[Running for Their Lives]
Andrew's heart pounded against his ribs.
His lungs burned. His legs screamed.
But he kept running.
Celia pulled him forward, weaving through the narrow alleyways of Blackmere with the precision of someone who had done this before. The shouts of their pursuers echoed behind them, metal boots slamming against cobblestone, the unmistakable ring of steel being drawn.
Whoever they were—they were fast.
And they weren't going to stop.
Andrew risked a glance over his shoulder—just in time to see one of the cloaked figures vault over a barrel, moving impossibly quick.
His stomach twisted.
These weren't ordinary soldiers.
They were something else.
And they were hunting him.
"Celia," he panted, "who the hell are they?"
Celia didn't answer. Instead, she grabbed his arm and yanked him to the right, dragging him through an open doorway.
The moment they stepped inside, she slammed the door shut.
Then, in one swift motion, she grabbed a dagger from her belt and shoved it against Andrew's chest.
"Stay quiet."
Andrew sucked in a sharp breath.
Footsteps thundered outside.
Then—silence.
They were waiting. Listening.
Andrew forced himself to breathe slowly.
The tension in the air was suffocating.
Seconds dragged by.
Then—
A loud crash as the door behind them splintered inward.
[A Fight in the Shadows]
The first attacker lunged.
Celia moved like lightning. She twisted, her dagger flashing as she sliced across his throat.
Andrew barely had time to react before another came through the broken door—this one faster, smarter.
The cloaked figure went straight for him.
Andrew ducked. The attacker's blade barely missed his face, cutting into the wooden pillar behind him.
Before he could recover, Andrew slammed his elbow into the man's ribs and shoved him back.
But the man barely stumbled.
Andrew's stomach dropped.
They were too strong.
Celia cursed. "We can't win this. We need to—"
A third figure appeared in the doorway.
Celia tensed.
Andrew followed her gaze—
And his blood turned to ice.
Because the man standing there wasn't like the others.
His cloak was heavier. His armor reinforced. And unlike the rest—
His face wasn't hidden.
His eyes—**black as the void—**locked onto Andrew.
Then, he smiled.
"Shadowmarked," he said, voice smooth. "I finally found you."
[The Assassin's Offer]
The words hit Andrew like a hammer.
Shadowmarked.
The same word Kieran had used.
And whoever this man was—he knew what it meant.
The assassin tilted his head slightly, his fingers tightening on the hilt of his blade.
"I would've preferred to take you alive," he mused. "But dead will work just as well."
Andrew barely had time to react before the man lunged.
Fast. Too fast.
Celia moved to intercept—but the assassin caught her wrist mid-strike.
Then, in one smooth motion, he twisted.
Celia gasped, dropping her blade.
Andrew's vision tunneled.
His body moved on instinct.
Without thinking, he grabbed a broken chair leg from the floor and swung.
It connected—hard.
The assassin staggered.
Just enough for Celia to rip her arm free and slam her knee into his gut.
The assassin growled, his amusement vanishing.
"You should've run," he said coldly.
Then—he raised his hand.
And Andrew's mark burned.
[The Power Awakens]
Andrew gasped.
It wasn't pain—it was something else.
A pull.
A raw, searing force surging through his veins.
For a brief second, he saw images flashing before his eyes—
A battlefield covered in black fire. A throne made of shadows. A figure standing above it all.
And then—
A voice.
"Wake up."
The air around him shifted.
The assassin's expression changed instantly.
His black eyes widened. "Impossible—"
Then—
A blast of energy exploded outward.
The walls shook.
Celia was thrown backward. The assassin barely had time to brace before the force slammed him into the far wall.
And Andrew—
Andrew stood at the center of it all.
Untouched.
The mark on his wrist was no longer faint.
It glowed.
And for the first time, Andrew realized—
This power wasn't just inside him.
It had been waiting for him to call it.
[The Aftermath]
Silence.
The assassin groaned, pushing himself up.
His black eyes narrowed at Andrew—but this time, there was no arrogance.
Only calculation.
Then, before Andrew or Celia could react—
He vanished.
Gone.
Andrew's breath came in ragged gasps. His hands were still trembling from whatever the hell had just happened.
Celia stared at him, her usual confidence shaken.
"Andrew," she said slowly. "What the hell was that?"
Andrew swallowed hard.
He didn't know.
All he knew was that something inside him had awakened.
And it was only getting stronger.
[A New Enemy]
Kieran found them an hour later.
He whistled at the destruction. "Well. Looks like someone had fun."
Celia glared at him. "Not now."
Kieran ignored her. His gaze landed on Andrew.
Then, his smirk faded.
"You felt it, didn't you?" he said.
Andrew tensed. "Felt what?"
Kieran stepped closer. "The pull."
Andrew didn't answer.
Because he had felt it.
The power. The weight. The voice.
And Kieran knew it.
Celia folded her arms. "What does it mean?"
Kieran hesitated.
Then, he exhaled. "It means," he said, "that the people hunting him?"
His gaze darkened.
"They're just the beginning."
A cold knot formed in Andrew's stomach.
"Who are they?" he asked.
Kieran's smirk returned, but there was no amusement in it this time.
"They call themselves the Black Hand."
Andrew felt a chill crawl up his spine.
Celia cursed. "You've got to be kidding me."
Kieran shook his head.
"Oh, it gets worse," he said. "Because if they know about him—"
He glanced at Andrew's wrist.
Then, he grinned.
"—it means the Dominion War is about to begin."
[The War Begins]
Andrew's pulse pounded in his ears.
The Dominion War?
Before he could ask, a distant horn echoed through the city.
A sound filled with warning.
With death.
Celia's face went pale. "They're coming."
Andrew's stomach twisted.
Kieran grinned, cracking his knuckles. "Well then."
He stepped forward, drawing his daggers.
"Shall we give them a warm welcome?"
Andrew clenched his fists, the mark on his wrist still glowing faintly.
Whatever was coming—there was no running from it now.
This was only the beginning.