IN A VILLAGE
A boy named Caspian cried on the ground, holding his bloody, injured nose.
Twelve-year-old KAEL ASHBORNE stood over him, fists clenched, eyes burning.
The air smelled like dust and anger.
A woman ran toward them, long skirt fluttering behind her.
MRS. VERIDIAN: "You broke my son's nose, Kael! You little monster!"
KAEL: "He called my dad a name."
MRS. VERIDIAN: "I don't care! I'm going to tell your father!"
KAEL: "Fine by me."
Her voice cracked like thunder. But then, another voice cut through the storm.
A quiet,firm voice
DARIUS: "Kael."
Kael froze. He turned slowly.
It was his father, DARIUS. A simple man in worn robes, a book still tucked under one arm, his face drawn with disappointment rather than rage.
DARIUS: "Home. Now."
Kael lowered his eyes. Said nothing. He followed.
As they walked the narrow, winding path toward their small wooden house, the late sun casting long shadows on the stone walls, Darius spoke without turning.
DARIUS: "Why did you fight him?"
KAEL: "He was mean."
DARIUS: "And I have told you, fighting is not the answer. Real strength is in your mind, not your fists. Words are just words."
KAEL: "The strong men who fly in the sky use their fists! They aren't weak like..."
He stopped himself. Too late.
His father turned, slow, and looked at him.
Eyes full of sadness. Eyes that had seen too much.
DARIUS: "That path only leads to death, Kael. I forbid you from ever learning it. You will be a scholar. That is final."
Kael stared at him. At the man who raised him with books and wisdom but never with fire.
He didn't respond. He simply turned and walked in the opposite direction.
Darius didn't stop him.
He ran.
Ran past the riverbank. Past the broken fence by Old Joran's field. Up the worn stone steps. To the only place he felt he could breathe...
THE OLD TEMPLE ON THE HILL
The ruined temple loomed under the falling twilight. Cracked pillars jutted from the earth like broken bones. Moss covered ancient stone, and wind whistled between gaps like ghosts whispering secrets.
Kael ducked under a half-fallen arch and dropped to the floor beside the only soul who never judged him.
PIP.
A monkey the size of a melon, covered in scruffy brown fur, with clever gold eyes.
Pip squeaked.
KAEL: "He doesn't get it, Pip. He just wants me to read books all day. I don't want to be weak."
Pip tugged his sleeve. Chattered. Jumped to a fallen statue and scratched at something.
Kael frowned. Crawled over.
There, hidden behind the broken head of a forgotten god, was something strange.
A flat, black stone.
Smooth. Perfect.
The only thing untouched by time.
One word carved across its center.
The letters shimmered like oil on water.
VOID.
KAEL: "What is this?"
A wind picked up.
The skies outside darkened...too fast. The sun hadn't set yet, but crimson light washed over everything. As if the heavens were bleeding.
Pip shrieked. Scrambled into Kael's shirt and refused to come out.
Kael reached toward the stone.
His fingers brushed the word.
A pulse of light erupted.
Brighter than the sun.
And Kael was gone.
Just like that.
A MOMENT LATER
Two men in dark robes stepped into the temple.
They walked with purpose. Faces hidden. Power in every stride.
KORR: "Senior Brother Vex! The power from that was huge! What happened?"
VEX: "The artifact is gone. It took a boy with it. We failed. Our Lord will be very angry."
They stared at the fading light.
Then vanished.
IN KAEL'S HOUSE
The candle on Darius's desk flickered. Books rustled.
The man sat motionless, hand resting on a worn wooden box with strange carvings.
Something in him shifted. He whispered into the silence.
DARIUS: "He's gone... but he's safe. Oh, Selene... it has started."
---------------------------------------
IN A STRANGE, NEW PLACE
Kael gasped.
He was lying on something soft, glowing grass beneath him like starlight trapped in blades.
He sat up.
All around him was sky.
Endless, open sky filled with galaxies. Stars danced lazily above, and great floating islands drifted on invisible winds.
He spun.
No walls. No sun. No ground.
A realm untouched by earth.
Then
A voice.
Deep. Calm. Immense.
ORION VAEL: "Hello, child. I am Orion Vael. I am a spirit trapped in this place. My time is over, so I must give my power to someone new."
KAEL: "Who are you? Where am I?"
ORION VAEL: "I am giving my power to you. I give you the Aetherium Core, a source of great energy. I also give you the Starfall Codex. It will teach you how to fight with a sword."
A light flared in Kael's chest. Warm. Gentle. It pulsed like a second heartbeat.
Then knowledge surged through him, techniques, forms, names of sword styles that danced through the air.
He gasped, clutching his chest.
The voice faded.
Silence fell again.
Then...
The ground shook.
Kael turned.
The massive tree that grew from the center of the floating island was waking.
Its roots twisted. Its bark cracked.
A colossal eye opened in the center of its trunk.
It blinked.
Then it spoke.
GROTTO-SPRITE: "A human child? Here? How did you get in?"
Kael, trembling, heart still thundering from everything that had just happened, stared up at the ancient being.
His mouth opened.
His brain scrambled.
Only one thought came out.
KAEL: "Uh… a monkey?"