The night returned, veiled in a heavy fog that crept over the training center like a blanket of secrets. Keith lay in bed, the silence of the boys' hostel only broken by the occasional creak of wooden beams or the shifting of a restless sleeper.
But sleep didn't come easy.
His mind was a swirl of questions: the symbols on the stone wall, the whispers in his head that only he seemed to hear, and the strange sense of familiarity that stirred in his chest. It was as though something was calling to him—not with words, but with a feeling, deep and ancient.
He sat up, glancing at the old wooden clock ticking softly on the wall. It was nearly midnight.
A chill ran down his spine—not from the cold, but from something else. Something nearby.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
The sound came from the window.
Keith froze.
Cautiously, he got up and moved to the window, half expecting to see nothing. But outside, through the fog, a faint silhouette stood motionless under the moonlight. It was small—about the size of a child.
He opened the window slowly, squinting into the haze. "Hello?"
The figure didn't move.
Then, it turned and vanished into the fog.
A loud knock came at the door—Keith jumped. "Keith!" Ethan's voice.
He opened it quickly. Ethan looked pale, his shirt crumpled like he'd rushed from bed. "Did you… feel that?"
Keith nodded. "You mean… the fog?"
"No. The pressure. Like the air got heavy for a second. Like something's here."
Before they could say more, a loud bell rang through the center.
An emergency bell.
Students began to stir, lights flickering on across the hostel. Outside, instructors ran past, some already armored in their hunter gear, weapons at their sides.
A female voice echoed through a crystal orb at the top of the staircase: "All trainees are to stay inside their hostels. Lock your doors. Do not come out."
Keith and Ethan exchanged looks, their hearts racing. "It's happening again," Keith whispered.
"Whatever it is," Ethan said, "it's not normal training stuff."
Outside, beyond the tall walls of the training center, shadows moved through the fog. Instructors from the Demon Hunter Association were already forming a perimeter, blades drawn, some glowing faintly with elemental energy.
Mistress Elira stood at the gate, her long coat flowing behind her, staff glowing faintly. She looked ahead into the fog, then to her left. "Rank Four Awakeners—take the north flank. No one gets through."
A young woman in sleek black armor stepped beside her. "Mistress, do you think it's the same type as before?"
Elira's jaw tightened. "No. It's older."
From the trees came a sound like grinding stone.
Then… laughter.
Not human.
Not even remotely.
Back in the boys' hostel, the lights flickered. Keith sat beside Ethan, staring at the door. Some of the other trainees were panicking. A few joked to hide their fear. But everyone could feel it—that crushing pressure, that wrongness.
Then, Keith's head began to throb.
He clutched his temples, breathing hard. Whispers again, but louder.
"Awaken…"
"Keith!" Ethan shook him. "You okay?"
The pressure eased… and the whispers faded.
Keith blinked. "I heard it again. The voice. It keeps saying the same thing—Awaken."
Ethan stared. "You're sure you're not just—?"
"No," Keith said firmly. "It's real. It's like it's trying to wake something in me… and I don't know what."
Ethan looked worried but didn't push. "We'll figure it out, okay? You're not alone."
Hours later, dawn finally broke, the fog dispersing with the first rays of sunlight. Whatever had tried to enter the training center had vanished without a trace—but several protective barriers had been torn.
Elira stood over the ruins of the south ward, inspecting the clawed markings on the ground. They pulsed with faint demonic energy.
She frowned. "This wasn't an attack. It was… a message."
Elsewhere, in a dark chamber lined with obsidian stone…
A tall figure sat on a twisted throne, face hidden beneath a bone mask. Around him, shadows shifted unnaturally.
"The boy is still unawakened," a voice hissed.
"Good," the masked one replied. "Let the whispers grow. Let his dreams deepen. When he awakens, it will not be under their light."
Back at the training center, Keith stood silently in the courtyard, watching the rising sun. The fog was gone, but the feeling remained.
Something was watching him.
Waiting.