Solstice's hand trembled as he pulled it away from the ancient stone. The hum that had filled his body faded to a whisper, but the tingling sensation remained, vibrating in his fingertips like the last remnants of an impossible dream. He could still hear the voice in his mind, soft but insistent, like the rustling of wind through dry leaves.
"You are not what you think you are."
The words echoed, the truth of them gnawing at his chest. What was it trying to tell him? Who—what—was he really? His heart raced, but his feet remained rooted to the spot. He couldn't look away from the towering black spire in front of him, its surface dark and slick like the night itself. It loomed over him, ancient and powerful, yet strangely... familiar.
The air shifted. The temperature dropped. Solstice's breath became visible in front of him, and for a moment, he thought he saw something moving at the corner of his vision—shadows dancing in the periphery. His instincts screamed at him to move, to flee, but his body refused.
A deep, guttural sound vibrated through the ground beneath him. His heart skipped a beat as the stone around him began to tremble. The air thickened once again, and the soft hum morphed into a deep, resonant growl, filling the atmosphere with a sense of foreboding.
And then—there was light.
A crackling surge of energy spiraled outward from the spire, sending Solstice stumbling back. The ground beneath his feet cracked open, fissures snaking through the earth, releasing a burst of light so blinding he had to shield his eyes.
"Do not turn away."
The voice was no longer a whisper, but a command. It sliced through the chaos like a blade, cutting through the panic, the uncertainty. He knew he had to listen.
His feet moved without thought, his legs carrying him forward, toward the epicenter of the light, to the place where the cracks in the earth split wide open. As he stepped forward, the light began to shift, swirling in intricate patterns, creating shapes in the air—symbols he could almost recognize, but not quite. They were ancient, older than anything he had ever encountered. The language felt strange, but somehow... familiar, as if it was buried deep within his mind, waiting to be unearthed.
Solstice reached out again, his fingers grazing the light. A shock of energy shot up his arm, and for a moment, everything in his mind aligned. His memories, once hazy and fragmented, suddenly flooded back in a rush.
He saw flashes. The face of someone—someone important. His name... was it Solstice? It was, wasn't it? But that wasn't all he saw.
There were other names, too. Other faces. A woman's face, eyes burning with determination. A man, younger, with a scar that ran across his cheek. A creature, tall and twisted, with endless black wings, its eyes glowing like embers.
A crack appeared in the air before him, the symbols from the light coalescing into a single shape—a door.
"You are not alone."
The voice once again filled his mind, louder, clearer, more insistent than ever before. There was a deep longing in it, a call he couldn't ignore. His hand reached out, and as his fingers brushed against the door, the world around him shattered.