TST: The Beginning (OG; no longer canon) [REBOOT IN PROGRESS]

Prologue

Two separately pigmented eyes hid behind light brunette hair. The boy shielded his vision from the blazing sun with his hand, the other grasping his satchel tightly. He nearly popped his neck looking up the height of the stone castle.

This place looked normal, but something confused the young man about the scents and atmosphere around him. He pinched himself, just in case.
Nope. This is no dream. I truly have transitioned into another realm.

He always suspected the multidimensional theory to be true, but witnessing evidence before him brought the boy satisfaction like none other he felt before.

Not only had he proven a theory, but this place... The change in atmosphere had grown tranquil once acquainted with. He'd grown calm.

The isolation was the most calming part. No other people. No crowds. No social interaction. No questions asked about his identity. No worrying about other perspectives.

He could be alone. All alone— in a beautiful castle, with his books and tools.

Unless this place is inhabited by someone else.
  
Oh— right. He still needed to check the area. He had been so caught up in the peaceful aura around him that he'd forgotten he was somewhere foreign. It was frightening, how this place could disarm you swiftly, tearing at human instincts required for survival.

Like a spider, trapping prey in its web.

The young man shivered, but shook his head of the disturbing thought, treading onward to the castle entrance.

It was a fairly long walk to the bridge. Surrounding the castle and its island was a small lake. Miles from behind the boy was an extensive forest. He could see a steep cliff ledge behind the castle when he was still a distance away. The lake led to a waterfall.

He ran his pale hand down the wood of the large door and reached for the knob. He expected the castle to be locked, but the knob turned completely with a click.

With that, he pushed the door open. The entrance opened to a long, seemingly endless hallway. The outside looked as if it came from a fairy tale, but the inside looked magnificent. Mosaics of glass provided beams of light, illuminating the wide hall in its colors. The boy stepped in, feeling puny and inferior to the sophisticated look of the giant structure.

The breeze inside whispered urges for him to move forward. He looked at the first tall mosaic-covered window. It portrayed an illustration he couldn't comprehend. Multiple humanoid figures stood together on a green plain. Another showed a series of dark creatures and a red orb. The third, however, showed a single woman, her hands hovering around a floating star.

Oddly enough, the third illustration sent a shiver. That's when he heard the breeze whisper to him.

That's when he heard his own voice, coming from deep inside him.

"One path to salvation."