Arden crumpled, the searing pain in his blind eye plunging him into darkness as Lyra's voice echoed: "Arden!" But her cry faded, and in an instant, he found himself in that familiar colorless void where time neither flowed nor stood still. Before him stood the red spirit blurry, but clearer than ever, calmer.
The spirit laughed, its tone mocking but not threatening. "That fool… what does he think he's doing, toying with my heir?"
Arden frowned, pushing through the pain to stand. "What… what are you talking about?" he demanded, voice laced with confusion and anger. "Who are you talking about? And who are you?"

The red spirit glided closer, its voice seeping into his mind like a whisper. "I… am no one but you," it said, words soft but cryptic. "Just a reflection. But you… you're the blind heir." Arden's breath caught, his hand clutching his blind eye the pain lingered, now more a pressure, as if something watched him.
"Heir?" Arden muttered, anger rising. "I'm no one's heir! The god… is he doing this? 'Your master stirs 'what did you mean?" The spirit chuckled softly, this time more gentle, more mysterious. "The god… yes, he cursed you," it said. "But your master isn't him. Something… deeper."

Arden's heart raced, trying to understand. "Deeper?" he asked, voice trembling. "What?" The spirit paused, its gaze piercing like it held something beyond flame. "Your blind eye… a key," it said at last, voice a whisper. "It unlocks the gate of time." Arden frowned, pieces clicking into place.

"The gate of time?" he muttered, his blind eye burning faintly again. The spirit continued. "The god cursed you because he feared," it said. "But what he fears… isn't just you." Arden's anger flared. "Feared what? What does he want from me?" he shouted, summoning his flames blood-red fire rising in his palms, but in this void, they flickered, weakened.

The spirit drew closer, its voice lowering. "Not yet, heir," it said, a whisper. "But you'll understand soon." Arden woke with a scream, finding himself in the forest, wrapped in Lyra's arms. Her golden eyes looked at him, filled with worry. "Arden, what happened?" she asked, voice trembling. Arden sat up, breathless, his blind eye still burning. "A spirit," he said simply, voice flat.

Lyra frowned, her hand finding his. "A spirit?" she asked, curiosity in her tone. But at that moment, the crack in the forest trembled and a dark energy began to seep out, slowly.