"There is nothing in this world without a price… even wishes… demand that you pay for them."
In the heart of the vast desert that stretched endlessly beyond the horizon, a lone young man stood bearing the weight of destiny upon his shoulders. His long black hair fell over his shoulders, and his eyes watched the horizon steadily while the wind wrapped his dark cloak around his body.
His left hand was tightly wrapped in a strip of cloth, and mysterious markings extended along both of his arms, carved into his skin and glowing faintly whenever the cold wind brushed against them. In his other hand, he held a compass pointing toward an unknown place.
As he journeyed onward, he passed through a land encircled by somber flames that refused to die despite the raging winds. He gazed at the black fire devouring the earth without mercy, contemplating the supernatural powers and trials that awaited him.
The young man understood that his journey would not be easy, and that his path was fraught with peril. Yet he did not turn back.
"Basil"... the name that would change the course of history, walking steadfastly toward his destiny...
After many long days of arduous travel beneath the scorching desert sun, Basil began to stagger across the sands, no longer able to endure the torment of thirst and exhaustion. He collapsed to his knees, his hands sinking into the burning sand as ragged breaths escaped his lips.
His parched lips trembled.
"I have nothing left to eat... I do not know the way back... nor do I know how many days have passed since I became lost in this desert."
He raised his head toward the clear sky, anger mingling with pain in his eyes, and shouted, "Damn you, Shepherd! After saving me, you leave me to face death once again... Ah... I can endure no more!"
He lay upon the ground, the marks of fatigue evident across his body.
Silence lingered for a moment...
Then he felt a faint tremor beneath the sand, followed by a deep sound.
He turned toward its source and narrowed his eyes through the rising dust, spotting what appeared to be a structure in the distance. With great difficulty, he forced his exhausted body upright and staggered toward it.
Looking down at the compass that had guided him throughout his journey, he saw its needle swaying wildly in a manner unlike anything before.
"It is pointing toward it!"
The closer he drew, the clearer the structure became, until a colossal edifice stood before him, alone amidst the endless sands. He halted a short distance away and said in a weary voice,
"At last... after standing on the brink of collapse, it seems I have arrived."
Yet the moment he advanced a few more steps, he saw the compass needle spinning madly in every direction, refusing to settle.
His expression tightened.
"What is happening? Why will it not stabilize? Have we arrived... or have I entered a domain where directions hold no meaning?"
He approached the temple, and near the entrance gate he noticed bones scattered across the pillars and stained with blood, silent witnesses to the terror that had swept through this place.
He swallowed hard.
"This looks terrifying... Were they like me... seeking what I seek?"
With caution, he approached the enormous gate, and as he drew near he began to notice its unique details. Intricate carvings covered its surface, and at its center was the image of a great hand marked with a precise symbol intersecting a tilted square, within which rested a wide eye that seemed to watch all who approached.
He stood before the gate as dread crept into his heart and muttered,
"How am I supposed to open this gate now?"
His gaze remained fixed upon the symbol for several moments when a strange sensation crept through him, as though his body had responded to something unseen, accompanied by a faint sting in his left hand.
He shuddered slightly and looked down at it.
"What is this feeling? Why is it coming now?"
He hesitated for a moment, then his fingers touched the wrapping covering his left hand. Taking a deep breath, he slowly began to unwind it.
As the skin beneath was revealed, a mark appeared upon his hand.
It was the very same symbol engraved upon the gate.
His heart pounded fiercely, and a powerful feeling swept through him that this moment was no coincidence, but rather something that had been waiting for him for a very long time.
While Basil stood contemplating the gate, he felt a strange movement beneath his feet.
Turning around, he saw a gigantic serpent slithering across the sands, a faint gleam reflecting from its scales.
The serpent retreated slightly and raised its enormous head, focusing all of its attention upon Basil.
Without hesitation, Basil dashed toward the gate, attempting to open it and pushing against it with all his strength, but it did not move. Meanwhile, the serpent rapidly closed the distance between them, and fear began to creep into him.
Suddenly, the eye engraved within the palm at the center of the gate blazed with brilliant light, and as the surrounding symbols illuminated, the tilted square began to move slowly before the eye itself flipped backward, revealing another eye beneath it—one of a different color, darker and far more mysterious.
At that moment, the gate began to open slowly, emitting a sound akin to a deep murmur, as though a call were rising from the depths of the earth itself.
At the final moment, Basil rushed inside while the serpent pursued him at great speed, its massive body gliding over the sand and its eyes never leaving its target.
Before it could pass through, however, its enormous head slammed against the edge of the opening, and because of its immense size, its body crashed violently against the surrounding stone, causing the entire place to tremble beneath its weight.
The serpent recoiled and released an enraged hiss, striking the ground powerfully with its long tail, its eyes still fixed upon him as though refusing to surrender.
Basil exhaled as he looked at the serpent, which remained where it was, silently watching him. Once he had moved farther away, the gate shook and released a sharp creak before slowly closing shut.
A heavy silence descended.
Basil stood for a moment watching the sealed gate, then let out a quiet breath and continued deeper inside.
Within the structure, the atmosphere was dark and cold, and the walls were covered with ancient symbols that seemed to tell forgotten tales. Basil continued through the narrow corridors, his eyes moving from one strange engraving to another, until he arrived at a vast chamber. At its center stood a platform bearing a tablet carved with the same mark that adorned his left hand, and behind it rose a massive wall in the shape of a cube.
Before Basil could advance, the ground trembled beneath his feet, and a voice thundered through the chamber, shattering the silence.
"Intruder... who are you to dare set foot in this place?"
From within the shadows emerged a colossal creature with the head of a bull crowned by a glowing red gemstone, the body of a mighty lion, and a back covered in hide resembling that of a crocodile, extending all the way to its long, twisting tail. Its eyes overflowed with fury and majesty.
The creature moved along the edges of the chamber without ever taking its gaze from Basil.
"No ordinary human can pass through the gate... How did you survive the Temple Guardian? And how did you reach this place?"
Basil remained silent for a moment before answering,
"I escaped that giant serpent when the gate opened at the last moment... and I do not know how I reached this place."
The creature took another step forward and spoke in a deep voice.
"All who dare steal what is not rightfully theirs meet their end by my hand, and their names are erased from existence itself!"
Basil maintained his composure and replied,
"Do not misunderstand me... I came only to claim what belongs to me."
In a flash, the creature lunged forward with incredible speed, attacking Basil with its massive claws. Reacting swiftly, Basil raised his sword and blocked the strike, though the impact sent violent tremors through his arms.
He pushed his blade forward, struggling against the overwhelming force before him. The creature moved with astonishing speed and launched another attack. This time, Basil failed to fully defend himself, and its claws tore into his left side with brutal force. A searing pain coursed through his body, his grip weakened for an instant, and with the next strike the sword slipped from his hand, skidding away across the floor with a metallic screech.
Before he could retrieve it, the beast charged once more, delivering a devastating blow to his chest that hurled him backward into the solid wall of the chamber.
The air was driven from his lungs, and he felt a painful crack within his ribs as agony surged through his entire body. Even so, he raised his left hand in a defensive stance, struggling to endure.