Throne of Shadows

Chapter 3: The Echoes of the Past

The tremor that rattled the room faded as quickly as it came, but the weight of the moment lingered, suffocating the air between them. Serena could feel the pulse of Elias’s hand trembling in hers, his fear wrapping around her like a vice. She turned to Kael, her heart pounding in her chest, her thoughts racing.

"What the hell was that?" She made a strong demand while attempting to control her breathing, panic beginning to seep into her voice. "Is this part of the curse?"

Kael took a moment to respond, his face twitching with worry as his gaze shifted from Serena to Elias. He opened his lips to say something, but the room appeared to get colder and the walls began to mutter something that was not quite audible but was yet... there.

Elias's low, shaky voice pierced the quiet. "I can hear it. They’re... they’re here again."

Serena’s blood ran cold. "Who? Who’s here, Elias?"

"The voices.They're getting louder, Mom," Elias murmured, looking distractedly, as though he were hearing a distant sound. "They're phoning and insisting that I visit them. I can’t stop it." His voice trembled. "I can’t control it."

Kael’s eyes hardened, and his jaw clenched. He stepped closer to Elias, his movements calculated and careful."The awakening is progressing faster than I thought," he whispered, more to himself than anybody. "We're running out of time. The voices—whatever they are—they’re part of the past. Elias has a connection to an old item that has been waiting for him. And once it has begun, it cannot be stopped."

A knot tightened in Serena's stomach. "You mean something related to the past? What’s happening to my son?"

"Your bloodline, Serena," Kael said, his voice low, almost reluctant. "It’s not just any curse. It’s his heritage, passed down from generations of people who were marked by the same force. It’s in his veins, calling to him. And now... now it's awake. It's coming for him."

Elias winced, pressing his palms against his ears. “Mom, I'm unable to stop it. It sounds like they want me to follow them as they get louder. But I'm afraid. I'm not sure what they're asking of me.”

The despair in Serena's son's voice shattered her heart. She extended her arm and cupped his face. "Elias, you’re not alone in this. We’ll figure it out, okay? We’ll stop this together. I promise you."

Elias gave a cautious nod, but Serena could see the fear haunting him like a shadow and the uncertainty in his eyes. She glanced to Kael, who stood in the corner, silent, his face unreadable. Serena was unable to fully comprehend the deep-seated meaning of anything in his gaze. Guilt? Regret? Fear? She couldn’t tell.

"Kael," she said, her voice strained, "What does this curse want? Why is it targeting Elias? Why now?"

Kael hesitated, his eyes flickering with emotion as he looked at Elias. "Because Elias is the one who will end it—or become a part of it. The curse, the voices... they’re a manifestation of an ancient power tied to your bloodline, Serena. They’ve been waiting for the right moment, for Elias to come of age. And now that he has... they’ll do anything to claim him."

Serena’s mind reeled. "Claim him? What does that even mean?"

"It means," Kael began, his voice quiet but firm, "that Elias is the key to unlocking something that’s been hidden for centuries. Something dangerous. If the curse is allowed to fully take hold, Elias could become an instrument of chaos, a force that could destroy everything in its path."

In an attempt to comprehend what he had said, Serena's brain whirled. She wanted to yell and demand answers, but she was unable to do so. Not yet. Elias was the center of her attention, the boy who was getting farther away from her every second.

"Elias," she whispered, "I would like you to resist it. Focus on my voice, okay? Just hear my voice, and block out everything else. We’re going to get through this."

But Elias didn’t respond. His hands were shaking, his eyes were glassy, and he felt as though something more powerful than himself was holding his entire body.

Panic gripped Serena's throat. She couldn't let him go—not in this way, not to an unknown cause. She turned to Kael, her voice trembling. "Kael, what can we do? What can I do?"

Kael stepped forward, his face grim. "We need to find the source. The voices, the curse—they’re tied to something ancient. There’s a place... a temple, hidden away in the mountains. It's said to hold the answers, to explain why this curse exists and how it can be stopped. But it won’t be easy, Serena. The path is dangerous. The curse has left its mark on everything connected to it."

Breathing became difficult for Serena. "A temple? In the mountains?" She turned to Elias, who was still writhing with invisible torment. "We have to go there, don’t we?"

Kael nodded."There's no other way to stop it. However, you can't accomplish it by yourself. You'll require my assistance. I've lived with the curse long enough to know how to withstand it, and I'm the only one who knows the path. Elias would lose himself if we don't go right away and take quick action."

The room was eerily quiet. Serena looked at Elias, her heart torn in two.The thought of doing nothing was worse than the idea of abandoning him to confront whatever was calling to him. Every part of her cried out to stay and keep him safe in their house, even though she knew she had to act.

Elias whimpered softly, and Serena’s resolve hardened. "We’ll go. I will stop at nothing to keep my son safe. However, Kael, if something were to happen to him..."

"I won’t let anything happen to him," Kael said, his voice steady but fierce. "I promise you."

The words felt like a fragile thread between them, but Serena had no choice. The curse was real. Elias was in danger. And Kael—whether she trusted him or not—was the only one who knew the way.

Just as Serena turned to prepare for their journey, the air seemed to thicken again, the whispering voices growing louder, almost unbearable. Elias’s body convulsed, and for a moment, Serena thought she saw something flicker in his eyes—a darkness that wasn’t his own. "Mom..." he gasped, "They’re here... they’re inside me."