Caleb's footsteps echoed through the narrow corridor as he followed Jarek deeper into the underground. The streetlights and sky above had vanished, replaced by flickering bulbs and damp concrete. The air was colder here—still, heavy, almost watching.
He hadn't said much since taking the book. It now sat in the side pocket of his jacket, humming softly, like it was alive. He hadn't dared open it yet. Something told him it would open him back—and not just in a metaphorical way.
"Where are we going?" Caleb finally asked, his voice bouncing off the tunnel walls.
Jarek didn't look back. "Somewhere safe. For now."
Caleb rolled his eyes, but kept following. "You know, this whole cryptic mentor thing would be a lot more helpful if you actually explained something."
Jarek stopped without warning. Caleb nearly bumped into him.
"You want answers?" Jarek said, turning slowly. "Fine. But the truth has a cost."
Caleb crossed his arms. "Try me."
Jarek's gaze locked with his. "You've felt it, haven't you? The energy inside you—wild, unpredictable, but not new. That medallion you carry wasn't made for decoration. It's a conduit. A key."
"A key to what?"
Jarek turned and resumed walking. "To the Aether."
Caleb blinked. "Okay. You keep saying that word. The Aether. What is it?"
Jarek led him into a wide chamber—walls of rusted steel, ancient machines sleeping in shadows, and glowing glyphs etched into the floor like veins of starlight. A forgotten nexus, buried beneath the city.
"The Aether is the breath between magic and matter. The space between moments. It's the current that connects life, time, and power. Once, it flowed through this world freely. Now, it sleeps—or tries to."
Caleb stepped forward, drawn toward the glowing symbols. They pulsed faintly as he neared. "And I'm supposed to do what, exactly? Wake it up?"
"You already have," Jarek said.
The words hit like thunder.
"What?" Caleb looked at his hands, then at the medallion. "No. That's not possible."
"The moment you touched the book, you reconnected with something ancient. It responded to you. That's why I found you."
Caleb shook his head. "I didn't ask for this."
"No one ever does."
Jarek stepped up beside him, placing a hand on a console that flickered to life with soft, violet light. "But something darker is rising, Caleb. And it will come for you—whether you believe in it or not."
As if summoned by his words, the chamber trembled. A deep, guttural hum rumbled from the far tunnel. Lights sparked, and somewhere in the distance, something screamed. Not a human sound—something raw and hungry.
Caleb's instincts screamed at him to run. "What the hell was that?"
"They found us faster than I expected," Jarek muttered. "Time's up."
The metal doors slammed shut behind them with a violent hiss. From the far shadows, a ripple of darkness slithered across the wall—like living smoke, tendrils licking the edges of light.
Jarek stepped in front of Caleb, his cloak unraveling into strips of living shadow. "Stay behind me."
But Caleb's hands were already sparking.
Crackling blue threads of light danced across his fingertips—wild, barely controllable, but real.
He didn't know what he was doing. He didn't know how he was doing it. But deep inside, something had finally clicked.
The Aether wasn't just waking. It was responding.
And he was no longer the same person who had entered that alley.