Armania

Chapter three: the Blood secret

Salim opened his eyes slowly. There was no light, no color—only darkness. A heavy darkness that pressed against his chest like a stone. He tried to breathe, but every breath came ragged and heavy, as if even the air refused to enter his lungs.

His hand reached out, searching, and brushed against something cold… and slimy. For a heartbeat he thought it was wet stone, but then it moved beneath his fingers like living flesh. He recoiled instantly, his heart pounding, stepping back—only to find no ground beneath his feet.

"Lyrin?! Where are you?!" he cried, his voice breaking.

No answer came. Only the echo of his own voice fading into endless depth.

Then, out of the void, a massive face emerged. It had no clear features, only two blazing red eyes. Eyes that did not merely look at him—they pierced into his very being.

Terror shook his body. His mind screamed: This isn’t real… it must be an illusion.

But the voice that followed left no room for denial. It was deep, resonant, as if it came from both the earth and the heavens at once:

"Eyadno… you have returned at last."

Salim’s eyes widened, his blood turned to ice. That name again!

"Who’s Eyadno?! I’m not him! My name is Salim!"

The figure loomed closer, the fiery eyes filling his vision. Darkness itself laughed, a sound that rattled the void.

"Salim… that is your disguise. The name you chose to forget. But your blood… your blood remembers the truth."

Suddenly, something cold gripped the back of his neck. An invisible hand tightened, dragging him backward. Salim struggled, but his body felt heavy as iron.

Amid the chaos came another voice—one he knew too well. His mother’s.

"Do not run from your destiny… your secret lies in the blood."

Tears streamed down his face.

"Mother…? No! This isn’t you. It has to be a lie!"

The darkness pressed closer, suffocating everything. The deep voice spoke again:

"Ordinary men cannot enter Armania. Ordinary men do not bear the Shifter’s mark. You, Eyadno… you are the other face of this world."

Salim screamed from the depths of his soul:

"I am not Eyadno! I am not him!"

Just as the shadows closed in, a flash of blue light split the void. An arrow of pure energy struck the cold hand at his neck, shattering its grip. He fell to the ground, gasping for air.

From the darkness stepped Lyrin, her emerald eyes glowing, her bow blazing with light.

"Salim! Stand! Don’t believe the entity—it’s trying to break you before you discover who you are!"

The dark presence laughed again.

"Too late, Lyrin. The seed is planted… he will know his name soon enough."

Shadows stretched into long arms, reaching for them both. Lyrin unleashed arrow after arrow, each glowing brightly before vanishing into the endless dark.

Salim crawled, struggling to rise, but the weight of the void pressed him down. The ground itself felt like it was melting beneath him.

Lyrin shouted sharply:

"Remember the first lesson! Here, fear is gravity. The more you fear, the deeper you sink. Face it—and you will be free!"

He shut his eyes, his heart racing, sweat dripping down his face. I’m afraid… afraid to die… afraid to be Eyadno…

But then he remembered his own words in the forest: “I will stand, even if I’m afraid.”

His eyes snapped open. He raised his right hand where the mark blazed. This time, the light flared brighter than ever.

"I am Salim!" he roared.

The light exploded outward, blasting the shadowy arms away. The red eyes vanished, the darkness receding like a broken wave.

Salim collapsed, panting. Lyrin stood guard before him, bow still glowing.

But then, a whisper returned—softer this time, as if it came from within his own chest:

"Eyadno… your secret lies in your blood. Your blood is the key."

His breath caught. He clutched his chest as though his heart might burst. Turning to Lyrin, he stammered:

"Why are they calling me that name? Why do they speak of my blood?"

Lyrin hesitated, her voice heavy with unease.

"There are ancient legends of Eyadno… a man from the human world, bearing the Shifter’s mark, with the power to rewrite Armania’s laws. If you are him… then the fate of this world rests on you."

Salim trembled, whispering:

"But… I don’t want to change a world. I couldn’t even change my own."

She placed a steady hand on his shoulder.

"Whether you want it or not, Armania has chosen you. The question is—will you face your destiny, or run from it?"

The ground rumbled violently. The rune circle from before reappeared, no longer dormant. The symbols shifted, glowing with streams of blood. They twisted into words that hovered in the air:

"Eyadno… your secret will be revealed in the City of Mirrors."

Lyrin gasped.

"Elnor…! It cannot be."

Salim lifted his head in fear.

"What does it mean? What will happen there?"

Before she could answer, a massive blood-soaked hand erupted from the circle, seizing his leg with crushing force.

"Lyrin!" Salim screamed as the hand dragged him down into the red light.

The entity’s voice echoed, thundering across the void:

"Eyadno… you cannot escape your blood."

Then the world vanished.