"Who?!" Max shouted instinctively, his body spinning around in full alert.
His eyes narrowed sharply, and in the dense, swirling grey mist that hung like a blanket over the eerie world, he saw them—two narrow, glowing red eyes watching him silently from within the fog.
They floated there, unmoving, fixed on him with a gaze that felt ancient and unblinking.
"What?!" Max gasped, instinctively retreating several steps back, his footing cautious but urgent as he readied himself for whatever entity this was.
The pressure he'd just endured still echoed in his bones, and now this? Before he could brace for a fight, a deep voice echoed through the mist—calm, powerful, and oddly emotionless.
"Do not fear me, human," the voice said, not with malice, but with the undeniable authority of something that had existed far longer than him.
Max's eyes remained cautious, but his breath steadied. "Who are you?" he demanded, his voice firm despite the lingering unease.
