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Chapter 3: Mark of the Eclipse
Kaelen awoke to darkness—not just of the eyes, but of the mind. He could feel his heart beating, fast and uneven, yet nothing around him responded to his touch. He was floating in silence, as if cradled in the void.
Then came the voice.
The void shattered like glass.
Kaelen gasped as his body slammed back into reality. He lay on the stone floor of the ruin, sweat-drenched, lungs aching. Above him, the Eclipse Core pulsed once, then dimmed to a dull ember.
A symbol flickered on his chest—a ring of thorns encircling a crescent moon. It faded slowly, but its weight remained.
"What have you done to me?" he whispered.
A scream echoed from the plaza above. Boots. Rushing voices. The Sanctum Guard had returned.
Kaelen had no time to think. He rolled to his feet and fled the ruin, heart hammering as the voice inside him whispered one final truth.