The cave was miles beneath the crust of the earth, deeper than any kingdom's dungeons, older than any known map. Rivers of molten stone twisted beneath the rock like glowing serpents, casting a faint orange pulse across jagged walls. Bats slept like dead shadows above. Every breath tasted of dust from forgotten centuries, so old and heavy was the air.
It was here that Akumo lay at rest, a man once feared by the world as "The Lord of the Forbidden Circle."
Now, he sat hunched upon a throne carved of obsidian stone, his long silver hair draped across his shoulders, his skin pale, marked with cracks of age. His hands shook slightly when he moved—but his eyes… his eyes still glowed with the fury of a beast that refused to die.
He breathed, long and slow, staring into the shadows that hid the far end of the cave.
"Years," he muttered.
"Years I have waited… years since my power ruled the land."
But the world above had forgotten him.
Time had betrayed him.
