Days passed slowly, as though time itself had forgotten how to move quickly. Inside the silent church, Kael went through the same routine: pray, work, eat, sleep. But deep within him, there was something he could never explain.
One night, after closing the church doors securely, Kael walked to the altar. Not to pray. Not to ask for anything. But because tonight, he felt something different.
As his fingers touched the cold stone of the altar, Kael felt a strange sensation flow through his body. Like something that shouldn't be there, something that should not exist. In an instant, his fingers rose on their own, and without realizing it, Kael carved a symbol into the centuries-old altar.
The Mark.
A symbol appeared clearly, burned into the surface of the stone, glowing in the darkness. Kael quickly withdrew his hand, but it was too late. The mark had been perfectly etched.
> "You know what you've just done, don't you?"
The voice came again, closer this time. Kael turned, but no one was in the dark room. The voice felt more real, more present within him.
> "That was the beginning of everything."
Kael stood frozen, his eyes fixed on the symbol carved into the altar. The mark seemed to come alive, moving slowly, as though breathing. As though it was waiting for something. Something Kael could not comprehend.
---
The next day, as Kael walked into the church, he found Father Eluon waiting before the altar. His face was tense, yet his eyes were hollow, as though unwilling to speak of something important.
"Kael," Father Eluon said with a heavy voice. "What did you do last night?"
Kael was silent. He didn't know how to explain what had happened. Did he even understand what he had just done?
"What do you mean?" Kael replied softly, trying to mask his confusion.
Father Eluon stared at him for a long moment. "You know what this is, don't you?" He pointed to the symbol carved into the altar.
Kael stared at the mark, as if seeing it clearly for the first time. "I… don't know."
Father Eluon sighed deeply. "This mark… is something only those destined will carry. A mark that will change everything."
---
Elsewhere, far beneath the city, an old door hidden in the underground chambers began to tremble. Something that had long been locked in darkness began to stir.