"RAAAAHHAAAHHHAAA… AYA!! NOOO!! NO!! PLEASE, OPEN YOUR GODDAMN EYES! NO!!!"
Kael's screams tore through the corpse-strewn streets. His arms clutched a lifeless body—a woman, her flesh torn and scarred, blood dripping and painting the ground beneath them. Her chest and sides were riddled with wounds, her body growing colder with every passing second.
"Aya…!! Wake up, you said…" His voice cracked as he pressed his forehead to hers.
"You said we'd stay together… you said you'd never leave us… you said…"
He hugged her tightly, fingers trembling as he brushed a strand of hair from her bloodied face. Around them, the town burned in deep,roaring flames. His voice dropped to a low, haunted whisper:
"You said… you loved me."
A girl approached him cautiously, her voice trembling with pain. She, too, was heavily injured, her sword sheathed at her waist.
"Don't… be like this, Kael… please… handle yourself," she pleaded, tears in her eyes. "Please… look at yourself…"
"Shut up, Feria! Shut up!! I'll…" His voice grew cold, cruel, and distant. His eyes glowed red with anger and hatred. He didn't look at her. Feria stood frozen, knowing he wouldn't listen.
"I'll kill them… every last one of them. Every single one… they will all pay!"
Rising, he carried Aya's corpse with resolute fury, his silhouette disappearing into the smoke.
Kael awoke gasping, tears streaming down his face. He sat beneath a tree, the morning sun casting warm light through scattered clouds. Birds chirped nearby; a gentle wind rustled the leaves.
"What… what just happened? Why are my eyes wet? Was it… a dream?"
He yawned and stretched. "Maybe I'm just… slacking off too much."
Suddenly, a sharp pain struck his head. He clutched his forehead.
"Oh… gosh!! My head… it's about to explode!"
A subtle warmth—almost like fire—seemed to pulse within him, tingling and humming. Kael froze, sensing a strange energy stirring inside. Why now? Why me? He wondered. What is this… feeling?
A young girl appeared suddenly, holding a worm in her hand.
"Aah!!" Kael shrieked. "Stop it, Aya! Don't scare me like that!"
She laughed, wiping a tear from her eye. "I'm sorry, Kael, but you're just too amusing when you get teased."
He felt his cheeks warm. "W-whatever… just don't tease me anymore, okay?"
Aya stopped laughing, a smirk on her face. "Oh? Someone's blushing… Well, I am beautiful, aren't I?"
Kael's jaw dropped in mock disbelief. "Hahaha! Oh, don't joke! Who said you're beautiful?"
Tears of laughter streamed down her face as she playfully hit him on the head.
"Meanie! Rascals!" she exclaimed.
Kael rubbed his head, smiling through the minor pain. "Ouch! Don't hit me… or I won't protect you from the rascals!"
"Rascals, huh, Kael?" she giggled, then kicked him lightly. "I'm the one who protects you, dummy! Blehh!!"
She stuck her tongue out, and Kael groaned in mock frustration, chasing after her across the grassy field. Laughter and joy painted their faces as the wind tangled their hair—the long black strands of Aya, and Kael's own tousled locks.
Suddenly, Kael froze again, clutching his forehead. A sharp, searing pain radiated through his skull. Aya, concerned, rushed to his side.
"Kael!! Are you okay? Huh!!" she asked, worry etched across her face.
"It… it hurts. I don't know why… please… take me to Father, Aya…" His voice trembled. Something inside him—an unknown, black energy—seemed to pulse violently, almost responding to the visions of his dream.
Aya nodded, supporting him as he swayed. As they approached the town's massive iron gate, the gates clang open and the guards checked their IDs. Kael felt the Black Prabha stir within him again, strange and unfamiliar, and a chill ran down his spine.
Ahead lay his father Dagmond's clinic—an alchemist's haven.Aya's concern did not waver as she carried him, preparing for whatever awaited inside. Kael, still unconscious, could only feel the deep resonance of something powerful inside him awakening—a force that would one day mark him as the Fates Discarded One.