Chains of Vengeance

Chapter 90: An Idea on Paper

In Narinder's dream, he walked through a shadowy castle, his footsteps echoing in the empty echo of those ancient corridors. His gaze scanned the walls covered in worn tapestries and unlit chandeliers, searching for the lamb with a mix of longing and despair. He opened door after door, only to find deserted rooms, as if the entire place had frozen in time, abandoned by its former occupants.

Then, turning down a dark hallway, a door caught his eye: a door with the symbol of the purple crown carved into the aged wood. With a sense of urgency, he pushed the door open only to discover, once again, an empty room, devoid of life and response. Frustrated, he walked out, sensing a strange presence that seemed to float in the air.

He continued his search until he stopped in front of another door, this time marked with a green crown. Narinder took a deep breath and opened the door. There, in the center of the room, was Leshy, his brother. Despite his blindness, Leshy had his gaze downcast, his body kneeling and chained to the walls. His skin was pale and his breathing barely perceptible, as if each breath cost him a heart-wrenching effort.

Narinder did not react; the scene seemed so unreal, so impossible to process, that he simply closed the door, convincing himself that it was nothing more than an illusion.

He continued walking through the castle corridors, ignoring the shadows that seemed to lengthen as he passed, until he found another door, this time with a blue crown engraved on its surface. He knew what he would find when he opened it, but he turned the handle anyway.

Inside was Kallamar, chained just like Leshy, his head bent down and his skin just as pale. His eyes were fixed on the floor, dull and lifeless. Narinder felt a pang of discomfort, but, with an almost automatic impulse, he coldly closed the door and continued on his way.

The silence in the castle grew thicker with each step, and Narinder, still searching for the lamb, continued forward, as if the only way to escape this nightmare was to find what he had come to find.

Narinder advanced through the castle as if he were going deeper and deeper into the shadows of his own mind. He did not question the nature of this place, nor did he even consider that it could be a dream. It was real, as real as the weight of his search and the loneliness that gnawed at him as he opened empty doors, each one empty as the echo of his own isolation.

In front of him appeared a door marked with a yellow crown. A pang of anguish ran through his chest; he did not want to open it, something inside him told him it was better not to look. But curiosity or perhaps instinct pushed him to turn the handle. There stood Heket, kneeling and chained, her face bowed, but still struggling against the chains, her eyes filled with sadness and inexpressible pain. The sight was so shocking, so surreal, that Narinder slammed the door shut, trembling, trying to convince himself that it wasn't true.

He walked again, only now the walls seemed to close in around him, every corner darker, the air thick and suffocating. Cobwebs hung from the ceiling, and every step reminded him of the emptiness that gripped everything he once knew. He felt the weight of loneliness on his shoulders, the echo of his own breathing reverberating in the deep silence of the castle. He searched for someone, searched for something, not knowing exactly what or why. It was useless, and yet, he couldn't stop.

He opened another door, and this time he didn't find an empty room or a chained bishop. Instead, there was a large mirror. Almost mesmerized, Narinder moved closer, until his reflection appeared in the glass. He saw his figure: the elegant cloak, his three red eyes shining beneath his crown. But something began to change in his reflection. His arms became skeletal, his fingers bony and fragile, while a black veil slowly covered his face, obscuring it like an enveloping shadow. Black chains materialized around him, coiling around his arms, legs, neck, as if trying to imprison him once more.