When Sage opened his eyes again, he found himself in a strange and unsettling place. There was no ceiling above him, no mana lamps casting their pale glow, and the familiar scents of herbs and iron were absent from the air.
Gone were the comforts of a bed, the presence of Cassian or Mina, and even the walls or floor that typically defined his surroundings.
Instead, he was enveloped by an infinite expanse of darkness stretching endlessly in every direction, a void so profound that it felt less like emptiness and more like a complete absence of existence itself.
This wasn't night or shadow; it was something deeper, an ancient blackness that consumed light before it could even be conceived.
For what felt like an eternity, Sage struggled to comprehend his situation. There was nothing to see yet he was acutely aware of his own existence, suspended in a formless state that refused to anchor itself to anything familiar.
