INTO THE VEIL

The wind howled as Seraphine stood at the edge of the ruined temple, staring into the abyss before her.

The Veil was not a place that existed in the way cities and kingdoms did. It was neither fully in the mortal world nor entirely beyond it. It was between—a realm of shifting magic, where time unraveled, where nightmares took form, where the boundaries of self could be lost.

And now, she was about to step into it.

Seraphine exhaled, bracing herself. "How do we enter?"

The robed figure, who had yet to offer his name, extended a hand. The air around them grew heavy, thick with unseen power. The shadows trembled, coiling unnaturally at his feet.

"The Veil is not entered. It is surrendered to."

Caius, standing beside her, sighed. "He means you have to let it take you. Which is an awful way to describe it, by the way."

Seraphine shot him a glare before turning back to the figure. "And how do I know I'll come back?"

The figure's silver eyes gleamed. "You don't."

A silence stretched between them.

Then Seraphine squared her shoulders. "Fine. Let's get this over with."

The figure stepped closer, lifting his hand toward her. The moment his fingers brushed her forehead—

The world vanished.

---

The Realm Between

Cold.

Endless.

The first thing Seraphine noticed was the silence—vast, all-consuming, as if she had been swallowed by a place where sound itself did not exist.

Then came the whispers.

Not in any language she knew, but she understood them. They slithered through the void, pressing against her mind.

"Blood of the First."

"Bearer of the Serpent's Mark."

"You have come to wake the past."

Seraphine opened her eyes—

And found herself standing in a vast expanse of nothingness.

The sky was an endless void, neither black nor white, but something in between. The ground beneath her feet was not stone, not earth, but something that shifted, like mist made solid.

She turned sharply.

Caius stood beside her, arms crossed, looking unimpressed. "Well. That was dramatic."

Seraphine clenched her jaw. "What is this place?"

The robed figure's voice came from nowhere and everywhere at once. "A reflection. A prison. A memory."

Caius gestured around them. "It's also where most people lose their minds, so do try to keep yours, little sorceress."

Seraphine ignored him. "What do I do now?"

The whispers grew louder.

Then—before she could react—the ground beneath her broke apart.

She fell.

---

Echoes of the Past

Seraphine hit the ground with a force that knocked the breath from her lungs. She gasped, vision blurring, hands scrambling against the shifting mist beneath her.

When she pushed herself up, she froze.

She was no longer in the void.

She was standing in a memory.

The ruins of Ashenhold were no longer ruins. They stood whole, untouched by time, their banners snapping in the wind. The scent of burning incense filled the air, mingling with something darker—the copper tang of blood.

Figures moved around her. Soldiers in heavy armor, blades gleaming. A woman stood at the center of it all, robed in deep crimson, her hair braided with gold.

Seraphine's breath caught.

Her mother.

"—the wards are failing." Her mother's voice was sharp, commanding. "We must strengthen the seal before they reach the gate."

A man knelt before her, head bowed. "The Inquisition is already within the outer walls, my lady. We do not have time."

Her mother's face did not change. "Then we make time."

Seraphine stepped forward, her heart pounding. "Mother—"

The world shattered.

She was falling again, the memory slipping from her grasp like water through her fingers.

---

The Trial of the Veil

Seraphine awoke with a sharp inhale.

The robed figure stood before her, watching in silence. Caius was nearby, arms crossed, though his usual smirk was absent.

Seraphine sat up, her hands shaking. "That was—"

"A vision," the figure said. "A piece of what has been lost."

She pressed a hand to her chest. "My mother—she was there. She was fighting to protect the seal."

Caius crouched beside her. "And now you know what she was willing to die for."

Seraphine clenched her fists.

Her mother had known. She had fought. And if she had survived—if she was still alive—then Seraphine would find her.

She looked up at the robed figure, her eyes burning with newfound resolve.

"What's next?"

The figure studied her. Then, he extended his hand once more.

"Now, you awaken the power within you."

Seraphine grasped his hand.

The Veil trembled.

And the real test began.