Rain fell in a fine drizzle over the city rooftops. Kael, 17, with black hair plastered to his forehead, slipped into the shadow of an alley. His sharp eyes fixed on a small object lying on the ground: an ancient artifact, covered in strange runes.
Kael (whispering): "What… is this thing…?"
He reached out, hesitating. The cold metal burned his skin, and a bluish light enveloped him. His mind was flooded with images… fragments of the future.
- A flash of light: a bridge collapsing.
- A voice: "Kael, you have no right."
- A masked figure advancing toward him, wearing a cruel smile.
Kael: "Wha…? This can't be happening!"
He stumbled back on the wet cobblestones. The world around him seemed different, more… unstable. Every drop of rain appeared suspended in time.
A familiar voice called out.
Lyra: "Kael? Are you out here again playing with forbidden old stuff?"
Kael turned to see Lyra, his childhood best friend, her eyes full of worry.
Kael: "Lyra… you don't understand. This isn't just an artifact. I saw something… something that's going to happen."
Lyra: "Another one of your weird visions? You should leave it alone… it's dangerous."
Kael clenched the artifact tightly. The images returned, clearer and more terrifying.
- A fire.
- Screams.
- And his own name on a list… of victims.
Kael: "I have to understand… I have to find a way to stop it."
Lyra sighed, resigned.
Lyra: "If you insist, I'll follow… but be careful, Kael. Some things should never be seen."
Kael nodded. The rain continued to fall silently, as if the world itself was holding its breath. And in the distance, behind the rooftops, a masked figure watched them.
Cliffhanger: Kael felt a chilling cold on the back of his neck, but when he turned around, there was nothing… except the echo of a voice he had never heard before.