The stupid thing about sleeping in a cold, decrepit cell is that it's not exactly the most comfortable place to lay down.

I'd thought that at least I'd get some reprieve from my constantly aching body — and shoulder — by passing out, but all I received was an abrupt yank in my gut before I was thrown into a desert like someone had shoved me with enough force to topple a mountain.

I blinked, confused. Hadn't I been in a cell before? How had I ended up here?

I mean, I'd had weird, horrible dreams before, but none of them had ever felt so… real. I grasped a fistful of sand from the ground and let it trickle through my fingers, awed.

I'd never been able to interact with my environment in my other dreams, either.

Something told me this was no ordinary occurrence.

Sand swirled all around me, glowing golden despite clearly being night above. There was an old lamp next to me, and I shuddered with the warmth of the flames flickering inside.

Despite the calm atmosphere, my hairs stood on end.

My instincts told me to stay wary. Something was not right here.

Ah, I was wondering when I'd meet you.

I jumped, subconsciously drawing my injured arm close to my chest. My knees shook with fear, heart thundering in my ears.

This voice…it sounded ancient.

The way the deep tone washed over my body scared me. It vibrated deep within my bones, igniting something inside that I instinctively knew was bad.

Still, I mustered up the courage to ask: "Who's there?"

The voice merely chuckled. The light-hearted sound made me relax, but only slightly.

My dear granddaughter, it crooned. Come forward.

A light flickered in the distance. I could spot a figure, wearing a dark, tattered cloak slowly crest over the top of a nearby sand dune, its clothes flapping in the wind.

Come, the voice urged again. I understood immediately that this was the figure speaking to me. Come to me, Callie di Angelo.

I didn't ask how it knew my name.

"Who are you?" I repeated, not moving an inch.

Like heck I was gonna climb a sand dune in this state, especially to a very suspicious-looking figure that I'd never met before.

What had it called me? Granddaughter? I'd never had any grandparents. What on earth was this thing talking about?

The figure paused momentarily, and I had the uncomfortable feeling it was inspecting me like some type of interesting insect.

I'd caught it off guard, if only slightly.

Fear crawled up my back and into my throat, but I refused to move and let the presence know I was afraid.

The figure tsked.

You would do well not to question a Titan, little hero.

I blinked, and suddenly its soulless face was staring down at me.

I could see golden eyes and a cruel smirk underneath the hood; several scars stretched down his face, marring it horrifically — like he'd been torn apart and stitched back together like Frankenstein or something.

I gasped, my heart in my throat, and fell down hard onto the sand below, scrabbling to get away.

"What — how — "

The figure circled me like a wolf stalking his prey. I watched him uneasily, feeling like I was being x-rayed, every single part of me laid bare for this thing to see.

My mother told me such tales of you, he mused. The Fated One, the Reincarnation…Such power, all concealed in this…

He eyed me closely.

…Small, unassuming mortal form.

I didn't exactly know how to respond to that. "What are you talking about?" I asked instead, swallowing my fear. Was he trying to confuse me on purpose?

The Titan only kept staring.

A bit too young, perhaps, still a bit weak…Still, you'll do nicely.

"Go away," I said, trying to seem unruffled.

Yet my voice quaked. It was hard not to feel tiny against the sheer power of this man.

Yes , I was scared.

Not just scared — I was petrified.

The sand thundered around him as the man stared me down, expression clouded over like an oncoming storm. The sky thundered; lightning flashing bright white like the forked tongues of serpents.

I was certain I'd pissed the dude off. I was certain I was about to die.

But then… something… strange happened.

My hands began to tingle. I felt my irises getting warm — from what , I had no clue.

Whatever it was, it made the figure — Titan? — snarl under his breath. His golden eyes, suddenly a lot less brighter than they were before, swung to my hair.

I closed my eyes, frowning.

I felt… weird , like I was a glass of water that had been filled too much, and now everything was beginning to overflow.

The Titan didn't speak again. The only thing I heard was a flapping of cloth, before a strong gust of wind nearly threw me into the sky. I barely managed to avoid getting flipped over from its force, and slowly cracked open my eyes, wincing uncomfortably.

What the…

All I could see was a vast expanse of sand. I squinted, but there was no shadowy figure in the distance.

The lamp beside me had gone out.

The Titan — whoever he'd been — had disappeared.

I got up, my shoulders trembling from exhaustion. I checked over my hands, but everything seemed to be perfectly fine.

The sand was still swirling around me like a tornado — maybe more so than before — but it wasn't anything drastic.

It had been rotating around the Titan, too, after all.

The stars glinted at me from above.

Oh, I thought. That's new.

The sky had been all dark and thundering when I'd arrived, and now, it was completely clear. If I hadn't known better, I'd have thought there had never been a storm here in the first place.

For a moment, all was calm.

Then the stars brightened, almost blindingly. I reached up, entranced. It felt like I was being tugged towards them, like I belonged somewhere else .

Not my place, I kept thinking. Not here.

But just as I felt I was going to be whisked away, a soft, derisive laugh echoed over the dunes.

The spell broke, and I fell down, as the glowing sand suddenly cut off its light and turned an ominous shade of red. The ground began to quake, the lamp falling on the ground and shattering.

I gasped, backpedalling.

Run, run, little demigod!

I didn't have time to register the woman's mocking tone before the ground beneath me began to give away, falling straight down into the abyss.

"What the…" I muttered, transfixed. The domino effect of the falling sand was going to reach me in less than a minute.

But how —

My foot inched dangerously close to the abyss, and I yanked it back just before I could fall over.

Move, you idiot! I snapped myself out of my daze and turned on my heel. I ran desperately, looking over my shoulder to check whether the abyss was coming, but it was of no use. It felt like the sand itself was pushing me back, forcing me to slow down.

Laughter echoed all over the blood-red sand and skies, as if I was mere entertainment and not currently fighting for my life. My shoulder burned; my legs felt like they were going to fall off. I sniffled, wiping away my tears.

I was scared.

Oh, little reincarnation, the woman's voice said, amused. Your power pulses all around you, and yet you remain ignorant.

What was she talking about?!

What power?

I stretched out my senses — like I even knew what I was doing — but I could feel nothing.

Just…sand.

Sand… I mused, an idea sparking in my mind. I cast a wary glance at my hands and envisioned an island forming underneath me, a small circle that would float over the abyss as the rest of the desert fell around me.

The woman chuckled. It's no use trying to escape.

But I had to try.

I couldn't keep running anymore.

So I concentrated. Operating purely on instinct, I yanked on something in my gut, and the sand particles whirling around me froze in the air.

Yes! I thought. I'd been right!

My frantic heartbeat pulsed through my body. With a tremendous amount of mental force, I directed the particles below my feet, and squeezed my eyes shut, preparing for the inevitable fall that would come if I failed.

…

…

…

I…wasn't falling. My feet remained on stable ground.

Had it —

Did I —

Cautiously, I peeked through my eyelids, and gasped, a giddy smile overtaking my face.

Holy hell, I'd done it! I was safe!

….Of course, I should've known that would jinx it.

The sky roared in rage, sounds distorting around me as the air began to crackle. I threw my hands over my ears to shield them, eyes wide in fear.

You dare?! The wind screamed. You dare challenge me in my own domain?!

Domain?! Challenge?! I thought wildly. Weren't you just trying to kill me?!

The gusts of wind were so much stronger now than they'd been with the Titan. I sank to my knees, curling into a ball to try and maximise the concentration of my mass, making it harder for the wind to throw me off.

The makeshift island I'd made shuddered under the force.

My heart was beating so fast I swore it was going to leap straight out of my throat.

The shrieks were getting so loud that I swore I could feel my eardrums burst.

I removed my hands for a split second, and that was my fatal mistake.

The wind caught me right in my chest, and my eyes widened in disbelief.

Oh, no.

I felt the horrible sensation of free-falling again, and I screamed.