That's... that's the Cryostone, isn't it?"
Kaelen swallowed, unable to tear his gaze away. "I've heard of it," he said slowly, his voice low. "But I've never seen it used before."
"It's worse than they say," Tenny murmured. "It doesn't just kill you. It traps your pain. Makes your soul scream until it fades into nothing."
Kaelen shivered, though the sun was hot against his skin.
Rygar stepped closer to the kneeling soldier, his gaze cold and unreadable. "You betrayed the code," he said. His voice was low, but every word carried like thunder. "And betrayal demands a price."
The soldier's eyes burned with defiance, though fear shadowed his features. "I did nothing!" he snarled. "This is a mistake!"
Rygar's expression didn't change. He raised the Cryostone. Its glow deepened, the blue light pulsing beneath its jagged surface. The air shifted, turning sharp, biting. The stone hummed, a low vibration that seemed to echo in Kaelen's chest
And then Rygar pressed the stone against the soldier's chest.
The effect was immediate and terrifying.
The soldier arched his back, a cry ripping from his throat—a cry so raw, so agonizing, that it silenced the camp. It wasn't just pain. It was deeper than that, something primal and soul-wrenching. His body convulsed, frost seeping from where the stone touched him, spreading along his skin in jagged, icy patterns.
And then came the sound
The Cry Song.
It wasn't a song made of notes. It was a melody born from pain, a scream that vibrated through the earth, sharp and endless. It wasn't just heard. It was felt. A sound that scraped at bone, that dug into the mind. A sound that carried the last shred of a man's life.
Kaelen's hands trembled. His breath turned shallow.
Tenny shook his head, his eyes wide and horror-struck. "I… I didn't think it was real. Not like this."
Kaelen said nothing. He couldn't.
Because the sight before him was already burned into his mind.
The soldier's body fought, shuddering under the force of the Cryostone's power. Frost gripped his chest, climbing higher, turning his skin pale, his lips blue. The cry didn't stop. It only grew sharper, more piercing, until it was nothing but a long, final wail.
And then, silence.
The soldier collapsed, limp, lifeless. His eyes stared empty into the sky, and frost clung to his body like a shroud.
The punishment was over. The execution complete.
But Kaelen's torment had only begun.
Because something moved inside him.
It wasn't a physical thing, but a sensation. A ripple beneath his skin. A sharp pulse that dug into his chest. His heart thudded, a beat too loud, too heavy. He gasped, pressing his hand to his chest, fingers splayed.
And that was when it happened.
The surge.
The same surge from before—like when that soldier died in the labor field. But this time, it was stronger. He felt the power sweep into him, curling like smoke beneath his ribs, burrowing deep into his core. It wasn't pain. It wasn't pleasure.
It was power.
Kaelen's eyes widened. His pulse raced.
Tenny turned sharply. "Kaelen?" His voice was low, tense. "What's wrong?"
Kaelen struggled to breathe, struggled to speak. His voice came out rough, uncertain. "I... I felt it. Again." His eyes flickered to the fallen soldier, then back to Tenny. " inside me."
"What?" Tenny frowned. "What do you mean?"
Kaelen's hand pressed harder to his chest, as though he could hold the power in place. "I... it's the same as before. When that soldier died in the field.
Tenny's gaze saddened. "Poor Kaelen you shouldn't be witnessing things like this," Tenny thought. Not knowing what kaelen actually meant.
Kaelen's mind swam with confusion, but the answer came. Not in words. But in feeling
Mind manipulation. He had just absorbed the power to manipulate minds, but his own, unknown to him
-----
The air hung heavy with silence, broken only by the faintest echoes of a distant breeze. Kellen stood rigid, his gaze lost, confusion shadowing his features. The soldier's lifeless body lay a few feet away, cold and still, but Kellen's mind felt just as hollow.
He turned to Tenny, his voice low, uncertain
"Tenny… why are we here?"
Tenny didn't look up at first, leaning lazily against the rough stone wall, arms crossed. He gave a casual chuckle, trying to lighten the mood. "Why are we here? Well, I was hoping you'd know. Maybe it's for the free food and the cozy dungeon beds?" He grinned. "You know, luxury treatment for the finest thieves in the land."
But when he glanced up, the grin faded. Kellen wasn't smiling. His eyes weren't teasing. They were lost. Scared.
Tenny's laughter faltered. "Wait. What do you mean, why are we here?"
Kellen's brows furrowed, his lips parting as though the words hurt to say. "I… I don't know why we're here. I don't know why I'm here."
Silence.
Tenny blinked. Slowly. A laugh tried to escape, but it came out cracked, unsure. "Oh, come on, Kellen. Don't do that. Not now. We've been through enough today without you trying to mess with me."
But Kellen just stood there, still, confusion deepening.
Tenny's throat tightened. "You're not joking?"
Kellen shook his head, a slow, heavy motion. "No. I… I don't remember how we got here."
The humor drained from Tenny's face. He took a slow, cautious step forward. "You don't remember getting dragged in here? You don't remember the accusations, the yelling, the chains?"
Kellen's eyes blinked, slow and empty. "No."
Tenny stood still, disbelief freezing him. "Okay, wait. Maybe you're just shaken. Maybe you hit your head or something. It'll come back." He rubbed his neck, forcing out an uneasy laugh. "It has to, right? It has to."
Still, Kellen was silent.
Tenny's heart pounded, his voice breaking as he pressed. "You're telling me you forgot everything? You forgot last night? You forgot sneaking out."
No answer
Tenny's breath came faster, sharp.
"Kellen… you don't remember why we were even there?"
Kellen shook his head again, slower this time, as though afraid of the answer himself.
Panic gnawed at Tenny's gut. He laughed, but it sounded broken. "You don't remember telling me you heard voices? And Late last night? You remember that, right?"
Kellen hesitated but said nothing.
Tenny's stomach dropped. His voice lowered, tense. "You don't remember saying you heard them? Across the field. Talking about… us."
Still silence.
"You said it was strange," Tenny pressed. "You said they were planning something. Something bad. I thought you were joking at first. I said your ears were too sharp for your own good. But you insisted." He took a step closer, voice urgent. "You said they were planning to frame us, Kellen. "To make it look like we stole from them." Pointing at the soldiers. "Like we stole from the store."
Kellen blinked slowly, confusion lacing his features.
Tenny's heart twisted. "That's why we left. That's why we snuck out in the middle of the night. We were going to catch them in the act. Prove we weren't thieves."
Kellen's breath caught, his hands curling slightly. "I… I don't remember."
Tenny stared, fear pooling in his chest. "You don't remember crouching behind the shed? Waiting for hours? Listening? Watching?" His voice cracked. "You don't remember thinking we'd catch them before they framed us?
Kellen looked down, as though searching for memories on the ground. "No. I remember… nothing. Nothing but… the soldier falling. "And then…" He paused, his hands trembling. "And then it's just empty.
Tenny's face paled. He took a step back, shaking his head. "This is bad. "This is—this is really bad." He glanced toward the soldier's body, his mouth dry.
Kellen's voice was barely a whisper. "I… I feel it again." His hands shook at his sides. "Like… something inside me." Like something's changed."
Tenny shivered. "Kellen… what's wrong with you?"
Kellen opened his mouth, but no words came. Only confusion. Only fear.
Tenny stared at his friend, then at the soldier's body, and his chest tightened with a dread he couldn't shake. "Whatever it is, it's not normal."
----
About an hour later, soldiers suddenly came to their cell, dragged Kaelen and Tenny roughly through the dirt-laden corridor, their hands bound tightly behind them. The sharp sting of rope burned against their skin, and Tenny winced as one of the soldiers shoved him forward, his shoulder scraping against the rough wall.
"Move!" barked the lead soldier, his voice sharp and cutting.
"You think you can steal and get away with it?" another soldier snarled, yanking Kaelen by his collar and forcing him into the dim, cold interrogation room. The walls were bare, the air heavy with tension.
They threw the boys down onto a wooden bench, the force jarring their bones. The soldiers stood tall and looming, faces twisted in disgust.
"Thieves," one soldier spat, glaring at them with narrowed eyes. "Caught red-handed, weren't you?"
Tenny opened his mouth, but fear sealed his words. He looked to Kaelen, searching for a response, but Kaelen's jaw was tight, his gaze steady.
"You think we don't know?" the female soldier hissed, stepping closer. "Evidenceæ in your section. Who else would it be?"
Rough hands yanked Tenny upright, his wrists straining against the ropes. Kaelen was pulled up too, shoved hard against the cold stone wall. The soldiers circled them like vultures, their accusations sharp and merciless.
But then, Kaelen's voice cut through the haze of rough treatment, calm and steady.
"We are not thieves," he said. His voice wasn't loud, but it echoed in the tense silence that followed.