Shadows of the Unknown

The sound of footsteps grew louder, each measured step echoing against the damp stone walls. The flickering torches cast long, distorted shadows across the corridor, making it impossible to tell how close—or far—the approaching figure truly was.

Elias clenched his fists, his mind racing. "I don't recognize this place. It feels... wrong."

Evelyn, ever the cautious one, placed a hand on the hilt of her dagger. "We should be careful. If someone erased this from your memories, there's a reason."

Lucien let out a slow breath, his gaze sharp. "Then we need to figure out why. And who benefits from you not remembering."

The shadow moved closer, and finally, the figure stepped into the dim torchlight. A woman stood before them, draped in a cloak of midnight blue, her face obscured by a delicate silver mask. But it was her presence that sent a chill through Elias. There was something eerily familiar about her.

"You've come far," the woman spoke, her voice smooth but laced with something unreadable. "But do you have the courage to learn the truth?"

Elias swallowed hard, forcing himself to hold her gaze. "Who are you?"

She tilted her head slightly. "You already know. Or at least, you did... before you forgot."

Evelyn tensed. "Then help us remember."

The woman took a slow step forward, her eyes—what little they could see through the mask—filled with something close to sorrow. "The night she disappeared, you were not the only one who was deceived, Elias Everhart. The truth was never yours to keep. It was stolen before you even realized it."

Dorian frowned. "By who?"

The woman's lips pressed into a thin line. "By the one you trust most."

Elias felt the breath leave his lungs. His mind reeled, scrambling through fractured memories, through whispers of betrayal. "That's not possible."

The woman reached into her cloak and pulled out a small, glimmering shard of light—another fragment of Elias's past. She extended it to him. "See for yourself."

His hands trembled as he reached for it. The moment his fingers brushed against the shard, a searing pain shot through his mind. His vision blurred, colors and images twisting together until—

A grand chamber. A familiar voice speaking in hushed, urgent tones.

And standing at the center of it all—

Someone he never thought capable of betrayal.

Lucien stepped closer, watching Elias's expression darken. "Elias? What did you see?"

Elias's voice was barely above a whisper, heavy with disbelief. "My father."