Morning came quietly to the Association, but Kael knew better than to mistake silence for peace.
He had spent most of the night in the observation hall, watching the first light slowly spread across the distant horizon. The fragment investigation had continued while the rest of the Association slept, and by sunrise there were already new reports waiting on Director Varen's desk. Another ancient structure had been discovered beneath an abandoned settlement. A previously inactive energy signature had suddenly appeared in the northern territories. Two Awakened had experienced identical dreams without ever having met each other. None of the reports provided an answer, but together they formed a pattern that Kael could no longer ignore.
Something was happening.
The problem was that nobody knew what.
Kael finally left the observation hall shortly after sunrise. He walked through the eastern corridor with his hands in his coat pockets, ignoring the tired researchers and Hunters moving around him. The Association had changed during the past few weeks. There were more people everywhere now. More Awakened waiting for examinations, more Hunters being sent on missions, more researchers carrying sealed containers, more guards stationed around restricted areas. The organization had once been built around a simple purpose: protect humanity from monsters. Now it had to protect humanity from monsters, investigate the sudden appearance of Awakened humans, and determine why ancient objects had begun appearing in places where nobody had touched them for centuries.
Kael reached the training grounds and stopped.
The field was already crowded.
Riven was there.
The young Awakened stood alone inside one of the marked circles, staring at a series of floating targets. His ability had improved considerably since Kael first met him. Thin blades of compressed air moved around his body, each one rotating slowly before settling into position.
Riven noticed Kael.
"You're early."
Kael looked at the sky.
"So are you."
"I couldn't sleep."
"Why?"
Riven hesitated.
"I had another dream."
Kael's expression changed slightly.
"What kind?"
Riven lowered his hands, causing the air blades to disappear.
"I don't know."
Kael almost smiled.
"That's becoming a common answer."
Riven didn't laugh.
"It wasn't like the others."
"What did you see?"
Riven looked around before answering.
"A room."
Kael became still.
"What kind of room?"
"Stone walls. No windows. There was something in the middle."
"A Gate?"
"No."
Riven shook his head.
"A chest."
Kael's eyes narrowed.
"What kind?"
"Old. Black, I think."
"Did you open it?"
"No."
"Why?"
"Because someone was standing beside it."
Kael waited.
Riven's expression became uncomfortable.
"I couldn't see their face."
Kael looked away.
"Did they speak?"
"No."
"Then how did you know they were there?"
"I could feel them."
Kael remained silent.
Riven looked at him.
"You've had dreams like that too, haven't you?"
Kael didn't answer immediately.
"Sometimes."
"Do you know what they mean?"
"No."
Riven nodded slowly.
For a few seconds, they stood in silence.
Then Kael noticed the blades of air around Riven.
"You've improved."
Riven looked at them.
"I'm trying."
"Don't try."
Riven frowned.
Kael walked into the training circle.
"Do it."
Riven stared at him.
"Do what?"
"Control them."
Riven raised his hands.
The blades appeared again.
This time they were steadier.
Kael moved between them.
"Close your eyes."
Riven hesitated.
"Seriously?"
"Close them."
He did.
"Now stop thinking about where the blades are."
"Then what am I supposed to think about?"
"Nothing."
Riven looked confused.
Kael waited.
The blades began to shake.
"You're still forcing them."
"I'm trying not to."
"That's the problem."
Kael moved closer.
"Your ability isn't a separate thing you're controlling from outside. You're feeling every movement before it happens. Stop predicting it."
Riven breathed slowly.
The blades steadied.
"Good."
One moved.
Then another.
They circled him.
Kael stepped backward.
"Now open your eyes."
Riven did.
His expression changed.
The blades were perfectly stable.
He smiled.
"I did it."
"You did."
Riven laughed.
Kael shook his head.
"Don't celebrate yet."
The blades suddenly shot toward him.
Kael moved aside.
One passed his shoulder.
Another struck the ground.
Riven's face went pale.
"Sorry!"
Kael looked at the damaged floor.
"You celebrated too early."
Riven laughed nervously.
For the first time that morning, Kael smiled.
Then the smile disappeared.
A pressure had appeared inside his chest.
Faint.
Almost impossible to notice.
But familiar.
Kael turned his attention inward.
Heaven's Gate.
The golden presence remained somewhere beyond his ordinary senses.
It had been quiet for days.
Now it was awake.
Kael closed his eyes.
The pressure increased.
A shape appeared in the darkness behind his mind.
Not the Gate itself.
Something beside it.
Something he had never seen before.
Kael opened his eyes.
Riven was staring at him.
"Kael?"
"I'm fine."
"Are you sure?"
Kael looked at his hands.
A faint golden light had appeared around his fingers.
He closed them.
The light disappeared.
"I need to go."
Riven nodded.
Kael turned away.
He had barely taken three steps when Cain appeared at the entrance.
The strongest Hunter looked directly at him.
"Varen wants you."
Kael sighed.
"Again?"
Cain nodded.
"This time, he said to bring your weapon."
Kael stopped.
"Why?"
Cain's expression remained serious.
"Training."
Kael looked at his empty hands.
"I don't have a weapon."
Cain looked at him.
"You do."
Kael frowned.
"No, I don't."
Cain's gaze shifted toward Kael's back.
"The Gate."
Kael understood.
"You're saying Heaven's Gate can give me one?"
"We're going to find out."
The Association's deepest training chamber had never been opened for ordinary Hunters.
It was built beneath the central command facility, below even the fragment laboratories. The chamber was enormous, nearly the size of a small arena, with reinforced walls covered in layers of protective inscriptions and energy-dampening material. The floor was divided into several concentric circles, each designed to measure the output of an Awakened ability.
Kael stood at the center.
Cain stood several meters away.
Varen watched from behind the observation barrier.
Iria stood beside him.
Several researchers were recording every movement.
Kael looked around.
"This is excessive."
Cain shook his head.
"You haven't seen the excessive part."
The lights dimmed.
A projection appeared above the arena.
Numbers began to appear.
Kael's previous energy measurements.
Then Heaven's Gate readings.
Then Hell's Gate readings.
The last category remained mostly blank.
Kael stared at it.
"Still nothing?"
Varen answered through the communication system.
"Nothing reliable."
Kael nodded.
That wasn't surprising.
He could feel Hell's Gate.
But he couldn't open it.
Not properly.
The presence existed somewhere inside him, but it remained beyond his reach.
Heaven's Gate was different.
It answered.
Sometimes too easily.
"What's the test?" Kael asked.
Varen's voice came through the speaker.
"We want you to summon something."
"Something?"
"Anything."
Kael looked at Cain.
Cain shrugged.
"Apparently you're the expert."
Kael sighed.
He closed his eyes.
The world became quiet.
He felt the familiar pressure.
Warmth.
Light.
A vast presence behind an invisible boundary.
Heaven's Gate.
Kael reached toward it.
The golden light appeared.
At first, it formed behind him as a small circle.
Then it expanded.
The air changed.
The researchers immediately began recording.
Kael's breathing became slower.
The Gate opened.
Only slightly.
A narrow golden doorway appeared in the air.
Nothing emerged.
Kael concentrated.
He had used Heaven's Gate for healing.
For barriers.
For attacks.
But never for this.
He needed to understand what else it could do.
He reached deeper.
The Gate responded.
Something appeared beyond it.
A silhouette.
Long.
Thin.
Metallic.
Kael's eyes widened.
He pulled.
The object emerged.
It fell into his hand.
The lights above flickered.
Kael looked down.
It was a sword.
Not an ordinary sword.
The blade was pale gold, almost white, with a dark line running through the center. The hilt was simple, but a circular symbol had been carved into it.
The same symbol.
A circle divided by a vertical line.
Kael froze.
Varen immediately noticed.
"What is it?"
Kael didn't answer.
Cain stepped closer.
"Kael."
Kael looked at the weapon.
"I've never seen this before."
"Does it feel familiar?"
"No."
That answer came quickly.
But something about the sword felt right in his hand.
Not familiar.
Compatible.
Like his body understood how to hold it.
He moved the blade.
A faint golden trail remained in the air.
Kael stared.
The researchers were nearly speechless.
One of them whispered, "That's impossible."
Varen ignored him.
"How long can you maintain it?"
Kael looked at the sword.
"I don't know."
"Try."
Kael tightened his grip.
The blade grew brighter.
The pressure inside his body increased.
He immediately understood.
The weapon wasn't free.
It was drawing energy from Heaven's Gate.
And not a small amount.
Kael's breathing became heavier.
Cain noticed.
"Stop."
Kael shook his head.
"I can hold it."
"That's not what I asked."
Kael looked at him.
Cain's expression was serious.
"Don't force it."
Kael reluctantly lowered the sword.
The golden light began to fade.
The weapon disappeared.
The Gate closed.
Kael stumbled.
Cain caught his shoulder.
"You all right?"
Kael nodded.
"Yeah."
Varen entered the chamber.
"How long?"
Kael looked at him.
"Maybe thirty seconds."
The researchers began speaking among themselves.
Varen remained silent.
Then he asked, "And if you use more energy?"
"I could make it stronger."
"How much stronger?"
"I don't know."
"Could you summon more than one?"
Kael thought about it.
"Maybe."
"Try."
Cain immediately looked at Varen.
"That's enough."
Varen ignored him.
Kael also shook his head.
"Not yet."
Varen looked at him.
"Why?"
"Because I don't know what happens if I push it."
Cain nodded.
"Exactly."
Varen remained quiet for several seconds.
Then he stepped back.
"Fine."
Kael looked toward the sword's previous position.
He felt something.
Not from Heaven's Gate.
From the memory of the weapon.
For a brief moment, he could almost feel hundreds of other shapes beyond the Gate.
Weapons.
Not one.
Many.
Kael closed his eyes.
He saw them.
A spear.
A bow.
A pair of curved blades.
A massive hammer.
A shield.
A staff.
A chain.
Countless weapons floating in an endless golden space.
He opened his eyes.
The vision disappeared.
But he knew what he had seen.
Heaven's Gate wasn't only a doorway.
There was something beyond it.
A place.
A chamber.
A collection.
A chest.
The word appeared in his mind.
Heaven's Chest.
Kael didn't know why he knew the name.
He simply did.
He looked at Cain.
"There's something inside."
Cain's expression changed.
"Inside the Gate?"
Kael nodded.
"Weapons."
Varen stepped closer.
"How many?"
"I don't know."
"Can you access them?"
"One at a time."
"Why?"
Kael looked at his hand.
"Because they're expensive."
Cain almost smiled.
"Magic cost?"
"Something like that."
Varen looked at the researchers.
"Record everything."
Kael glanced at him.
"But don't make this public."
Varen looked back.
"Why?"
"Because if people know what I can summon, they'll expect me to use it."
Cain nodded.
"He's right."
Varen considered the request.
Then he agreed.
"Classified."
Kael relaxed slightly.
He didn't want another weapon hanging over his head.
He already had enough problems.
The test should have ended there.
It didn't.
One of the researchers suddenly noticed something on the energy monitor.
"Director."
Varen turned.
"What?"
"There's another signature."
"From Kael?"
"No."
The researcher enlarged the display.
A second energy pattern appeared.
It was faint.
Almost invisible.
But it was there.
Kael looked at the screen.
"Where?"
The researcher pointed.
"Inside the Gate."
Everyone went silent.
Kael looked behind him.
Heaven's Gate was closed.
Yet the monitor continued showing the second signature.
Cain's hand moved toward his weapon.
"Can it be separated?"
The researcher shook his head.
"We don't know."
Varen looked at Kael.
"Did you feel anything?"
Kael concentrated.
At first, nothing.
Then—
A pulse.
Not golden.
Dark.
Very faint.
It disappeared almost immediately.
Kael opened his eyes.
"I felt something."
"What?"
"I don't know."
Varen stared at him.
Kael sighed.
"Don't look at me like that."
"I didn't say anything."
"You were thinking it."
Cain smiled faintly.
"He's getting better at reading people."
Kael ignored him.
The researchers began another scan.
But the second signature never returned.
The next few days passed strangely.
Kael trained with the Heaven's weapons.
He learned quickly that each one had different requirements.
The sword was the easiest.
The spear demanded more energy.
The bow was difficult because every arrow cost additional power.
The shield consumed less energy but required constant concentration.
The chained weapon was almost impossible.
Kael summoned it once and immediately lost control.
The chain struck three targets, wrapped around a support column, and nearly pulled him off his feet.
Cain watched from the side.
"You could've mentioned that."
Kael looked at the chain.
"I didn't know."
"You never know."
"That's why we're testing."
Cain shook his head.
But there was amusement in his eyes.
Iria watched from the observation area.
"You two are going to destroy the entire chamber."
Kael looked up.
"We're being careful."
A piece of the floor cracked behind him.
Iria raised an eyebrow.
"Very."
Kael ignored her.
He focused on the weapons.
There was something else he had noticed.
The more he summoned them, the more clearly he could sense Heaven's Chest.
It wasn't a physical chest.
Not exactly.
It was more like a space existing behind the Gate.
A place where the weapons waited.
He couldn't enter it.
Not yet.
But he could reach inside.
Each weapon felt different.
Some were warm.
Some were cold.
Some felt completely empty.
One felt dangerous enough that Kael refused to summon it.
He didn't know why.
Every time he approached it, Heaven's Gate became unstable.
So he left it alone.
For now.
Thirty seconds.
That was his limit.
Thirty seconds of using a Heaven's weapon before his energy began dropping rapidly.
Thirty seconds.
Enough to change a battle.
Not enough to rely on forever.
Kael understood the importance of that limitation.
Power without a cost would eventually become meaningless.
The Gates were different.
They always demanded something.
And Kael had no intention of discovering the price by accident.
Meanwhile, the number of Awakened continued increasing.
The Association began establishing permanent training centers.
Some Awakened were assigned to Hunter teams.
Others remained under observation.
A few refused to join the Association entirely.
That caused problems.
One incident occurred in a settlement called Veyra.
A newly awakened man lost control of his ability inside a crowded market.
His power wasn't destructive.
It was worse.
He could distort people's perception of distance.
A road that was ten meters long could appear a hundred meters.
A nearby building could appear impossibly far away.
People panicked.
The Association sent Hunters.
Kael was among them.
When he arrived, the streets were already chaotic.
People were running in every direction.
A woman screamed that the road was stretching.
Another person insisted the buildings were moving.
Kael walked into the affected area.
The distortion immediately hit him.
The market seemed to expand.
Buildings moved away.
People became tiny.
Kael closed his eyes.
Heaven's Gate flickered.
He could feel the distortion.
It wasn't physical.
It was affecting perception.
Kael opened his eyes.
He walked forward.
The world stretched around him.
He kept walking.
At the center of the market, the Awakened man was crouched on the ground.
His hands were over his head.
"I can't stop it!"
Kael approached.
"Look at me."
The man looked up.
"Who are you?"
"Kael."
The man's face changed.
"The Gate Hunter?"
Kael frowned.
"Apparently."
"I can't control it."
"I know."
"How do you know?"
"Because you're afraid of it."
The man stared.
Kael crouched.
"Your ability is responding to your panic."
"What do I do?"
"Breathe."
"I can't."
"Yes, you can."
Kael waited.
"Slowly."
The man inhaled.
The distortion weakened.
"Again."
He inhaled.
The streets returned to normal.
People stopped running.
The man began crying.
Kael placed a hand on his shoulder.
"You didn't hurt anyone."
The man looked at him.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes."
"Then why does it feel like I did?"
Kael didn't have an answer.
He understood the feeling.
Power could frighten you even when you didn't use it.
Kael stood.
"Come with us."
"Will they lock me up?"
"No."
"How do you know?"
Kael looked at him.
"Because I'm going with you."
The man stared.
Then slowly nodded.
That evening, Kael returned to the Association.
He found Iria waiting near the entrance.
"You brought another one."
Kael nodded.
"His ability is difficult."
"Most of them are."
"He's scared."
"So are you."
Kael looked at her.
"Was that supposed to help?"
"No."
She smiled.
"Just reminding you."
Kael walked beside her.
"You've been spending too much time with me."
"I've noticed."
They continued through the corridor.
Iria looked at him.
"How's the new weapon?"
"Which one?"
"The sword."
"Fine."
"Can you use it?"
"Thirty seconds."
"That's it?"
"That's enough."
She shook her head.
"You say that about everything."
Kael smiled faintly.
Then Iria stopped.
"Kael."
He turned.
She was looking at his hand.
A thin golden mark had appeared again.
But this time it was different.
There was a black line beside it.
Kael stared.
The mark disappeared.
Iria's expression tightened.
"That wasn't there before."
"No."
"Did you feel it?"
Kael nodded.
"Yes."
"What was it?"
Kael looked down.
"I don't know."
Iria sighed.
"Of course."
That night, the dream returned.
Kael found himself standing in a place covered by snow.
There was no wind.
No sound.
Only white.
He walked forward.
A tower appeared in the distance.
It was enormous.
Its top disappeared into clouds.
Kael approached.
The door was open.
He entered.
Inside was darkness.
He walked down a staircase.
One level.
Two.
Three.
The deeper he went, the colder it became.
Then he reached a chamber.
A chest stood in the center.
It wasn't golden.
It wasn't beautiful.
It was old.
Scarred.
Covered in cracks.
Kael approached.
He reached toward it.
Before his hand touched the surface, someone spoke behind him.
"Not yet."
Kael turned.
A figure stood in the doorway.
He couldn't see the face.
But the voice was different from the one in his previous dreams.
Older.
Tired.
Kael stepped toward the figure.
"Who are you?"
The figure didn't answer.
"Why am I here?"
Silence.
"Why do I keep seeing this place?"
The figure raised one hand.
A black fragment rested in its palm.
Kael stared.
The figure dropped it.
The fragment struck the ground.
The chamber changed.
The chest disappeared.
The walls cracked.
The snow outside turned red.
Kael heard hundreds of voices.
Not speaking.
Screaming.
Then the figure looked directly at him.
For the first time, Kael saw its face.
It was—
Kael woke.
He sat upright.
His heart was racing.
The room was dark.
He couldn't remember the face.
He had seen it.
He knew he had.
But the moment he woke, the image had disappeared.
Only one thing remained.
The chest.
Kael looked at his hand.
The golden mark was glowing.
Beside it, the black line appeared again.
Then both disappeared.
Kael stayed awake until morning.
The next day, Varen summoned him to the research wing.
Kael entered the office.
Cain was already there.
Iria stood beside the window.
Varen placed a document on the desk.
"We found another structure."
Kael looked at it.
"Where?"
"Under the old ruins of Asterfall."
Kael frowned.
"What did you find?"
"Fragments."
"How many?"
"Five."
Kael became serious.
"Together?"
"Yes."
That was unusual.
Every previous fragment had been discovered alone.
Varen continued.
"They were arranged in a circle."
Kael looked at Cain.
"Anything else?"
"An inscription."
Varen handed him a photograph.
Kael studied it.
The same symbol.
But underneath it was another image.
A chest.
His breathing stopped.
Iria noticed.
"Kael?"
He pointed toward the photograph.
"That."
Varen looked at him.
"You recognize it."
Kael nodded slowly.
"I've seen it."
"Where?"
"In a dream."
Nobody spoke.
Varen sat back.
"Describe it."
Kael hesitated.
"A chest."
"Anything else?"
"Snow."
"A location?"
"No."
"Someone?"
Kael looked away.
"Someone was there."
"Who?"
"I couldn't see."
Varen nodded.
He didn't press.
Instead, he placed another photograph on the table.
This one showed the five fragments.
They were arranged around a stone platform.
At the center was a depression.
A perfect circle.
Kael stared at it.
The shape was almost identical to the one he'd seen in his dream.
He reached toward the photograph.
The golden mark appeared on his hand.
Every researcher in the room noticed.
Then the five fragments in the photograph began glowing.
Kael pulled his hand away.
The light vanished.
Varen's face hardened.
"How?"
The researcher beside him stared at the equipment.
"We don't know."
Kael sighed.
"I really hate that phrase."
Cain smiled faintly.
"You're not alone."
But the moment didn't last.
An alarm sounded.
Every screen in the room turned red.
The researcher looked at the data.
"Director."
"What?"
"The five fragments."
"What about them?"
"They're moving."
Varen stood.
"Where?"
The researcher stared at the map.
Then his face changed.
"They're not moving toward each other."
"Then where?"
He slowly looked at Kael.
"They're moving toward the same location."
Kael felt a cold pressure in his chest.
"Where?"
The researcher gave the coordinates.
Kael looked at the map.
His expression changed.
The location was far from the Association.
Far from any known settlement.
Far from any known ancient structure.
It was simply an empty region.
At least according to every map they had.
Varen immediately issued orders.
"Prepare a Hunter team."
Cain stepped forward.
"I'm going."
Kael looked at him.
"I'm coming too."
Iria immediately said, "Then I'm coming."
Varen looked at the three of them.
"No."
Kael frowned.
"Why?"
"Because we don't know what is there."
"Exactly."
"That's why I don't want you there."
Kael looked at the map.
"Those fragments react to me."
Varen's expression tightened.
"That is precisely the reason."
Cain stepped forward.
"Varen."
The director looked at him.
"If Kael stays here and something happens there, we lose the only person who might understand the reaction."
Varen remained silent.
Cain continued.
"You know that."
Iria crossed her arms.
"And if you send a team without him and the fragments react badly, you could lose everyone."
Varen looked between them.
Finally, he sighed.
"Fine."
Kael nodded.
"Thank you."
"But there are conditions."
"What?"
"You follow Cain's orders."
Kael looked at Cain.
Cain looked back.
"Good luck."
Kael frowned.
"Why do you sound happy?"
"Because for once, someone else gets to deal with you."
Iria laughed.
Kael shook his head.
The journey took several hours.
The region marked on the map was farther from civilization than expected.
There were no roads.
No settlements.
Only mountains and dense forests.
Their transport landed at the edge of a valley.
The scanners immediately detected abnormal energy.
Kael stepped out.
The air was cold.
Too cold.
Iria wrapped her coat tighter.
Cain activated his scanner.
"Energy signature confirmed."
Kael looked toward the mountains.
"I can feel them."
"The fragments?"
He nodded.
"They're close."
They began walking.
The valley narrowed.
Trees gave way to stone.
Then they saw it.
A structure.
Half-buried beneath the mountain.
Its entrance was enormous.
Two stone pillars stood on either side.
The same symbol was carved into both.
Kael approached.
The moment he crossed the threshold, Heaven's Gate appeared behind him.
Golden light filled the entrance.
The stone walls trembled.
Iria looked at him.
"Kael."
"I know."
The fragments were reacting.
One after another, five pulses traveled through the structure.
Then the ground shook.
Cain drew his weapon.
"Something's coming."
Kael turned.
A roar echoed through the valley.
The entrance exploded.
A massive monster emerged from the darkness.
Its body was covered in stone-like armor.
Four arms.
Six eyes.
A mouth filled with black teeth.
Its presence alone crushed the surrounding air.
Cain stepped forward.
"Stay back."
Kael looked at the creature.
"My turn."
The monster charged.
Cain intercepted it.
The collision shook the mountain.
Iria attacked from the side.
Kael opened Heaven's Gate.
A sword appeared in his hand.
Golden light spread across the blade.
He had thirty seconds.
He counted silently.
One.
The monster struck Cain.
Cain blocked.
Two.
Iria's attack hit the creature's side.
Three.
Kael moved.
He crossed the battlefield in an instant.
The sword struck.
The monster's armor cracked.
It roared.
Kael attacked again.
Ten seconds.
The sword grew brighter.
The monster swung one arm toward him.
Kael ducked.
The blow shattered the stone behind him.
Fifteen seconds.
Kael jumped.
Heaven's Gate expanded behind him.
A second weapon appeared.
A spear.
He caught it with his free hand.
Cain looked at him.
"Two?"
Kael gritted his teeth.
"Apparently."
The energy drain became brutal.
Twenty seconds.
Kael threw the spear.
It pierced the monster's shoulder.
The creature staggered.
Cain attacked.
Iria followed.
Kael raised the sword.
Twenty-five seconds.
The monster screamed.
Kael felt the Gate beginning to close.
Five seconds.
He stepped forward.
The sword began glowing brighter than before.
The entire chamber illuminated.
Kael brought it down.
The monster collapsed.
The sword disappeared.
The Gate closed.
Kael dropped to one knee.
Cain caught him.
"Enough."
Kael breathed heavily.
"I know."
Iria approached.
"Are you hurt?"
"No."
She looked at the shattered armor around him.
"That's a miracle."
Kael looked toward the monster.
It was dead.
But something beneath it had been revealed.
A staircase.
Descending into the mountain.
The five fragments were below.
Kael could feel them.
Waiting.
Not for him.
For something else.
He stood slowly.
Cain looked at the stairs.
"We go down?"
Kael nodded.
"Yeah."
They descended.
At the bottom, they found a chamber.
Five fragments floated in the air.
They formed a circle.
At the center was an empty space.
Kael stared.
The shape was familiar.
A chest should have been there.
But there was nothing.
Then the fragments moved.
They rotated.
A faint image appeared between them.
A projection.
Not a person.
A place.
A vast white city.
Kael froze.
The same city from his dream.
But now it was clearer.
For the first time, he saw its towers.
Its roads.
Its enormous gates.
And far beyond the city stood something impossible.
A mountain split in two.
Between the halves was a darkness so deep that even the projection seemed unable to show what lay within.
Iria whispered, "What is that?"
Kael didn't answer.
The projection changed.
A figure appeared.
Then another.
Then hundreds.
All walking toward the mountain.
Kael's heart began beating faster.
The image flickered.
A child appeared among them.
Kael stepped forward.
The projection vanished.
The five fragments fell to the ground.
Silence returned.
Cain looked at Kael.
"What did you see?"
Kael stared at the empty space.
"I don't know."
He paused.
Then corrected himself.
"I've seen that place before."
Cain waited.
Kael looked toward the darkness beneath the mountain.
"But I don't know why."
Far beneath them, something made a sound.
Not a roar.
Not a voice.
A single crack.
One of the fragments split.
A tiny piece broke away.
It rolled across the floor.
Then stopped at Kael's feet.
Kael stared down.
The fragment pulsed once.
His golden mark appeared.
Then the black line.
For the first time, the two marks touched.
Kael felt something pass through him.
Not power.
Not memory.
A message.
One word.
Begin.
Kael's eyes widened.
The fragment went dark.
Nobody spoke.
Above them, the mountain trembled.
And far away, in places where no one was watching, other fragments began to move.
One after another.
The pieces had started gathering.
But whatever they were gathering for had not yet arrived.
Not yet.