Elian stepped toward the massive building towering over the rest of the Central District. This was the headquarters of the Circle of Keepers—the place where, perhaps, the answers to his questions lay hidden.
As he moved forward, the space around him constricted. The air trembled, and three cloaked figures materialized before him, their robes adorned with unfamiliar symbols. They gazed at him, their auras heavy, filled with something ancient.
— You were not meant to come here, — one of them spoke, his voice echoing through the void.
Elian clenched his fists, feeling the power within him begin to boil.
— I don't need permission, — he replied firmly. — I need answers.
One of the Keepers made a subtle gesture, and the space around Elian tightened further. It wasn't just a barrier—he could feel it. They were trying to seal him away.
Again… the thought flashed through his mind. But this time, he wouldn't submit.
Elian thrust his hand forward, and darkness tore through the fabric of space, colliding with the Keepers' power. A brilliant flash of light illuminated everything around them, shockwaves sending the cloaked figures staggering. One of them collapsed, another managed to conjure a shield, while the third merely smirked.
— You have changed, but it is not enough.
In the next instant, space fractured. Time stood still, and then…
Darkness swallowed Elian. He felt his consciousness sinking into something ancient, something alien. Flickers of the past flashed before his eyes—fragments of battle, the faces of those who had once stood beside him…
And then, silence.
The last thing he heard was a voice, distant yet familiar:
— You have returned too soon…
Then, ever
ything faded into oblivion.