The ruins stretched endlessly, a maze of fractured stone and whispered secrets. Cael moved with practiced caution, his every step measured against the crackling silence. Each corner turned felt like peeling back a layer of forgotten time, yet the memories that eluded him remained stubbornly beyond reach.
His fingers clutched the jagged shard from the mirror, its cold edges pressing into his palm. It was no ordinary fragment—it pulsed faintly, humming with a resonance that seemed to synchronize with the beating of his heart.
Ahead, faint light flickered—a pale glow seeping through a rusted lattice of metal bars. Cael approached cautiously, peering through the narrow gap.
Inside, a figure knelt beside a pool of iridescent liquid. The woman's hair spilled like molten silver, and her eyes, when they met his, held the depth of a thousand forgotten sorrows.
"You carry the Vestige," she whispered, voice like wind through dead leaves. "It calls to you… but beware. Its power fractures the soul."
Cael's pulse quickened. "Who are you? How do you know of the Vestige?"
She smiled sadly. "I am Selene, a guardian of what remains. The Vestige is more than a relic—it is a burden and a curse. Your past is entwined with its fate."
Suddenly, the ground trembled. From the shadows, the Hunters emerged, relentless and merciless. Selene's hand brushed Cael's shoulder, imparting warmth and strength.
"Run, and remember—only the Vestige can sever the chains binding you to oblivion."
With a roar that shook the ruins, the pursuit began.