The corridor echoed with silence as Kael emerged from the chamber. The last traces of divine fire faded from his pupils, replaced by a cold, smoldering clarity. He could still feel the memory of the sigils — like they had been etched onto the walls of his soul, pulsing faintly with each heartbeat.
He was not the same boy who had stepped into that chamber.
The Binding Contract was sealed.
A tattoo-like thread of silver ran across his right arm now, coiling from wrist to shoulder, its edges glinting with residual energy. It wasn't merely ink or curse — it was law. Divine law, anchored to his very existence.
[SYSTEM RECOGNIZED: CONTRACTOR BOUND]
Name: Kael Evernight
Affiliation: Independent Initiate
Status: Awakened (Tier 0)
System Functionality: Unlocked – Partial Access Granted
Kael's breath hitched. A translucent interface shimmered in the air before vanishing as fast as it came. No one else seemed to notice.
The old librarian was gone — or perhaps never real. In his place, standing near the exit of the chamber, was a woman cloaked in threads of ethereal blue, her eyes like twin galaxies.
"You have survived the Weave of Oaths," she said, her voice barely louder than a whisper, yet it carried across the corridor like thunder. "Few endure it. Fewer walk away unchanged."
Kael bowed his head, still unsure what to say. Power coursed through his veins, but it was foreign, brittle — like handling a blade without knowing its edge.
"You were chosen, not because you are special, but because you were empty enough to carry the weight."
Her words pierced deeper than they should have.
The woman gestured, and the sigil-marked gate opened. "The Threads will test you now. You must walk the Path of Trials. Find your Fragment. Only then will the System acknowledge you fully."
Before he could speak, she vanished — threads dissolving into the air like mist.
Kael stepped into the twilight-lit coliseum that stood beyond the gate. The sky was stitched with strange clouds, and the arena floor shimmered with fractured mirrors — each reflecting a version of him he didn't recognize: coward, tyrant, savior, monster.
[SYSTEM WARNING: PATH OF TRIALS – INITIATED]
Survive your Reflections. Overcome the Threaded Illusions. Locate your Soul Fragment.
His hand trembled.
From the opposite end of the arena, one of the reflections stepped forward — a twisted version of himself, face half-burnt, eyes glowing with spite. It grinned.
"You abandoned us," the reflection hissed. "You let her die."
Kael's fists clenched. The image of that day — the scream, the fire, the blood — came crashing back.
"No more running," he whispered.
Threads of silver coiled up his arm, pulsing with energy.
The reflection charged.
Kael met it head-on.