The First Lesson
The Queen of Shadows led the boy to a secluded chamber deep within the Court's underground halls. The torches lining the walls flickered, casting long shadows as she stopped before a stone pillar covered in strange carvings.
"This city is built on lies," she said, running her fingers over the symbols. "Power shifts with whispers, and the ones who control the right secrets control everything."
The boy watched her carefully. He had no doubt that she was one of those people.
She turned to face him. "But brute strength has its place too."
With a flick of her wrist, she pulled a dagger from her sleeve and tossed it at him. He caught it instinctively.
"Show me what you can do."
He hesitated. "Against you?"
Her smirk deepened. "If you can land a single cut, I'll tell you something valuable."
The boy tightened his grip on the dagger. He knew better than to think it would be easy.
Then he lunged.
---
The Unseen Chains
The Queen dodged effortlessly, flowing like water as his blade swiped through empty air. Before he could react, she stepped past his guard and tapped a single finger against his chest.
The boy staggered back, heart pounding. He hadn't even seen her move.
She tilted her head. "Too slow."
Gritting his teeth, he adjusted his stance and struck again—this time, faster. Sharper.
But every time he thought he had her, she was already gone.
Finally, he stopped, panting.
The Queen examined him with mild amusement. "You rely too much on instinct. Instinct is good. But in this world, you need more."
She leaned in slightly, her voice like silk.
"You need control."
The words lingered in the air.
Then she turned away, walking back toward the pillar. "For now, you'll train under Marek. He'll teach you how to fight properly. But be careful—he doesn't like losing."
The boy exhaled slowly, gripping the dagger.
Control.
He would learn.
He had to.
---
The Emperor's Wrath
Far across the city, in the towering halls of the Imperial Palace, Malagar knelt before the throne.
The Emperor sat in shadow, his form barely visible, but his voice carried the weight of mountains.
"You have failed me."
Malagar did not flinch. "The boy has survived longer than expected, but it changes nothing. We will find him."
The Emperor's fingers drummed against the armrest. "No. You will not find him."
A pause. Then the Emperor leaned forward, the dim light catching the cruel glint in his eyes.
"He will come to us."
Malagar frowned. "How?"
The Emperor smiled.
"We have his mother."
---
A Dangerous Alliance
That night, the Queen of Shadows summoned the boy again.
But this time, she was not alone.
A figure stood beside her, shrouded in a deep hood, their features hidden. The air around them was thick with power—something cold, something unnatural.
The Queen's gaze was unreadable. "This is someone who can help you. But their price will not be cheap."
The hooded figure finally spoke, their voice a whisper of wind through dead leaves.
"The Empire is moving. They have baited a trap with someone important to you."
The boy stiffened.
His mother.
His breath came shallow, his fingers curling into fists.
The Queen watched him carefully. "You have a choice. Walk away, and the Empire will find you when they're ready. Or…"
Her eyes gleamed.
"You can strike first."
The room felt suffocating. The weight of the moment settled over him.
His mother. His past. His fate.
The chains that had bound him his whole life were tightening.
But for the first time—
He had a blade to cut them.
---
The Path of No Return
The Weight of a Choice
The boy's fingers trembled as he clenched his fists. His mother—after all these years, he had forced himself to believe she was gone. That the Empire had erased her existence. But now, they were using her as bait.
He looked up at the Queen of Shadows. "How do I know this isn't a trick?"
The hooded figure chuckled, a hollow, unsettling sound. "Believe what you wish. But the chains of fate tighten whether you accept them or not."
The Queen's voice was softer. "You know it's real. You can feel it."
And he could.
The mark on his wrist burned—not just from his own power but from something else, something distant. A connection that should have been severed long ago.
His mother was alive.
But for how long?
His jaw tightened. "Where is she?"
The hooded figure exhaled slowly. "The Emperor's dungeons. She is being held beneath the Obsidian Tower."
The boy's stomach sank. The Obsidian Tower was more than a prison—it was a grave for those the Empire wished to forget.
No one had ever escaped it.
The Queen of Shadows watched him carefully. "If you do this, there is no turning back. The Empire will hunt you until the ends of the earth."
He met her gaze. "They already are."
She smiled. "Then let's begin."
---
The Plan
The Court of Shadows gathered in a candlelit chamber beneath the city. Warriors, thieves, assassins—all bound by their defiance of the Empire.
The Queen of Shadows stood at the center, her voice steady.
"We move at dawn."
Marek, the scarred warrior who had been training the boy, crossed his arms. "Breaking into the Tower is suicide."
The hooded figure chuckled. "That depends on how you do it."
They turned to the boy. "The mark on your wrist—do you know what it truly is?"
He hesitated. "It… it's my power."
The figure nodded. "Yes. But it is also a key."
Silence filled the room.
The Queen's eyes glinted. "A key to what?"
The figure's voice was little more than a whisper.
"To the doors the Empire wishes to keep shut."
The boy felt his pulse quicken.
The sigil burned.
And somewhere deep within the Obsidian Tower, something stirred.
Something ancient.
Something waiting.
---
The Emperor's Move
Far above, in the Emperor's grand chamber, Malagar stood before the throne.
"The Queen of Shadows will not sit idle," he said. "She will come for the boy."
The Emperor's golden eyes flickered. "Good."
Malagar hesitated. "Good?"
The Emperor smiled, slow and cruel.
"The Forsaken Bloodline will lead us to what we seek."
He lifted a hand, and the air itself trembled.
"The mark is awakening. And when it does… the boy will not escape it."
Malagar bowed. But unease twisted in his gut.
The Emperor was not just hunting the boy.
He was preparing for something far worse.
And deep beneath the palace, something ancient stirred.
Waiting.
---
Into the Abyss
The Hidden Passage
Dawn had barely touched the city when the boy stood before an old iron grate in the heart of the slums. Rusted and covered in vines, it looked like nothing more than a forgotten relic.
But the Queen of Shadows knew better.
"This tunnel runs beneath the Obsidian Tower," she murmured, brushing away the vines to reveal a series of strange markings carved into the stone. "It was built long before the Empire stood. Before the dungeons were prisons."
The boy ran his fingers over the carvings, his wrist tingling with the pulse of his mark.
"It's reacting," he whispered.
The hooded figure from before stepped forward. "Because it knows what lies beneath."
Marek grunted, drawing his sword. "Less talking. More moving."
The Queen nodded. "Let's go."
With a final glance at the city behind them, the boy stepped into the darkness.
---
A City Beneath a City
The air in the tunnels was thick with dust and memories. The walls, once carved with precision, had long since cracked and crumbled, leaving jagged edges that told of age-old battles.
The deeper they went, the more the boy felt it. A presence.
Not just the weight of history, but something… alive.
The Queen of Shadows moved like she had walked these halls before, her fingers tracing faded symbols on the walls.
"These tunnels were once part of the first city," she explained. "The one that existed before the Empire."
Marek glanced around, unimpressed. "And now it's just another tomb."
The boy wasn't so sure.
He could feel something watching them.
Then, suddenly—
A whisper.
Not words. Not sound.
Something deeper.
Something calling.
He clutched his wrist as the sigil burned white-hot.
And then—
The tunnel shook.
---
The Guardian
A gust of wind roared through the passage, blowing out their torches.
Then came the growl.
Low. Ancient. Hungry.
Marek cursed. "Something's here."
The boy's eyes adjusted just in time to see movement in the darkness—something massive slithering along the tunnel walls.
A guardian.
The Queen's voice was calm, but urgent. "It protects what lies ahead."
The hooded figure raised a hand. "It is testing him."
The boy swallowed hard. "Testing me for what?"
A pair of glowing eyes locked onto him.
And the darkness moved.
---
The Trial of Shadows
The guardian struck like a viper, faster than anything its size should have been. The boy barely rolled aside as the ground split where he had stood.
Marek drew his blade. "We can take it—"
"No." The Queen's voice was sharp. "This is his fight."
The boy's heart pounded. The sigil on his wrist burned hotter, pulsing in rhythm with the creature's glowing eyes.
He understood.
This was no ordinary beast.
It was bound to the sigil.
Bound to him.
Another strike—this time, he didn't dodge.
He raised his arm—
And the mark flared.
White-hot light exploded outward, halting the guardian mid-strike. Its massive form shuddered, caught in invisible chains.
Then, slowly, it lowered its head.
Submitting.
The Queen of Shadows exhaled. "It recognizes you."
The boy stared at the creature.
For the first time in his life, something had bowed to him.
---
A Door Older Than Time
Beyond the guardian, the tunnel ended at a massive door—stone, carved with symbols that pulsed in sync with the boy's mark.
The hooded figure stepped forward. "This is what the Empire fears."
The Queen nodded. "And what they seek."
The boy took a shaky breath.
His mother was in the Tower.
The Emperor wanted him to come.
But now, he had a path the Empire didn't know about.
A way in.
A way deeper.
He reached out, placing his hand on the ancient stone.
The door shuddered—
And the abyss opened before him.