I woke from my sleep to the sound of my mother's scream. Two minutes later, she burst into our room, the door slamming against the wall. Before I could understand what was happening, she shouted:
"Pack your things! Now!"
"What? What's going on, Mom?" I croaked, my voice rough with sleep. My little brother, not understanding a thing, burst into tears.
The sun had barely risen, yet with a single word from my mother, the world plunged back into darkness:
"Dragons…"
Dragons had always been nothing more than a legend. Most people dismissed them as nonsense, and I had secretly mocked my parents for believing. I had never given it a thought. But the fear in my mother's eyes silenced every doubt inside me. Without another word, I began to pack.
In less than ten minutes, we were in the car. My father and mother sat like stone statues in the front seat. Only my mother's lips moved, whispering prayers. My brother had stopped crying; now he only hiccuped softly beside me. I couldn't hold it any longer.
"Mom, where are we going?" I asked.
"To the Sair Grove," she said, drawing a deep breath. She reached back, her hand brushing over our knees. "The dragons have come… the prophecy has come true. Your father and I are part of a small group that has been preparing for this. In the grove, there are ships waiting to take us to Earth. We'll be safe. Don't be afraid, my babies."
"Mom… what are you even saying?!" I shouted in disbelief. Just yesterday, I had graduated high school. I had dreams, plans, a future.
Now all of it felt like a nightmare spun out of madness.
And yet, when she looked into my eyes, that look carried everything: fear, worry… and an unshakable faith.
When we reached Sair Grove, a massive crowd had gathered. Faces were carved with terror; mothers clutched their children tight, old men muttered prayers, dogs barked and strained at their chains. Chaos. Pure chaos.
Among the crowd I spotted familiar faces. I waved at one of my classmates, but he turned away. Or maybe he didn't see me at all—maybe no one was seeing anyone anymore.
Even here, Selim was the same as always. Cold. Composed. Silent. His eyes swept over the crowd, but his face betrayed nothing—like none of this mattered to him at all.
My parents were stepping into the ship when a scream ripped the air behind me. Something cold coiled around my leg. My heart leapt into my throat. I looked down and froze.
Half-man, half-lizard—its skin glistened with scales, its eyes gleamed with hunger. I almost lost control of myself right there. I had never seen anything so revolting. I wished I never had.
I didn't know what to do. My heart pounded against my ribs, each beat like a drum of panic. In seconds, the grove swarmed with more of them. Sahrans.
My family was already on board. They were shouting my name, reaching for me, but their voices sounded muffled, like echoes from the bottom of a well.
Everyone in our kind is born with a gift. Mine was healing. And in that desperate moment, I did the only thing I could—I reversed it.
Heat surged through my veins, my hands trembling as I turned my healing into ruin. The creature shrieked, convulsing, its body twisting as its systems collapsed under my power.
It worked.
But my triumph shattered the instant I looked up. The ships—every single one—were rising into the sky.
My eyes widened in horror. My mother. My brother. Their hands struck the glass, their mouths screamed my name—but I couldn't hear them. Only silence. Only the echo of loss.
I was alone.
And then a shadow fell over me.
The creature I had struck down was standing again, its rage twice as fierce. Its claws seized me, slamming me hard into the ground.
My head hit stone. The world blurred.
And then… nothing.
Darkness.