I stepped into the living room and found Aunt Jeya already moving briskly from one table to another. Several items were laid out in neat rows. Purified water canisters, ration tablets, reinforced gloves, a compact medkit, and a small steel case marked with a red emblem. She opened it briefly, checking the contents inside.
Purge injectors. An entire extra set.
She had gone through the same ritual before her own awakening. It made sense she would know exactly what I needed… and exactly what could go wrong.
"Hurry, Seyfe. Garrenya is waiting outside," Aunt Jeya said with a smile that carried both excitement and a hint of worry.
"What? This early?" My voice cracked as my eyes widened. "Oh, dear."
I scrambled back toward my room, trying to throw myself together before I embarrassed both of us. My hair was a mess, my shirt wasn't even tucked in properly, and I could almost hear Garrenya's amused sigh from outside the door.
Behind me, Aunt Jeya let out a soft chuckle. "You look like someone running late for their own awakening."
"That is… exactly what's happening!" I grabbed my bag and swung it over my shoulder.
The morning sunlight seeped through the windows, casting long streaks across the hardwood floor, and something in the air felt heavier. Not bad heavy, but the kind that made my heart race with anticipation.
Today was truly the beginning. My first day training as an official riftborn recruit.
And the first step toward surviving Arkael.
"Well, good morning, Seyfe." Garrenya's amused voice greeted me as she gestured toward the luxurious car behind her.
I hurried over, trying my best to settle myself into the impossibly soft seat. Everything inside smelled faintly of leather and something floral, fancy enough to remind me I absolutely didn't belong here.
"We're going to the headquarters," she said, buckling her seatbelt with practiced ease. "You'll be accompanied by other recruits, some older, some about your age."
I swallowed, the thought of meeting the others tightening my chest. "How long does the training phase last?" I asked.
"It will continue until the day the veil opens. And as of now, that's twelve days left."
"Twelve?" My voice almost cracked. "That's fast."
"Well," she replied, her eyes drifting to the window, "a person's fate can change so suddenly, long before they've even had time to think about it."
Her words hit harder than I expected. I turned my gaze forward, watching the road blur into motion as the car started moving. Twelve days. Just twelve days before everything, my life, my body, my future, shifted into something I couldn't predict.
And all I could do was brace myself and step forward anyway.
"Your aunt seems to have packed you well enough." Garrenya's eyes drifted to the huge bag sitting beside my legs.
"Well, she's always caring enough to add extra stuff," I said, chuckling shyly. My ears felt hot just admitting it.
"That's cute," she said with a soft smile. "Right now every guild is training new recruits. We still don't know what will happen once you dormant riftborns enter the veil for awakening."
"How long does the awakening last?" I asked, my fingers tightening around the strap of my bag.
"It lasts long enough to cross into the new year. After that, it depends on whether or not you can find an exit."
"An exit? So we're not guaranteed to have an open gate waiting for us." A heavy sigh slipped out of me before I could stop it.
"The riftborns of the old era, long before even I was born, long before our grandparents, built an exit gate called Ikiganya. They scattered several across Arkael. The only problem is that a riftborn needs their ember ignited to access them. They made the gates with the intention that one must ignite their ember before leaving Arkael."
"So it's another challenge…" I murmured.
"Indeed. The veil opens at the end of the month as the world's command for new riftborns to be born. But after that, the world falls under constant threat of outbreaks. Once the veil senses your ember is ignited, you are allowed to enter by your own will. The reason for exiting, however, depends on hidden conditions you must meet."
"So after surviving the awakening phase, we get locked up again without any guaranteed exit?"
"True," she admitted, her golden eyes fixed straight ahead. "But we riftborn, once we become powerful enough to handle demigods, can carve an exit on our own."
Her words lingered sharply in the air. The path ahead was not just brutal. It was uncertain, unpredictable, and entirely dependent on how strong I could become.
And for the first time, I wondered how many actually made it out.
"Then why don't riftborns who are already ignited just not enter the veil again?" I asked.
"Because once you enter the veil's first calling, the awakening, you can never resist its call."
"What…" My voice trailed off before I could form a complete thought.
"No matter how hard you try, the veil's call becomes a sweet temptation. Riftborn have to endure it, or they lose their minds."
"Does that have something to do with the corruption gauge we have?"
"It's related," she said, eyes softening. "A riftborn, even dormant, is constantly being attacked by corruption spreading through their body. That's why purge needles are essential to keep it under control. Sadly, there is no cure for a riftborn's corruption ember."
She paused for a moment, her expression shadowed by some memory.
"The corruption ember has always been inside riftborns, even before birth. It only begins spreading once your ember is ignited. Even outside Arkael's influence, you're still vulnerable to your corruption rising."
"I see…"
"You'll experience it eventually," she continued. "It feels like voices whispering to you, over and over. As if an invisible rope is wrapped around your body, pulling you back to the veil, urging you to conquer it."
"Then what are the reasons someone would choose to enter it again?"
"There are many. Some enter for personal reasons. Others because their guild demands it. And some…" She hesitated.
"Some go back because something inside Arkael is calling them."
"That's cryptic…" I muttered.
"The story of Arkael is shattered into millions of pieces. Completing it is one of the main reasons riftborn exist."
"We're supposed to complete a million stories?"
"Our existence is not only to finish the ending Arkael seeks," she said softly. "But to eradicate the source of its origin."
"Source of origin…" I echoed quietly, the words heavier than I expected.
"Centuries have passed," Garrenya continued, "yet we riftborn still haven't ended the veil."
"Is it because of the demigods?"
"Demigods aren't the only enemy," she said. "Gods and Goddesses themselves stand against you."
My breath hitched. "Why would mythical beings be our enemies? Isn't Arkael already terrifying enough?"
"Arkael is a land shaped by the desires of Gods and Goddesses," she explained. "But those desires are not meant for human comprehension. Many of their creations—things they consider wonders—are horrors in our eyes. Abominations that should never have existed."
Silence settled between us, thick and uneasy.
A moment later, the car rolled to a halt.
"We're here." Garrenya gestured toward the wide structure outside. "Welcome. This is the training grounds of the Hikolima Blade Guild."
The car door opened with a soft click, and a gust of morning air rushed in. It carried the scent of steel, earth, and faint traces of burning incense. I stepped out and found myself staring at the vast structure before me.
The barracks rose like a fortress. Gray stone walls intertwined with black metal supports, each etched with runic carvings that pulsed with a gentle silver glow. Training fields stretched on both sides of the building, filled with the sharp rhythm of clashing weapons. Sparks flew with every strike. The ground trembled slightly beneath the drills.
Recruits, some older and others around my age, moved with determination across obstacle courses. Their footsteps pounded against the dirt in steady patterns. A few sprinted with weighted harnesses. Others practiced channeling their dormant embers with instructors adjusting their breathing and stance. Everyone looked focused, intense, as if their entire lives balanced on each movement.
My chest tightened. This place was real. This path was real. And I was standing at the threshold of it.
Garrenya stepped beside me, her cloak fluttering lightly in the morning wind. "This is where you will spend the next twelve days," she said. "Train hard, listen well, and absorb everything you can. Your first awakening depends on the foundation you build here."
I swallowed hard and nodded.
As we walked toward the entrance, the soundscape sharpened, the clang of metal ringing in clear rhythm, the grunts of effort echoing across the field, the low hum of embers being pushed to their limits. The air felt warm and charged, as if carrying the lingering force of countless riftborn in motion.
A few recruits glanced my way, curiosity flickering in their eyes. I tried to appear calm, though my palms were already starting to sweat.
We reached a large iron door engraved with the guild's insignia, golden wings curved like twin blades.
Garrenya pushed it open.
"Welcome inside, Seyfe," she said. "Your training starts now."
"Greetings, Guildmaster Garrenya."An instructor stood at attention, hand pressed to his chest with a closed fist. His voice carried the sharp discipline of someone who had lived and breathed this place for years.
"Greetings. This is a new recruit. Treat her well," Garrenya said, placing a light hand on my shoulder to guide me forward.
"I see," the instructor replied as his eyes studied me with a calm but assessing gaze. "I hope I can assist her well in her growth."
"Please do," Garrenya answered before stepping aside, silently signaling for me to follow him.
The instructor gestured forward. "New recruit, your first task is simple. Place your bag on the rack by the wall. You will join your peers immediately for the obstacle assessment."
I quietly nodded and followed his instructions. The rack was already stacked with bags of various shapes and sizes. Mine felt strangely heavy as I set it down, as if letting go of it meant stepping into something I could never step back from.
When I returned, he led me to a wide outdoor training ground.
The scent of churned earth hit me first. Wet soil, sweat, and faint metallic traces of weapons training lingered in the air. Recruits were already lined up at the starting line, preparing to begin their course. Some gave me quick nods as I joined the line. A quiet acknowledgment. A subtle welcome.
The field stretched ahead like a gauntlet carved specifically to break you and rebuild you. First was a long stretch of mud, thick and uneven. Every step would be a drag, every movement a fight against sinking. Beyond it was a row of wires strung low above the ground. The spikes tied to each wire gleamed under the sun, ready to scrape anyone careless enough to lift their head too high.
A tall wooden wall stood next, slick with a fresh coat of oil that glistened like black water. Even from where I stood, I could see faint handprints smeared across it from those who managed to grip for even a moment.
Past that, several massive boulders were arranged in a grid pattern. The recruits were expected to lift one, carry it across the line, return it, and repeat until their strength gave out.
The final challenge was a deep pool, murky and scattered with floating debris. Wooden planks, broken dummies, and shredded sacks drifted lazily across the surface. A few pieces bobbed up and down as if waiting for someone to touch them.
My chest tightened at the sight of the course. This was not simply an endurance test. It was a battlefield disguised as training. A reminder of what awaited inside Arkael.
"Recruits, prepare yourselves," the instructor called out, his voice carrying across the yard.
I felt my pulse quicken, but I forced myself to take a deep breath.
This was the first step toward survival. The first step toward awakening. The first step toward a fate I could no longer avoid.
"Stand by." The instructor raised a small horn to his lips.
My hands trembled slightly at my sides.
"Begin."
The horn sounded across the grounds. The recruits surged forward. And I followed, heart pounding as the mud swallowed my feet.