Prince Lukius of Onixath had once been the kingdom’s hidden jewel—gentle, loyal, yet unloved by those who should have cherished him. To his people, he was dutiful. To his blood, he was a curse. Cast out and stripped of all he knew, he wandered with only the weight of exile pressing on his shoulders.

His path drew him into a cavern where mana crystals bled violet and blue light into the dark. Their glow shimmered against wet stone, reflections bending into strange, haunting shapes. The air pulsed faintly with power, thick enough to raise the hairs on his skin. Drawn deeper, Lukius’s lantern flame fought against the shadows until a sound was heard. A shift of stone. The cavern no longer felt empty.

He lifted the lantern, light spilling into the dark—revealing a figure.

It was humanoid, yet more. Towering above Lukius, its form carried the weight of something born to rule shadows. Horns arched elegantly from its head, their sheen like polished obsidian. Claws, long and precise, glimmered faintly as they flexed, catching the glow of the crystals. A long tail moved with a measured flick, the motion as controlled and deliberate as a king’s gesture. Though even cloaked in shadow…there was a poise to it.

This was a beast.

Yet Lukius did not retreat. His breath stilled, his voice steady, though his eyes betrayed both caution and awe as he spoke his next words.

“Who’s there? Show yourself fully, and speak, if you can.”