The Cursed Gift

The streets of Eldrinth were quiet beneath the pale glow of dawn. Kian and Solrien moved swiftly across the rooftops, their footsteps silent against the worn stone. Below, the city remained restless—guards patrolled in greater numbers, their torches flickering through the mist. The Magi were already responding to the vault breach.

But Kian wasn't thinking about the chase. His mind was locked on what lay ahead. The archives. The Magi had spent centuries erasing history, burying the truth of the Godmarked. But deep beneath the Ivory Keep, hidden beyond the reach of common scholars, their records remained.

Proof. If Kian and Solrien could get to them, they could uncover who else had been taken—who else might still be locked away.

The city had long belonged to the Magi. Tonight, they would steal it back.

The Ashen Fox had not been happy when Kian told him what they were planning. "You are either the bravest fool I've ever met or the most reckless," the old rogue had muttered, rubbing his temples. Kian had smirked. "A little of both."

The Ashen Fox sighed. "The Magi's archives aren't just locked away—they're buried beneath layers of enchantments, traps, and things far worse than guards. If you go in blind, you'll be dead before you touch a single scroll." Which meant they needed a way in.

Solrien had provided the answer. "There is a passage," they had said. "A forgotten entrance beneath the Keep, sealed centuries ago. But it will not remain closed to me."

Kian had watched them carefully. "And why is that?" Solrien had simply smiled. "Because I built it."

Now, standing before an old sewer grate beneath the Keep's outer walls, Kian couldn't help but grimace. "This is your secret passage?" he muttered, pulling at the rusted iron.

Solrien stepped forward, raising one hand. The air hummed—not loudly, but subtly, like the deep vibration of something awakening after centuries of sleep. The stone beneath their feet shuddered, and the sewer grate peeled away, rust turning to dust.

Kian exhaled. "I need to learn that trick," Solrien smirked. "In time." They stepped into the darkness.

The tunnels beneath Eldrinth were older than the city itself. Walls of slick stone stretched ahead, twisting into a maze of forgotten passages. The air smelled of damp earth, the silence pressing against them like a weight.

"This place was once part of the first city," Solrien murmured, their fingers brushing along the walls as they walked. "Before Eldrinth, before the Magi, there was Solmira—the city of the Godmarked. These tunnels are all that remain of it."

Kian frowned. "The Magi never destroyed them?"They tried," Solrien said. "But there are things even they fear to touch." The deeper they went, the more Kian could feel it. Magic.

It pulsed faintly in the walls, like an echo of something long forgotten. The remnants of a world buried beneath history. And then—The passage ended.

A smooth stone door loomed before them, covered in intricate carvings. Faint traces of silver fire still flickered along its surface, ancient runes shifting as if alive.

Kian stepped forward, reaching out—"Don't," Solrien warned. Kian froze. "Why not?" Solrien's silver-fire eyes gleamed. "Because this door was meant to keep things inside."

Solrien raised their hand, fingers splayed. A ripple of power pulsed outward, and the runes on the door shuddered. The stone groaned, shifting as ancient locks unlatched one by one.

Kian held his breath. Then, with a deep rumble, the door slid open. Beyond it lay darkness. Not the empty kind—the heavy, suffocating kind, thick with something unseen.

Kian swallowed. "Well, that's inviting." Solrien stepped through first. "Stay close." Kian followed, his hands tense at his sides. The chamber beyond was vast—too vast. The walls stretched into blackness, the ceiling hidden in shadow.

And at the center of the room…A spiral staircase. It descended deep into the earth, farther than Kian could see. He glanced at Solrien. "How deep does this go?" Solrien didn't answer. They began to descend.

The silence was absolute. Each step down the winding staircase felt like walking deeper into something unnatural. The air grew heavier, charged with unseen energy.

Then—A whisper. Not words. Not a voice. Just… a presence. Kian's breath hitched. "Did you hear that?" Solrien nodded. But they didn't stop. Down, down, down they went, until at last, the staircase ended—opening into a circular stone hall.

Kian barely had time to take in the towering bookshelves, the endless scrolls, the knowledge of an entire lost civilization—Before the shadows moved.

A low, hollow growl echoed through the chamber. Then another. And another. Kian's stomach twisted as figures began to emerge from the dark corners of the room. They were not human.

Tall, skeletal shapes, their bodies wrapped in ashen cloaks, their hollow eyes burning with faint blue light. Their fingers ended in razor-like claws, and in their chests, faint symbols glowed like dying embers.

Kian swallowed. "What are they?" Solrien's voice was quiet. "The Forgotten." Kian didn't like that name. The creatures began to move. Fast. "Run," Solrien commanded. Kian ran.

The Forgotten pursued. Kian could hear their movements—inhumanly silent, yet swift as death. He leaped over fallen shelves, ducked beneath crumbling pillars, weaving through the labyrinth of the archives.

"There!" Solrien pointed ahead—to a raised platform, where a stone pedestal stood. Upon it, a single book lay open. Not dusty. Not forgotten. Waiting.

Kian sprinted toward it. He reached out—And the chamber trembled. Kian's power erupted.

An invisible force lashed outward, hurling the nearest creature away. The others hesitated—just for a breath—And in that breath, Kian grabbed the book. At once, the air shifted.

And then, like mist under the rising sun—they vanished. Silence. Kian stood there, panting, staring at the book in his hands. The cover was marked with a sigil he didn't recognize, its golden pages humming with unseen power.

Solrien stepped forward. Their gaze darkened. "This," they murmured, "is what the Magi never wanted you to find." Kian opened the book. And the truth of the Godmarked spilled across the pages.