The road was deserted, wrapped in the thick fog that shrouded the small town of Blackwood every night. Alex walked with his hands in his pockets, the echo of his footsteps resounding in the emptiness. He could still feel the burning in his cheeks, a remnant of the argument he'd had with his father just an hour ago.

"Always the same..." he muttered, kicking a stone onto the asphalt. "Like everything is my fault."

There was something comforting about the silence of the night, though this time, it felt oppressively heavy. The wind whispered through the trees lining the road, and an uneasy sensation crept down his spine.

He glanced over his shoulder. Nothing.

Shaking his head, he tried to calm himself. Maybe it was just exhaustion or the tension building up. Yet, the air felt charged with something inexplicable, as though the darkness itself was watching him.

Suddenly, the roar of an engine shattered the silence. Alex turned his head toward the horizon and saw the headlights of a car speeding toward him. The light blinded him for an instant, and before he could react, the vehicle swerved violently, losing control.

"No!" he shouted, but his voice was swallowed by the impact.

Everything happened in the blink of an eye: the screech of tires, the dull thud of his body hitting the hood, and the pain—pain so intense it stole the breath from his lungs. He collapsed to the ground, unable to move, as the world began to fade into a blanket of darkness.

But then, he felt it.

A presence.

Someone leaned over him, so close he could feel the warmth of their breath. He tried to open his eyes, but his vision grew hazier by the second.

"I can't let you die... not yet." The voice was soft, almost a whisper, but there was something unsettling about it, as if it didn't belong to this world.

Alex wanted to ask who it was, but no words came out. The only response was cold—a cold that spread from his chest to every corner of his body, accompanied by a sharp pain that made him gasp. It felt like something was tearing him apart from the inside.

And then, total darkness.

---

Alex woke up with a start, gasping and his heart pounding. The room was dimly lit, unfamiliar. He tried to sit up, but his body felt as heavy as if it were chained down.

"Relax, you're not ready yet."

The voice startled him. He turned his head and saw a woman standing by the window, her silhouette outlined by the moonlight. She was tall, with pale skin and hair as black as the night. Her eyes, a deep red, seemed to pierce through him.

"Where am I?" he managed to murmur, his throat dry as sand.

"Somewhere safe," she replied, stepping closer. "Though that depends on you."

"What happened to me?" he asked, trying to remember. Fragments of the accident returned to him: the car, the impact, the voice...

The woman smiled, but it wasn't a comforting smile.

"You died, Alex."

The air caught in his lungs.

"No... that's not possible."

"And yet, here you are," she said, leaning toward him. Her crimson eyes glowed with an intensity that sent chills down his spine. "Don't worry. It wasn't your choice... it was mine."

Alex felt panic rising within him.

"Who are you?"

"My name is Cassandra. And from now on, I'm the closest thing to family you'll have."

The door to the room burst open, and a man with a severe expression entered hastily.

"Cassandra, the Council's trackers are near. We have to leave."

She turned to him, her expression hardening.

"Prepare him for the journey. We can't stay here."

"Journey?" Alex asked, his voice trembling.

Cassandra looked at him again, this time with a mix of sadness and resolve.

"Welcome to eternity, Alex."

The cold returned, this time as a reminder that his life, as he once knew it, was over.