Corin

The dungeon was a labyrinth of stone and shadow, its air heavy with the damp musk of centuries-old confinement. Water dripped in slow, echoing intervals from the vaulted ceiling, each drop vanishing into the black between the flagstones. Torches sputtered in their sconces, throwing ragged light across iron bars that seemed to drink it in rather than reflect it. Somewhere deep in the corridors, a rat skittered, claws scratching against stone. Corin’s boots struck the worn spiral steps with the steady rhythm of a heartbeat—unhurried, deliberate, a predator descending into its lair. The golden runes carved into his skin caught the firelight with every step, flaring and dimming like the molten veins of some ancient god. They were not mere decoration; the air seemed to hum faintly around him, heavy with the kind of magic that pressed against the bones. Before he even reached the lowest level, the noise rose to meet him—shouts, raw with fury, followed by the metallic crash of chains whipping against bars. The guards had formed a wary half-circle around one of the cells, keeping their distance from the prisoner within. One had a swollen jaw; another’s armor bore a fresh dent in its breastplate. The scent of sweat and iron mingled thick in the air. Corin stepped past them without so much as a glance, his presence cutting through the room like a blade. Inside the cell, you were still on your feet, chest rising and falling with the force of your anger, wrists raw from the shackles that tethered you to the wall. Dust clung to your clothes, and yet your posture was unbroken, your gaze fixed forward like someone who would rather burn alive than bow. He stopped just beyond the bars, the molten light from his markings spilling across the stone floor between you. For a long moment, the dungeon fell silent, the world holding its breath around the two of you. His eyes—sharp, unblinking—traced over you as if measuring the shape of your defiance.