Outside, the old walls echoed with gusts that carried hushed tales from long ago. Stiff as stone, Kael stayed still, those last phrases from the spirit circling inside him.
"Beware the ones who sealed you away before for they will come again."
What kind of beings ruled back then? Divine figures? Royal leaders? Or darker forces hiding behind power?
A hot wave of anger rose inside him. Thrown without warning into this place, shoved into skin that wasn't familiar, handed strength too wild to hold - then told about threats he'd never heard of before.
Finding a way out came before finding reasons why. Survival had to happen now.
Ahead of him stretched the horizon. Past the Forsaken Lands sat the Border Cities - small places holding on at the edge of larger kingdoms. Reaching them might bring answers. Who knew anything about Kael Draven now? What really became of the prince no one speaks of anymore?
Far from deserted, the Forsaken Lands held secrets in their silence.
From somewhere deep inside, old thoughts rose - memories not his own - speaking silently of beasts buried beneath stone. These were things beyond the hunter he'd struck down under pale moonlight. Resting in one place would only give them time to rise up, drawn by stillness. Something hungrier could follow the scent of blood already spilled.
He moved.
A surge of energy lifted his limbs, making every movement swift. Though the Forsaken Lands rolled on without end, the power within carried him forward smoothly. Over twisted stone and sharp drops he moved, leaping as if weightless. Quickness hummed through his nerves, responses coming before thought.
Running, his thoughts turned deep, searching for what stirred within. The energy inside pulled at his attention, quiet but insistent. Into that stillness between steps, answers began to form - not loud, just clear.
A ruler of stars and shadows, bending moments as if they were threads. This was the being who shaped destiny, not by force but quiet command. Time listened. Space folded. Fate had no choice.
Fate handed him the gift - now silence had to be his shield until others noticed he breathed.
Something else lingered though - a quiet itch beneath his thoughts. What reason lay behind being locked away so completely? Supposing he once held power beyond measure in a past life, then how did he vanish without a trace from every record? Why erase someone who couldn't be beaten?
A noise stopped him mid-thought. That was when he felt it.
A presence.
Not one. Many.
Footsteps scraped gravel as Kael slid forward, then dropped into a crouch. Silence clung to the broken stones up ahead - no sound, just weight in the stillness.
Then movement.
Faint shapes stepped forward where the ruined walls stood. Figures appeared out of the wreckage slowly.
A figure shaped like a person. Wrapped in a dark covering. Yet clearly nothing close to alive.
Long arms stretched past proportion, fingers tipped with hooked talons. From hollow sockets, a purple gleam burned - cold, unblinking.
Heavy air filled Kael's lungs, each exhale longer than the last. These beings? Not strangers to him - memory snapped tight like a wire.
Shadeborn.
Out of shadow they came, these killers bound by oaths older than memory. Tracking was their art, silence their weapon. When imbalance stirred, they answered - without fanfare, without mercy. Creatures, cults, even rogue mages fell beneath their blades. Not heroes, never seen. Balance demanded blood. They gave it freely.
Teeth gritted. Was it possible they'd found out already?
A figure from the Shadeborn moved ahead. Whispering, its voice cut through the wreckage, sharp as a blade drawn at dawn.
"The exile still breathes."
A shape shifted its gaze sideways. Mistake needing fixing
Faster now, Kael's heart beat against his ribs. Unprepared, he stood - this clash had come too soon. Raw strength hummed under his skin, yet those killers moved with purpose, not rage.
They were killers.
A shadow shifted, gone in a streak of black.
A sharp edge pressed against Kael's neck before he could move. The moment left no room for hesitation.
"Too slow."
No.
Not this time.
Something snapped awake in Kael. Power rushed through his bones.
Time bent.