Alvinnu\u00e9\u2019s eyelids fluttered open.
He stood in silence.
Nothingness stretched in every direction \u2014 no shapes, no light, no air to breathe. Only endless black.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A thought stirred: the dark\u2026 why does it not frighten me?
There was no chill. No threat. No absence \u2014 only stillness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A warmth \u2014 subtle, unspoken \u2014 wrapped around him, settling deep into his bones.
Not fear. Not sorrow. Only quiet comfort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A faint glimmer appeared at the edge of the darkness \u2014 soft, like a dying ember.
Alvinnu\u00e9 turned toward it. The light pulsed, steady and alive, drawing him forward.
His boots moved before thought could take hold. Step by step, he walked.
The void seemed to part around him, bending like water.
The light grew brighter, warmer, until it filled his vision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He stepped into it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The darkness vanished.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Before him lay a village shrouded in muted grey light. The air smelled of rain\u2011soaked stone. Beneath it lingered the faint scent of distant incense and burning wood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The village was unlike any living memory. Narrow lanes wound between small houses of dark wood and slate, their curved rooftops mottled with age. Paper lanterns swayed gently from poles and eaves, though the air was still. A low hum of quiet life seemed to hang in the air.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The village breathed with an ancient grace. Figures moved softly through the lanes, draped in layered robes of deep charcoal and ash, faces hidden beneath wide\u2011brimmed hats. Soft footsteps on cobblestone mingled with the distant murmur of a river.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Alvinnu\u00e9 stepped forward. He walked slowly through the village, his boots brushing cobblestones slick with rain. He watched the people \u2014 how they moved, how they spoke, how they lived.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There was something in them that stirred a memory deep within him. A familiarity he could not place.
A quiet recognition, like recalling a dream long forgotten.
Faces passed by \u2014 some fleeting, others lingering in his sight \u2014 and all felt oddly known. As though he had once walked among them before, though he could not say when or where.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The village lanes curved and twisted, carrying him deeper into its heart. The sound of footsteps gave way to soft murmurs.
Ahead, the path opened into a small square \u2014 the village center.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the center of the square, a group had gathered. They stood close together, heads bowed in quiet conversation, robes rustling softly. Their voices carried faintly, though the words were lost to the hush that seemed to blanket the village.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The group moved with intent, their gestures careful and deliberate. Some pointed toward a low stone table at the center of the gathering. Others shook their heads, as if weighing what was spoken.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Alvinnu\u00e9 paused at the edge of the square. His boots made no sound against the stone. The village seemed to hold its breath around him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There was something about the scene \u2014 the way they spoke, the way they moved \u2014 that stirred an even deeper sense of familiarity within him. A strange certainty that he had been here before, standing exactly where he now stood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And yet\u2026 he could not remember when.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then the murmuring slowed. The crowd parted.
From the far side of the square, a figure stepped forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He was a man. His robes were black, edged with accents of deep teal that shimmered faintly even in the muted light. The fabric flowed around him, catching on the still air like liquid shadow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The crowd made way for him without a word, forming a circle of quiet anticipation. All eyes turned to the man as he walked to the center of the square. His movement was deliberate, calm \u2014 his presence somehow commanding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Alvinnu\u00e9\u2019s breath caught. There was something about him\u2026 something that stirred a memory buried deep within his mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The air seemed to grow heavier. The quiet deepened.
The moment felt fragile, as if the entire village were holding itself in suspense, waiting for what he would do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The man stopped. Slowly, he began to remove his robes. They fell away with soft rustling, revealing armor beneath \u2014 sleek, jet black, shaped to fit him like a second skin. Light glimmered faintly along its surface, though it seemed not to shine but to drink in light itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Without haste, the man began to walk toward the center of the square. There stood an obelisk \u2014 dark stone carved with intricate markings. Its surface seemed older than time itself, worn smooth yet humming faintly with quiet energy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As Alvinnu\u00e9 stepped closer, his breath faltered. His eyes widened.
The runes etched along the obelisk were unmistakable.
Shanda\u2011Woldn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A name \u2014 and a memory \u2014 burned at the edges of his mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The village held its breath. The air pulsed with silence.
The man in black armor stopped before the obelisk, as if waiting for something unseen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then the obelisk stirred.
A faint glow began to pulse from within its carved runes.
The light grew stronger, breathing in and out like a living thing.
It spread, washing the square in shimmering radiance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The glow intensified further, until it burst upward in a column of brilliant light \u2014 not a single blast, but a continuous pulse.
The beam rose skyward in slow, steady waves, breathing and shifting as though it were alive.
It stretched far above the village, slicing into the heavens, each pulse rippling through the air.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Alvinnu\u00e9\u2019s breath caught.
The hum deepened, vibrating through bone and soul alike.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The crowd froze. Every figure in the square stared upward, motionless, bound by the power of the light.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Alvinnu\u00e9 stood rooted to the spot, his heart pounding.
The world had changed.
And somehow, he knew nothing would ever be the same again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He turned his gaze toward the horizon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There \u2014 far in the distance, beyond the rolling hills and misted valleys \u2014 more columns of pulsing light were rising.
One. Two. Then another.
Each stretching skyward like living beacons.
Their glow shimmered faintly in the distance, a network of light that seemed to ripple across the land.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Alvinnu\u00e9\u2019s chest tightened.
This was no isolated event.
This was something far greater.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And somewhere deep inside, he felt the stirrings of something ancient awaken.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And then \u2014 he heard it.
A voice.
Inside his mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“Children of the Void! Prepare for War!”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Then the vision shifted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The village dissolved, and Alvinnu\u00e9 stood upon rolling hills of deep green, stretching endlessly to the horizon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n From the north, an army advanced \u2014 men and women clad in black armor, like the man in black armor from the village. Teal, crimson, and green sashes rippled among their ranks, colors glinting in the light.<\/p>\n\n\n\n From the south came another host \u2014 vast and numerous, a legion of twisted creatures born of corruption. Their forms defied nature: limbs bent in impossible angles, flesh fused with bone and shadow, faces stretched into silent screams. Each bore the mark of decay, their presence a blight upon the earth. With every step they took, the living grass withered to ash.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The armies faced each other in silence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n From the first army, a man stepped forward \u2014 the same man from the village.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He drew a short sword of black steel, its edge faintly shimmering with violet light.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Alvinnu\u00e9\u2019s breath caught.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He knew that blade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It was the Doth-\u00c9amon Short Sword. The first army surged forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n They wielded shadow skills \u2014 movements laced with darkness and speed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Alvinnu\u00e9\u2019s eyes widened. Shadow warriors?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n But something was different. They moved with shadows \u2014 yet not the art he knew. The armies clashed. Steel rang out, and a low roar rose across the field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The army of men and women seemed to have the upper hand \u2014 their shadow skills were unbelievably powerful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Then, from the center of the battle, a green light began to rise \u2014 dark and necrotic, pulsing with malignant energy. It spread, gathering weight and momentum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And then it exploded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A wave of death rolled outward, consuming everything in its path.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When the light faded, both armies were gone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Then, the scene receded from Alvinnue’s vision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When the light returned, Alvinnu\u00e9 saw the man in black standing alone upon a high, desolate mountain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The mountain was stripped bare of life, a wasteland of death.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Before him loomed something indescribable \u2014 a being of death incarnate, its presence impossible to comprehend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The man\u2019s voice rose in a chant, a prayer of strength and defiance against the incomprehensible foe before him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When the incantation ended, he lifted the Doth\u2011\u00c9amon Short Sword high above his head.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The sky trembled and parted, a vast tear of light stretching across the heavens, illuminating the desolate mountain and casting long shadows over the wasteland below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For a moment, time seemed to hold its breath. Within it floated a heart of obsidian, pulsing with a dark, living rhythm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He caught it and pressed it to his chest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It fused with him, searing through flesh and soul, binding him to a power both terrible and alive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Shadows deepened around him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The man became a silhouette of living darkness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He charged, driving the Doth\u2011\u00c9amon Short Sword into the foe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n From the sky, runes appeared \u2014 vast, as large as continents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Chains of light cascaded downward, binding the creature and dragging it beneath the earth, sealing it in a prison of unimaginable power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The man fell to his knees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The obsidian heart slipped free from his chest. Cracks appeared. It did not shatter. Shards drifted downward, slow as falling ash, settling upon the barren ground.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The man gathered them, shoulders heavy, eyes shadowed with sorrow, and began his descent from the mountain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And then the scene faded, leaving only silence in its wake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the blackness, Alvinnu\u00e9 stood alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Then the voice came again, echoing within his mind, low and resonant. \u201cAlvinnu\u00e9\u2026 Alvinnu\u00e9\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He tightened his grip on his cloak and asked, \u201cWho are you?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI am the end of all things,\u201d the voice murmured, reverberating through the void around him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDid you show me these visions?\u201d Alvinnu\u00e9 pressed, the remnants of the battlefield still vivid in his mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThese are the records of the first shadow and the sealing of the Death God,\u201d the voice replied, carrying a weight that made the darkness feel denser.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe\u2026 first shadow?\u201d he whispered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cA child of shadow, as you are,\u201d it answered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat does it mean?\u201d He felt a tremor of unease ripple through his chest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe answer is neither here nor there. The answer will become,\u201d the voice said, fading into the silence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Alvinnu\u00e9 shook his head. \u201cI still don\u2019t understand.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n For a long moment, there was nothing but stillness. Then the voice returned, firmer this time. \u201cSeek the Shards of the Void God. There are five. One is already in your possession.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He looked down. In his hand rested a shard, black as the void, pulsing faintly like a heartbeat. It throbbed once\u2026 twice\u2026 each pulse resonating through his veins, stirring something deep and unfamiliar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat are the shards? How do I find them?\u201d he asked, voice trembling despite himself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFollow the path of the First Shadow, Matapang\u2019ko. Remember that name,\u201d the voice instructed, the syllables echoing like distant thunder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhere is the path? How do I find it?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou shall see it!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The darkness shifted, forming a shape that pressed forward like liquid shadow. Jagged edges and flickering tendrils of dark light writhed across its surface, neither solid nor entirely intangible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It surged closer until it entered his eyes, not by touch but by presence. A cold pressure filled his vision, and impossible shapes and colors burned behind his eyelids, leaving impressions as real as pain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Alvinnu\u00e9 gasped as the form pulsed within his mind, bending perception itself and imprinting fragments of memory, knowledge, and power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOpen your eyes, Alvinnu\u00e9!\u201d <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Alvinnu\u00e9\u2019s eyelids fluttered open.He stood in silence.Nothingness stretched in every direction \u2014 no shapes, no<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3479","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jsantos.net\/_blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3479","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jsantos.net\/_blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jsantos.net\/_blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jsantos.net\/_blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jsantos.net\/_blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3479"}],"version-history":[{"count":24,"href":"https:\/\/www.jsantos.net\/_blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3479\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3513,"href":"https:\/\/www.jsantos.net\/_blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3479\/revisions\/3513"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jsantos.net\/_blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3479"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jsantos.net\/_blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3479"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jsantos.net\/_blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3479"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n\n\n\n
His sword.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These shadows were alive.
Potent. Primal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n
From above, a beam of light descended.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It hovered, each beat slower than the last, dragging time with it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Light seeped through.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It simply fell apart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n