what did i just start

 As Zed and Sir Jaeger stepped into the cave, the damp air clung to their skin like something alive, something watching. Their boots echoed against the stone floor as they walked deeper, the silence around them thick and unnatural.

Then, they saw it.

A massive door stood before them, ancient and covered in strange, unreadable carvings. The stone was cracked, yet it radiated an eerie presence, as if it had been waiting—waiting for someone to open it.

Jaeger's breath hitched. "I… I've never heard of a ruin in Golden Wave," he muttered, his voice barely above a whisper.

Zed, his heart pounding, didn't respond. His hands trembled slightly, but he reached forward and pushed the heavy doors open. A low groan rumbled through the cave as the doors parted, revealing a long, dimly lit hallway.

The moment they stepped inside, the torches lining the walls flared to life—one after another, casting flickering shadows that twisted unnaturally across the stone walls. The scent of decay hit them like a wave, thick and suffocating, as if something had been rotting here for centuries.

Then, the whispers began.

A voice, deep and raspy, echoed through the corridor.

"Lukas… Lukas… Lukas…"

Sir Jaeger froze, his face draining of color. "Young master… we should leave. Now." 

Zed didn't respond. He barely even heard him. That voice—it was calling him. It tugged at his mind, sharp and insistent, like invisible hands pulling him forward. His feet moved on their own, carrying him deeper into the unknown. 

"Young master, what are you doing?" Jaeger called out, his voice tight with unease. When Zed didn't answer, Jaeger cursed under his breath and hurried after him, his hand instinctively reaching for his sword.

At the end of the hall, they emerged into a vast, dome-shaped chamber.

And there, in the center of it, bathed in a single beam of light from a crack in the dome's ceiling—was it.

A throne of broken stone, crumbling with age.

And slouched upon it, something that should not be alive.

Its skin was rotting, peeling away in places to reveal blackened bone. Its long, matted hair covered most of its face, but through the strands, two glowing, yellow eyes burned like dying embers. Long, jagged horns curled from its skull, and its fingers—no, claws—were as long as a child's arm, dragging against the stone like rusted blades.

But the worst part wasn't its grotesque appearance.

It was the sound.

The creature was chanting, its voice dry and brittle, like dead leaves scraping against stone.

"Lukas… Lukas… Lukas…"

Zed swallowed; his body frozen. Cold, unnatural fear coiled around his spine. He could feel those eyes looking at him. Looking through him.

The creature's head twitched. Then, slowly, it stopped chanting.

Silence.

The air in the chamber became heavy, pressing down on them like a lead weight.

Zed barely breathed as the creature moved.

A sickening crack echoed as it lifted its head fully. Its gaze locked onto him, and in that instant—Zed felt something.

Something vast.

It was like his mind had brushed against something it wasn't meant to understand.

A monstrous grin spread across the creature's decayed face, revealing jagged, blackened teeth.

"So… you finally arrived…"

Its voice crawled through the air like a whisper from a nightmare.

"Lukas…."

A low, wet chuckle rumbled from its throat as it leaned forward, the throne creaking beneath its weight.

Zed's blood ran cold. His legs refused to move, his mind screamed at him to run, but his body was paralyzed under the sheer weight of that presence.

Then—

A sound.

A snap.

The creature raised its hand and snapped its fingers.

At that moment, Zed felt something.

It was fast—so fast his mind couldn't even register what happened.

A force, something unseen, something beyond human comprehension, tore through the air.

A heartbeat later—

Thud.

Sir Jaeger's body hit the cold stone floor with a dull, lifeless sound. He lay motionless, except for the faint rise and fall of his chest.

Zed's heart hammered against his ribs. He forced himself to take a shaky breath, his fingers curling into tight fists. At least Jaeger was still breathing—but that small comfort did nothing to stop the chill creeping up his spine as his gaze drifted back to the creature before him.

"What the hell…? Sir Jaeger—the strongest person I know—just went down from a single snap. What the hell is this thing… and how the fck is it still alive?"*

Fear crawled through his veins, but beneath it, his mind worked instinctively, analyzing the creature's condition.

Its body… it's barely holding together. Bones are showing through torn flesh, and the blood's long since run dry. This thing… it shouldn't even be alive. It doesn't make any sense.

Zed's hands trembled as a crushing weight settled in his chest. I'm such a fool. Why did I come here?

Regret surged through him, cold and biting. I should have left. I should have listened.

The creature tilted its decayed head slightly, its milky white eyes gleaming in the dim torchlight. Then, in a voice far too calm for something so grotesque, it spoke.

"Do not fear, Lukas. I merely put him to sleep… so that we may have privacy."

The creature's voice was calm, almost soothing—an unsettling contrast to its decayed, nightmarish form. Somehow, that gentle tone unsettled Zed more than if it had growled or screamed at him.

Zed's thoughts spiraled. Oh… okay. He spoke. That's… a bit of a relief. I really thought I was going to die today. I have about a hundred questions, but let's start with the classic one.

Swallowing hard, Zed steadied his breath. "Who… who are you?"

The creature slowly lifted its head, and the faint golden light from above spilled across its features. Pale, rotting skin stretched tightly over hollowed cheeks. Jagged horns curled from either side of its skull, sharp and cracked. Its long, bony fingers twitched at its sides, as though it was barely holding onto life.

The creature's sunken eyes gleamed faintly in the dim light as its lips curled into something that resembled a smile.

"I was once called Kaal… one of the five fallen who ruled Naraka under the Dark Lord's command."

Zed's body tensed. He had read about the Fallen. Their names were etched in history as the Asura generals who led a rebellion against the gods. But if that were true…

Wait… WTF?!

This guy is basically the Dark Lord's right-hand man—or maybe left-hand… whatever. The point is, he's practically main-boss level.

But wait… that makes no sense. He's supposed to be sealed away in some other realm, right?

Zed narrowed his eyes, forcing down the growing panic in his chest. "Aren't you supposed to be sealed away in another realm? How are you here?"

Kaal let out a breathless chuckle. His broken ribs creaked and shifted unnervingly as he took a step forward, his sunken eyes gleaming with dark amusement.

"How I am here no longer matters," Kaal said. "What matters is that you are here. And now, the time has come for my destiny to unfold."

Zed took a step back, unease twisting in his gut. "Your destiny? Hold on a second—" His jaw tightened. "Back in my dream, you said you knew why I was transmigrated. What was that supposed to mean?"

Kaal finally stopped in front of him. His rotting lips curled into what might have once been a smirk.

"Boy," he said, his voice dropping to a whisper. "Listen well. your transmigration…" His decayed smile widened. "Marks the beginning of the dawn."

Zed's pulse quickened. His hands balled into fists. "What dawn?"

Before Kaal could answer, his body suddenly convulsed. A wet, sickening cough escaped his throat, and dark blood splattered onto the stone floor. His legs gave out, and he collapsed onto one knee.

Zed instinctively moved forward. "Are you—" He stopped himself, confused by his own concern. "What's happening to you?"

Kaal exhaled sharply, gripping his chest. "I… I do not have much time left." He forced himself to look up at Zed, his decayed eyes burning with an intensity that sent shivers down the young man's spine.

"In time… everything will become clear," he rasped. His voice dropped lower, filled with an ominous weight. "But if you do not grow stronger… then they will find you and when they do they will kill u and the ones you love in this world"

A shiver ran through Zed's spine. Before he could react, Kaal slowly raised his decayed right hand. A deep crimson glow pulsed from his palm, twisting and coalescing into a floating sphere. It throbbed like a living heart, dripping with raw, untamed energy.

Zed barely had time to process what was happening before the orb shot toward him.

It struck his chest.

A searing heat erupted inside him, burning through his veins like molten lava. His breath hitched. His limbs turned weak. His vision blurred.

"What… what did you do?" Zed gasped, his voice barely above a whisper. His body felt like it was being reshaped from the inside out, his bones groaning under an invisible force.

Kaal, still kneeling, exhaled a slow breath. "The human body you inhabit… was never meant to carry your fate. So I was tasked with giving you my Asura Cardinal and my boon, reshaping you into what you were meant to be."

Zed gritted his teeth, his head spinning. He could barely stay conscious.

"Asura Cardinals," Kaal continued, his voice beginning to fade, "are unlike any others in this world. They may start weak… but their growth… is limitless."

A bitter chuckle escaped Kaal's lips. "He told me you would come. That my destiny… was to give you my Cardinal and my boon. I waited… waited for centuries… and now… I have fulfilled it."

Zed struggled to speak; his voice slurred. "Who… who told you…?"

But before Kaal could answer, the pain became unbearable. Darkness crept at the edge of Zed's vision. His body was shutting down, his mind losing grip.

Kaal's body trembled violently. Blood trickled from his lips, but he still forced himself to speak.

"When you meet the Last Sovereign… tell him my name," he rasped, his voice raw with emotion. "Tell him… Kaal was sorry for not being there when he needed me. Tell him… I fought until my last breath to fulfill my destiny."

Zed's vision was nearly gone, his world a spinning haze of red and black. Through the blur, he saw Kaal's body begin to wither, his flesh turning to ash, crumbling with the wind.

But before he vanished completely, Kaal reached to his side and pulled out a rusted sword. Though its surface was battered, ancient markings glowed faintly along the blade. With his final ounce of strength, he placed it in front of Zed.

"This… is my last gift," Kaal whispered. "Take care of it. It is the only precious thing I have left… and now, it will heed your command. To awaken it… call its name… Vasuki…"

With those final words, Kaal's body disintegrated, his ashes scattering into the darkness.

Zed, barely able to keep his eyes open, reached out to the sword—before overwhelming exhaustion consumed him, and the abyss pulled him under.

Kaal's body shattered into light, a blinding beam bursting from his chest. It shot upward, piercing the gray sky and stretching endlessly toward the heavens. A deep, resonant hum followed, vibrating through the air, a sound so pure and powerful it echoed across realms.

In a grand, marble hall bathed in soft, golden light, a figure with pristine white wings sat at an ornate desk. He held a delicate quill, its feather shimmering faintly under the glow of floating crystal lanterns. His hand stilled the moment the humming sound reached his ears.

Slowly, he set the quill down. His silver eyes darkened with concern as he stood and walked toward the massive arched window. Beyond it, the sky trembled beneath the beam of light piercing the heavens.

A shadow passed over his face as he whispered, "So… it's finally begun."

somewhere in Celestia ,The Abyssal Prison hung in the sky, suspended between dimensions by colossal golden chains that stretched into the void. Built into the side of a jagged obsidian cliff, the prison pulsed with faint blue energy—a constant reminder of the ancient magic that sealed the place.

Inside the lowest level, where not even light dared to reach, a lone figure sat motionless in the dark. Chains of blessed light coiled around her wrists and ankles, glowing faintly as they burned golden marks into her pale skin.

Her long black hair draped over her shoulders, partially hiding her face. Beneath the tattered remains of a dark cloak, two massive black wings hung limp at her sides—broken and torn.

Her eyes fluttered open, gleaming with faint silver light. Her lips curled into a ghost of a smile as she uttered a single word, her voice resonating through the void.

"Finally."