Raven sat upright in bed, her breath coming in shallow gasps. The room was dark except for the faint glow of the markings on her arms—intricate symbols pulsing like embers beneath her skin. The whispering voices from her dream still echoed in her mind, a mixture of warnings and fragmented memories.
She clenched her fists, trying to steady herself. She wasn't alone.
A shadow moved near the window. The air around her turned heavy, charged with an unseen force.
"Who's there?" she demanded, her voice firm despite the tremor in her chest.
A deep chuckle came from the darkness. "You're finally waking up, aren't you, Raven?"
Her heart slammed against her ribs. The voice was unfamiliar, but it carried an eerie sense of recognition. Slowly, a figure stepped forward from the shadows, his face partially hidden under the hood of a long, tattered cloak. His presence was imposing, yet strangely familiar.
"Who are you?" she asked, rising from the bed.
The man tilted his head slightly, as if amused. "A guide. A watcher. And perhaps... a reminder."
The air around them thickened, and the markings on Raven's arms burned brighter. A strange sensation spread through her veins—a force that felt both foreign and innate, like something she had always known but never understood.
"You carry a burden far older than you realize," the man continued. "And if you don't uncover the truth soon, it will consume you."
Raven narrowed her eyes. "What truth?"
The man took a step closer. "The curse that binds you. It's not just a shadow lurking in your past—it's a key. A puzzle. And right now, someone else is trying to solve it before you do."
Her pulse quickened. "Who?"
A slow smirk curled the edge of the man's lips. "You'll find out soon enough."
Before she could react, the candles in her room flickered violently, and the figure dissolved into shadows, vanishing as if he had never been there.
Raven exhaled sharply, her mind racing. Who was that? And why did his words make her feel as though time was slipping through her fingers?
A knock at the door jolted her from her thoughts.
"Raven?" It was Elias.
She hesitated before opening the door. Elias took one look at her and frowned. "You look like you've seen a ghost."
"Something like that," she muttered, stepping aside to let him in.
His gaze dropped to her arms, where the glowing symbols had begun to fade. "It's getting stronger, isn't it?" he asked.
She nodded. "And I'm starting to remember things... or at least, pieces of things."
Elias crossed his arms. "Like what?"
She hesitated, then said, "Someone's watching me. Someone who knows more about this curse than I do."
Elias tensed. "Did you see his face?"
"No," she admitted. "But he knew things about me... about the curse."
Elias exhaled through his nose. "This is getting worse. We need to find out what's happening before you lose control."
Raven clenched her jaw. "I'm not losing control."
Elias met her gaze. "That's not what I meant. But you can feel it, can't you? The way it's changing you?"
She didn't answer, because she knew he was right. Something inside her was shifting, and for the first time, she wasn't sure if she could contain it.
Elias ran a hand through his hair. "We need answers. And I think I know where to start."
Raven raised an eyebrow. "Let me guess. The Forbidden Hall?"
Elias gave her a half-smile. "You're catching on."
The Forbidden Hall was silent, its massive doors looming before them like the mouth of some ancient beast. The air was thick with dust and the scent of old parchment. It was a place few dared to enter, its secrets buried under centuries of forgotten knowledge.
Elias glanced at Raven. "Are you sure about this?"
Raven's fingers tightened into fists. "If the answers are here, I need to see them."
He nodded and pushed the door open.
Inside, towering shelves lined the walls, each filled with books, scrolls, and artifacts covered in symbols similar to the ones on Raven's arms. The dim candlelight flickered as they stepped forward, their footsteps echoing against the stone floor.
Raven's eyes scanned the room, drawn to a particular shelf where an ancient book lay open on its own. The pages trembled slightly, as if responding to her presence.
She reached for it, fingers brushing against the aged parchment.
The moment she touched it, a surge of energy shot through her.
The room vanished.
Darkness swallowed her whole.
And then—she was somewhere else.
A vision unfolded before her, vivid and terrifying.
She stood in a grand hall, its walls lined with torches burning with eerie blue flames. Shadows stretched unnaturally across the floor, twisting and shifting as if they were alive.
At the center of the hall was a woman—cloaked in black, her presence radiating power.
Raven's breath caught in her throat.
It was her.
Or at least, it looked like her.
The woman raised a hand, and the flames responded, flaring higher. A voice—deep and commanding—spoke from the darkness.
"You were never meant to break the curse."
The woman—her past self?—turned sharply. "And yet, here I stand."
The shadows thickened, swirling around her. "Power is not a gift. It is a chain."
She laughed. "Only if you let it be."
The scene shifted.
Pain exploded in Raven's chest, and she gasped.
The vision collapsed.
She was back in the Forbidden Hall, Elias gripping her shoulders, his face pale with concern.
"Raven! Talk to me!"
She blinked, disoriented. The book was no longer in her hands—it lay closed on the table, its cover pulsing faintly.
Elias's grip tightened. "What did you see?"
Raven's throat felt dry. "A warning. And a past I don't understand."
Elias looked at the book, then back at her. "Whatever's happening to you... it's only just beginning."
Raven steadied herself, her pulse still racing.
She didn't know what came next.
But she had a feeling the curse wasn't done with her yet.