Shattered Veil

The void collapsed.

The endless black shattered like brittle glass, and Raiyan felt himself falling. But this time, there were no chains. No suffocating presence pulling him down.

Just momentum.

Just freedom.

The fragments of the void flickered around him like dying embers. Strange whispers echoed in the distance—fragments of a language he did not understand.

And then—

Light.

A blinding golden glow exploded around him, forcing Raiyan to shut his eyes. His body tensed as he braced for impact—

And then… nothing.

No crash. No pain.

Just… stillness.

Slowly, Raiyan opened his eyes.

---

He was no longer in the abyss. No longer trapped in that suffocating realm of whispers and reflections.

Instead, he stood on an endless plain of white.

The sky stretched infinitely above him—neither bright nor dark, just… empty. The ground beneath his feet was smooth, pristine, as if it had never been touched.

And in front of him—

A throne.

Carved from pale stone, standing alone in the vast nothingness.

And sitting upon it—

A man.

No… not a man. Something else.

His presence was wrong.

His features were obscured, shifting between faces, each more unfamiliar than the last. His robes billowed, though there was no wind.

And when he spoke, his voice echoed, layered as if countless beings were speaking at once.

"You have broken free."

Raiyan tensed, gripping his sword. He didn't know who this entity was, but something deep inside told him—this was no ordinary being.

The entity tilted its head. "You are the first."

Raiyan narrowed his eyes. "The first…?"

"The first to shatter your chains. The first to reject the fate written for you."

The words sent a chill through Raiyan's spine.

Fate? Chains?

Was this entity… the one who had placed him in that abyss?

Raiyan gritted his teeth. "What are you?"

The entity didn't answer immediately. Instead, it stood.

And the moment it did, Raiyan's body screamed in protest.

Pressure.

An overwhelming force crashed down on him, pressing against his very existence. It wasn't just power—it was authority.

A force that did not belong to mortals.

Raiyan's knees buckled. He planted his sword into the ground, using it to keep himself from collapsing.

The entity gazed down at him, expression unreadable.

"I am the Watcher of the Forgotten."

"The Keeper of Fragments."

"The Witness to What Once Was."

Raiyan clenched his jaw. He didn't understand. And yet—something about those titles felt familiar.

The Watcher raised a hand. The moment he did, the space around them began to shift.

Suddenly, Raiyan was no longer alone.

Figures began to appear—ghostly, translucent. Shadows of people he had never met.

And then—

One of them turned to face him.

Raiyan's breath caught in his throat.

Because the person standing before him was himself.

Not the twisted reflection from before.

But a version of him—one dressed in unfamiliar armor, his face older, his eyes hardened.

A Raiyan who had lived a different life.

A Raiyan from another timeline.

A Raiyan… who had already fallen.

The Watcher spoke again.

"Countless versions of you have existed before."

"Countless have walked this path."

"And all have failed."

Raiyan's grip on his sword tightened. His heartbeat pounded in his ears.

This wasn't just some trial.

This wasn't just a nightmare.

This was something bigger.

Something that had been happening for far longer than he could comprehend.

The Watcher stepped closer. His presence loomed over Raiyan like an unmovable force.

"You broke the chains of fate once."

"But that was merely the first link."

"The world you are about to step into will not be kind."

Raiyan forced himself to stand, despite the crushing weight pressing down on him. His eyes locked onto the Watcher's.

"I don't care how many of me have failed."

"This time—"

He raised his sword.

"I will survive."

For the first time, the Watcher's ever-shifting face seemed to smile.

And then—

Everything shattered once more.

---

To Be Continued…