't even know how to ask.

Because in that moment, I realized.... That I am not really dreaming.

"Goodbye for now, Calista.... or should I say..... Sarina... See you around my dear." And after that, their shadows immediately vanished.