The dark, frozen sky was completely silent. Adam Cook hovered high above the earth. His massive wings of violet-black shadow slowly beat the cold air. Below him, the entire valley was covered in jagged, sharp black ice. The dangerous fire of the Inquisition was completely frozen. High Inquisitor Malakor and his silver airships quickly turned around and fled into the clouds, terrified of the shadow-god. Adam watched them run. His hollow mind processed the victory. But his physical body was deeply exhausted. He closed his glowing white eyes. He pulled his dark magic back into his chest. His massive wings turned to gray smoke and vanished. His pitch-black obsidian skin softened, returning to pale human flesh. Adam fell from the sky, landing softly on the broken ground next to Catherine. "We must hide," Adam whispered. His voice was no longer a terrifying, metallic echo. It was just the tired voice of a teenage boy. "The ships are gone, but they will send ground trackers."Catherine

The endless, faded yellow hallway buzzed loudly. The faceless man in the white lab coat took a slow step toward them. Adam Cook did not panic. He knew this nightmare was a trap designed by the True Realm to break his mind. He tightened his grip on Catherine’s hand. "We are not staying here," Adam whispered. He raised his pale, obsidian right hand. He formed a tiny, sharp blade of pitch-black Void magic. He did not attack the faceless man. Adam swung his hand and sliced the peeling yellow wallpaper right next to him. The fabric of the nightmare tore open like cheap cloth. Cold, fresh winter air blew through the crack. Adam pulled Catherine through the hole, and they fell out of the liminal space, tumbling onto hard cobblestones. The yellow hallway vanished. They were back in the real world. Catherine stood up and brushed the dirt off her ruined white dress. She looked around. They were standing in a small, quiet alleyway. Beyond the alley was a beautiful, busy town square. "We

The endless, faded yellow hallway buzzed with sick, artificial light. The faceless creator walked slowly toward them, holding a silver clipboard. Adam Cook did not run. He held Catherine’s hand tightly. He looked at the peeling wallpaper and the dirty gray carpet. His hollow mind calculated the trap in a single millisecond. "You do not own my mind," Adam whispered. His voice was a heavy, metallic echo that shook the buzzing lights. Adam raised his pitch-black, obsidian hand. He did not aim at the faceless man. He aimed at the air itself. Adam plunged his fingers directly into the fabric of the liminal space and violently ripped his hands apart. The nightmare dimension shattered like fragile glass. The yellow hallway tore completely open, revealing the dark, freezing night of the real world. Adam pulled Catherine through the jagged hole just as the faceless scientist reached for them. They crashed onto hard, cold dirt. The magical tear snapped shut behind them, sealing the creato

High Inquisitor Malakor stood in the red dirt of the narrow canyon. He smiled an evil, greedy smile. He pointed his glowing silver cane at Catherine’s sleeping face. In his other hand, he held the heavy iron chain tied to Kael’s neck. "Give me the girl, Adam," Malakor whispered softly. "Or I will let your best friend watch me burn her to ashes." Adam Cook lay on the ground. His right shoulder was covered in thick blue ice, stopping the holy fire from killing him. He was tired. He was bleeding. For weeks, Adam had played their game. He reacted to their hostage traps. He tried to fight fair. He tried to be a good, honest hero. But his enemies did not care about honor. They only cared about cruelty. Adam looked at Malakor’s cruel face. He looked at Kael’s terrified, crying eyes. “I cannot play this game anymore,” Adam’s cold, hollow mind calculated. “If I fight him with words, I lose. I must turn the world against him.” Adam did not speak. He acted with absolute, sudden violence.

Adam followed the glowing blue arrow on his shoulder. He moved faster than the cold mountain wind. He caught the Inquisition’s transport cart just before it reached the Great Cathedral. He smashed the wooden cart, grabbed Catherine, and ran into the wild. But the rescue was not clean. High Inquisitor Malakor had expected it. The trap was set, and the chase was brutal. Now, Adam and Catherine were completely cornered. They stood at the bottom of a beautiful, hidden valley. Tall, steep walls of red rock completely surrounded them. A bright, clear waterfall poured down the cliff. Soft green grass and wild yellow flowers covered the ground. It was a peaceful paradise, far away from the war. But it was a dead end. There was no way out. Catherine held Adam’s hand tightly. She was breathing heavily. Her white dress was covered in mud. "We are trapped," Catherine whispered, looking up at the high, slippery rock walls. Adam did not answer. His dark brown eyes looked at the narrow entra