The Climb begin

Emotion floods through you—thrill, awe, and a deep sense of uncertainty—as you take your first step onto the spiraling staircase. Each footfall echoes with a hollow sound, swallowed quickly by the dark magic of the Tower. The walls, carved from ancient stone, pulse with the glow of runes, but the path ahead is endless. Upward you climb, the Guardian's form disappearing into the distance behind you. Time loses meaning; minutes bleed into hours, or perhaps days.

As you ascend, a strange sensation begins to creep over you—an overwhelming feeling that you're no longer in the same world. The air grows denser, shimmering like the veil between dimensions is tearing. The staircase seems to stretch infinitely before you, and yet, you feel yourself somehow moving both closer and farther from the top at the same time.

After what feels like an eternity, you reach a landing. The stairway vanishes, leaving you standing in the middle of a vast, ethereal plane. It's as if the inside of the Tower has become an entirely different dimension. The sky above is a swirling mix of stars and clouds, but the ground beneath you is smooth and reflective, like a mirror. Strange, floating shapes drift in the air around you—fractured pieces of reality itself.

Suddenly, the ground shakes, and from the mirrored floor rises a figure cloaked in shadow. Its form constantly shifts, as if it can't decide what it should be. Its voice whispers through the air, echoing in your mind rather than your ears.

"Who are you... to climb so far... to reach the realm where no mortal belongs?"

The figure stands between you and the next passage, a great shimmering portal that seems to lead to yet another dimension—perhaps the final floor of the Tower. The power here is overwhelming, threatening to tear at your very soul.