I woke slowly, painfully, dragged from the depths of merciful oblivion into a harsh and unrelenting reality. The first sensation was cold biting, relentless, seeping through my clothing and skin, pressing into my bones like icy fingers. My breath fogged in the air, shallow and ragged, as consciousness trickled back.
Slowly, painfully, my eyes fluttered open.
Darkness surrounded me entirely, dense and oppressive, swallowing the room until my own heartbeat seemed deafening. Panic surged instinctively, throat tightening, my breath quickening sharply. I jerked forward, straining instinctively to move, to summon magic, anything—but pain lanced through my wrists, sharp and brutal.
Chains. Cold, metal restraints clasped tightly around my wrists, suspending my arms awkwardly above me. My fingertips had long since gone numb from lack of blood flow. I twisted sharply, desperate to free myself but the restraints held firm, merciless, unyielding.
