The Dream Beneath the Silence
Chapter 27 – The Dream Beneath the Silence
(A Vision of the Umbrakin)
The room was dark. Quiet. No wind. The curtain over the window swayed, even though the night outside held no breeze.
Ariz lay on the narrow bed, one hand resting on the hilt of his blade beside him.
He never truly slept.
But this time… he fell.
Not into rest.
Into memory.
He stood beneath a white sun.
Not a warm one.
A burning, sterile thing—high above, watching without blinking. The sky was silver. The horizon mirrored.
Around him stood giants of light.
Not men.
Not beasts.
Figures of gold and sunfire robes, faces veiled in brilliance. They held staves. Words. Orders.
And in front of them—
A line of figures.
Cloaked.
Silent.
Unmoving.
Ariz's breath caught.
Because he was among them.
One of the golden figures spoke.
The voice thundered, but not with rage—with finality.
"You refused the Call of Radiance.You judged the Flame. You questioned the Will.For that, you are severed."
The figures beside Ariz didn't tremble. Didn't plead.
They only lowered their hoods.
And the moment they did—
The light recoiled.
Eyes of violet. Runes etched into skin like scripture burned black. Symbols of silence. Grace turned inward.
The leader raised a hand.
"Erase them."
The sky cracked.
Fire fell.
And everything around Kael turned to screams and ruin.
But the dream didn't end.
He stood amidst the carnage now—black crystal towers collapsing, sky bleeding, children without shadows reaching upward and vanishing into ash.
A voice behind him.
Not loud.
Not cruel.
Just… true.
"We were not born to destroy.We were born to watch. To preserve.But the Light turned on its judges."
Ariz turned.
A man stood at the center of the wreckage.
Tall. Ageless. Wearing the same coat Kael wore now.
But his eyes glowed like dying stars.
"We chose the shadow not for power.But because it was the only thing that didn't lie."
He stepped forward.
Pressed two fingers against Ariz's chest—right over the sigil on his ribs.
"You are not the last of us, Ariz.You are the first to return."
Ariz woke with a sharp inhale.
Cold sweat.
No noise outside.
Only the wind whispering against the window.
He sat up.
Looked down.
His ribs—where the sigils had once pulsed faintly—were now glowing softly. Violet. Alive.
[System Alert – Racial Echo Triggered]Umbrakin Heritage: Acknowledged
You carry the blood of the forsaken.One who once judged the Light.One who remembers what the world tried to forget.
Race Evolution Progress: 63%
"When you destroy the second church, the silence will be complete."
Ariz stood slowly.
Not with fear.
But with purpose.