Darkness swallowed them whole.

  The wind howled past Sorin’s ears, a roaring void that drowned out everything else. The abyss stretched endlessly below, an open maw waiting to consume them.

  He held onto Aeris tightly, bracing against the inevitable impact.

  "Please don’t be bottomless," he thought.

  Then—a shift.

  The air around them changed.

  The fall wasn’t just a descent—it was a transition.

  The suffocating darkness pulsed, like something alive, something ancient. The sensation of falling twisted into something else entirely, a sensation that made his stomach turn.

  Then—

  The ground rushed up to meet them.

  Sorin barely had time to brace before they hit.

  The impact was jarring, but not lethal. Whatever force had swallowed them had also slowed their fall. Still, the landing wasn’t gentle. Sorin hit the ground hard, pain jolting through his ribs.

  Aeris landed beside him with a muffled curse. "Ugh. Never. Doing. That. Again."

  Sorin groaned, pushing himself up. The air was thick—not stale, but charged. Something was different here.

  Then, as his eyes adjusted—

  He saw where they were.

  They had landed in what could only be described as a vast, underground ruin.

  Towering spires of obsidian-like stone stretched high above them, vanishing into the ceiling far overhead. Glowing veins of pale blue light pulsed through the walls, casting everything in an eerie, dreamlike glow. Strange symbols were carved into the rock—familiar, yet unreadable.

  Aeris let out a low whistle. "Well, this is… not terrifying at all."

  Sorin exhaled, steadying himself. "This place…" He trailed off, because the truth was, he didn’t know what this place was.

  But something in his Echo recognized it.

  "Welcome home," the voice had whispered.

  His gut twisted.

  Aeris dusted herself off, looking around. "Alright. We fell into some creepy forgotten ruin in the middle of nowhere. Next question: how do we get out?"

  Sorin wasn’t sure they could.

  Then—

  A sound.

  A low, resonant hum, vibrating through the air.

  Sorin and Aeris froze.

  A shadow moved at the edge of their vision.

  Something was here with them.

  The hum grew louder, turning into a low, pulsing chant—words half-formed, layered voices overlapping in an ancient, forgotten language.

  Aeris grabbed Sorin’s arm. "Tell me that’s just the wind."

  Sorin drew his sword.

  No sooner had he done so than figures emerged from the darkness.

  They moved like wraiths—cloaked in flowing, tattered robes, their faces obscured by ornate masks of black stone and gold. Each step they took echoed, despite the soft ground beneath them.

  They weren’t alive.

  Not entirely.

  Aeris tensed. "Sorin. What the hell are they?"

  Sorin’s Echo stirred. The answer was on the tip of his tongue, but he didn’t know why.

  One of the figures stepped forward. Unlike the others, their mask bore three glowing symbols, carved deep into the stone.

  When they spoke, their voice was layered—as if multiple souls were speaking at once.

  "He has returned."

  Aeris blinked. "Okay. That’s officially the third time someone’s said that. I’m gonna need an explanation, fast."

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  The figure turned to Sorin.

  "Do you remember us, Hollow King?"

  Sorin’s breath caught in his throat.

  Hollow King. Again.

  The weight of the title settled over him, pressing against his ribs like an invisible hand. He clenched his jaw. "I don’t know what you’re talking about."

  The masked figure tilted its head, as if considering something. Then—

  "Then we shall remind you."

  The world shifted.

  Suddenly, Sorin’s mind was not his own.

  Images flooded Sorin’s mind—fragments of a past he did not remember.

  A city of obsidian and gold, standing tall beneath an eternal sky.

  A throne of black stone, its surface carved with names long lost.

  A crown, burning with cold fire.

  And a name, whispered in a voice that was his, yet not his.

  "Sorin, Hollow King of the Fallen."

  The vision shattered.

  Sorin gasped, stumbling back. His chest ached—his Echo burning like fire beneath his skin.

  Aeris caught him. "Hey! Hey, what just happened?"

  Sorin couldn’t answer. His mind was reeling.

  The masked figures remained still, watching.

  "You have forgotten," they murmured. "But the world remembers. The Hollow Crown was broken, but not lost. The Echo endures."

  Sorin forced himself to breathe. "What do you want from me?"

  The figure with the glowing symbols took another step forward.

  "Not what we want. What must be done."

  The cavern shook.

  Sorin barely had time to react before a deep, rumbling roar filled the space around them.

  From the far side of the ruins, something ancient was waking up.

  The masked figures turned as one.

  "The Seal is breaking."

  Sorin and Aeris exchanged glances.

  Then—

  The walls cracked open.

  A massive, shadowed figure began to rise from the depths, its form barely visible against the dim blue light.

  Aeris’s eyes widened. "Oh, come on."

  The masked figures knelt.

  "It is awake."

  Sorin’s grip tightened on his sword. His heart pounded.

  Because whatever had been sealed down here—

  It was looking directly at him.

  The ruins trembled.

  Dust and loose stone cascaded from the towering walls, the eerie blue glow flickering as if disturbed by the presence that now loomed before them. The ancient seal had cracked, and something older than memory had begun to stir.

  Sorin and Aeris stood frozen as the colossal figure rose from the depths.

  At first, it was just an outline—a shadow moving within shadow. But as it stepped forward, the dim blue light from the walls illuminated its form.

  A titanic, armored entity.

  Its body was sculpted from obsidian and bone, the joints wrapped in pulsing blue veins, as if its very essence was stitched together from the ruin itself. Six massive arms extended from its torso, each one thick with ancient carvings. Its face was a jagged, featureless mask, except for two blazing white eyes that burned with unnatural light.

  The masked figures knelt before it.

  "The Keeper of the Hollow."

  Aeris swallowed. “Okay, Sorin. I think we found what was sealed down here.”

  Sorin was barely breathing. His Echo was reacting violently, the power twisting inside him, demanding something.

  "Do you remember us, Hollow King?"

  The Keeper’s voice wasn’t spoken. It vibrated through the air, through Sorin’s bones, through his very soul.

  Sorin’s hands clenched into fists. “I keep telling you—”

  He didn’t remember.

  But part of him knew this thing.

  It wasn’t a monster. It was a guardian.

  And right now, it was staring at him like an intruder.

  The masked figures turned their faces toward Sorin expectantly.

  "Prove yourself."

  Aeris tensed. “Sorin, I don’t like the way they’re looking at you.”

  The Keeper’s arms began to move.

  A grinding sound filled the air as its massive hands flexed, fingers curling like a predator testing its claws. The ground beneath them shook, and suddenly—

  The Keeper lunged.

  Sorin barely had time to react.

  He threw himself sideways just as a monstrous fist crashed into the spot where he had stood. The impact sent a shockwave through the cavern, shattering stone and kicking up a cloud of dust.

  Aeris yelped, diving behind a broken pillar. "What did you do?!"

  Sorin didn’t answer—he was too busy surviving.

  The Keeper’s second strike came faster than something its size had any right to move. A massive, clawed hand swung down, aiming to crush him outright.

  Sorin’s instincts took over.

  He leapt.

  The air seemed to bend around him as his Echo surged, amplifying his speed. He landed on the Keeper’s outstretched arm, running up its forearm as it recoiled from the failed strike.

  The masked figures did not move. They simply watched.

  This was the test.

  Sorin’s grip tightened around his sword. If he was going to survive this, he had to end it fast.

  The Keeper seemed to sense his plan.

  Mid-motion, it snapped its third arm upward, swiping at Sorin with terrifying precision.

  Too fast. Too strong.

  Sorin barely ducked in time, the claws grazing his shoulder, leaving a burning gash along his arm. He gritted his teeth against the pain, pushing forward.

  "Not enough."

  The Keeper’s fourth arm swung from the other side.

  Sorin had nowhere to go.

  Then—

  Aeris moved.

  From the side, she hurled a dagger straight into the creature’s mask.

  The impact wasn’t enough to do any real damage, but it distracted it. The Keeper hesitated, its blazing eyes flickering toward Aeris.

  That was all Sorin needed.

  He leapt.

  Blade flashing, he drove his sword deep into the glowing veins at the Keeper’s shoulder.

  The reaction was instant.

  The cavern erupted with blinding blue light as the blade struck something vital.

  The Keeper roared.

  It staggered back, arms flailing wildly as raw energy poured from the wound. The symbols on the walls flickered, pulsing in rhythm with the dying guardian’s movements.

  The masked figures did not interfere.

  "He still wields the Hollow Blade," one murmured.

  "The Echo is strong in him," another agreed.

  Sorin barely heard them. His pulse was pounding, his Echo howling in his chest.

  The Keeper swayed, its massive form beginning to fracture. The carved symbols across its body cracked, splitting apart as the blue energy holding it together bled out.

  Then, with a final, thunderous sound—

  The Keeper collapsed.

  Its colossal body shattered into dust and stone, a final pulse of light escaping into the cavern. The remnants of its form sank back into the abyss, leaving only silence behind.

  Sorin landed hard, breathing ragged. His sword was still humming, the runes along its edge pulsing in the same rhythm as his own heartbeat.

  It was over.

  Or so he thought.

  As soon as the Keeper’s remains faded, the cavern shifted.

  The ruins began to glow, not with the pulsing blue light from before, but something deeper. Older.

  At the far end of the chamber, a structure began to move.

  A door.

  Massive, ancient, and covered in the same unreadable symbols that lined the cavern walls. As it opened, a warm, golden light spilled from within.

  The masked figures rose.

  "The path is open," one said.

  "The Hollow King may enter," another whispered.

  Aeris exhaled. "Oh, great. Because nothing about this screams 'trap.'"

  Sorin was too drained to argue. But something deep inside him ached at the sight of that door.

  A memory trying to surface.

  A pull he couldn’t ignore.

  This wasn’t just a ruin.

  It was something far more important.

  And he had just unlocked it.