The Shadow Phoenix Rises: The Nightmare of Alamos Town and the Golden Kingdom
The sky above Alamos Town split like torn parchment, spilling a bruised lavender light that tasted of ozone and ancient rust. It had begun in the space-time rift—a jagged tear where two primordial entities, forces that should have remained separated by the boundaries of reality itself, collided. Their ill-fated crossing unleashed an unbridled wrath, a cascading wave of dark energy that enveloped the town in seconds. Buildings crumbled into fine dust, time twisted upon itself, and the shattered remnants of civilization collapsed into ash. To any witness, it seemed like the true meaning of a horrific, inescapable nightmare. High on the ridge of the valley overlooking the ruins, a dark creature lurked, bedeviling the very existence of all who remained. Men were usually unable to withstand the overwhelming power of the dark ones, their minds breaking before their bodies could even crumble. Hope was a dying ember. "The third part of the Codex is mine," a harsh, raspy voice echoed ...