The soft, musical rain that once danced over Lumisgrave's cobblestones begins to shift — almost pause — as if nature itself takes a sharp breath.
The laughter of children fades.
A stillness falls.
Too still.
Then —
BOOM!
A single, violent crack of lightning tears through the sky like a divine blade. It doesn't flash and vanish — it lingers, splitting the clouds like a jagged scar of pure white fire. The tower bell trembles, and birds scatter in terrified spirals.
Within seconds, the sky changes — clouds swell and twist into unnatural shapes, swirling together until the day's light is swallowed completely.
Darkness floods the city.
Not dusk. Not shadow.
But a night-like pitch… in the middle of the day.
The glow of lanterns dies, and the streetlights flicker, as if being choked by some unseen force.
People begin to panic.
Two women near a flower stall clutch each other.
> Woman 1 (frightened): "Why is it so dark? The sun was out a minute ago!"
Woman 2 (shaking): "It's not clouds. This isn't just weather…"
Children cry as their paper boats float away into shadow.
A group of teenagers run toward the main square.
> Teen 1: "Did anyone else feel that pulse in the air?"
Teen 2 (anxiously): "Something just shifted. Like... something old woke up."
In a bakery, the oven flames go out on their own.
> Baker: "Fire can't die from rain! Something's wrong... This isn't normal."
A father lifts his small daughter into his arms as street noise grows louder.
> Daughter (crying): "Daddy, is it night already?"
Father (trying to stay calm): "No, no. We're okay. We're just… we're just having a small blackout, that's all…"
But even he doesn't believe it.
Up in the castle tower, King Farhan watches the unnatural storm unfold, his smile long vanished.
> Advisor (nervously): "Your Majesty… shall we sound the bells?"
King Farhan (quietly, eyes narrowed):
"No… wait. This is not nature.
This is a message."
He turns toward the glowing blue crystals embedded in the floor — and one of them flickers red for the first time in centuries.