The morning sun offered no comfort. It was pale and cold, as though it too sensed something had shifted in the world. Abhi moved quickly through the campus grounds, hoodie pulled low, cane tapping in rhythm with his steps—not because he needed it anymore, but because it helped him think, helped him stay grounded.
He couldn't shake the feeling of being watched.
The college library stood like a fortress of forgotten knowledge. Its stone facade was weathered with age, ivy curling up the sides like nature trying to reclaim it. He pushed open the heavy oak doors and stepped inside. Dust floated lazily in beams of sunlight that pierced through stained glass windows, casting distorted shapes on the polished floor.
The library felt... alive. Like it breathed knowledge. Or secrets.
Abhi made his way past the main reading room, past shelves of ancient philosophy and dusty biographies. He didn't need the librarian's permission—not today. He knew the archives were in the basement, sealed behind a rusted iron door marked: AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY.
He waited until the hall was clear and then reached into his hoodie pocket. The ring pulsed once. The door clicked open.
His breath caught. He pushed it open and stepped into darkness.
Old stone stairs descended in a spiral. A single flickering bulb barely lit the passage, but Abhi didn't hesitate. As he descended, the air grew colder, heavier. The ring burned faintly against his skin, guiding him deeper.
At the bottom, he reached another door—this one wooden, carved with runes. The same symbol as the ring sat in the center, etched in silver: the Eye with three pupils.
He touched it. The door opened soundlessly.
Inside, rows of books unlike any he'd seen before lined the shelves. Thick tomes bound in cracked leather, scrolls wrapped in serpent skin, and glass jars filled with ash and old coins. But what caught his eye was the center of the room—a circular table, and on it, a book glowing faintly red.
He stepped forward. The book was titled: "The Watchers Beneath the Veil."
He flipped it open and read:
> "There are two who carry the blood of the first—bearers of the Eye. Born not of this world, but awakened within it. One shall wield the Seer's Flame and the other the Veil's Blade. When the Vault stirs and the Hunters awaken, only they may find the Gate."
Abhi's hands trembled. Two bearers. He wasn't alone. Somewhere out there, someone else carried this burden.
He turned the page. More symbols, more drawings—one of a cloaked figure standing before a shattered vault door. Below it, scrawled in ink:
> "Do not trust the ones who wear grey. They are not what they seem."
His blood chilled.
The man in the grey coat.
Suddenly, a thud echoed from above.
Voices.
They were here.
Panicking, Abhi looked around. No windows. No other exits. Just books and walls and secrets.
And then, the ring flared to life.
The Eye glowed red and blue at once, and the symbols on the floor lit up, forming a path—leading to a wall that shimmered faintly.
A hidden door.
He pressed his hand to it, and the wall dissolved into mist. He stepped through just as the iron door upstairs crashed open.
He emerged into a hidden tunnel—narrow, dark but laced with carvings that glowed faintly as he passed. The air was electric.
Somehow, the tunnel led him to the old chapel ruins behind the college. No one ever went there. But today, someone was already waiting.
A girl.
She looked about his age—tall, pale eyes lined with black kohl and a leather satchel slung across her shoulder. She turned as he stepped out, and her eyes widened when she saw the ring.
"You..." she said breathlessly.
Abhi froze. "You're the second bearer?"
She pulled her sleeve up.
On her wrist glowed the mark.
The same Eye. The same runes.
"Name's Isha," she said. "I've been looking for you, Abhishek."
He blinked. "How do you know my—"
"They've been tracking us both. I think they found me first. That's why I ran."
Abhi's heart pounded. "The man in grey?"
She nodded. "He's one of them. The Hunters. But there's more coming. The Vault of Eyes... it's already bleeding into our world. We don't have much time."
They both turned as the bell from the old chapel tower rang once.
No one had touched that bell in decades.
Abhi looked at her. "Then we better move. Fast."
Isha smirked, pulling a small silver dagger from her satchel. Its blade shimmered with strange light.
"Good," she said. "Because the Gate won't stay sealed forever."
And together, they vanished into the trees—two bearers of a forgotten bloodline, running out of time.