Helteria, the Shattered Continent—a land of jagged peaks and mist-veiled valleys, where ancient rifts bled shadows into the soil. Eldritch University loomed on its eastern cliffs, a beacon (or prison) for the ambitious from across the realm.
The sun dipped low over Balthor City, casting golden rays through the grimy windows of Legacy Brewery & Sweets, the university district's rowdiest haunt. The air hummed with chatter, clinking mugs, and the rich aroma of roasted Helterian dark roast—brewed strong enough to wake the dead, or so the barkeep claimed.
Jade Blackwood slouched at a corner booth, her black hair tied in a messy ponytail that seemed to absorb the light. She nursed a steaming mug of Legacy's signature Shadowbrew, the coffee's bitter edge laced with a hint of illicit void-spice that made shadows dance at the cup's rim. Across from her, Vivian Stormweaver grinned like a cat with cream, swirling her iced water-infused latte—elementalist flair turning the liquid into tiny whirlpools.
"Spill it, Jade," Vivian teased, her emerald eyes sparkling. "That hunter boy from orientation—Roric, with the dragon-scale tattoos and that brooding stare. You gonna make a move before we ship off to Eldritch together?"
Jade snorted, shadows flickering playfully around her fingers as she stirred her coffee. "Please. Guys like him see shadow mages and run screaming. Besides, who'd want a boyfriend who smells like demon guts? Pass the sugar— this brew's darker than my thesis on Void tendrils."
Vivian laughed, tossing a packet over. "Fair. But seriously, Eldritch's gonna be epic. Classes on dragon lore, demon-binding labs, parties with tiefling fire-dancers. We're rooming together, right? No more of Mom's curfews."
"Locked in," Jade said, clinking mugs. "You handle the fire shows, I'll sneak us through the shadows. Helteria's wilds won't know what hit 'em."
They toasted to futures unbound, oblivious to the faint tremor beneath the floorboards—a whisper from the abyss, stirring.