The Shattered Veil

The palace trembled, its foundations shaking as if trying to shake off the very existence of the disturbance that had taken hold of it. Argider stood in the heart of the grand hall, feeling as though she were caught between two worlds—the real and the unreal. The edges of reality flickered like the fraying threads of an ancient tapestry, barely holding together as the empire's collapse seemed imminent.

The masked figure's words echoed in her mind, relentless in their haunting clarity: You were not meant to exist. She could still feel the weight of them, pressing down on her like an anchor pulling her into the depths. The very fabric of her being seemed to rebel against them, yet the truth they contained gnawed at her with a cold, persistent hunger.