We didn’t fall far—only a few meters—but the moment our feet touched soil, the entire landscape shifted.

Roots throbbed under our boots, pulsing like veins. Trees breathed in a rhythm too slow for anything human. A thick fog veiled the canopy, laced with flickers of green firelight and the smell of rot and old blood.

> “Stay close!”

A voice rang out—a boy with copper armor and a staff etched with mirror runes. Noble class. Already forming alliances.

Three followed him, maybe more. They vanished down a tunnel of arching vines.

I didn’t follow.

My fingers touched the dirt. Warm.

Too warm.

Something below was alive. Or angry.

> “This is not a place for mercy,” Aethros whispered. “Not for the old you, not for Noa. This is the place where you die again, or begin anew.”

I moved silently through the mist, keeping low, breath steady.

Somewhere above, the sky screamed.

I wasn’t the only one hearing it.

---

✦ Day 1 — Underroot, Sector 3

It didn’t take long for the first scream to come.

A high-pitched howl, cut short. Bone snapped. Blood misted the fog in bursts of red and static.

I reached the source too late—four students ripped apart. Bits of blue fabric clung to thorns like forgotten prayers. A glyph still flickered weakly on one boy’s chest, burned halfway into his ribs.

A Shade mark.

Someone had force-bonded a Lurker class and lost control.

Typical.

> “Idiots,” I muttered.

A twig cracked behind me.

I spun.

A blur. Not Shade. Not creature.

A girl.

Cloaked. Raven-black hair. Grey eyes.

She didn’t speak.

But she looked straight at me like she knew something.

> “You’ve been watching me,” I said.

She didn’t deny it.

Instead, she held out her hand.

> “Come if you want to live. You’ve already drawn too much attention.”

“From what?”

“Not what. Who.”

Before I could answer, the tree above split open—not like wood, but like flesh.

Something slithered out.

Eyes. So many eyes.

> “Run,” she hissed.

---

✦ The First Hunt

We ran.

Not away from it—around it. Let the others die in its wake.

I didn’t trust her.

But I didn’t need to.

I only needed her not to slow me down.

The Shade that chased us wasn’t natural—it had human hands. Five heads. It screamed like children singing out of tune. Some twisted Phantom-class that slipped into the Underroot through an ancient breach.

We took cover behind a moss-covered ruin. I reached for my shadow.

> “Aethros…”

“Unleash me. Let me in.”

> “No. Not yet. I can’t—”

> “You’re not him anymore.”

I froze.

The girl was watching me again.

> “That thing… it’s not going to let up.”

“And you brought me toward it?”

“No,” she said quietly. “I’m keeping it off the others.”

I stared.

> “You knew it was hunting you?”

“It’s been hunting anyone with potential.” Her eyes narrowed. “And you reek of it.”

> “Who are you?”

She turned toward the mist.

> “My name is Lyenne. And if you want to survive, Riven, you’ll need to stop pretending you’re still human.”

---

✦ Hours Later – Temporary Shelter

We found a hollow tree, big enough for two. The interior was lined with old glyphs—wards. Left behind by failed students, or something worse.

She lit a small fire, careful not to draw attention.

> “You’ve bonded with something powerful.”

“No contract.”

“Liar.”

“It’s… not like that.”

She looked at me, as if reading between every syllable.

> “You don’t belong here.”

I said nothing.

Because she was right.

> “This world’s about power and control. Blood or bond. You don’t get far without one.”

> “I’m not looking to get far,” I said softly. “I’m looking to end something.”

Her eyes lingered on me a moment longer than they should have.

> “Then we’re the same.”

---

✦ At the Spire — Observation Deck

High above, unseen, Headmaster Veylen watched a dozen flickering projection glyphs. Most had gone black—students dead or disqualified.

Only a few survived.

His fingers lingered on one name glowing red.

> Riven Noax.

He tapped the glass.

> “So you are real…”

Behind him, a shadow coalesced into something humanoid. No face. No sound.

The Headmaster didn’t look back.

> “Tell the Hollow Wing. The ‘falseborn’ has awakened.”