Kael sat on the edge of his bed, the first letter still clutched in his hand. "Start here. Watch closely." The words circled in his mind like a whisper he couldn't quite place.
Hours passed. He scanned the apartment, touching books, gadgets, even the old mirror in the corner. Every object seemed ordinary, yet fragments of images and sounds flickered at the edges of his vision—a street he didn't remember, laughter that wasn't his, a song half-remembered.
He tried writing down everything he could recall, mapping patterns in notebooks he had never touched before. And then it happened.
A small, folded card appeared on his desk. No envelope, no footsteps, no explanation. Just a card, faintly warm to the touch. He opened it carefully.
"The song that echoes in your mind is not yours alone. Follow the shadow of sound."
Kael frowned. His head throbbed. What song? What shadow? He remembered nothing, yet a fragment of melody surfaced—the faint tune of a lullaby, distant, half-forgotten.
He went to the window and stared out. The city slept under the rain, yet somewhere, in a narrow alley or an abandoned park, the faintest hint of the melody lingered. A guide, perhaps, but invisible, almost teasing.
Kael realized that this puzzle was not meant to be solved quickly. It demanded patience, attention, and memory he didn't fully possess. The room itself seemed to pulse as he worked, as if the apartment were aware, urging him to notice the details he had previously ignored.
Time slipped by unnoticed. And yet, every movement, every glance, every sound seemed to whisper: watch closer, remember, connect.
He sank back into his chair, exhausted but alert. Whatever had chosen him had only begun.
Chapter-End Poem
"A card appears where none should be,
A whisper drifts through memory.
The song is faint, the shadow near,
A path unfolds, though none appear.
Each step is watched, each choice is weighed,
The unseen hands have long since played."