POV: Airis
It was hard to move forward through the debris of what once stood tall in the holy land of Samtist. Each step stirred dust and ash, but my eyes never left the person walking ahead of me.
The stench of rotting flesh hung in the air, so thick it made every breath an effort.
Even with all the devastation around me, my mind could only focus on Kael.
He walked beside Luis, speaking in a low voice that carried the weight of the world.
"Was this place important?" Kael asked, his voice dull and weary. "Who did this?"
For a moment, silence reigned. Dry leaves danced through the air until Luis stopped, exhaling a tired sigh. Before us, a ruin stood like the skeleton of a once-glorious past.
"Samtist was our most important city," he said, his tone void of emotion. "It wasn't the richest, nor the most fertile... but it was the heart of our faith."
He crouched down, picking up a fragment of stone from the ground. He held it gently, as if afraid to break the memories still sleeping within it.
"Our people always found hope in this place for what it represented," he continued, caressing the rough piece of wall. "Humans always need something greater than themselves to believe in."
As if the heavens had been moved by his words, the first drops began to fall.
The rain descended upon us, quiet at first, then turning into a constant lament.
The crows that had been pecking at charred bodies took flight with sharp cries, seeking refuge among the trees.
I bit my lower lip, holding back nausea and sorrow, and kept walking through the mud that had begun to form.
In the distance, the sound of a rusted bell broke the silence. Its metallic, uneven toll echoed like the cry of a soul refusing to accept its end.
Among the rubble, something caught my attention — a human hand protruding from the stones, rigid, still clutching a photograph.
I approached slowly and pried open the cold fingers to free the image.
I don't know if it was the rain or my own tears that fell onto the paper, but a knot tightened in my chest when I saw what it was — a father smiling as he held his daughter in his arms.
I clenched my jaw. The pain burned inside me, reminding me what it meant to be alone. It's been four years since I lost everything… and still, the emptiness remains.
I tried not to think, not to remember, but when I closed my eyes, my mind dragged me back to that day — the one I wish I could forget.
(Memory)
The same rain fell from the sky, as if the world itself wept with us. The drumming of the drops on the roof mixed with the distant screams of families begging for mercy that would never come.
Through the blur of my tears, I saw my father holding me tightly. His arms trembled around me, as if letting go would damn him.
"Airis, my daughter… I love you, my little one," he whispered, choking back his tears. "I don't want to lose you."
I felt his cold hands rest on my shoulders. His eyes said goodbye before his lips could.
I wished I could stay there forever — to be his daughter, his hope, his reason.
Back then, I had already awakened. I could see people's emotions, and my father's shone like tiny white lights floating in the air… each one showed a different side of him: sorrow, faith, pain, love.
And the brightest among them were fear and despair.
The sound of footsteps splashing in the mud pulled me back to reality. I knew then that the end had come. But not for me… for him.
I felt arms lift my small body into the air as I watched my father's figure fade into the distance.
I kicked and screamed, struggling to break free from the one holding me — only to realize my father wasn't moving. He wasn't reacting.
—"Luis, take care of my little girl," he pleaded, his voice trembling as he tried to remain firm. "Protect her… I won't be able to anymore."
My eyes widened when I saw him draw a katana from a polished wooden box. The blade gleamed beneath the rain.
I could see my reflection in it — a crying child, shaking… while her father took a deep breath and raised the weapon toward the sky.
He came closer one last time. He kissed my forehead with that warmth that felt like a promise of tomorrow, and then he left.
He took a few steps into the chaos, and before disappearing into the rain, he looked back at me one last time. His lips curved into a silent farewell.
(End of memory)
My cheeks, still swollen from crying, felt a solitary tear slide down and fall into a puddle. The water rippled, distorting my reflection.
I squeezed my eyes shut and wiped my face with my arm, forcing myself back into reality.
Luis's distant shouts snapped me out of my trance. My trembling fingers dropped the photograph, and I stepped away from the spot, feeling the pain coursing through me like slow poison.
I shook my head, reminding myself that he wasn't coming back.
My father was now just that — a memory. One that no longer belonged to this world. No matter how much it hurt, I had to let him go.
After several steps, we left Samtist behind. The towering trees of the elven forest rose before us once more — tall, green, and silent.
The rain stopped suddenly, and the sun broke through the clouds, painting a radiant rainbow across the sky.
"Children," Luis called, turning toward us. "Stay here, together. No matter what happens, do not separate."
His gaze hardened.
"There's something I don't like about this…" he muttered, as his crystal armor began to materialize, piece by piece, covering his body in an ethereal glow.
Kael and I nodded.
We stood back to back, feeling each other's warmth — the only certainty amid the fear.
I still hadn't recovered from the memory, yet panic began to creep over me again.
My vision blurred, and the auras began to manifest around me — living, pulsating lights revealing the souls of every nearby being.
And among them… I recognized those same dark shades, the same crimson hues that belonged to the masked ones who had slaughtered my people.
I swallowed hard, watching as Luis vanished among the trees. His armor blended with the surroundings, camouflaged in the silver-green shimmer of the forest.
"Are you alright?" Kael whispered, his calm voice contrasting with the tremor in my hands.
"Yes, idiot," I replied, more out of reflex than conviction. "Why do you ask?"
"You're shaking," he said, intertwining his fingers with mine. "Stay calm. Nothing bad will happen. We're strong, remember?"
I rested my head on his shoulder and squeezed his hand tighter. In that moment, I felt the same protection my father once gave me.
Sometimes, I hated being an Acrona.
Having such a deep connection to astral magic was more curse than gift.
To perceive the world so intensely — every emotion, every thought, every fragment of life — was overwhelming.
The wind rustled the leaves. Birds sang. Amid those sounds, I felt something. A presence approaching. It wasn't Luis.
The aura of that figure was chaotic, disturbed… a storm of hatred and blood. Its red particles gave it away.
The same ones I had seen in Kael — though in him, those lights struggled between two opposing realms, as if two souls were fighting for a body that belonged to neither.
"I've got a bad feeling…" I whispered, raising my hand to form a sphere of fire.
I wasn't fast enough to understand what was happening. Kael pushed me aside, hard. A metallic flash cut through the air — and a blade sank deep into his left hand.
I fell onto the grass. I saw blood spurting from his palm as his face contorted in pain.
My mind went blank. All I could do was watch as an invisible thread pulled the blade from his flesh... and flung it back at its owner at breakneck speed.
"Shit!" Kael shouted, kneeling and clutching his bleeding hand. "Damn it, Airis! Run!"
"Go into the forest and look for..." he tried to say, but his voice trailed off.
Another blade pierced his chest. I saw him spit blood as he looked me in the eyes... in pain and begging for help.
Without thinking, I raised a wall of earth between us. The barrier emerged with a thud, causing the animals to flee in terror.
The stench of blood mingled with the metal in the air.
I took Kael in my arms and cut the thread of mana that held the blade stuck in his side. His skin was cold; his eyes were no longer the emerald green I knew.
Now the pupil was lost in a dark brown, a color that seemed to hold secrets he had never told me.
"Where are the little children?" the attacker intoned from the shadows, with sharp mockery. "Didn't anyone tell you it's dangerous to play alone in the forest?"
The voice echoed among the trees and a tremor ran through the ground. The figure descended, emerging from its hiding place with slow steps, satisfied by the fear it provoked.
My mind clouded over for a second. The world shrunk to Kael in my arms and the faint beating of his heart. I couldn't let him die.
I pulled the dagger from his waist with hands that wouldn't stop shaking. I drew it quickly and imbued it with my electricity; small sparks began to run along the metal and a high-pitched whistle rose among the leaves.
The forest seemed to tense up. I knew that the fight ahead was no game: it was life or death. Clutching the handle with all my strength, I remembered why my father had saved me.
"Hang in there, Kael..." I whispered, placing my hand on his cheek. "Don't leave me."
Irony bit at my throat: I was crying for someone who carried in his blood the history of those who had massacred my race. But now lineages and hatreds didn't matter; only he mattered.
I took a deep breath. Electricity awakened inside me and ran through my arms like a living current. It wasn't my strongest element, but it was the one I could control most reliably at that moment.
I dug my feet into the ground, feeling the earth vibrate beneath my power. With a burst of speed, I propelled myself toward the branches, leaping between them like lightning until I was within the attacker's line of sight.
I circled him with decisive movements, the dagger raised high, vibrating with blue energy.
"What a cute little game, kid," he said with a sneer. "But do you really think you can beat me with that?"
Looking closer, I realized he was a damn bounty hunter.
The real question was... who had sent him? And which one of us was he here to capture?
Electric sparks shot from my fingertips. With each step, the energy molded itself into lightning-fast spikes, ready to pierce flesh and bone.
My attack cut through the air with a deadly whistle.
Just inches from his neck, the man raised his hands and the wind obeyed. The current swirled violently, deflecting my spikes and returning them with twice the force.
One of them hit the branch where I was standing. The crack was enough to force me to jump to the ground. I stood in front of him, face to face with the maniac.
"Who sent you?" I asked, trying to buy time.
"What do you care?" he replied with a mocking smile. "Didn't they teach you to keep your mouth shut?"
From the moment I saw him manipulate the wind, I knew I couldn't defeat him from a distance. My only option was hand-to-hand combat.
An electric whip sprang from my arm and coiled like a living snake along my forearm. In my other hand, I wielded Kael's dagger, its black steel sparkling with a blue glow.
The enemy's eyes flashed with a depraved gleam. I unfurled the whip with a crack that tore through the air and threw it at him to open up space.
Then I released the dagger, channeling the fire mana from the environment. A fiery sphere took shape in my free hand.
The bounty hunter dodged each attack with savage agility, enjoying the combat as if it were a game. But then, he let his guard down... and I didn't hesitate.
I raised my arm, aiming straight at his chest, and unleashed a burst of fire. The explosion engulfed half the forest, enveloping everything in flames.
For a moment, I thought I had succeeded.
But my illusion crumbled when I saw him emerge from among the charred trees, coughing as he wiped the blood from his face.
"You're a nuisance, little one," he said, brushing the dust from his singed uniform. "You're lucky you're merchandise. Otherwise, you'd be dead by now."
I smiled mischievously as I noticed movement in the undergrowth.
A pack of wolves, disturbed by the fire and noise, lunged toward us. Behind them, magical creatures of the forest awoke, furious at the aggression on their territory.
I fell to my knees, gasping for breath, as the beasts passed by me on their way to their prey.
For a moment, I thought I had won. I slowly got up... until I saw it.
The animals began to fly through the air, tossed like rag dolls by a brutal gust of wind. Their bodies hit the tree trunks with a dull, dry sound.
"I have to admit, that was a good move," shouted the hunter, holding a wolf by the neck. "Using the natural defense of the elven forest... only a genius could think of that."
"Now I understand why they love you," he added with a crooked smile.
I turned my head... and fear paralyzed me. A chill ran through every fiber of my body.
It wasn't because of the bounty hunter.
It was because of Kael.
His silhouette emerged from the shadows, breaking the sound barrier. The shockwave threw me to the ground.
With every step he took, nature died. Flowers wilted, trees blackened, and the air filled with a metallic stench of death.
"What the hell...?" muttered the bounty hunter, dodging the black claws sprouting from Kael. "I already killed you!"
I didn't have time to react. Kael grabbed him by the neck and lifted him up as if he weighed nothing.
His figure rose above the embers and smoke, shrouded in darkness and violence.
He raised a hand in the air, and the fire still burning in the forest curved toward him, obediently, as if hell itself responded to his call.
The flames were absorbed into his body and channeled into the hand holding the bounty hunter.
"People like you disgust me," he said.
His voice sounded distorted, as if two souls were speaking at the same time — one human... and one that was no longer human.
The accumulated fire transferred to the enemy's body. It began to swell like a wineskin of flesh, while burning blood escaped from his eyes, nose, and mouth.
With what little strength he had left, I heard him whisper, almost inaudibly:
"You are... a damn monster. You are not human."
Kael brought his face close to the dying man's and whispered in his ear:
"And who said that humans aren't monsters?"
His words made my blood run cold.
I tried to crawl across the ground, digging my hands into the damp earth, trying to get away from him... from what was no longer Kael.
Then the hunter's body exploded. His flesh scattered into a thousand pieces, covering the forest with a rain of blood and guts.
The stench of iron and burnt smoke enveloped me.
My hands, my legs... even my mind refused to respond. Only my sight still worked.
And with it, I saw him — Kael walking toward me.
His figure was shrouded in a dark mist that devoured the light, hiding the aura I once recognized as his.
"Ka... Kael... it's me... Airis," I stammered, trembling. "I don't want to die..."
He stopped in front of me. His pupils contracted, and in the blink of an eye, they turned completely white.
There was absolute silence before his body fell to the ground with a thud.
Still trembling, I felt my consciousness fading. The world became blurry as the coolness of the ground enveloped me. And before I lost consciousness, all I could think was... that he wasn't the real monster.