The air still carried the scent of battle. His breath was heavy, his limbs trembling from exhaustion, yet his mind remained sharp. The mist had thickened once more, shifting like a living entity, obscuring the world around him. There was no time to recover—he could feel it, the presence of something watching, waiting.
A sudden whisper brushed against his ear, distant yet eerily familiar.
"You are not just a man… you are a memory."
His head snapped towards the source, but nothing was there—only the swirling fog and the fading echoes of a voice long forgotten. His fingers tightened into fists. Was this another trial? Another illusion? Or was something else at play?
Then, the ground cracked beneath him.
Without hesitation, he leaped back just as a dark figure erupted from the earth, its form draped in shadow, its eyes gleaming with an unnatural glow. It moved like liquid, shifting between solid and mist, taking the shape of a faceless warrior clad in ancient armor. The presence it exuded sent a chill down his spine.
A guardian of the past.
It attacked without warning, striking with a speed that nearly outmatched his reflexes. He barely managed to dodge, feeling the sharp wind of the warrior's blade graze his cheek. His instincts screamed at him to retaliate, but something held him back. This wasn't just a mindless opponent.
This was a test.
He steadied his stance, allowing his body to move on its own. The echoes of long-lost techniques resurfaced, guiding his limbs as he met the warrior's onslaught. Strike after strike, the force of their battle sent shockwaves through the mist-covered land.
The whispers grew louder.
"You fight well… but do you fight with purpose?"
His teeth clenched. He wasn't just fighting for survival. He was fighting for answers.
Ducking under a sweeping slash, he shifted his weight and countered with a precise palm strike to the warrior's chest. Energy pulsed through his hand, sending ripples through the mist. The warrior staggered but did not fall. Instead, it let out a hollow, echoing laugh.
"Then prove it."
The ground split open beneath them. Darkness surged from below, swallowing the battlefield in an abyss of forgotten souls. His heartbeat quickened as he felt the pull of something ancient—something tied to his very existence. The warrior's form wavered, shifting into something more familiar.
A face he couldn't remember, yet one that stirred something deep inside him.
The warrior's final words echoed as the mist swallowed them whole.
"Remember… or be forgotten."
Everything turned black.