The forest shimmered like a dream unfinished. Silver leaves whispered riddles with every gust, and the stars above moved unnaturally, shifting constellations with every blink. Steven sat quietly, the afterimage of the throne still burned into his mind. His hands trembled—not with fear, but with the weight of knowledge.
He had seen it.
Himself. As the end.
Atheron knelt beside him, setting down a small, crystalline orb. "Drink this. It'll stabilize your spirit. The Rift's glimpse into potential futures can unravel the mind."
Steven took the orb, its liquid contents glowing blue. As it passed his lips, a soothing wave of clarity flowed through him.
He stood. "That vision—was it real? Or just a manipulation?"
Atheron rose as well. "Both. The Rift doesn't lie. It reveals possibilities, shaped by your choices. What you saw… is what you might become. If you let the Codex rule you instead of guiding it."
Steven clenched his fist. "Then I'll never sit on that throne. I'll burn it to ash before I let that future happen."
Atheron gave a faint nod of approval. "Good. Then your next trial awaits."
He turned toward a stone arch covered in roots. As they approached, the vines slithered away, revealing a portal swirling with deep violet mist.
"Beyond this gate," Atheron said, "is the Sanctum of Truth. It's where the Codex was once created—by the First Ones. If you wish to wield its full power, you must understand its origin."
Steven stepped toward it, but a question lingered on his lips. "Why me, Atheron? Why was I chosen?"
Atheron didn't answer immediately. "Because you were never supposed to exist."
Steven blinked. "What?"
"The universe has laws. Balance. Boundaries. But your soul… it came from outside those rules. You are a variable. A deviation. That's why the Absence hunts you. You threaten the very script of reality."
The wind howled as the portal flared open.
Steven stepped through—
---
—into a void of endless mirrors.
Each one reflected a different version of him.
Some noble. Others monstrous.
And one…
One stood tall, eyes black as night, Codex forged into his flesh like armor.
It stared directly at him.
"You can't stop what you are."
Steven raised his staff, the air around him crackling. "Watch me."
The mirrors shattered. Reality bent. And a voice echoed from the void:
"Sanctum of Truth… unlocked."
A staircase of stars unfolded beneath him, leading downward into the unknown.
Steven descended.
Towar
d the beginning of everything.
---
To be continued