He wandered through nothing.
A young man with long black hair, his face unreadable, his steps steady but lost. He didn't know his name. He didn't know how long he'd been walking. Only that this place—this abyss—stretched forever. It felt like a forgotten dream, where time was dead and gravity was loose, and the air wasn't air at all. Just emptiness. Cold. Heavy. And silent.
Then something shattered the silence.
A radiant figure appeared, descending slowly. He looked human—but wasn't. Wings of glowing gold unfurled behind his back, each feather pulsing like a heartbeat. Behind his head hovered a spinning crest, inscribed with symbols that shifted and shimmered like living fire.
He was beautiful. Not just attractive—his face was divinely perfect, flawless in a way that didn't feel right. It made the air thinner, made you forget what you were thinking. You didn't want to look away.
The man in black froze.
The golden figure raised his hand. His voice was calm, but there was steel behind it.
"You have no right to be here."
There was no warning. Light exploded from his hand—a spear of energy flying straight toward the man in black.
Instinct took over. The dark-haired man raised his arm, and a bow appeared—glowing, ancient, and strange. His mouth moved on its own, whispering words he didn't understand. An arrow formed, radiant and hot with raw energy.
He let it fly.
The arrow screamed through the darkness and struck the divine being in the chest. The golden light dimmed. The figure screamed—raw, furious pain echoing across the void.
But then—
A searing pain erupted in the man's back. He stumbled, turned.
The figure was still there. Untouched. Smiling faintly.
The golden man said something. His lips moved, but the words didn't reach the man's ears. The abyss swallowed them.
And then—he fell.
He woke up.
Not in the abyss. This place was real. Solid.
He lay at the foot of a massive stone lion—roaring, frozen mid-snarl. Its eyes were carved with stunning detail, and for a moment, he thought they glowed. He reached out and placed a hand on the cold paw.
A jolt hit him.
The world blurred.
He was pulled again—into another place. Darker, deeper. It looked like the abyss, but heavier, older.
And the lion… was alive.
It stepped forward, larger than any beast he'd seen. Its fur rippled like wind over water, and its golden eyes locked onto his. They weren't just seeing him. They were looking into him.
It stepped closer. He lifted his hand again—
And then a scream.
He turned. A girl—young, terrified—was being attacked.
Not by animals. These things weren't natural.
One of them stood tall and broad, with thick silver skin that shimmered like molten metal. Long claws. Sharp fangs. It looked like a beast, but its eyes held something worse—hunger.
The creature turned to the man.
And froze.
Then it spoke—its voice hoarse and broken, but somehow still clear:
"An...tam...bha."
The word meant nothing. But it hit something inside him.
The ground cracked.
A dark portal opened beneath them—like a wound in the world. From it stepped a creature split clean in two. One side was glowing white, the other dark as void. It walked like a man but didn't feel human at all.
It smiled—playful, unhinged.
Then it snapped its fingers.
The silver beast vanished. Not dead. Erased.
The split creature turned to the man, giggled, and said in a strange language:
"The Antambha has awakened."
Then it turned, opened the portal again, and stepped through.
Before disappearing, it released more beasts. Silver, sharp, snarling.
They charged.
The man pulled his hand back—instinctively ready to summon the bow.
But he hesitated.
Why a bow? Why did he know how?
Who was he?
He didn't have time to answer.
The creature lunged.