She was trapped inside a labyrinth, she confirmed her theory after crossing two hallways. Agatha hoped that her previous state of panic was the cause of the confusing images, but her wishes weren't fulfilled.

Zagar guided her through several identical corridors. All of the walls were covered in black wallpaper, the edges decorated with golden moldings. Embedded in them were the lamps, the light that came from them was too weak to illuminate the entire area. To Agatha, it looked like a setting straight out of a classic horror movie, except for the absence of creepy paintings.

Every detail about the decoration lacked personal or sentimental meaning, she doubted that the demons cared about adding their essence to the place.

"Where are the paintings?" Agatha asked, tired of the crushing silence.

"What paintings?" Answered Zagar without stopping walking.

He turned his head to the side to see the young woman beside him.

"The paintings that every old mansion has, mostly portraits of family members."

"We don't have relatives, nor do we care so much about our past."

"Surely you could add some decorations, it looks so empty this way," said Agatha, pointing at the walls.

"We like them like this, they look the same, it's harder to tell them apart. Don't think that I don't realize what you're doing, we're not going to add details that you can use to guide you to the exit."

The young woman felt her heart slow down for a second. Something told her that the nude walls couldn't be a coincidence, yet she decided to ignore the obvious facts. The demon knew what they were doing, they created the labyrinth for their prey.

"You can't blame me for trying to find a way out," she whispered.

"Don't worry, soon you'll love it here," Zagar said as they turned another corner. "If you convince the council to not kill you and let you stay."

Death. Agatha had escaped the clutches of death so many times recently that she thought it would no longer affect her. Still the mere mention of the end of her life paralyzed her mind. Her feet continued to move by inertia, following in the footsteps of her kidnapper towards the deadly judgment.

What could she offer to placate the demons' wrath? Would making an agreement with her enemies make her a traitor? Agatha hated her current situation, feeling so weak once again after working hard to improve herself. A part of her told her it was her mistake for trying to be someone she could never be. Her fault for trying to be more than just the victim.

Within the pile of self-hatred a small light shone: her desire to fight. Memories of her loved ones and of what she still wanted to experience fed her spirit. She still had a lot to live for. Somehow she was going to convince her captors.

The young woman stopped playing with her hands and raised her head. She wasn't going to listen to negative thoughts, they didn't define her, they were just there to drag her down to her destruction. She noted Zagar's curious look and the small smile that appeared on his face. The demon said nothing, he continued walking until they reached a green spiral staircase. As they climbed the stairs, Agatha noted the details of the gilt railings, her hands examining the lions carved into the wood.

As soon as they reached the top floor, a wooden double door caught her eye. Even though she didn't have much training, she could feel an overwhelming energy coming from her.

"Here we are," said Zagar, pointing at the door.

The entrance opened letting them pass. The wave of energy that rushed at Agatha took her breath away for a few seconds. It was when the young woman knew that she was entering the lair of the most fearsome predator. The room held too much power against a simple human.

"You made it on time, that's a surprise." Cadoc's voice broke the spell she had fallen under.

"The same goes for you. Did the boss drag you here?" Answered Zagar with a smirk.

An awkward silence filled the room, the tension between the two demons clear. The way Zagar clenched his jaw was proof enough of that.

Agatha took advantage of the distraction to study her surroundings. The place was smaller than she expected, generating in her a feeling of confinement, perhaps that was the intention of the council, to intimidate the victims of their interrogations. 

The black color of the room helped convey a gloomy atmosphere, the gold details on the edges and curtains gave it a bit of light. The ceiling was high, dome-shaped, and the floor was made of mahogany wood.

At the end of the room stood the council. The four demons remained seated on large, throne-like chairs, forming a semicircle with a fifth empty chair. From her point of view they were like giants, monsters three times her size ready to rip her head off at any moment.

"Zagar." The demon sitting in the middle, with the white hair, spoke. "Why don't you bring your little human to the center?"

Pushed by her kidnapper, Agatha closed the distance between her and the council. All eyes fixed on her figure. Her body began to tremble, she tried to keep her head up but ended up staring at the ground.

"I told you she is't special," said Cadoc. "I've seen humans twice her size, she can't even stand in front of us without shaking."

"Zagar must have a reason to bring her here," commented the demon with short brown hair, who had a snake around his neck.

"He just wants to play," answered Cadoc. "You know him Odessa, when did he do something seriously?"

"You'll be surprised by how much I do for us," interrupted Zagar, venom slipping through his words. "This little human has a power that can be very helpful, you shouldn't underestimate humans, after all it was a human who defeated you."

"The human had an angelic weapon," hissed Cadoc.

"Cut it, you two. Don't waste my time," exclaimed the demon in the center. "Zagar, take your place on the council and leave the human to fend for herself."

"Whatever your malevolence, Borbala, wishes." Zagar made a reverence before walking toward the empty chair and sat on it, completing the council.

"Speak, human. Why should we let you live?" Asked Borbala.

Agatha's mind short-circuited, she didn't know what to say, she didn't know how to defend herself. The fear inflicted by the presence of the monsters that destroyed her village prevented her from thinking reasonably. She took a deep breath as she thought of a quality that might be important to the council. In the end she didn't decide to choose what her captor had mentioned.

"My power," she whispered, the strength of her voice betrayed her.

"What about it? What can your power do that will surpass what my army does?" The leader of the demon asked.

"I'm a healer."

"We already have healers," the fourth demon talked for the first time. Her red eyes stand out for their elongated shape, they were almost covered by her blonde hair.

"Let her finish, Dabria," Odessa defended the human.

"She has the potential to surpass our healers," Zagar interrupted the conversation. He looked at Borbala as if asking her permission, once she nodded, he continued. "With proper training she can become the best healer we ever have. Her way of healing is different from what we are used to, she uses light to heal."

All eyes turned to Agatha as silence filled the room. She could feel the change in the air, the atmosphere became tense and she feared that one of the demons would jump at her at any moment.

"Are you certain?" Asked Borbala

"That's impossible." Cadoc dismissed the comment.

"You can see it yourself," answered Zagar.

The demon got up and walked towards the human. He raised his left arm so that everyone could see it, with his right hand he drew a dagger and made a cut that went through his entire forearm from top to bottom.

"Heal it," he ordered Agatha.

The young woman blocked out the stimuli from her surroundings and concentrated on healing Zagar. She drew all her energy into her hands and placed them a short distance from the wound. The cut closed quickly, after all a minor wound was no challenge for Agatha.

"Interesting," said Borbala after witnessing the scene. "You found yourself a special pet."

"Why didn't you tell us anything before?" Asked Odessa, her face full of amazement.

"You would have tried to keep my doll if I had told them. I found her first, she belongs to me," Answered Zagar, a smirk present in his face.

The demons' stance changed, their red eyes no longer emitting hate, instead a knowing glow emerged. They leaned back in their chairs, relaxed, as if the secret they shared gave them a new kind of power.

"Wouldn't it be better for us to kill her?" Asked Cadoc as he got up from his seat.

He took two steps towards the human and materialized his sword made of shadows, but Borbala stopped him.

"She's more useful to us alive than dead," she said.

"But we can't let it get back into the humans' hands," commented Dabria. "It's risky to leave her alive."

Agatha took a few steps back and hid behind Zagar, despite the fact that she didn't trust him, her captor was the best defense option she had. She didn't fully understand what was happening, her mind was unable to decipher the code, yet she was able to understand that she possessed something that threatened the demons and, at the same time, could be useful to them.

"She stays alive," ordered Borbala, causing the other demons to bow their heads. "Zagar, make sure she develops his power and don't take your eyes off her. If I perceive that she can become dangerous or if she refuses to collaborate, I will kill her myself."