Liam crouched at the base of a half-buried ruin in the Zagros Mountains, his gloved fingers brushing away layers of dust and dried moss. The scent of earth and old stone was thick in the air. He hadn't eaten in twelve hours. Sleep hadn't come in nearly two days. But something beneath the ground tugged at him—not metaphorically, but literally.
A vibration. A low hum.
The local guides had left after the second night, spooked by the book's markings and the sudden disappearance of Liam's drone. That was fine. He preferred to be alone when the impossible began to make sense.
He opened the tome again, now resting on a stone tablet. New pages had appeared—pages he swore weren't there a week ago. They described a chamber beneath "The Cradle of Avarin," a place only accessible when the sun struck the lion's eye.
He waited for the light.
And when it came, a golden beam pierced the ruins and struck a shallow indentation in the cliff. There was a groan of ancient stone shifting. Dust poured from cracks like spilled flour.
A door opened.
Liam descended slowly, phone light in hand. The air inside was cold and dry. Inscriptions covered the walls—some Kael's, others unfamiliar. Then he saw it:
A sarcophagus. Not ornate, not royal. Humble. But on the lid was the same sun-pierced-by-arrows symbol. And beneath it, a single sentence:
To be forgotten is not to die. To sleep is not to surrender.
The hum grew louder. A second presence stirred—not supernatural, but ancient. A machine? A defense mechanism? A recording?
Liam touched the lid.
A flash. Visions. Sand and blood. A valley in flames. A child held up toward the stars. Kael's voice, not written, but spoken.
"The kingdom will rise again. But not by war."
And then, silence.
Liam staggered back. The lid remained sealed, but the symbols on the walls had begun to shift.
A map. A countdown. And a final glyph that glowed with soft gold:
Find the Heir.
Liam looked at his trembling hands. His blood—it shimmered faintly where it had brushed the stone.
Whatever had been sleeping... was waking.