The shadow's realm was quiet.
Ethan had grown accustomed to the silence over the decades—the vast emptiness, the cold darkness, the endless void that stretched in all directions. His consciousness had faded, merging with the shadow, becoming part of the balance. He was no longer a man, but a presence, a guardian, a sentinel.
But something was changing.
He felt it first as a tremor—a faint vibration in the fabric of the shadow's realm, like a stone dropped into still water. Then it grew, spreading outward, rippling through the darkness that bound him to the void.
"What is this?" he asked, his voice echoing in the silence.
The shadow answered, its voice cold and ancient. "The barriers are weakening. The world is calling to you."
Ethan felt a surge of hope. "The world? You mean I can re
