The Broken Abyss

The hallways stretched endlessly before him, dim candlelight casting long shadows against the marble walls. Tanver walked, but he had no destination. His mind was numb, and his body felt weightless, as if he were floating through a dream—or a nightmare.

He couldn’t feel anything.

No sadness. No anger. Just an unbearable emptiness swallowing him whole.

"You were never truly ours."

The words rang in his skull like a death knell.

His fingers curled into fists as he tried to grasp onto something real, something that could anchor him. But what was real?

His memories? His childhood in this house? The countless nights spent studying, training, pushing himself beyond his limits just to hear a single word of approval?

None of it mattered.

Because before the age of six, there was… nothing.

A void.

No memories of who he was. No recollection of a different life before House Raye. Only the fragmented recollections of a child desperately trying to belong.

Tanver pressed his fingers against his temples, squeezing his eyes shut.

"Who am I?"

A deep, suffocating dread settled in his chest. He had never questioned it before. Why would he? He was Tanver Raye, son of Lord Varian and Lady Seraphina.

But that had been a lie.

Now, he wasn’t even sure if Tanver was truly his name.

He stopped walking.

A cold breeze swept through the corridor, carrying with it the faint scent of rain.

And then—

“You look like a ghost.”

Tanver’s eyes snapped open.

Alric stood at the end of the corridor, leaning casually against the wall. His presence was suffocating, yet effortless, as if he had always belonged here.

Tanver’s stomach twisted.

The resemblance between them was undeniable. Same height. Similar bone structure. But where Tanver had always felt out of place in this home, Alric fit.

Like the final piece of a puzzle.

Tanver’s nails dug into his palms. “Come to gloat?”

Alric pushed himself off the wall, taking slow steps forward. “Not really. Just wanted to see what my replacement looks like up close.”

Tanver exhaled sharply through his nose. “Well, here I am.” He spread his arms mockingly. “Do I meet expectations?”

Alric’s lips curled in amusement. “You’re less pathetic than I expected.”

Tanver clenched his jaw. The easy arrogance in Alric’s tone was like nails scraping against his skull.

But what infuriated him most wasn’t the words—it was the pity in Alric’s eyes.

Like he was some poor, abandoned dog.

Tanver stepped forward, closing the distance between them. “I may not have your blood,” he said, voice low and sharp, “but I’ve lived this life. I’ve earned it.”

Alric tilted his head slightly, studying him. “Earned?” He chuckled. “Do you really think this life was yours to claim?”

Tanver’s throat tightened.

Alric leaned in slightly, voice softer now. “Let me ask you something.” His golden eyes gleamed in the dim candlelight. “Do you remember anything before you were six?”

Tanver’s body locked up.

His breathing slowed.

He wanted to say yes. He wanted to recall a loving family, a home, a past that had been stolen from him.

But there was nothing.

Just an empty void where his memories should have been.

Alric smirked. “That’s what I thought.”

Tanver’s hand twitched. The urge to hit him, to do something burned through his veins like fire. But he forced himself to stay still.

He wouldn’t give Alric the satisfaction of seeing him break.

Alric sighed dramatically. “Honestly, I should thank you. You played your role well. You kept my place warm, made sure my name wasn’t forgotten. But now?”

He smiled.

“You’re nothing.”

Tanver’s vision blurred.

He wasn’t even sure if it was rage or despair swallowing him whole.

But then he did something he had never done before.

He smiled back.

Alric frowned slightly, caught off guard by the expression.

Tanver tilted his head. “Nothing, huh?” His voice was eerily calm. “Well, I’d rather be nothing than a coward who had to be hidden away for eleven years.”

Alric’s smirk froze.

Tanver took a step closer, his confidence returning as he saw the way Alric’s eyes darkened. “While I was here, carving my place into this house, you were tucked away somewhere, hiding like a fragile little doll.”

Alric’s jaw tensed.

Tanver chuckled. “No wonder they needed me. You were too weak to protect your own home.”

Alric’s fingers twitched.

Tanver saw it. He felt it.

The shift in the air. The way the very space around them seemed to hum with something dangerous.

But he didn’t stop.

He leaned in slightly, lowering his voice to a whisper.

“I bet you’ve never even been in a real fight before.”

Alric’s gaze turned lethal.

And then—

He raised a single hand.

And pointed a finger at Tanver.

The world shattered.

The corridor collapsed.

An invisible force crashed down on Tanver with the weight of a thousand mountains.

The air turned heavy.

The walls cracked.

The stone floor beneath him splintered.

Tanver’s knees buckled, his body forced downward as if the entire planet’s gravity had increased a hundredfold.

His bones screamed.

His vision blurred as dust and debris swirled around him.

A low, crushing sound filled the space—the echo of stone walls breaking under the sheer pressure.

Tanver gritted his teeth, his body trembling violently. He tried to push himself up, but the weight pressing down on him was unbearable. His lungs burned. His heartbeat pounded against his skull like a war drum.

Alric’s voice cut through the destruction, cold and calm.

“Know your place.”

Tanver’s arms collapsed.

His body slammed into the shattered floor, pain exploding through his limbs. Blood dripped from his lips as he gasped for air.

And Alric…

He stood untouched. Unbothered.

Like a king standing over a fallen servant.

Tanver’s hands clenched into fists. His entire body screamed at him to stay down. To surrender.

But he wouldn’t.

Not to him.

With every ounce of strength left in his body, he forced his head up—locking eyes with Alric.

And he smirked.

A slow, bloody smirk.

“You’ll… have to do… better than that.”

Alric’s expression flickered—just for a moment.

And then—

The pressure doubled.

And the entire mansion collapsed.

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