Darkness.
---
Not the absence of light.
---
Something deeper.
---
Something that existed without form.
---
Thalren stood alone.
---
No ground beneath him.
---
No sky above.
---
Only—
Water.
---
Endless.
---
Still.
---
Unmoving.
---
It stretched in every direction.
---
Without horizon.
---
Without limit.
---
No reflection.
---
As if even existence ignored him.
---
Then—
---
A ripple.
---
Small.
---
Wrong.
---
It spread slowly across the surface.
---
Thalren didn't move.
---
Yet the water trembled again.
---
From below.
---
Something was rising.
---
Not seen.
---
Not heard.
---
Felt.
---
The stillness broke.
---
The space changed.
---
And then—
---
It appeared.
---
A shadow.
---
Formless.
---
Endless.
---
It rose.
---
Higher.
---
Wider.
---
Without limit.
---
It kept rising—
---
Until it felt like everything.
---
The water bent under its presence.
---
The silence collapsed.
---
Thalren remained still.
---
But for the first time—
---
He felt it.
---
Fear.
---
Not of death.
---
Not of pain.
---
Something beyond understanding.
---
The shadow watched.
---
Not with eyes—
---
But with existence itself.
---
Then—
---
A voice.
---
Not heard.
---
Felt.
---
"…You…"
---
The water trembled.
---
"…are not ready."
---
Thalren's gaze narrowed slightly.
---
"…What is this place…?"
---
No answer.
---
The shadow moved.
---
Closer.
---
"…You carry it…"
---
The pressure increased.
---
"…yet you do not understand it."
---
Darkness shifted.
---
Not around him.
---
Toward him.
---
It touched his feet first.
---
Cold.
---
Heavy.
---
Then it climbed.
---
Slow.
---
Deliberate.
---
Across his legs.
---
His chest.
---
His shoulders.
---
Wrapping around him.
---
Not attacking.
---
Not crushing.
---
Claiming.
---
Thalren didn't resist.
---
He watched.
---
The darkness tightened.
---
Closer.
---
Then—
---
It seeped in.
---
Through his skin.
---
Like it had always belonged there.
---
His breath caught.
---
Not from pain.
---
From the weight of it.
---
Something ancient.
---
Something endless.
---
Filling him.
---
"…Grow."
---
The voice deepened.
---
"…or be consumed."
---
The pressure surged—
---
Then everything collapsed.
---
—
---
Thalren's eyes snapped open.
---
Air rushed into his lungs.
---
Sharp.
---
Uneven.
---
He sat up—
---
Slow.
---
Controlled.
---
Pain followed.
---
Bandages wrapped around his body.
---
A small room.
---
Quiet.
---
Unfamiliar.
---
"…You're awake."
---
Thalren turned.
---
Kaizen sat nearby.
---
Leaning back.
---
Watching him.
---
"…How long?" Thalren asked.
---
"…Half a day."
---
Silence.
---
"…You got hit hard."
---
"…I noticed."
---
Short.
---
Fragments returned.
---
The creature.
---
The impact.
---
The silence after.
---
"…It left," Kaizen said.
---
Thalren's gaze shifted slightly.
---
"…Why?"
---
Kaizen paused.
---
"…It saw something."
---
A brief silence followed.
---
"…And chose to leave."
---
The words settled.
---
Thalren didn't reply.
---
But something in his eyes sharpened.
---
The door opened.
---
Soft.
---
Footsteps entered.
---
The girl.
---
She paused at the entrance.
---
Then stepped in.
---
Carefully.
---
Her eyes met his.
---
Relief appeared instantly.
---
"…You're alive…"
---
Thalren looked at her.
---
"…Yeah."
---
Short.
---
Flat.
---
She walked closer.
---
"…You saved me."
---
A pause.
---
"…Thank you."
---
Silence.
---
Thalren replied—
---
"…You were in the way."
---
She blinked.
---
Caught off guard.
---
Then—
---
A small, awkward smile formed.
---
"…Still counts."
---
No response.
---
"…I'm Lira."
---
Silence.
---
"…You don't talk much, do you?"
---
"…No."
---
Short.
---
She exhaled softly.
---
Then nodded.
---
"…Rest well."
---
She stepped back.
---
At the door—
---
She paused.
---
Looked at him once more.
---
Something unspoken lingered.
---
Then she left.
---
Silence returned.
---
Kaizen stood.
---
Walked closer.
---
Stopped beside the bed.
---
"…Your wounds were closing."
---
Thalren glanced at his arm.
---
"…Yeah."
---
"…That normal?"
---
"…No."
---
A pause.
---
Kaizen studied him for a moment longer.
---
"…Whatever that thing saw…"
---
A slight pause.
---
"…it wasn't normal either."
---
He straightened.
---
"…Where are you going?"
---
Silence.
---
Thalren looked ahead.
---
Beyond the room.
---
"…Forward."
---
Kaizen let out a quiet breath.
---
"…Tch."
---
A brief pause.
---
"…I'll come."
---
Silence.
---
"…Don't slow me down."
---
He turned and walked out.
---
The room fell quiet again.
---
Thalren lay back slowly.
---
Pain still there.
---
But distant.
---
His eyes closed.
---
And deep within—
---
He felt it.
---
The darkness.
---
Not outside.
---
Not watching.
---
Inside.
---
Waiting.
---
Patient.
---
And for the first time—
---
He understood.
---
It wasn't gone.
---
It never was.