The night was quiet, save for the occasional rustling of the wind against the wooden walls of his small room. Zehron lay on his bed, staring at the ceiling, his mind restless. The night was still, yet his mind buzzed with unrest.
Should I just sing?
Would gambling give me a quick way out?
Or should I do it, the underground fights?
He couldn't decide. All paths seemed uncertain, each bearing its own shadow. And at the end, he just decides to sleep.
Morning came like it always did, soft, golden, and quiet. The smell of warm porridge drifted from the kitchen. Zehron pulled his tunic over his head and stepped into the main room, where his mother was gently stirring the pot.
"I'll be late today," he said, reaching for a piece of flatbread.
His mother turned with concern in her eyes. "Why?"
Zehron paused. "There's a new shipment today. Might take longer."
She gave a small nod, not fully convinced, but she said nothing more.
He left as usual, heading to the docks. There, he moved crates, balanced loads, called out commands with other workers, and lost himself in the rhythm of labor. His body worked hard, but his mind wandered.
The sun had barely set when the screams echoed through the crooked alleys of the Voidborn slums.
Zehron dropped the crate he was carrying, eyes narrowing. People ran past him—fear in their eyes, dust on their feet.
"Monster!" someone yelled. "It broke through the barrier!"
What barrier? Zehron thought. They never maintain the ones around here...
A shiver passed through the air. He felt it—not wind, not cold. Something else. A ripple that made his skin tighten and his breath hitch.
He followed the sound.
Through broken fences and rusted rooftops, a hulking shape stumbled through the narrow street. Its body was torn, thick black blood dripping from one side, its eyes wild with pain and fury. It was a beast born of nightmare, long limbs, cracked armor-like scales, and breath like smoke.
Zehron saw a child frozen in its path, eyes wide. Without thinking, he ran.
"Hey!" he shouted, stepping between the child and the monster.
The creature halted. Its head tilted, nostrils flaring.
Then… it snarled, and charged.
Not knowing what to do, he just stood firm, thinking of tackling it down by himself.
Then...
Something ancient stirred within him. His heart thundered not with fear, but something else, clarity. His body tensed, ready. And then…
A pulse.
A quiet, golden ripple flowed from him like a soft wave, invisible to most, but not to the monster.
It stopped dead in its tracks. Its snarl became a whimper.
The beast's glowing eyes flickered, and it took a trembling step back. It growled low, confused, then turned, bolted and, crashing through abandoned stalls and fences as it fled the presence it couldn't comprehend.
Zehron blinked, dazed. The child was safe, staring at him in awe.
Then,
Shhft.
A blur landed beside him, weapons drawn. Sylus.
Tall, broad-shouldered, clad in black-and-silver hunter's armor, his Coreborn aura rippled like fire. His twin blades gleamed with monster blood.
"You," Sylus said sharply, pointing a blade toward Zehron. "What did you just do?"
Zehron didn't answer, because he didn't know.
--
Zehron and Sylus walked along the dusty path, the sun casting long shadows behind them. The streets were quieter now, whispers of the recent terror still hanging in the air. Sylus adjusted the sword strapped to his back, glancing sideways at the silent Voidborn beside him.
"So," Sylus started, casually, "monster breaks into Voidborn territory while we're tracking it from the eastern ridge. Figures."
Zehron gave a curious look. "How?"
Sylus scratched the back of his head. "The thing was smart, I'll give it that. We chased a pack of them through the thickwoods near the barrier line. One got separated, maybe wounded worse than the others. Slipped through the cracks, literally. That side of the barrier's old. No one maintains Voidborn boundaries anymore."
His tone held no judgment, just fact.
Zehron nodded slowly. It made sense. The neglect, the weakness in the system, it was all too real.
Sylus saw the way that thing looked at him... The way it backed off. He shook his head slightly, not looking directly at Zehron.
A silence stretched between them, heavy.
Sylus had questions. A lot of them. But he said nothing.
Then, suddenly—
"But anyway!" he grinned, clapping Zehron's back, jolting the mood, "how's you and Elvienne, huh? Still sneaking off to flower fields and whispering sweet nothings?"
Zehron froze.
The memory came back hard. The slap. The bruises. The humiliation.
"I...I don't know," he muttered, eyes on the ground.
Sylus blinked, confused at first, then frowned slightly, catching the sudden shift in Zehron's voice.
"And you?" he asked. "Still hunting monsters?"
"Nonstop," Sylus groaned dramatically. "These things are getting bold. Not just wild instinct anymore. They've been trying to break through barriers more than ever. Like they're… being drawn to something. Or someone."
His tone dropped slightly, like something was nagging at him, but he brushed it off with a sigh.
"I haven't had a day off in weeks. My shoulder's half monster meat at this point."
---
The door creaked open as Zehron stepped inside, dragging his tired limbs across the creaky wooden floor.
His mother looked up from the stove. "You're back?. You look really tired." concern in her face
Collapsing onto the mat. "A little trouble today."
She brought over a clay cup of cool water and placed a hand briefly on his head. "No injuries?"
"No," he said quietly. "Just tired."
Dinner was simple. Warm rice and lentil stew. The kind that soothed exhaustion even if it didn't fill the belly. They ate in silence, the night air humming softly beyond the windows.
Sylus's Household
Elsewhere, in a well-lit chamber adorned with Coreborn insignia, Sylus hissed as his maid dabbed antiseptic over his shoulder wound.
"I said dab, not stab!" he barked, flinching.
Just then, the chamber doors opened. A hunter in sleek black armor stepped in, saluting.
"Commander Sylus. Reporting as ordered."
Sylus gestured lazily with his free hand. "My father's study. Third door."
But the hunter hesitated. "He wanted the report verbally."
Sylus groaned. "You do it."
---
Sylus's father stood by the tall windows, arms crossed.
"Well?" he asked without turning.
The hunter stood tall. "The monster incident resulted in no deaths, sir. But seven were injured. Two severely."
"And?" the older man asked, his voice sharp.
The hunter paused. "…And… there was something else. An occurrence."
Sylus's father turned to face him fully now.
"What kind of occurrence?"
The hunter took a breath. "The monster, before retreating, was about to strike a child. But a Voidborn man stepped in front of the child. He did nothing, no magic, no weapon. But when the monster moved to attack… it stopped. It began to tremble… and then it fled."
Sylus's father narrowed his eyes. "Trembled?"
"Yes, sir. As if it had seen something terrifying."
The silence in the room was thick.
"And It seemed like the commander knew him, sir. They left the scene together. Conversing."
Sylus's father tapped a finger against his chin, thoughtful.
"…Interesting."