Shadows and Shackles

The darkness in the ruins pulsed like a living thing, shifting with each breath Zoren took. His chains rattled against the stone floor, his limbs heavy, his body numb from Erasmus' suffocating presence.

Across the chamber, Erasmus loomed in the flickering torchlight, his long coat billowing as if moved by unseen currents. His voice was smooth, sharp as a blade pressed against flesh.

"Tell me, Zoren. When the sun shatters, does the light remain?"

The words dripped with meaning, but Zoren's mind felt sluggish, like he was trapped in a waking nightmare. He grit his teeth. "The hell does that mean?"

Erasmus stepped forward. A pulse of his power sent fractures through the ground, twisting the stone into jagged spikes.

"It means you were never meant to hold both the abyss and the dawn."

A chill ran down Zoren's spine. It wasn't just the words. It was the way Erasmus said them—like he had already seen Zoren's future and found it lacking.

---

Nyssa lunged. A streak of violet light traced her movement as she slashed at Erasmus, her daggers spinning in a deadly arc.

"You talk too much."

She expected Erasmus to dodge. Instead, his hand blurred, intercepting her blade mid-swing. A single pulse of his aura sent her skidding backward.

Her heart pounded. That technique— it wasn't just strong. It was familiar.

Erasmus tilted his head. "You've seen this before, haven't you?"

Nyssa's grip tightened on her weapons. I know this technique. I know who trained him.

Memories clawed at her mind. Bloodstained sand. The sound of chains rattling in the dark. A voice telling her she was never meant to be free.

Her breath came sharp. No. Not now.

She forced herself to focus. Erasmus wasn't unstoppable. He had to have a limit. She just had to find it.

---

Talis clenched his fists, cursing his own uselessness. He wasn't as strong as Zoren or Nyssa. He couldn't summon shadows or golden flames.

But that didn't mean he was powerless.

His eyes darted to a cluster of broken stone above Erasmus. A weak point.

Nyssa was already attacking again, her daggers flashing in tight, calculated strikes. If I can just—

Talis darted to the side, snatching up a loose iron rod from the rubble. With a deep breath, he threw it—not at Erasmus, but at the weakened stone in the ceiling.

CRACK.

A split-second distraction. A moment of hesitation.

Nyssa took it. Her blade carved a thin red line across Erasmus' cheek.

For the first time, the man stilled. Then, slowly, he lifted a hand to his face, touching the wound.

His eyes flicked to Talis. "Clever."

Then, before Talis could react, a force slammed into his gut, sending him flying across the chamber.

---

Pain flared across Zoren's skin as he struggled against the chains. His muscles ached, his breath came shallow. The weight of the cuffs wasn't just physical—it was draining him.

Erasmus turned to him, voice almost bored. "You aren't ready for the truth, Zoren."

Then he raised his hand, shadows curling around his fingertips. A single movement, and—

Pain.

It lanced through Zoren's chest, burning, twisting.

His vision blurred. No—this feeling—it was his Core. His Light Core.

The golden energy inside him flared, clashing violently with the darkness seeping from his Vailborn Core.

His body wasn't made for this. It was being torn apart from the inside.

Flashes of something else—another memory, a voice not his own. "Two cannot exist as one."

Was that why? Was that why his body felt like it was breaking every time he tried to use both?

His breath came ragged. No. Not now. Not here.

Erasmus watched. "Ah. So you finally hear it."

Zoren's fingers curled into fists. Shut up.

The voices inside his head swelled, clashing, roaring. His skin cracked, light bleeding through the fractures.

Erasmus' smile deepened. "You are the fractured vessel."

Then the chains snapped.

A golden shockwave erupted from Zoren's body, swallowing the entire chamber in light.

---

Dust settled. Nyssa's ears rang as she pushed herself to her feet.

The ruins had changed. The once-crumbling stone was now smooth, reshaped by the sheer force of Zoren's power.

And in the center of it all—

Zoren stood, breath heavy, eyes burning gold.

His fists were clenched at his sides, tendrils of dark energy flickering around his skin like dying embers. His Cores had not settled. If anything, the instability had worsened.

Erasmus exhaled, brushing dust from his coat. "Fascinating."

He didn't sound threatened. If anything, he sounded amused.

Zoren's voice came rough. "I don't care what you think."

Erasmus chuckled. "Oh, but you should. Because next time, Zoren, you won't be fighting me."

A pause. Then—

"You'll be fighting yourself."

Zoren's chest tightened. But before he could respond, Erasmus lifted his hand—

And vanished into the shadows, other shapes followed

---

Nyssa let out a slow breath. The tension in her chest hadn't faded.

Her hands still shook. Not from fear. From recognition.

She turned to Zoren. "That man—he used Duskbound techniques."

Zoren blinked, still catching his breath. "Duskbound?"

Nyssa nodded, her voice lower now. "I don't know how, but Erasmus was trained by them."

A heavy silence settled.

Talis groaned from where he lay, half-buried in rubble. "Okay. I'm never doing that again."

Nyssa sighed, hauling him to his feet.

Talis winced. "Was it worth it?"

Nyssa glanced at Zoren, then back at the empty space where Erasmus had stood.

Her jaw tightened. "No. He let us live."

"Which means he doesn't see us as a threat."

---

As they left the ruins, Zoren's mind churned.

Erasmus' words refused to leave him.

"You are the fractured vessel."

What did it mean?

Nyssa had mentioned the Duskbound—but why did Erasmus have their techniques?

And then there was the Veilborn Prophecy.

Zoren knew the name. It had been whispered in the Federation, written in forgotten texts. But never had he felt like it applied to him.

Now, though—

He clenched his fists.

What if it did?

---

As they reached the surface, Nyssa turned to him. "What now?"

Zoren exhaled. He stared at his hands—the golden glow still flickering at his fingertips, fighting against the abyss lurking beneath.

Then, slowly, he looked up.

Determined. Unyielding.

"We find out the truth."

Nyssa studied him for a moment, then smirked.

Talis groaned. "Great. More life-threatening decisions."

Zoren grinned, despite himself. "That's the plan."

Then, without looking back, the three of them vanished into the night.

---

To be continued.