The narrow path twisted through the forest like a coiled serpent, its trees gnarled and bent under the unseen weight of ancient sorrows. Each step carried Kael and Liora deeper into the unknown, and the silence between them grew heavier. The shadows of the Covenant lingered in their minds, a specter neither could ignore.
Kael kept Eidolon within reach, its runes flickering as if sensing the tension. "What you did back there," he began, glancing at Liora, "how did it feel?"
Liora hesitated, her fingers toying with the edge of her cloak. "It was like… unlocking a door I didn't know existed. Everything rushed out at once—power, fear, memories that weren't mine." She shuddered. "But I didn't control it. It controlled me."
"That's how it starts," Kael said. "You'll learn to harness it. If you don't…" He let the words trail off.
She looked at him sharply. "If I don't, what?"
He met her gaze, his eyes hard as stone. "You'll be consumed, just like the shadows you destroyed."
The words hung between them like a blade poised to strike.
They emerged into a glade bathed in cold twilight. A ruin lay ahead—a crumbled temple of black stone, its entrance flanked by statues worn smooth by time. The air smelled of dust and iron.
Kael stopped. "This place shouldn't exist."
"What do you mean?" Liora asked, her eyes scanning the ruin.
He knelt, running his fingers over a shattered sigil carved into the ground. "This symbol belongs to the Forgotten Court. They were wiped from existence long ago—erased from history itself."
"Then how is it here?"
"Someone didn't want it to be forgotten."
A cold wind stirred the leaves, and the ground beneath their feet trembled. The temple groaned as if waking from a long slumber. Kael's instincts screamed danger, but something else called to him—a pull from deep within the ruin, like a memory long buried.
"I have to go inside," he said, his voice low.
Liora grabbed his arm. "Are you insane? We barely escaped the Rift, and now you want to walk into a place that shouldn't exist?"
"There's something here I need to see," Kael said firmly.
She stepped back, her frustration simmering. "Fine. But if we die, it's your fault."
He smirked faintly. "Deal."
They entered the ruin together, the darkness swallowing them whole.
Inside, the air was thick with ancient power. The walls were covered in glyphs that shifted when glanced at, telling stories of a forgotten world. In the center of the chamber stood a dais, upon which rested a crystal sphere glowing faintly with silver light.
Kael approached, his hand trembling as he reached out. The sphere pulsed, and a voice filled the room—a voice filled with sorrow and fury.
"You dare seek the truth? Then bear its burden."
Light exploded from the sphere, and Kael's mind fractured. Memories not his own surged through him—a kingdom aflame, a betrayal sealed in blood, a blade forged in sorrow. He saw a man with eyes like burning coals, a crown of shadows on his head, and a voice that promised ruin.
"Kael!" Liora's voice cut through the storm.
He staggered, gasping, as the visions faded. The sphere cracked, its light dying.
"What… what was that?" Liora demanded, her voice tight with fear.
Kael's hand tightened into a fist. "A warning. And a curse."
"From who?"
"The first Keeper," he whispered. "And the last king of the Forgotten Court."