Aeon's body felt heavy, like it had been dragged through the depths of a storm. The dark void around him seemed to stretch endlessly, a suffocating silence pressing down on his chest. His breaths came in ragged bursts, the cold air scraping his throat as his eyes flicked open. He was lying on cracked stone, the ground beneath him unforgiving and rough.
The Hollow Vale—this nightmare place.
His heart pounded in his chest as his mind began to catch up. The pain in his side had faded, but a faint, pulsing throb in his arm lingered, drawing his attention. He could feel it beneath his skin, something pulling at him—an unnatural force. It felt as though the very essence of his body was bound to something, tethered to the air around him in a way that made no sense.
"That… that chain," he whispered, staring down at the dark mark now branded on his arm.
The symbol was intricate—links spiraling into each other in a complex, mesmerizing pattern, the chains faintly shimmering in the half-light. But it was more than just a mark. It was a sensation, an awareness, as though the chains themselves were alive, coiling and uncoiling inside him.
Suddenly, the air shifted.
A figure appeared in front of him.
It was a man, tall and cloaked in tattered robes, his face obscured by a deep hood. He was like a shadow made flesh, his presence more felt than seen, an embodiment of the Vale's eerie stillness.
Aeon's heart skipped a beat as the figure raised a gloved hand.
"That mark you bear," the figure's voice was low, almost a whisper, but it echoed in Aeon's mind as if the words were pressed directly into his skull. "It is not a gift, but a curse."
Aeon struggled to his feet, his legs shaky. The pain in his side had returned, though duller now. The creature—or whatever this figure was—stared at him with unnerving intensity, as if waiting for something.
"A curse?" Aeon repeated, his voice barely a rasp. "What the hell do you mean?"
The figure's head tilted slightly, a slow, deliberate movement, as though assessing him. "You are marked by the Chains of Tenebra, the bindings of time and shadow. It is an ancient power, woven into the very fabric of this world. A power that feeds on the lives of those who wield it."
Aeon's gaze flicked to his arm again, his pulse quickening. "So, I'm cursed?"
The figure's expression—if it could even be called that—remained unreadable. "Not yet. But if you fail to control it, the chains will consume you, as they have consumed countless others before you. You will be drawn into the endless loop, caught between time and eternity, your fate forever intertwined with the Vale."
Aeon's mind reeled. This couldn't be happening. He was just a thief. He didn't deserve this—didn't ask for any of it. The idea of being bound to something so ancient and terrible sent a shudder through him.
"What am I supposed to do with this?" He lifted his arm, the chains flickering ominously beneath his skin. "How do I get rid of it?"
The figure shook his head, a dark chuckle escaping his lips. "The chains are not something that can be rid of. Once they choose you, they own you. The only choice left is whether you wield them or let them break you."
Aeon felt a wave of anger rise within him. "I didn't ask for this. I don't want to be some pawn in whatever game this is."
"You are not a pawn, thief," the figure responded, his voice now harder. "You are a key, a fragment of something much larger. The Vale has begun to bleed into the world once more, and those who bear the chains may be the only ones who can stop it. But it is not a fight for the faint of heart. Time bends in the Vale, and those who do not know how to wield its power will be consumed by it."
"Stop talking in riddles," Aeon snapped. "What the hell are you saying?"
The figure took a step closer, his presence overwhelming. "You will learn, whether you like it or not. The chains are not something to be feared. But their power must be earned." He raised his hand again, and this time, the chains beneath Aeon's skin responded, thrumming with power.
The ground trembled. The air thickened. Aeon stumbled back, his hands instinctively reaching for his side, where the pain had begun to flare up once more.
The figure's voice grew quieter, yet the words seemed to vibrate with power. "You have already made your first step. Now, you must decide if you are strong enough to take the second. But know this: Every action you take with the chains will cost you. Time, life, soul—these are the prices you will pay."
Aeon's breathing grew ragged as he felt something inside him stir. The chains were calling him, urging him to take action, to test their power. But his instincts screamed at him to resist, to flee.
"Why me?" he asked, his voice strained. "Why did they choose me?"
The figure's eyes glinted beneath the hood, and a flicker of something—curiosity?—passed through them. "Because, Aeon Solis, you have something that others do not. You may not know it yet, but the Vale is not the only thing at risk. The world itself stands on the precipice of ruin, and the chains you bear may be the only thing that can tip the scales."
Aeon clenched his fists, the burning sensation in his arm intensifying. His head swam with confusion, and yet, somewhere deep inside, something stirred—something that longed to unleash the power, to take control, to fight.
"Fine," he said through gritted teeth, his voice barely a whisper. "I'll play your game. But I don't trust you."
The figure stepped back, and a deep chuckle rumbled from within his chest. "You don't need to trust me, boy. But you will come to understand that the chains are not so easily controlled. Now, you must learn how to wield them before it is too late."
With that, the figure vanished, his form dissolving into the swirling mist of the Vale.
Aeon stood alone in the eerie silence, the weight of his new reality settling over him like a crushing storm. The chains within him pulsed once more, a reminder of the power he now held—and the price he would have to pay to master it.
It wasn't a game.
It was a battle for survival.
And Aeon had just taken his first step toward an uncertain future.