The moon hung like a pale sentinel over the jagged cliffs as Kael's party descended into the Wound—a gaping canyon cleaved into the earth by an ancient war none dared name. At its heart lay the Tomb of Chains, sealed beneath layers of time, blood, and forgotten oaths.
Each step into the canyon chilled the marrow.
A low hum echoed beneath their feet—power sleeping... or waiting.
"We shouldn't be here," Vael signed urgently, his fingers a blur. "The seals are whispering. Screaming."
Kael's voice was steady. "Then we listen to what they fear."
---
At the Gate
The Tomb's entrance rose from the rock like a monument to despair. Twin obelisks jutted skyward, etched with runes that flickered between gold and shadow. Between them was a door of obsidian, smooth as still water—yet pulsing with restrained malice.
Sera placed her palm on the surface. It rejected her instantly, blasting her backward with a burst of dark heat.
"Only one with his blood can pass," she whispered, staring at Kael.
Kael stepped forward, drawing a blade across his palm. As his blood touched the door, the stone rippled, liquefying into a pool of black.
The tomb opened.
---
Inside the Abyss
Darkness swallowed them.
This was no mortal place. The walls breathed. The air sang with a chorus of chained souls, their sorrow warping the very space. Chains hung like vines, alive and writhing, reaching for anything warm.
Kael led, his shadow coiling protectively around his allies.
They passed mural after mural—depictions of a war before time. The gods shackling titanic beings of shadow and flame. One figure appeared in every carving: a warrior cloaked in living void, wielding a jagged blade wreathed in dominion.
Kael stopped. "That's him. The man from my dream."
Aeron narrowed his eyes. "Then this tomb isn't just a prison. It's a graveyard for the Abyss's champions."
---
The Chained Throne
They reached the heart of the tomb: a vast chamber lit by floating shards of light and darkness. At the center sat a throne of stone and bone—and in it, a figure.
He was tall, regal, bound by hundreds of shimmering chains. His eyes glowed silver, locked in eternal fury.
The voice that filled the room was not his mouth's.
"You have come, blood of the Fallen King."
Kael froze. "Who... are you?"
"I am what you will become, should you continue down this path. The gods feared me. So they broke me. But even shattered, I remained."
The chains tightened with a groan.
"You are my heir, Kael. The last sovereign of the Abyss."
---
End of Chapter 33