Far away, in a place woven from a myriad of ethereal threads — threads that converged, diverged, and wove the destinies of all things — the golden strings of fate quivered. Their radiant glow, once strong enough to illuminate the world itself, flickered violently before dying altogether, like a flame smothered in darkness.
And in the vast reaches of the Dream Realm, within the highest chamber of an ivory castle of impossible beauty, a woman sat alone. Her golden hair cascaded like molten sunlight, though its brilliance was dulled, lifeless. Her eyes, forever veiled by blue silk, widened beneath the cloth. Her lips trembled as she whispered in a voice broken by disbelief:
"Fate… Fate...has stopped?"
She was Cassia, the Song of Fallen, and her expression was more grim than ever before.
At that moment, the door burst open with a force that shattered the silence. A figure strode in — tall, slender, and radiant as a goddess. Her silver-white hair shimmered like moonlight, her clear gray eyes sharp and piercing. Nephis, the Changing Star, rushed forward with rare urgency. She had been linked to Cassia through their mental bond when suddenly the seer had fallen silent. What she felt through that connection had shaken her — raw emotions Cassia had never allowed to bleed through before.
"Cassie… is something wrong?" Nephis asked, her voice calm, her expression cold and composed. Yet in her eyes burned a fire of desperate worry.
But before Cassia could speak, the shadows moved. In the corner of the chamber, a small, unnoticed darkness writhed — and in an instant, it swelled. The light was devoured, extinguished, leaving only a void. When the darkness receded, the chamber was empty. The Song of Fallen and the Changing Star, two of humanity's mightiest saints, were simply… gone.
Nor were they the only ones.
Across the boundless tapestry of existence, the hungry shadows surged. They swallowed a father and daughter who ruled a kingdom where time flowed from past to future. They claimed a lonely woman standing upon the deck of her ketch, gazing into the endless sea. In the long-lost Kingdom of Hope, they devoured a man of ethereal beauty and a woman clad in crimson robes. In Bastion itself, they swept through the halls of power, consuming saints and sovereigns alike. In a frozen realm, they descended upon the princesses of song and their grieving mother.
And finally, far from all else, a small shadow coiled around the slender figure of a girl with a bow and quiver. This time, the darkness did not consume with violence — it embraced her gently, almost tenderly, before whisking her away into nothingness.
Nephis opened her eyes, her body tensing instantly as her gaze snapped toward Cassie, faster than lightning. Her first instinct was to check her friend — was she harmed, unarmed, vulnerable?
"Cassie… do you know where we are?" Nephis asked, her voice calm in tone but sharp with tension.
To her dismay, Cassie shook her head. Nephis reached inward, summoning a luminous memory to banish the darkness around them — only to freeze. Her composure cracked for the briefest of moments, her breath catching.
"Cassie… I can't summon my memories," she whispered, almost in disbelief. She tried again, calling upon the sacred flames of her Aspect, but her soul met only a cold void. "Not even… my Aspect."
Her gray eyes turned immediately to her friend, worry blazing beneath the calm mask. Yet Cassie's expression had shifted. For once, the girl wasn't fumbling for her cane or moving with careful, practiced steps. Her trembling hands rose instead to her veiled face, pressing against her eyes in stunned stupor.
"Nephis…" her voice broke, wavering with raw emotion, "…I-I can see."
The words struck Nephis harder than any wound. Her lips softened, her icy mask melting into something rare and warm. For just a heartbeat, her worry vanished. She smiled — faint but true — at the sight of her best friend trembling with joy. They lingered in that fragile miracle, letting it sink into their hearts.
Then, without warning, light bloomed. The suffocating void shattered as illumination spilled outward, chasing the darkness away. The space revealed itself in all its terrible glory.
---
Elsewhere, Rain gasped as the shadows released her. Her small body trembled, fear twisting in her chest.
"Teacher?" she called out softly, her voice cracking. But no answer came. Loneliness struck sharper than any blade.
And then the light spread, burning away the void. Rain's wide eyes darted around — and froze.
Countless figures surrounded her, each radiating power that made her soul quiver. She felt very small, very mortal.
To the far right, she saw them first — a small group that seemed to bend the space around them. Dreadful yet magnificent presences stood shoulder to shoulder, their very existence sharp and unyielding. The Saints of Valor. At their head loomed a towering figure in black steel, his gray eyes cold as carved stone, filled with vain pride and iron authority.*The King of Swords. The Anvil of Valor. His mere presence pressed down on the air, making Rain feel like she was suffocating.
On the far left, a different kind of presence stirred. A gathering of women, no less terrifying, stood together. At their center was a woman of unearthly beauty, her eerie eyes filled with sorrow and music, yet sharp enough to cut. Queen Ki Song. Sovereign of the song domain.Her gaze brushed across the room like the haunting note of a dirge.
Rain's heart pounded as she turned — and her breath caught. At the farthest end of the space, apart from all others, stood a small group. They seemed almost… normal. A man with black hair and steely grey eyes was clutching a woman tightly, his expression torn between grief and relief. The woman sniffled quietly into his chest, her lips curled into a trembling smile.
Rain's lips trembled. *W-why… why is a mundane, normal girl like me standing amidst Saints and Sovereigns?* She wanted to cry, to scream, but no sound left her throat.
And then — the air shifted.
Above them, runes ignited, ancient and glowing. They burned with authority beyond time, their meaning settling into every soul present.
[Welcome to the land where past, present, and future converge, to bear witness to the one whose tale was forgotten.]
The words rang like a divine decree.
[In these lands, no act of violence shall be permitted. Any who violate this rule will face consequences absolute.]
A pause. A silence heavier than mountains.
And then:
[Let the viewing… begin.]
The space stilled. Saints, Sovereigns, mortals — all equal in their confusion and anticipation, all bound by the same unbreakable law. And somewhere, hidden in that silence, the tale of a forgotten slave was about to awaken.
*PS-
I need you guys to comment what should they react to first...I have a few thoughts like maybe first nightmare? Or master sunless after 4 years time skip or somthing else you think might be better as an introduction for our sunny bou