The subway lights flickered once.
Then again.
Then the entire underground station fell into darkness.
A low sound echoed from somewhere deep below.
Not metal.
Not machinery.
Breathing.
Heavy.
Slow.
Ancient.
Arjun stood motionless at the top of the cracked stairs, his red eyes narrowing as the darkness below seemed to move.
Beside the broken ticket gate, the golden-eyed stranger remained calm, as if none of this surprised him.
Arjun stared at him.
"You were expecting that?"
The man glanced toward the darkness.
"Not tonight."
The station shook.
Dust fell from the ceiling.
A deep growl rolled upward through the empty tunnels.
Arjun's shadows instantly stirred around his feet.
"You still haven't answered my question."
The man gave a faint smile.
"And you still haven't decided whether to attack me."
Arjun said nothing.
Because the stranger was right.
Every instinct inside him was telling him the man was dangerous.
Not like the Watcher.
Different.
Controlled.
Like someone who understood power instead of simply possessing it.
The man slowly removed his hood.
His face looked young, maybe late twenties, but his eyes told a different story.
Ancient.
Sharp.
Predatory.
Silver-black hair fell loosely around his face, and a thin scar crossed his left eyebrow.
"My name is Kael."
Arjun didn't lower his guard.
"That explains nothing."
Kael nodded.
"Fair."
He looked directly at Arjun's hand.
"You carry the Shadow King's mark."
Arjun's expression hardened.
"You keep saying that."
"Because it should be impossible."
The underground shook again.
This time harder.
The old rails screamed beneath them.
Kael glanced downward.
"We should move."
Arjun didn't.
"Not until you explain."
Kael studied him for a moment.
Then sighed.
"You died tonight."
Arjun's eyes narrowed.
"How do you know that?"
Kael's golden eyes flickered.
"Because no one receives that mark without dying first."
Silence.
Cold air moved through the tunnel.
Arjun felt his heartbeat slow.
That sentence struck deeper than he expected.
Because part of him already knew.
Already felt it.
The old Arjun had died in that rain.
Whatever stood here now—
was something else.
Kael continued.
"There are gates hidden all over the world."
He pointed toward the darkness below.
"Most people never see them. Their minds reject what doesn't belong in their reality."
Arjun remembered the city above.
Normal people walking.
Laughing.
Completely unaware.
"So the world has monsters living under it?"
Kael shook his head.
"No."
His expression darkened.
"The world is built on top of them."
Before Arjun could respond—
A violent crash exploded below.
BOOOOM
The floor beneath them trembled.
The tunnel lights flashed red.
Then a system warning appeared in front of Arjun.
DING
[Emergency Event Triggered]
[Rift Breach Detected]
Threat Level: High
Kael cursed under his breath.
"That's bad."
Arjun looked at him.
"You knew this would happen."
Kael gave a dry laugh.
"I suspected."
Another roar shook the station.
Then came the sound of metal tearing.
Arjun stared into the darkness.
Something was climbing upward.
Slowly.
Kael stepped beside him.
"If we don't stop it now, everyone above this station dies."
Arjun glanced toward him.
"And why should I trust you?"
Kael met his eyes.
"You shouldn't."
Then he drew a thin black blade from beneath his coat.
"But right now we have the same problem."
A long claw emerged from the darkness below.
Then another.
Then a massive figure pulled itself onto the lower platform.
Arjun's breath slowed.
The creature looked vaguely human—
if humans had six limbs.
Its body was stretched unnaturally thin.
Black skin wrapped tightly over sharp bones.
Its mouth split open from ear to ear.
Rows of pale teeth glistened in the dark.
And its empty eye sockets leaked shadow smoke.
Kael's voice dropped.
"Rift Stalker."
Arjun smiled faintly.
"Ugly."
The creature's head snapped toward him.
Then it screamed.
The sound shattered every remaining light in the station.
Glass rained around them.
And the monster charged.
The First Alliance
The Rift Stalker moved faster than anything Arjun expected.
One second it was below.
The next—
it was in front of him.
Its claw tore toward his throat.
Arjun vanished instantly.
[Shadow Step]
WHOOSH
He reappeared behind it and swung his shadow blade.
The creature twisted unnaturally.
Too fast.
His blade sliced only air.
Kael moved at the same time.
His black sword flashed.
CLANG
Steel met claw.
Sparks burst across the tunnel.
Kael slid backward.
"…Faster than normal," he muttered.
Arjun frowned.
"You say that like there's a normal version."
The creature shrieked again and slammed all six limbs into the ground.
Dark tendrils burst across the floor like roots.
Arjun jumped back.
Kael rolled sideways.
The concrete exploded where they had stood.
Arjun landed lightly and looked at Kael.
"You fight these often?"
Kael's expression stayed cold.
"Enough to know that joking during battle usually means you're nervous."
Arjun smirked.
"Maybe."
The monster lunged again.
This time toward Kael.
Kael blocked the first claw—
but the second struck his side.
BAM
He crashed into a pillar hard enough to crack it.
Arjun's eyes sharpened.
Without thinking, he raised his marked hand.
Dark chains erupted upward.
[Shadow Bind]
The chains wrapped around two of the creature's limbs.
The Rift Stalker screamed and thrashed violently.
Kael looked up in surprise.
"You can bind a Rift creature already?"
Arjun stared at his own hand.
"So can I."
The chains began cracking.
The creature was stronger than his bind.
Arjun gritted his teeth.
"Not for long."
Kael pushed off the pillar.
"Then don't hold back."
Arjun glanced at him.
"Funny. I was about to say the same."
The creature broke one chain.
Then another.
But in that single opening—
Kael moved.
He appeared above the creature in a blur.
His black blade glowed silver.
Then came down.
SLASH
One of the creature's arms hit the floor.
Black blood sprayed the wall.
The monster screamed.
Arjun stepped forward.
His shadow blade formed longer than before.
Darker.
Sharper.
He aimed for its chest.
The creature turned—
Too slow.
STAB
The shadow blade sank deep into its body.
The Rift Stalker convulsed violently.
Then its empty sockets turned toward Arjun.
And it smiled.
Arjun's eyes widened.
"What—"
The creature grabbed his wrist.
Hard.
Too hard.
Then a wave of darkness exploded from its body.
The Whisper
Arjun suddenly couldn't see.
Couldn't breathe.
Couldn't move.
Darkness swallowed everything.
And inside that darkness—
A voice whispered.
"Found you."
Arjun's heartbeat stopped.
That same voice.
The same feeling from the memory.
The same presence.
Watching him.
Waiting.
Ancient.
Hungry.
Arjun tried to pull away—
but the darkness tightened.
Then another voice cut through it.
Kael's.
"Arjun!"
A sharp pain hit his shoulder.
The darkness shattered.
Arjun stumbled backward into the station again.
Kael stood in front of him.
Sword raised.
The creature collapsed to the floor.
Dead.
Its body dissolving into smoke.
Silence returned.
Arjun stared at the empty air.
Breathing hard.
Kael turned to him.
"What happened?"
Arjun looked at him.
For the first time—
his voice carried real uncertainty.
"…Something spoke to me."
Kael's expression changed instantly.
"What did it say?"
Arjun hesitated.
Then answered.
"Found you."
Kael went completely still.
The station suddenly felt colder.
Arjun noticed it immediately.
"You know what that means."
Kael looked toward the darkness of the tunnel.
Then back at him.
And for the first time since meeting him—
Kael looked worried.
Not cautious.
Not curious.
Worried.
"That means," Kael said quietly,
"you don't have much time left."
Arjun's eyes narrowed.
"Before what?"
Kael stared into the darkness.
Then answered with one sentence that made the entire night feel heavier.
"Before the thing that owned the first Shadow King comes for you."
The station lights suddenly came back on.
But somehow—
the world felt darker than before.
🔥 [End of Chapter 10]