The rain wouldn't stop.
It had been falling for hours, drenching the broken city in gray silence. Rubble lined the streets like forgotten corpses, and the air reeked of ash, steel, and old blood.
Kaien crouched in the ruins of a collapsed tower, one arm wrapped around his ribs, the other clutching a chipped dagger. His hood was soaked, dripping water down the bridge of his nose, but he didn't flinch. His breath was steady, eyes fixed on the street below where patrols searched for survivors. Or threats. He was both.
The shadow around him pulsed, curling at his feet like smoke. He didn't command it. It clung to him, lived inside him. He didn't know why. All he knew was that people died when they touched him. So he stayed hidden. Alone.
Until he showed up.
Footsteps.
Not the heavy boots of the patrols, but slow, deliberate ones. Measured. Calm. Like someone walking through a dream. Kaien leaned forward slightly, peering between the cracked stone. A figure in white moved through the rubble. A long coat, unstained by the mud. Hair like silver threads, eyes that glowed faintly gold even in the dim.
Kaien's dagger twitched in his hand.
The man looked straight at him. Through the stone. Through the shadow.
"You're bleeding," the man said softly. "And hiding. Neither will save you."
Kaien said nothing. The shadow stirred. Threatened.
The man stepped closer.
"You live in darkness because the world told you the light would burn you. But the light doesn't burn. Not unless you lie."
Kaien slowly stood, eyes narrowed.
"Who are you?" he rasped.
The man smiled. Not warm. Not cold. Just... real.
"My name is Elias. I came to tell you the truth."
Kaien laughed bitterly. "The truth is dead."
Elias shook his head. "No. The truth is waiting. Buried beneath lies, fear, and shadow. Like you."
For the first time in years, Kaien didn't feel like a weapon. He felt... seen.
"You don't know me," he said.
"Not yet," Elias answered. "But I will. And when that time comes... you'll stand in the light. Even if it kills you."
Kaien lowered his blade.
The rain began to slow.