"Alex! Honey, get up!" I open my eyes to see my mother, tears streaming down her face. My heart races, and I hear screams echoing off the castle walls.
"Mom, what's happening?" My voice shakes, the realization hitting me—we're under attack.
"Alex, please listen carefully," she says, her voice trembling. "The Dragon Kingdom is here. Something went wrong. I can't explain everything right now, but I need you to trust me, okay?" Her hands shake as she grips my shoulders. "I need you to hide. There's a secret passage in your room, behind the bookcase. Don't come out until you're sure it's safe. Understand?"
"Yes, Mama," I whisper.
She doesn't hesitate. With urgency, she drags me out of bed, almost knocking me off balance. We rush toward the large bookcase that lines one wall of my room. She pulls on a brown leather-bound book, and the bookcase shifts, revealing a hidden passage. "Alex, my baby boy, please know I love you," she says, her voice barely more than a whisper. "Do not leave this room. Promise me."
"I promise," I say, my heart pounding.
She pushes me inside, and the heavy stone door closes behind me. I hear nothing but silence.
It's cold and dark in the hidden chamber. I feel around for a candle I remember seeing on the floor, my small hands finding the wax. I light it, watching the soft flame flicker and cast shadows on the stone walls. The air is damp and musty. I curl up in a ball, the weight of what's happening sinking in, but I don't know what to do.
I fall asleep, the quiet surrounding me like a shroud.
When I wake, I hear only silence. Too much silence. My heart races as I crawl toward the stone wall, pushing against it. It opens, revealing my bedroom. The sight that meets me makes my blood run cold.
The floor is slick with blood, and the walls are smeared with it. I stagger down the hall, my legs shaking with each step. I pass rooms filled with torn bodies, the grotesque signs of violence everywhere—hearts ripped from chests, women's dresses torn, their bodies abused in ways that haunt my soul.
I make my way to my twin sister's room, my breath catching as I see the door ajar. I push it open, and my heart shatters.
"Mom! Dad!" I scream, the pain tearing through me like a physical blow.
The scene in front of me is too much to bear. My father's body is pinned to the wall, his hands hammered into the stone. His head is twisted unnaturally, and his stomach is torn open, blood pooling beneath him. My mother lies beside him, her body brutally battered, her clothes barely clinging to her. Blood runs down her legs, and the bruises on her skin tell the story of unimaginable pain.
And then I see her. My little sister, only eight years old, lies in a pool of blood. Her throat is torn open, her face frozen in a silent scream.
I can't understand why this happened. Why my family? What did we do to deserve this?
I crawl to my sister's body, tears streaming down my face. I gently turn her over, cradling her head in my lap. I whisper to her, brushing the hair from her face, trying to comfort her even though I know she's gone. The world feels like it's collapsing around me, but I can't stop the sobs that wrack my body.
The pain is unbearable. But beneath it, something else begins to stir. A burning anger. A vow.
I will make them pay. For everything.
The world will burn.