A golden glow flickered in the dimly lit chamber, casting eerie shadows against towering pharaonic statues. Noah stood frozen; his breath shallow as he gazed at the majestic figure before him. The being radiated an ethereal light, its immense wings extending outward as if guarding the floating golden book in its grasp.The book pulsed with an ancient energy. Symbols on its cover shimmered, shifting restlessly as if yearning to be set free. "Where... am I?" Noah's voice barely rose above a whisper.Darkness stirred around him. Countless crimson eyes blinked open in the shadows, locking onto him. A chill ran down his spine. He wanted to move, to run—but his body refused to obey.Then, the celestial being lowered its gaze and bowed.Noah's throat tightened. "W-who are you? "No response. Instead, the book's pages flipped rapidly as if guided by an unseen force, settling on a single passage. Luminous words materialized, written in an ancient tongue—yet, somehow, Noah understood:"The first guardian of the Gate of Rakim... Bearer of the memory... The voice of those who shaped it's will." Noah's mind reeled. What did this mean? A whisper rose from the depths of the shadows, growing into a chorus that echoed inside his skull:"You have been chosen, Noah."Before he could react, the world collapsed into a swirling abyss of darkness.Noah jolted awake, gasping for air. Sweat clung to his forehead as he struggled to steady his breath. "A dream...? No... it felt too real."The images remained vivid—glowing wings, shifting symbols, piercing red eyes. And that name... Rakim. The word resonated deep within him, as if it held a hidden truth.Shaking his head, he stumbled toward the bathroom, splashing cold water onto his face. The chill grounded him, but the unease refused to fade.Stepping onto the balcony, he inhaled the salty sea breeze. The city stirred below, oblivious to the weight pressing against his chest.Lost in thought, he barely noticed when he collided with his younger sister, Talia, on his way downstairs.Her bag hit the floor, books scattering across the tiles. "Watch where you're going, you blind idiot!" she snapped.Noah scowled, raising a hand to flick her forehead, but their father's voice cut through the moment. "Noah, don't even think about it! Come on, Breakfast is ready."Talia shot him a victorious grin before scooping up her books and dashing inside.Suppressing his irritation, Noah followed. The warm scent of omelets and fresh bread filled the air as he took his seat."Dad, help me! Noah almost hit me just because he wasn't paying attention!" Talia whined, dramatically hiding behind their father.Ramy, their father, sighed, placing a plate in front of Noah. "You need to be more mature than that.""But she started it!""Ignore her antics. You're almost eighteen now. Have you decided which university you'll attend?" Ramy asked, handing him a piece of bread.A determined glint flashed in Noah's eyes. "Yes. I want to become an Egyptian archaeologist—like Mom." Silence fell. The mention of their mother cast a shadow over their father's face."Your mother was passionate about Egypt's history. It was her life's work until she disappeared... and I'm still searching for her." His voice carried a weight of longing and sorrow. "Be careful, Noah. You've inherited her love for adventure—and the dangers that come with it."Talia hesitated, her voice softer now. "Dad... where was Mom before she disappeared?"Before their father could answer, the doorbell rang.Ramy stood abruptly, finding his old friend, Sameh, at the door."Ramy, we're late! We need to go!" Sameh urged.Their father grabbed his bag, pressing a quick kiss to both their foreheads. "Take care of each other. We'll continue this conversation when I return."Being a navy officer meant he was often away, but he always made an effort to be present when he could.As they watched him leave, Talia blinked rapidly, holding back tears.Noah simply nodded. "Just come back safe, Dad."After dropping Talia off at school, Noah wandered aimlessly, his father's words gnawing at his mind.What is Dad hiding? What really happened to Mom? Why did she disappear?His thoughts consumed him so completely that he barely noticed where his feet had taken him—until he found himself standing before the grand entrance of the Ancient Library of Alexandria.The moment he stepped closer, the air thickened, pulsing with something unseen.It didn't feel like just a library.It felt like a gateway.As if something—or someone—was waiting for him inside.When he entered, silence enveloped him, as if the outside world had suddenly vanished. The long marble corridors stretched endlessly, adorned with golden pillars that told forgotten stories through their carvings. Towering wooden shelves held thousands of books and scrolls, some so ancient that even time itself seemed afraid to touch them.
An invisible force pulled him toward a dark corner on the second floor. There, on one of the shelves, a book was waiting. Its cover was blank, except for a mysterious symbol resembling an eye. The black leather was cracked, as if touched by an inhuman hand centuries ago. When he reached for it, a faint shiver ran through his skin.
He tried to pull it out, but it wouldn't budge. He pulled harder, and his hand slipped, leaving a small cut on his palm. A drop of blood fell onto the cover.
At that moment, it felt as if the entire world took a slow breath. The book trembled just slightly, as if it had absorbed life itself. At the same time, Noah felt a strange heat gathering between his eyebrows....
He felt a slight headache, so he didn't worry about it, and when he couldn't pull it out, he left it there and went to the first floor.
As he stepped onto the first floor, something felt... off. The library had changed. The walls stretched higher, the shadows deepened, and the air carried the weight of something ancient.
On another shelf, his fingers hit another book he felt attracted to, its cover aged, red, and gilded. He didn't recognize the language, yet the symbols seemed to whisper directly to him, drawing him in.
As he examined the hieroglyphs, a whisper slipped into his ear:
"Not everything read is understood… and not everyone who searches finds."
Suddenly, an eerie warmth spread through his hand, as if the book was transferring an invisible energy into him. He shuddered and dropped it. But he didn't notice that the book didn't fall—it hovered for a second before gently landing on the floor.
At that moment, an old man was watching him. Dressed in simple gray robes, his deeply wrinkled face held piercing eyes with an unusual glow, as if seeing right through him.
He stepped forward and spoke in a low voice: "That book doesn't choose easily... It chooses you."
Noah stared at him in shock, but before he could ask anything, the man disappeared between the shelves, as if he had never been there.
Noah felt his perception of the world shifting. He could see details invisible to others—faint glimmers or shadows passing beside him, only to vanish the moment he tried to focus on them.
Curious, he opened the red book and ran his fingers over its ancient pages. His eyes landed on a sentence written in an unknown language, yet his mind could somehow read it:
"Everything visible has a price, and everything hidden carries a burden."
As soon as he whispered the words, time and space seemed to freeze for a moment.
A blinding flash filled his vision… and suddenly, he saw strange glimpses:
People in black robes standing underground, speaking in an unknown tongue.
His mother, running through the desert night, looking straight at him, her lips moving in silent words. The same eerie symptoms that appeared before her death were creeping over her once more.
The mysterious book, opening to a page filled with strange symbols… and the shock of recognition these markings matched the ones that had appeared on his mother's body before she disappears.
A sharp pain exploded in his head, as if something was trying to pierce his mind. The book slipped from his hands again. Clutching his head, his breath trembled.
What had he just seen? Were they visions or memories? Had his mother known a hidden truth? Had she disappeared because of a curse or an experiment? There was no doubt anymore… The answers he sought lay within this book.
He stepped back nervously, then picked up the book from the floor. In the exact spot where he had stood, a strange symbol appeared: a weeping Egyptian eye… and within the tear, a drop of blood!
"Noah…" A whisper, barely audible, brushed past him, unnoticed.
For a moment, Noah stood frozen, his heart pounding wildly, his eyes darting between the symbol on the floor and the shifting bookshelves. No, it was just his imagination… right?
But the whisper… it wasn't his imagination.
He spun around, searching for the source, but saw nothing. Only endless rows of books, stretching like an endless maze. He took a step back, but the floor creaked beneath him, as if warning him not to move. He struggled to steady his breath.
"Just an illusion…" he muttered. Then, as if the world itself decided to mock him, the lights went out.
The darkness wasn't ordinary. It wasn't just the absence of light—it was heavy, pressing against his chest, seeping into his skin, chilling his bones.
Then… The whisper came again, closer this time.
"Noah…"
That was impossible. It shouldn't know his name. His fingers trembled as he fumbled in his pocket for his phone. He pulled it out, but the screen wouldn't turn on. The battery had been full minutes ago, but now it was dead.
He tried to move, but his legs wouldn't obey. It was as if the ground had anchored him in place, dragging his weight down.
Whoosh! A sudden gust of wind indoors kicked up dust between the shelves. In the heart of the darkness, a faint glow flickered at the end of the corridor. Pale blue, pulsing, like a heartbeat in the void.
This was… a mistake. He shouldn't have come here.
But his body didn't listen to his fears. He started walking not by choice, but as if an invisible force was pushing him forward.
With each step, the symbol on the floor glowed crimson.
And when he reached the corridor's end, he saw something he would never forget.
There, sitting on the floor, surrounded by a circle drawn in black ink… was a faceless horned man.
His skin was so pale it looked almost transparent, and his arms were unnaturally long. He had no features, yet Noah felt the thing staring right at him piercing into his mind, searching his thoughts.
Then… it smiled.
How? It had no mouth… yet it smiled.
At that moment, the red book Noah was holding began to tremble in his hands. Its pages flipped on their own, stopping exactly in the middle. The symbols on the page started to glow a deep, blood-red.
"You have been chosen."
The voice wasn't external this time. It echoed inside his head, reverberating in his skull like a distant echo.
And in that same moment, the faceless man moved.
He lifted his unnaturally long hand covered with crystals and pointed at Noah's chest.
Pain erupted inside him like fire igniting his spine.
For a fleeting second, he saw something else, a city not of this world, a sky not meant for humans, shadowy figures whispering in ancient tongues… Then he collapsed to his knees, eyes wide with terror.
The curse had begun.
When Noah regained consciousness, everything around him had changed.
-----
At the same time, in a distant place, hidden from ordinary human eyes...
In a dark chamber lit only by flickering blue flames, three men wearing black robes gathered around a stone table engraved with mysterious symbols. In the middle of the table, there was an ancient scroll, bearing the same seal that appeared on Noah's hand when he touched the book.
"It has begun..." whispered one of them hoarsely.
The man sitting in the middle, whose face was hidden behind a golden mask decorated with a single engraved eye, slowly lifted his head and said:
"So... the book has chosen its host?"
Silence fell for a moment, then he continued in a low, ominous voice:
"Call Sirva, we must act immediately."