Ethan’s eyes snapped open.


    Cold stone beneath him.


    An air so heavy, it felt like he was sinking into the abyss.


    A silence that wasn’t empty—but filled with something watching.


    He sat up too fast, his heart hammering.


    This wasn’t Portland.


    This wasn’t his room.


    This was somewhere else.


    Somewhere wrong.


    And he wasn’t alone.


    A slow, deliberate clap echoed through the darkness.


    Then—a voice.


    Smooth. Amused. Unmistakable.


    <blockquote>


    "Finally awake, little predator?"


    </blockquote>


    Ethan’s stomach twisted.


    Because he knew who it was.


    The Master had taken him.


    A figure stepped forward from the shadows.


    Tall, impossibly so.


    Draped in a long, flowing black coat.


    A face that wasn’t quite human—but close enough to be unsettling.


    Eyes like swirling voids, shifting between endless patterns.


    A smile curved his lips.


    "Welcome," the Master said, spreading his arms.


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    "To my domain."


    Ethan forced himself to breathe.


    No chains.


    No physical restraints.


    Yet, his body felt heavy—as if unseen forces bound him in place.


    <blockquote>


    Where the hell am I?


    </blockquote>


    He didn’t speak those words aloud.


    Not yet.


    The Master was waiting. Studying him.


    Like a predator amused by its prey.


    And Ethan refused to be prey.


    Ethan forced himself to stand.


    His knees felt weak, but he didn’t show it.


    "Where are we?" he asked, his voice steady.


    The Master’s smile widened.


    "A place outside of places."


    He stepped closer—**too close—**but Ethan refused to flinch.


    "A realm that exists between the waking and the forgotten," the Master mused. "A space not bound by the System’s rules."


    Ethan’s breath slowed.


    Outside the System?


    Beyond the laws of magic and physics?


    A place where reality could be shaped by the one in control?


    His fingers twitched toward his daggers.


    The Master laughed.


    "You won’t need those."


    Ethan gritted his teeth.


    "Why am I here?"


    The Master’s gaze darkened—just slightly.


    "Because it’s time for you to learn, little predator."


    He tilted his head.


    "Tell me, do you truly understand what you’ve become?"


    Ethan’s stomach clenched.


    Because the answer was no.


    The Master took another step forward, circling Ethan.


    "You sealed the Forgotten One."


    His voice was low, measured.


    "But in doing so, you bound yourself to something far greater than you realize."


    Ethan clenched his fists.


    <blockquote>


    I already know that.


    </blockquote>


    The Master smirked.


    "Ah. But you don’t know what it means."


    He stopped directly in front of Ethan, his presence suffocating.


    "You are not just an adventurer anymore."


    His voice lowered—almost a whisper.


    "You are something more."


    Ethan’s mark burned.


    And then—


    A wave of knowledge crashed into him.


    Visions.


    Memories that weren’t his.


    The first Warden—the one who sealed the entity before.


    A war fought in secret, outside of time.


    A cycle—one that had repeated over and over.


    His breath caught.


    "You’re lying."


    The Master chuckled.


    "Am I?"


    The Master stepped back, spreading his arms.


    "Let’s find out, shall we?"


    Dark energy swirled around him.


    And then—


    Ethan’s vision shattered.