The darkness inside the chapel did not lift immediately.
For several terrifying seconds, the only sounds were the crackling remains of extinguished candles and Isaac's uneven breathing. Dust drifted slowly through the air where fragments of stained glass still floated unnaturally above the shattered floor.
Then—
Light returned.
Not natural light.
Silver.
It radiated from Enoch.
He hovered several inches above the ground, motionless, his eyes blazing with an eerie glow. Strange markings now spread across his arms like living symbols carved into flesh. They pulsed rhythmically, almost like a heartbeat.
Isaac stumbled backward.
"That's not Enoch…"
Father Joseph remained frozen, horror and sorrow mixing across his face.
The stranger stood silently near the altar, watching with unsettling calm.
Enoch's head slowly tilted upward.
When he spoke again, the double voice echoed through the chapel.
"The seal fractures further."
The Shadows trembled.
Not from aggression.
From fear.
Father Joseph immediately stepped forward, raising a silver cross. Golden light erupted from his hand as he shouted an ancient prayer.
"Enoch Blackwood! Fight it! Do not surrender yourself!"
For a moment, the silver glow around Enoch flickered.
Isaac saw it instantly.
"Enoch!" he shouted. "Listen to me! You're stronger than this!"
Enoch's floating body twitched violently.
The strange markings across his skin darkened, then brightened again. His expression twisted in pain as if two forces were tearing him apart internally.
Then suddenly—
He screamed.
The force explosion that followed shattered every remaining window in the chapel.
Isaac was thrown backward into a pew.
Father Joseph slammed against the altar.
Even the stranger took a step back.
Enoch crashed onto the floor hard, the silver light vanishing instantly.
Silence followed.
Heavy.
Uneasy.
Isaac rushed to him first. "Enoch!"
Enoch groaned weakly. His eyes were normal again, though exhaustion hollowed his face. Sweat covered his skin, and the strange markings had faded into faint scars.
"What… happened?" he whispered.
Father Joseph approached carefully.
"You lost control."
Enoch sat up slowly, breathing hard. "I heard something… inside me."
The stranger answered from the shadows.
"You heard the Fragment."
Enoch looked up sharply. "Stop talking like I'm some kind of object!"
The stranger remained still.
"You are not an object. You are a vessel."
"That's the same thing!"
"No," the stranger replied quietly. "A vessel can choose what it carries."
Isaac helped Enoch to his feet. "Can someone explain what's happening instead of speaking in riddles?"
Father Joseph exhaled heavily.
"There may be one way."
He turned toward the ruined altar and pulled aside a broken wooden panel hidden beneath it. Inside was a narrow compartment containing an ancient wrapped bundle.
Isaac frowned. "What is that?"
Father Joseph hesitated before answering.
"The Forbidden Manuscript."
Even the stranger shifted slightly at the name.
Father Joseph carefully unwrapped the cloth.
Inside rested a massive black book bound with iron clasps. Unlike Enoch's tome, this one looked ancient beyond measure. Its pages were yellowed, cracked, and stained dark around the edges.
The moment the manuscript was revealed, the temperature inside the chapel dropped sharply.
The Shadows retreated into the corners.
Enoch felt something inside him react immediately.
"That book…" he whispered.
Father Joseph nodded grimly.
"It contains the original records of the Fracturing."
Isaac looked confused. "The what?"
Father Joseph stared at the manuscript with visible discomfort.
"The day humanity split The Fractured One apart."
The entire chapel fell silent.
Enoch stepped closer carefully. "You mean everything in my visions was real?"
"Yes."
"And this thing…" Enoch swallowed hard. "This Fractured One… what exactly is it?"
Father Joseph looked deeply troubled.
"That answer nearly destroyed civilizations."
Isaac folded his arms nervously. "That's not comforting."
Father Joseph slowly opened the manuscript.
The pages moved strangely, almost resisting being touched.
Then the priest began reading aloud.
"Before kingdoms rose… before recorded history… there existed an entity beyond death. It walked between worlds, neither living nor dead, neither divine nor demonic."
The Shadows trembled harder now.
"It could not be destroyed," Father Joseph continued. "So ancient guardians divided its essence into fragments and sealed them inside chosen bloodlines."
Enoch's chest tightened.
"My family…"
"Yes," Father Joseph said quietly. "The Blackwoods became the primary seal."
Isaac looked stunned. "Then why are the Shadows attacking Enoch if they were created to guard the fragments?"
Father Joseph turned another page slowly.
And his face lost color instantly.
"No…"
Enoch noticed immediately. "What is it?"
The priest looked horrified.
"These pages… they've changed."
The stranger finally moved closer.
"They are awakening too."
Father Joseph ignored them and continued reading.
"The Fragments were never prisons alone. They were keys."
Isaac blinked. "Keys to what?"
No one answered immediately.
Then Enoch saw the next illustration on the page.
A doorway.
Massive.
Covered in symbols identical to the ones now appearing on his skin.
And behind the doorway—
Eyes.
Thousands of glowing eyes.
Enoch stepped backward instinctively.
"What is that?"
Father Joseph's voice shook.
"The Veil."
"The veil between what?"
The priest looked directly at Enoch.
"Between this world… and theirs."
The Shadows began whispering all at once.
Soft.
Unintelligible.
But growing louder.
Isaac grabbed Father Joseph's arm. "Can you stop reading now?!"
But Father Joseph couldn't.
His eyes were fixed on the next page.
"The Fractured One was not sealed to protect humanity from destruction…"
He paused.
His face turned pale.
"It was sealed to keep something else from entering."
Silence crushed the room.
Even the Shadows became still.
Enoch felt cold terror creep into his stomach.
"What do you mean… something else?"
The stranger answered quietly.
"The Fractured One was never the true enemy."
The chapel suddenly shook violently.
A deep sound echoed outside.
Not thunder.
Footsteps.
Massive footsteps.
Everyone froze.
Another step followed.
Closer.
Dust fell from the ceiling.
Isaac whispered nervously, "Tell me that's not real…"
The Shadows retreated further into darkness.
For the first time since arriving, the stranger sounded uneasy.
"It found the chapel."
Father Joseph slammed the manuscript shut instantly.
"No. Not yet."
The footsteps stopped.
Then—
A scratching sound dragged slowly across the chapel walls from outside.
Enoch's heart pounded.
Something enormous circled the building.
Something breathing heavily.
Something hunting.
Then a voice echoed from outside the chapel.
Deep.
Ancient.
Inhuman.
"Return…the Fragment…"
Isaac nearly collapsed in fear.
Enoch's skin began glowing again.
The markings returned across his arms instantly.
Father Joseph looked terrified now.
"It should not be awake already…"
The scratching stopped directly behind the chapel doors.
Then silence.
Absolute silence.
And suddenly—
Three massive knocks shook the entire chapel.
BOOM.
BOOM.
BOOM.
The final knock cracked the doors down the middle.
The Shadows shrieked violently.
The stranger stepped backward.
And for the first time—
Father Joseph looked truly afraid.
Because whatever stood outside…
Was older than the curse itself.