Lior's boots crunched over jagged rocks as they raced toward the source of the light. Each pulse of the glowing phenomenon made their chest tighten with a mixture of fear and exhilaration. The city behind them had disappeared in shadow, leaving only the cliff, the night sky, and the cosmic glow ahead.
When they reached the edge, the light coalesced into a floating shape—an orb of energy, swirling with blue and violet strands, humming like it had a heartbeat. Lior froze. Their instincts screamed to step back, yet curiosity rooted them in place.
"You… can see me," a voice whispered—not in the air, but inside Lior's mind.
Lior's hand shot to the daggers at their belt. "Who—what are you?" they demanded, voice shaking.
The orb shimmered, stretching like liquid starlight. "I am a guide… or a warning. The boundaries between worlds are weakening, and only one like you can walk between the shadows."
"Walk between… shadows?" Lior repeated, trying to make sense of the words. Their mind raced, memories of ordinary life clashing with the impossible scene before them.
"Yes," the voice said. "There are paths hidden to most eyes. Choices that ripple across the stars. If you refuse, the darkness will spread. If you accept… you will gain power beyond your knowing."
Lior's fingers tightened around the hilt of their dagger. Fear prickled their spine, but a spark of something else—excitement—flared. This was what they had always felt, deep down: a pull toward something bigger, something dangerous.
And as the first shimmer of dawn brushed the cliff edge, Lior made a choice.
"I'll do it," they said.
The orb pulsed once, then shot upward, leaving a glowing trail across the sky. Lior felt a tug at their chest, a pull they couldn't resist. Heart hammering, they stepped forward—and everything changed.