Far away from Gerson's awakening—a place untouched by mortals—a silent tower stood in the heart of the Endless Dusk.
The Tower of Eyes.
Here, no sun ever rose. No moon shone. The world was lit only by the pale, sickly glow of ancient stones carved with shifting runes. The air here smelled of ash and old secrets.
And in this tower... a figure stirred.
Its name was forgotten.
Even by itself.
It was the First Witness—the one the LAW had appointed when the first Called touched the Unknown Path.
It opened one of its countless eyes—round, black, soulless orbs that covered its body like tumors. Each eye blinked separately. Each saw a different world, a different time.
But now... they all turned.
All gazed upon the same moment.
"A Chosen... has touched the Forbidden Path," the creature whispered in its mindless tongue, a voice like cracking ice.
"The Unknown stirs once more."
With slow, grinding effort, the Watcher turned its massive bulk toward the central pool of vision—a floating disk of light showing the image of a man alone in a forest.
Gerson.
The human had chosen the Fifth Option.
The one the LAW itself dared not control fully.
This was rare.
Once every thousand Trials, perhaps.
But this time... the outcome smelled of ruin.
Or glory.
The Watcher breathed through its many mouths. Milky smoke escaped its lips, twisting into symbols that floated in the air.
"Prepare the Chains," it muttered.
A shadow moved behind the creature—a Servant of the LAW. Thin. Crooked. Bound in spectral chains that dragged across the black stone floor.
"The Chosen has awakened the Deep Trial. The Sleeping Ones must be warned."
The Servant hissed, nodding, and slithered into the darkness.
Far below the Tower, in the old crypt where the First Called still slumbered, the chains began to stir.
Meanwhile... in the Forest of Trials...
I stumbled through the undergrowth, breathing hard.
My body ached. My skin burned where the LAW's mark shimmered faintly under my clothes.
But I felt something new.
Strength.
Power.
Fear.
All coiled together like serpents in my gut.
Ahead, the forest changed.
The trees grew taller. Their trunks twisted unnaturally. The ground pulsed softly beneath my boots—as if the earth itself was alive and dreaming.
A shape appeared between the trees.
Tall.
Human.
But wrong.
Its face hidden beneath a wooden mask carved with dozens of tiny eyes. Its limbs stretched longer than natural, wrapped in old bandages.
It raised one hand in greeting.
"Gerson... Chosen of the Unknown... you have awakened the Deep LAW," it rasped.
I froze.
"Who... what are you?" I asked, my voice low.
The creature chuckled.
"A Witness. Like all who came before. Bound by the LAW to greet the one who dares touch the Fifth Path."
It stepped closer, feet gliding over the moss.
"You are marked now. Changed. The sky cracked because of you. The Tower of Eyes stirs. The Watcher wakes."
Cold swept over me.
"Why me? Why is this happening?"
The Witness paused, tilting its head.
"Because you chose what no other dared. You chose possibility. The LAW fears it... hungers for it. You are the crack in the design. The flaw in perfection."
I swallowed.
"What happens next?"
The Witness raised its bandaged hand.
"The Deep Trial. The True Test. Only the Unknown may walk this path. But beware, Chosen. Every step you take... awakens something deeper. Older. Hungrier."
It leaned close. I smelled old dust and forgotten time.
"The Chains are stirring. The First Called watches. If you fail... they will rise."
I shook my head.
"What are the Chains? Who are the First Called?"
The creature's many eyes gleamed through the mask.
"Ancients. The first to touch the LAW. Bound forever beneath the Tower. Forgotten by all but the Watcher. If you awaken them fully... this world may break."
I took a step back.
"Then why did the LAW allow this path?"
The Witness laughed softly.
"The LAW does not allow. It obeys its own creation. It must offer the Unknown... even if it fears what you may become."
Silence fell between us.
Then the Witness slowly turned away.
"Your Trial continues, Gerson of the Fifth Path. Seek the Well of Mirrors. There... you will face your first true Test. Choose wisely. Or all shall pay the price."
It faded into the mist.
Leaving me alone.
I stood in the shadowed forest, my thoughts racing.
The Well of Mirrors?
The Tower of Eyes?
The First Called?
What had I awakened?
Above me, far beyond sight, something vast shifted behind the sky—its endless eyes watching.
I shivered.
And stepped forward, toward my fate.