Dust fell from the ceiling in thick clouds.
The walls vibrated as El Oscuro rammed the chamber again, his massive silhouette stretching through the hole he'd torn open.
His white flames for eyes glared at them—
not with hunger,
not with triumph,
but with something frighteningly new:
fear.
Daniela wiped blood from her mark as it glowed white-hot across her skin.
Emiliano kept one hand on his own mark—now burning like a furnace.
Ixchel backed away from them slowly.
"You two… you activated something ancient. Something the Dark One never wanted awakened."
El Oscuro roared, the sound shaking stone loose from the ceiling.
"IMPOSIBLE…"
Impossible…
"NO PUEDEN LLEVARLO…"
You cannot carry it…
But his voice cracked—
a trembling edge to it.
Daniela squeezed Emiliano's hand.
"Emi… what's happening to us…?"
Before he could answer, heat surged through his chest.
His veins burned like molten iron.
His heartbeat thundered like a drum inside his skull.
"I—I don't know… but Dani, I feel—"
His sentence cut short as his knees buckled.
"EMI!" she screamed, catching him before he hit the floor.
He clutched his chest, gasping.
He saw the world spiral—
colors bending,
shadows twisting like ribbons of smoke,
voices echoing in his head:
"Despierta…"
Awaken…
"Portador…"
Bearer…
"Del Sombra…"
of Shadow…
Ixchel rushed toward him.
"This is your awakening. The Seal forced your power open too quickly. You need to BREATHE—EMILIANO, FOCUS!"
Emiliano groaned, his skin flickering with black energy.
Daniela held him tightly, voice cracking with fear.
"Emi, listen to me. I'm right here. I'm not leaving. Don't let the shadows take you—DON'T LET THEM IN!"
But it was too late.
The shadows answered.
1. The Shadow-World
Emiliano's vision went black—
but not empty.
He stood in a void made of liquid darkness.
A mirror-like ground rippled beneath his feet.
Above, shadowy clouds swirled like smoke trapped in glass.
Shapes moved within them—
tall, thin figures with long arms and hollow eyes.
But this time…
they did not attack.
They knelt.
All of them.
A thousand shadows bowed before him.
Daniela's faint voice echoed from the real world:
"EMILIANOOOO!"
He tried to respond—
but the shadows rose.
One stepped forward, its face inches from his.
Its voice was hollow, layered, ancient:
"Hijo del Umbral…"
Child of the Threshold…
"Tú… eres nuestro."
You… are ours.
"No," Emiliano whispered. "I'm not yours."
The shadow tilted its head.
"Tú llevas el sello…
La marca doble…
El poder que rompe las cadenas."
You carry the seal…
The twin mark…
The power that breaks chains.
The shadows behind it murmured in unison.
"El Oscuro… te teme."
The Dark One fears you.
Emiliano stepped back.
"Why? What am I?"
The shadow placed a smoky hand over his chest.
"El Portador del Sombra…
El único que puede CONTROLAR la oscuridad…"
The Shadow-Bearer…
The only one who can CONTROL the darkness…
Emiliano's pulse raced.
"You're saying I can control YOU?"
The shadow nodded.
"Si lo aceptas…
vivirás."
If you accept it…
you will live.
"And if I don't?"
All shadows lifted their heads at once—
eyes glowing—
voices whispering:
"Entonces…
morirás."
Then…
you will die.
The darkness surged—
A flood of shadow wrapped around Emiliano—
Pulling him under—
Engulfing him—
Claiming him—
Daniela's scream pierced the void.
"EMI—COME BACK TO ME!"
Her voice broke the shadows like shattered glass.
Light burst through the black world—
blinding—
searing—
real.
The shadow realm dissolved.
Emiliano snapped awake—
gasping—
eyes glowing pure black.
2. The First Manifestation
Daniela caught him as his body convulsed.
"EMI—PLEASE—DON'T LEAVE ME—!"
He opened his eyes fully.
Black.
Dark as midnight.
No whites.
No pupils.
Daniela recoiled.
"Emi…?"
Ixchel stepped back, stunned.
"Oh… Dios… his eyes…"
El Oscuro froze at the chamber's opening.
The Watchers shrieked in fear.
Fear.
The shadows inside the chamber bent toward Emiliano—
like metal to a magnet—
curling around his legs, his arms, his chest.
Daniela trembled.
"Emi… can you hear me?"
His voice came out deeper.
Echoing.
"I hear you."
Daniela dared to take his hand.
"Are you… you?"
"Yes," Emiliano breathed. "But I hear them too."
"Them…?"
He pointed at the shadows crawling along the floor.
"They're speaking. They're listening. They're obeying."
Ixchel whispered:
"He's awakened… he's fully awakened…"
Daniela looked into his black eyes.
"Emi… what did you see?"
He trembled.
"Everything."
Then—
He stood.
Straight.
Calm.
Alive.
The shadows rose with him.
Daniela backed away in shock.
"Emi… your shadow—"
She wasn't exaggerating.
Emiliano's shadow was no longer flat.
It was alive.
Tall.
Standing behind him.
Mirroring him like a creature with its own will.
Ixchel clutched her amulet.
"This is… impossible…"
El Oscuro snarled from across the chamber.
"NO.
NO NO NO—
EL SELLO NO PUEDE ROMPERSE."
The seal cannot be broken.
He charged.
The Watchers followed.
Daniela screamed.
"EMI—!"
But Emiliano didn't move.
He simply lifted his hand—
—and his shadow lifted its arm in perfect symmetry.
A wave of black energy blasted outward.
BOOOOOOM—!
The Watchers were thrown back like rag dolls.
El Oscuro staggered—
forced to take a full step back.
Danielle stared at Emi in absolute shock.
"You—pushed him—Emiliano, YOU PUSHED HIM BACK—HE FELT THAT—!"
El Oscuro's eyes burned brighter with rage.
"NO PUEDE SER…"
It cannot be…
Emiliano's voice deepened with power.
"You're afraid… aren't you?"
Ixchel's jaw dropped.
"El Oscuro fears only one thing… the Shadow-Bearer. The one destined to turn the darkness against him."
Daniela touched Emi's sleeve.
"Emi… what do you feel?"
He swallowed hard.
"Like I'm standing in two worlds at once.
Like I'm me…
and everything dark behind me is also me."
Daniela cupped his cheek.
"Just don't let it take you."
He nodded.
"I won't. I promise."
El Oscuro screeched and slammed his claws into the ground.
Cracks spidered toward them.
Ixchel shouted:
"We HAVE to escape! Emi's awakening is incomplete—if El Oscuro traps us underground he'll CRUSH HIM before the power settles!"
Daniela grabbed Emiliano's hand.
"Emi—please—can you still run?"
He exhaled slowly.
"I think so."
"Then GO!"
Ixchel motioned toward a narrow tunnel above the chamber.
"We climb!"
El Oscuro lunged.
Daniela screamed.
Emiliano's shadow rose—
forming a wall—
blocking the demon's claws for two seconds—
long enough for Ixchel to grab the ledge—
long enough for Daniela to climb—
long enough for Emiliano to pull himself upward—
As El Oscuro roared beneath them—
"NO ESCAPARÁN…"
You WILL NOT escape…
Ixchel pulled them into the next tunnel and slammed a barrier of blue fire behind them.
It flickered.
It wouldn't last.
Emiliano gasped for air.
His eyes flickered—but remained black.
Daniela held his face tenderly.
"Emi… your eyes—"
He looked scared now.
Really scared.
"I don't know how to turn it off."
Daniela shook her head.
"It's okay. You're still you."
Ixchel leaned against the stone wall, panting.
"We need to get above ground. His power is weaker under the open sky. And your powers will stabilize there."
Daniela nodded.
"Where do we go?"
Ixchel looked up the tunnel.
"To the surface level," she said.
"And then…"
Her voice dropped.
"…we head straight to the heart of the ritual. The old bell tower."
Emiliano's shadow twitched.
Daniela squeezed his hand, stepping closer.
"We do it together," she whispered.
Emiliano nodded, steadying his breath.
The three of them began to climb—
toward the surface—
toward the next nightmare—
toward the awakening of a power El Oscuro never intended to face.
The tunnel narrowed as they climbed upward.
Cold drafts brushed their skin, carrying the scent of dust, old stone, and something else—
Smoke.
Ixchel froze.
"Do you smell that?"
Daniela sniffed, then her eyes widened.
"Fire?"
"No," Ixchel whispered, touching the damp wall. "Not fire… candles."
Emiliano blinked.
"Candles? Up here?"
Ixchel's face tightened.
"That means we're close. Some kind of ritual space is above us."
Daniela held Emiliano's hand tightly.
"Be careful, Emi. Your powers aren't stable yet."
"I know," he said softly. "But I'll control them."
His shadow flickered behind him, curling like a living flame.
Ixchel gave him a sharp look.
"Don't make promises you can't keep. Your mark awakened too fast—you could lose yourself if you push too hard."
Emiliano clenched his jaw.
"Then I won't push too hard."
He didn't want to admit it—
but the shadows inside him were already whispering.
Calling.
Tempting.
Humming like a heartbeat buried under his own.
But Dani's hand anchored him.
Her warmth.
Her presence.
Her light.
He focused on that.
One step at a time.
One breath at a time.
Up the tunnel they climbed.
1. The Chamber Above
When they emerged from the darkness, they stumbled into a spacious underground hall.
A circle of lit candles surrounded them—hundreds of them—forming patterns that snaked across the floor like ancient sigils.
Daniela shivered.
"This… looks like a ritual chamber."
"It is," Ixchel confirmed. "One the priests used before sacrifices. They purified the soul here before offering it."
Emiliano frowned.
"Purified? Why would they do anything good before killing them?"
Ixchel stepped around a candle.
"To ensure the spirits didn't come back angry. A 'cleansing,' they called it. Hypocrisy at its finest."
Daniela looked around nervously.
Her breathing hitched.
"Emi…"
He touched her shoulder.
"What is it?"
"I feel something," she whispered. "Something familiar."
The candles began to flicker.
Then—
A chill swept the room.
A cold presence moved behind them.
Ixchel spun.
"BACK—GET BEHIND ME!"
Daniela gasped.
"No… no, no, no…"
A shadow formed among the candles.
A ghostly silhouette.
Long hair.
A school uniform from another time.
Valeria.
Daniela's aunt.
But she didn't appear like the warped, corrupted spirit they'd seen before.
This time… she was glowing faintly.
Soft.
Pale.
Sad.
Daniela froze.
"...Tía?"
Valeria lifted her head.
Her eyes were no longer pits of void.
No longer white flames of corruption.
They were human.
Just human.
Filled with sorrow.
Ixchel lowered her amulet slowly.
"Wait… she's different…"
Valeria reached toward Daniela with trembling hands.
"Mi niña…"
Her voice was faint.
Broken.
Barely there.
Daniela's tears fell instantly.
"Tía… are you… you?"
Valeria nodded weakly.
"El Oscuro… he weakened when the Seal activated… I can think… for a moment…"
Emiliano took a step forward.
"What do you want to tell us?"
Valeria looked at him—sadness in every line of her ghostly face.
"Run."
Daniela gasped.
"Tía—what—?"
"RUN," Valeria repeated. "El Oscuro is coming—he sent the other spirits—he sent ALL OF THEM—!"
Before Daniela could react—
The candles blew out.
All of them.
The hall plunged into darkness.
And a deafening scream echoed from every direction.
"ENCUÉNTRENLOS."
Find them.
Hundreds of ghostly voices answered at once.
The sound of footsteps.
Claws scraping stone.
Whispers crawling like insects.
Daniela screamed, covering her ears.
"THERE'S SO MANY—EMI—EMI THEY'RE COMING—!"
Valeria grabbed Daniela's face with both hands.
Her ghostly touch was cold but gentle.
"RUN. PLEASE. RUN."
Ixchel shouted:
"GO—NOW!"
Emiliano grabbed Daniela's wrist and sprinted toward the far tunnel.
But just as they reached the exit—
A massive shadow slammed down in front of them.
Blocking the path.
A Watcher.
But not one of the three.
This one was larger.
Taller.
Twisted.
Pulsing with unnatural energy.
Its eyes glowed blood-red.
Daniela stumbled backward.
"...Emi… that's a new one…"
Ixchel's face drained of color.
"No… that's not a Watcher…"
She swallowed.
"That's a Reaper."
Emiliano's heart dropped.
"A what?!"
"A Reaper," Ixchel repeated. "A royal servant of El Oscuro. Stronger than the Watchers. Faster. Deadlier. Born from sacrificed spirits."
Daniela's voice cracked.
"Mi tía—did she—?"
Ixchel shook her head sharply.
"No. She wasn't sacrificed. She was taken. Reapers come from souls destroyed by the ritual. Something worse than death."
Emiliano gritted his teeth.
"I'll hold it off. You two run."
Daniela grabbed him desperately.
"Emi, NO—YOU CAN'T!"
He turned to her, eyes still swirling with black energy.
"Yes, I can."
"You're not stable yet—your power could—!"
Emiliano leaned close, forehead touching hers.
"I need to do this."
Daniela's breath trembled.
"But I don't want to lose you."
"You won't," he whispered.
"I promise."
The Reaper growled and lunged.
Emiliano shoved Daniela and Ixchel aside—and stepped forward.
His shadow rose like a living giant behind him.
Darkness spilled from his feet.
His voice echoed with the chorus of a thousand whispers:
"VEN."
Come.
The Reaper screamed.
And charged.
2. The Shadow-Bearer vs. the Reaper
The Reaper swung its blade-like arm—
SWOOOSH—!
Emiliano dodged by instinct—
barely.
The blade sliced open the air where he'd stood.
He raised his hand—
And his shadow struck first.
BOOOM—!
A wave of darkness smashed into the Reaper's chest, launching it backward into a stone pillar.
The pillar exploded on contact.
Daniela gasped.
"EMI—!"
Ixchel grabbed her wrist.
"LET HIM FIGHT—HE HAS TO LEARN!"
The Reaper rose again—
Its chest smoking with black fire.
Its eyes glowing brighter.
It screeched and rushed forward faster than before.
Emiliano braced himself.
"Shadow—NOW!"
His living shadow leapt in front of him—
forming a shield—
CLAAAAANG!
The Reaper's blade hit the shadow-shield with bone-shattering force.
The shield cracked.
Emiliano staggered.
"Damn—!"
He felt the backlash—
the shadow pain—
like ice tearing through his veins.
Daniela screamed.
"EMI—PLEASE STOP—!"
Emiliano gritted his teeth and pushed forward.
His shadow shield re-formed.
The Reaper attacked again—this time from the side.
Then above.
Then behind.
Slashing.
Striking.
Cutting through the air with terrifying speed.
Emiliano's shadow shifted rapidly—
blocking every attack—
barely.
The power drained him with each hit.
Too fast.
He was burning too quickly.
Daniela felt her chest tighten.
"He's going to collapse—
Ixchel—HELP HIM!"
Ixchel shook her head.
"I can't. Only Daniela can."
Daniela's eyes widened.
"Me? How?!"
"Your power is light—purification. You balance Emiliano's darkness. If you don't stabilize him—his own shadow will consume him."
Daniela stared in horror.
"NO—NO, I WON'T LET THAT HAPPEN—!"
She charged toward him.
Ixchel grabbed her.
"WAIT—DON'T GET BETWEEN THEM!"
"But he needs me—!"
"Then use your power—from HERE!"
Daniela thrust her hands forward.
Her mark glowed bright white.
Daniela cried out:
"EMI—LISTEN TO ME—YOU'RE STRONG BUT YOU'RE NOT ALONE—
I'M RIGHT HERE—
I WON'T LET THE SHADOW TAKE YOU!"
A surge of white light shot from her palms—
racing toward Emiliano's back.
It hit him like a breath of warm wind—
Calming.
Centering.
Strengthening.
His shadow steadied—
grew stronger—
and re-formed into a massive blade.
Emiliano gasped.
"What—?"
Daniela screamed through tears:
"IT'S US—EMI—WE DO THIS TOGETHER!"
Emiliano felt her warmth—
her light—
her presence anchoring him.
He raised his hand—
And the shadow-blade swung forward like a guillotine.
SHHHHHRRRRRAAAK—!
The Reaper was sliced clean down the middle.
It shrieked—
a terrible, echoing sound—
and dissolved into smoke.
Silence.
Then—
Daniela ran to him and threw her arms around him.
"EMI—YOU DID IT—YOU DID IT—!"
He held her tightly—
breathing hard—
shaking.
Ixchel approached slowly.
"You two just killed a Reaper…" she whispered.
"That means something HUGE."
Daniela looked up.
"What does it mean?"
Ixchel swallowed.
"It means…
El Oscuro just lost one of his strongest servants."
She glanced at the shadows behind them.
"And he will NOT take that lightly."
Emiliano lifted Daniela to her feet.
"We need to get out of here," he said.
"Agreed," Ixchel nodded. "The surface is just above."
Daniela held Emiliano's hand tightly.
"We're closer to the end. I can feel it."
Ixchel shook her head.
"No.
We're closer to the beginning."
Emiliano tensed.
"What do you mean?"
Ixchel turned toward a large stone staircase leading upward.
Her voice was solemn.
"When night falls…
and the cursed hour strikes…
La Hora Maldita
will truly begin."
They climbed toward the surface—
toward danger,
toward destiny,
toward the moment they would finally face El Oscuro under the open sky.