The ground trembled beneath Michael's feet.
He was standing in the garden of the community center, his hands in the soil, when the first tremor hit. It wasn't an earthquake—it was something deeper, something that resonated in his bones. The Shadow Stones in the chamber beneath the center pulsed with a dark light, their glow flickering like a dying flame.
Mira ran out of the building, her face pale. "The stones. They're reacting to something."
Michael wiped the dirt from his hands and followed her inside. The chamber was cold, the air thick with an energy that made his skin crawl. The seven Shadow Stones were glowing, their light pulsing in rhythm with the tremors.
"What's happening?" Michael asked.
Pavel appeared in the entrance, his face ashen. "The First Shadow. It's trying to break
