Recap of Chapter 1
Levi Arclight's quiet life ended in blood and shadow. Two Nightborn invaded his home, slaughtering his parents and tearing out his eyes. Yet instead of death, Levi awakened a cursed Sun-Eclipse Vision, connecting him to both light and shadow. He now sees two overlapping realities, hears whispers from the Shadow Dimension, and stands on the precipice of a fate he doesn't yet understand.
Levi woke to the sound of wheels creaking and voices murmuring in the distance.
At first, he thought he was back in the cottage. That it had all been a nightmare. But the smell of burning wood and iron wheels grinding against stone told him otherwise. His body ached, wrapped in rough blankets that scratched against his skin.
Slowly, he opened his ruined eyes—only to find the world still there.
Not darkness. Not blindness. But the strange, layered vision of two realities.
He saw the wagon he was lying in. The boards were splintered, the canvas roof patched with tar. Two figures sat across from him—farmers, by their plain clothes and weathered hands. They whispered to each other, casting uneasy glances at him. But beyond them, Levi saw things no one else seemed to notice.
A shadow wolf prowling alongside the cart, its body translucent, its jaws snapping at air. Wisps of black fog curling from the wagon's wheels. And high above, perched on the branches of dead trees, dozens of glowing eyes watching him.
Levi shivered. He pulled the blanket tighter, pretending he couldn't see any of it.
"You're awake," one of the farmers said softly. A woman, her face lined with age but her eyes kind. "We found you outside the ruins of your home. Gods above… there was nothing left."
Levi swallowed hard. His throat burned with the memory of screaming. "My parents?"
The woman's lips trembled. She didn't answer.
The man beside her cleared his throat. "We're taking you to the city. To the Light Pillar. You'll be safe there."
Safe.
The word made Levi's chest tighten. He remembered his father's warning: Those pillars are nothing more than cages.
But what choice did he have? His home was gone. His parents were gone. And the whispers in his head were growing louder.
"Do not trust the light," the voices hissed.
He squeezed his fists, willing them to silence.
The journey stretched on for hours. Sometimes the farmers tried to speak to him, asking his name, his age, whether he had family in the city. Levi answered in short, hollow words. He didn't want to talk. Didn't want to feel.
But he couldn't escape what he saw.
Every village they passed was empty, abandoned to shadow. Houses collapsed in silence, their walls smeared with black stains that pulsed faintly. Levi saw creatures moving inside them—shadow children with eyeless faces, crawling on ceilings. The farmers saw nothing.
When they reached the edge of a valley, Levi's breath caught.
There it was.
The Light Pillar.
It rose from the heart of the city like a sword driven into the earth, a beam of golden radiance piercing the sky. Its glow spread across the valley, washing over houses, towers, and temples. Where the light touched, the shadows burned away, leaving clear streets and bright walls.
To the farmers, it was a beacon of hope.
To Levi, it was something else.
Because beneath the golden radiance, he saw chains. Vast, invisible chains of light, stretching from the pillar into the sky, binding something above. He followed them with his cursed vision—and for a heartbeat, he thought he saw it.
A sun.
Or what remained of one.
And it was screaming.
Levi's heart slammed against his ribs. He blinked, and the vision was gone.
The wagon rolled into the city gates. Guards in white armor stopped them, inspecting the travelers. Their eyes lingered on Levi, narrowing at the sight of his bloodstained bandages.
"Another refugee?" one of them muttered.
"Lost his family," the farmer explained quickly. "He needs shelter."
The guard frowned but waved them through.
The city was overwhelming. Streets bustled with merchants and priests, their faces glowing with reverence beneath the Pillar's light. Children laughed, playing games with wooden toys shaped like suns. Priests in golden robes chanted hymns, their voices echoing against white stone walls.
Everyone looked alive. Safe.
Levi wanted to believe it.
But as his gaze drifted, his cursed vision peeled back the illusion.
He saw priests whose shadows didn't match their bodies, stretching too long, writhing like serpents. He saw merchants whose eyes flickered black for a heartbeat. He saw a child skipping down the street with no shadow at all.
The whispers returned.
"They are ours already."
Levi stumbled, clutching his head. The farmers gave him worried glances, but said nothing.
That night, they left him at a temple. The priests welcomed him with polite smiles, offering food and a bed. But beneath the surface, Levi sensed their unease. They noticed his eyes, how they no longer looked normal. They whispered when they thought he couldn't hear.
"Corruption."
"Touched by shadow."
"Perhaps… Eclipseborn."
The word made his stomach twist.
One priest, younger than the rest, approached him while he sat alone in the candlelit hall. Her name was Seris. She wore plain robes, her hair tied back, her eyes sharp and curious.
"You're different," she said bluntly.
Levi stiffened. "I didn't ask to be."
Seris studied him, then knelt so her eyes were level with his. "Do you hear them? The whispers?"
His blood ran cold.
"How—how do you know?"
Her expression darkened. "Because I hear them too."
Levi's breath caught. For the first time since that night, he wasn't alone.
But before he could speak, the temple doors slammed open. Guards stormed in, their armor gleaming in the candlelight. Behind them walked a High Priest, his golden robes trailing along the floor, his face stern and pale.
"Seize him," the High Priest ordered.
Levi froze. "What?"
The guards advanced.
"That boy carries corruption in his soul," the priest declared. "He is no child of the Light. He is a seed of shadow, a danger to us all. He must be purified."
Levi's heart pounded. Purified. He didn't need to ask what that meant.
He bolted to his feet, stumbling back. Seris stepped between him and the guards, her voice sharp. "Wait! He's just a boy!"
But the High Priest's eyes burned with fury. "No. He is Eclipseborn."
The guards lunged. Levi backed into the corner, his body trembling. His cursed vision flared, and suddenly he saw it—their shadows stretching, not human, but twisted. The guards were already tainted.
And then, without thinking, he screamed.
The world shattered.
The shadows in the hall writhed, twisting into claws that lashed at the guards. The candles flickered, the light bending into jagged spears. The High Priest staggered back, his eyes wide with horror.
Levi collapsed, gasping, his body shaking violently.
The whispers roared in his head.
"You are ours. You are the bridge."
End of Chapter 2Preview of Chapter 3 – The Accused
Branded as Eclipseborn, Levi finds himself hunted within the very sanctuary meant to protect him. Seris risks everything to save him, but whispers spread quickly through the city: a child cursed by shadow walks among them.
And as the priests prepare his "purification," Levi will discover a dark truth about the Pillar itself—one that could tear the city apart.
Next time: A trial by light… and a choice that will stain Levi's hands forever.