The sky still held the impossible afterglow of the light when Kael and Borin arrived at the clearing, their breaths ragged. Their faces were pale, their eyes wildly searching for the source of the light burst that had just blinded the entire village. They found Haelan sitting limply, Kenzo standing stiff and alert, and Lina sobbing quietly on the ground.
"Haelan, by the spirits of our ancestors, what was that light?!" Borin demanded, his voice hoarse with panic.
Kael said nothing. He ran directly to his daughter and hugged her tightly, checking every inch of her for injuries. "Lina, are you alright? What happened, child?"
Haelan took a long breath, his gaze distant as he stared into the darkening sky, as if seeing something no one else could. His voice trembled with a mixture of awe and profound fear.
"That... was Lina's power. A Pure Light Affinity... a gift I have not seen in centuries," he murmured. Then, he turned to Borin and Kael, his eyes conveying a terrible urgency. "That light was not merely magic. It was a beacon. A call that can be felt by anyone sensitive to mana within hundreds of miles."
Haelan paused, letting the weight of his words sink in. "Wandering mages will feel it. Noble knights will see it as an omen. And worst of all..." his eyes darkened, "...the Church will know."
Kenzo frowned, standing in silence as he listened. He could sense the danger in Haelan's tone, but the name was foreign to him. The Church? He instantly connected Haelan's warning with the last data packet from Prometheus: Extreme anomaly. Pure Light Affinity, 120%. His logic began to assemble the pieces of the puzzle.
"The Church?" Kenzo asked, his voice calm, seeking clarification.
Seeing the confusion on Kenzo's face and the dawning horror on Kael's, Haelan continued his explanation. "You must understand, boy," he said to Kenzo. "In these lands, Light magic is considered a holy gift, the magic of the gods. And the Church believes that they alone have the divine right to wield and control it. It is the very foundation of their power."
"For centuries," Haelan went on, his voice dropping to a raspy whisper, "they have 'gathered' anyone who shows this rare talent. They call it a 'holy summons,' but the truth is that children are taken from their families, to be educated under the Church's doctrine, to become living symbols of their divine might."
Haelan looked at Lina, who was trembling in her father's arms.
"A child with Lina's purity and power... to them, she is no longer a child. She is a candidate for Sainthood. The most precious treasure they must possess. They will come for her. And they will not take 'no' for an answer."
That night, the village hall, usually a place for celebrations, felt suffocating with fear. Borin had assembled the elders, along with Haelan, Kael, and Kenzo. The fire in the hearth crackled, its light dancing across tense faces.
"We cannot fight them," said Garek, an old farmer whose hands were calloused from a lifetime of working the fields. "Who are we? Hunters? Farmers? To fight the Church's army is suicide. Perhaps... perhaps if we hand over the child, they will spare our village."
"She is not 'the child'!" Kael roared, leaping to his feet. His eyes were red with a mixture of rage and terror. "Her name is Lina! She is my daughter! Not livestock to be handed over for slaughter!"
"Calm yourself, Kael," Elara said gently, but her voice was firm. "We do not sacrifice our children, Garek. Never. That is not our way."
Just as the room was about to erupt, Kenzo spoke. His voice, calm and logical, immediately drew everyone's attention.
"Based on what Haelan has just explained, our enemy is organized and has a clear objective. We cannot fight their objective, but we can disrupt their methods." He stepped into the center of the room. "Charging at them blindly is suicide, but surrender is not the only other option. We can prepare. We can create a chance."
His plan was simple yet brilliant: teach Lina to control her power to prevent a second signal, fortify their defenses not to win but to buy time, and prepare an escape route as a final resort. The logic in the face of despair was enough to unite them. That night, a small village decided to defy its fate.
The following days were strange, a mixture of suffocating dread and fragile hope. Under Borin's leadership, the entire village moved as one.
In the mornings, Kenzo spent his time with Lina by the river. "Just feel it," he said softly, cupping her small hands between his own. "Inside you, there's a small, warm sun. Just feel it. Don't try to push it out. Just feel its warmth." While he taught, his mind worked with Prometheus. 'Analyze the structure of Light mana in real-time. Find its patterns, find its weaknesses.' He wasn't just teaching; he was studying.
Meanwhile, the rest of the village worked ceaselessly. Kael sharpened the tip of his spear until it gleamed, his eyes filled with a hard resolve. Elara and the other women ground medicinal herbs, their hands moving with swift efficiency. A tragic sense of community enveloped the village.
One evening, while on watch atop the newly reinforced wall, Kael sat beside Kenzo, gazing at the two moons.
"My late wife used to say that Lina has a smile like the blue moon," Kael said quietly, his voice hoarse. "Gentle, but it shines brightest when it's dark." He turned to Kenzo, his usually friendly eyes now holding a deep gravity. "She's a good girl. She trusts you... I do, too."
The weight behind those words was tangible. It was not just a statement; it was a transference. Kenzo swallowed hard, then nodded slowly. "I will protect her, Kael. I promise."
A week after the light, their fragile peace shattered. A young man assigned as a scout stumbled into the village, his face ashen and his breath coming in ragged gasps.
"They're... on the northern ridge," he choked out. "A line of silver... So many... They're coming."
The warning horn blared, splitting the afternoon air. This time, it sounded different. Not a warning against wild beasts, but a death knell brought by men. Elara swiftly herded the women and children into the village hall, their eyes wide with terror. The men ran to their positions, their knuckles white on the shafts of their spears.
Kenzo stood on the defensive wall, flanked by Borin on one side and Kael on the other. His heart hammered against his ribs, a cold sensation creeping up his spine.
From the edge of the forest, they emerged.
A perfect line. Dozens of Holy Knights in silver armor that reflected the evening light, their white cloaks billowing gently in the breeze. Among them walked robed Inquisitors, holding staves with holy symbols that glowed faintly. They did not shout or roar. They moved in disciplined silence, exuding an aura of power and conviction that made the village's wooden defenses feel like a child's toy.
They stopped about a hundred yards from the trench, forming an immaculate line. A knight at the front, perhaps their leader, whose armor was adorned with gold engravings, stepped forward. He raised a gauntleted hand, and the entire army halted in unison. The silence that fell afterward was heavier than any storm. The battle was about to begin.