The journey back to the old cabin was long, but it felt different now. The dense forest seemed less threatening as Kieran walked through it, though the shadows still whispered their secrets. He had passed through here many times before, but this time, everything was heavier. His thoughts were a storm—his transformation, the power he could not control, and the strange words of the mysterious man.
And yet, amid all of this chaos, there was one constant Kieran knew he could rely on: Gareth.
The small cabin nestled at the foot of the mountain had not changed. It looked as weathered as Kieran remembered, with the same warm light spilling out from the crack of the door. The smell of pine and earth filled the air, familiar and soothing.
Kieran pushed open the door, and the soft creak of the wood was the only announcement of his return. Inside, Gareth was seated by the fire, his face half-hidden in the shadows of the room, but his eyes flickered to Kieran the moment he stepped inside.
"Kieran…" Gareth's voice was deep and steady, like a rock in a river's current. He didn't ask questions. He simply observed. He had always done that. Seen the things Kieran couldn't say.
Kieran closed the door behind him, his gaze falling to the fire.
"I don't know what's happening to me, Gareth," he confessed, his voice hoarse. The weight of his words felt almost too much for him to carry. The transformation. The strange aura he had felt. The battle with the Constellation. He didn't want to carry these burdens anymore. "Something's… changing."
Gareth sat up, the firelight dancing across his face. The years had etched deep lines into his skin, but his eyes—those eyes—still held that same quiet understanding.
"I know," Gareth said simply.
Kieran blinked, taken aback. "You know?"
Gareth nodded slowly, his gaze unflinching. "I've watched you for years, Kieran. I've seen the way you've grown, fought, and struggled. You've always had something inside you—a strength, a potential that none of us can quite explain. But I never asked you to explain it. I just knew that, one day, you'd have to face it."
Kieran stepped forward, his fists clenched at his sides.
"But Gareth, I don't know how to control it. There's something in me—something I can't even name. And when I fought the Constellation… I lost myself. It was like I was taken over. I wasn't even me anymore."
Gareth rose from his seat, moving toward Kieran with a calmness that made the world outside seem distant, as if time itself had slowed.
"I never asked you to be like anyone else, Kieran. Not even your grandfather. I only wanted you to understand one thing: you are your own person. What's inside you, the power, the destiny—you'll figure it out when you're ready. And when you do, you'll be the one to choose what to do with it."
Kieran felt the weight of Gareth's words. For the first time in days, something inside him shifted—a quiet reassurance that maybe… maybe he didn't need to have all the answers now.
But there was one thing that gnawed at him, something he couldn't let go of. "I… I was wondering, Gareth… do you think it was my grandfather, Sylas? Did he do this to me? Is this his legacy? I don't know who I'm supposed to be anymore."
Gareth's expression softened, a sigh escaping his lips. "Sylas… he was many things. But he wasn't someone you need to fear. He wasn't someone you need to emulate. Your past—his past—doesn't define you."
Kieran looked up at him, the question burning in his chest. "Then what does?"
Gareth's eyes, those deep, knowing eyes, met his.
"You. It always has been."
Kieran took a deep breath, letting the words sink into him. There was something powerful in them—something grounding.
"I'm not the first to hold this power, am I?" Kieran asked quietly. He wasn't just asking about the physical strength, but about the weight that came with it. The destiny. The burden. He was meant to carry it. But did that mean he had to carry it alone?
Gareth smiled faintly. "No. But you're the one who will decide what to do with it."
The silence between them felt comfortable, the kind of silence that only existed between two people who truly understood each other. Gareth wasn't pushing him to make any decisions. He wasn't telling him to be a hero or to follow some destiny. He was simply letting Kieran figure it out—at his own pace.
Finally, Kieran exhaled, feeling the tension in his chest ease.
"I don't have to be like anyone else, do I?" he asked, his voice softer now.
"No," Gareth said, his voice firm yet kind. "You only have to be yourself."
And for the first time in a long while, Kieran believed it.
The Next Morning
The morning sun filtered through the cabin window, casting soft golden rays across the floor. Kieran had slept deeply, the weight of the previous days fading in the warmth of the fire and Gareth's steady presence.
When he woke, Gareth was already up, preparing breakfast as he always did. The smell of fresh bread and herbs filled the room.
"Feel better?" Gareth asked, turning with a grin.
Kieran nodded, a small smile tugging at his lips. "Yeah. I think I do."
Gareth handed him a plate, the two of them settling down to eat in companionable silence. For a moment, Kieran felt like just a normal person—no expectations, no power, no destiny pressing down on him.
And for the first time in a long while, he allowed himself to simply be.
But as he looked out the window, his eyes fell on the distant mountains. The journey wasn't over. His destiny—whether he liked it or not—was still ahead of him.
And the power inside him? It wasn't going to wait.
But for now… it could.