Synopsis: At age four, Shinra's power manifests, spreading fear in the village.
Shinra was different. 🧐
One afternoon, when Shinra was four, a village boy snatched his wooden wolf carving 🐺. A low growl rumbled in Shinra's chest, the black symbol on his palm 🌑 seeming to deepen, pulsing with unseen energy. The wooden wolf began to smoke 💨 and was dropped. It hit the dirt, already turning to ash 🪨 at the edges.
Shinra extended his hand towards a grey stone. A shimmer distorted the air. The stone, without a touch, began to glow with internal heat. 🔥 It cracked, fissures 💔 spreading, then disintegrated into a fine, grey powder that drifted away on the breeze. 🌬️
Ayumi, who had been watching, rushed forward. Her face was a mask of horror. 😱 "Shinra," she whispered, "What have you done?"
That evening, a hushed conversation filled their home. 🗣️
"He's too powerful, Kenji," Ayumi strained. "He incinerated that stone without even trying! It's wild. Untamed. It's like an uncontrolled bomb 💣, Kenji. We can't keep him here."
"His power transcends the Red Mark," Ayumi insisted. "It's not safe for him, or for the village."
Kenji nodded slowly. "The Glimmerwood," 🌲 he suggested, his voice low. "Deep within. It's vast. We can build a cabin 🛖. Teach him there."