The city of Ain, which had always been a place of wonder with its elemental marvels—eternally flaming streetlamps tended by low-level Fire Sephirah, public fountains sculpted and maintained by Water artists—was now a labyrinth of threats. Every shadow held a guard. Every glance felt like an accusation. My new cloak, rough and smelling of flour, was my only shield.
I moved like the ghost I was, keeping to the narrow service alleys behind the main thoroughfares. The grandeur of the capital was a stark contrast to the grime I now navigated. Here, the glorious elements were used for cleaning gutters or reinforcing crumbling walls. It was a world within a world, a underbelly sustained by the barest flickers of power.
My stomach clenched with a hunger that was more than physical. It was a hollow echo of the void inside me. I needed food, but I had no coin. I saw a baker's apprentice, a boy no older than me, using a focused whisper of Air to cool a tray of fresh rolls. My mouth watered. The simple, honest warmth of bread felt like a universe away from the cold ash of my power.
I couldn't steal it. Not like this. The touch of my hand would turn it to rot.
A plan formed, desperate and pathetic. I waited until the apprentice went inside, then I approached the trash heap behind the shop. I found a half-loaf, stale and discarded. It was food. As I reached for it, a stray dog growled from the shadows, baring its teeth. It was skin and bones, just like me. We were both scavengers now.
I froze, my hand outstretched. The dog took a step forward, its growl deepening. A stupid, helpless anger rose in me. Was this it? Was I to be bitten over garbage in an alley?
The cold pool inside me stirred, reacting to my spike of fear and frustration. I didn't mean to summon it. A trickle of Decay leaked from my fingertips, touching the cobblestones between me and the dog.
The stone didn't crumble. Instead, a patch of greasy moss growing between the cracks instantly blackened and withered, releasing a faint, foul odor of putrefaction. The dog yelped, recoiling as if struck. It whined, tucked its tail between its legs, and fled into the darkness.
I was left alone with the stale bread and the smell of death. I had won. I felt sick.
I ate the bread. It tasted of dust and despair.
As night deepened, the cold became a real threat. I found a forgotten corner behind a chandler's shop, nestled between two large barrels of wax. I pulled my cloak tight. I was shivering, alone with the sound of my own breathing and the oppressive weight of my thoughts.
This is your existence now, the voice in my head whispered. It sounded like my voice, Leo's voice, cynical and tired. Hiding. Stealing rot. Frightening animals. This is the grand destiny the universe had for you? A second life as a rat?
Tears of frustration welled in my eyes, but I refused to let them fall. Crying was a luxury for people who had a future.
A commotion at the end of the alley made me shrink deeper into the shadows. Two city guards were walking past, their conversation carrying on the still night air.
"…nothing yet. Like he vanished into smoke."
"The priest from the square is furious. Says the 'taint' of the Heretic must be purified from the very stones."
"A load of dramatic nonsense if you ask me. A scared kid with a nasty element. Probably fell in the river and drowned."
"Don't let a Keter hear you say that. They're taking it seriously. Word is, Lady Malkuth herself has been informed."
Lady Malkuth. The name hit me like a physical blow. One of the great Ten Families. The masters of Earth. My existence was so insignificant, so vile, that it had reached the ears of the highest echelons of power. The hunt wasn't just local guards; it was now a matter of state.
The hope that had been a tiny, flickering ember inside me guttered and died. There was no escape. The entire world, with all its elemental might and religious fervor, was closing in on one terrified, reincarnated soul.
I was so absorbed in my despair that I didn't notice the figure approaching from the other end of the alley until a soft voice spoke, startling me.
"You look like you could use a warm meal that hasn't been thrown away."
I jerked my head up, scrambling back against the barrel. A woman stood there, silhouetted against the distant light of the main street. She was tall and lean, wrapped in a dark, practical traveler's cloak. Her face was hidden in shadow, but I could feel her gaze on me.
Panic flared. Had she seen me use my power? Was she a guard? A bounty hunter?
I said nothing, my body tensed to run.
She took a slow step forward, not threatening, but deliberate. She raised empty hands. "I'm not with the city watch. And I'm certainly not with the Church."
Her voice was calm, low, and carried a strange accent I couldn't place. It was the voice of someone who wasn't afraid.
"I saw what happened in the square," she continued, and my blood ran cold. "A most… unusual Awakening."
"I don't know what you're talking about," I mumbled, my voice hoarse from disuse and fear.
"Of course you don't," she said, a hint of dry amusement in her tone. "The question is, what are you going to do now? Stay here and freeze? Wait for them to find you?"
"I have nowhere to go," I whispered, the truth torn from me.
"That," she said, taking another step closer, "is not entirely true."
She finally moved into a sliver of moonlight cutting between the buildings. She was older than I first thought, with sharp, intelligent features and eyes that seemed to see everything. They weren't full of the fear or disgust I'd seen all day. They were… curious. Analytical.
"The world calls it Decay," she said, her voice barely a whisper. "A Heretical Element. A thing to be feared and destroyed. They are fools who see only the end, not the process."
I stared at her, utterly confused. Who was this woman?
"What is your name?" she asked.
The name 'Kaelen' died on my lips. That boy was gone. I was Leo. But I couldn't tell her that. I remained silent.
She nodded slowly, as if my silence was an answer enough. "A name has power. Perhaps it is best left behind for now." She gestured with her head down the alley, away from the main street. "Come with me if you want to live. And if you want to learn what that power of yours truly is."
It was a madness. It could be a trap. She could be luring me to my execution.
But what choice did I have? To stay was to be caught. To go with her was… a possibility. However slim.
She saw the conflict on my face. "The Church and the Council see your power as an abomination because it does not fit their neat, divine hierarchy. They fear what they cannot control, what they cannot understand. I," she said, a sharp smile touching her lips, "am very interested in understanding."
She turned and began to walk away, not checking to see if I followed. She moved with an unnerving certainty.
I hesitated for only a second longer. The memory of the dog, the taste of stale bread, the cold seeping into my bones. The terrifying, absolute certainty of the guards' conversation.
I pushed myself away from the barrel. My legs were stiff and cold, but I took a step. Then another.
I was following a stranger into the unknown darkness. It was the worst decision I could make.
It was the only one I had left.