Kael was terrified, and he ran. He didn't know where he was going, he just knew he had to get away from the scared, blaming looks of the people in the Sump. He ran into the maze-like tunnels. His new strength made it easy to get around. He jumped over big gaps that he would have had to climb carefully yesterday. He climbed up wet, pipe-covered walls like an insect. His body moved with a power he couldn't understand. Every step reminded him of the trouble he was in.
He didn't stop running until he was back in his small, safe home. He pushed the heavy iron bar back in place to lock the door. He leaned against the cold metal, breathing hard. He wasn't tired from running, but from being scared. He couldn't forget the image of Grist flying through the air, or the sound of his bone breaking. He had never really hurt anyone before. He had always survived by being quiet and not causing trouble. Now, everyone would think he was a monster.
News travels fast in the Sump. By night, everyone would know his name. Grist's friends would come looking for him. He felt like he was already dead.
He looked around his small home for an answer, but there was nothing. He had a few things he had found: a thin blanket, some broken dishes, and a few old, wet books. He couldn't read the books, but he liked the pictures of a world with blue skies and green trees. In the corner was a small, dirty wooden box.
It was the only thing he had from his parents. They had died when he was a kid in a tunnel collapse, which was a common way to die in the Sump. He didn't open the box very often. It reminded him of them, and that made him sad. But now he was desperate, so he knelt in front of it. He hoped there was something inside that could help him.
He opened the lid. Inside were a few simple things: an old silver necklace, a man's leather-working tools, and a small, heavy object wrapped in waterproof cloth. He remembered his parents as simple people. They had taught him how to survive in the Sump. They never seemed like they were hiding any secrets.
With shaking fingers, he unwrapped the cloth. Inside was an object that looked like nothing he had ever seen. It was a small, black metal disc that seemed to soak up the light. Thin, silver lines made a complicated pattern on it. In the middle was a single, white crystal.
He had seen it before but always thought it was just a strange toy his father had found. Now, he turned it over in his hands. It was smooth and cold. There were no buttons or switches. It didn't seem to do anything.
As he touched the silver lines, he had a faint memory of his mother. She was holding the disc and whispering to his father, looking worried. "It's too dangerous," she had said. "What if they find it?" His father's voice was quiet but strong. "It's the only way. If something happens to us, he needs a chance."
The memory was like a ghost, not very clear, but it told him this object was important.
He pressed his thumb on the crystal in the middle. Nothing happened. He tried again, pushing harder. Still nothing. He got frustrated and squeezed it, his new strength almost crushing it. As he squeezed, he felt the same energy that had filled him at sunrise. Without thinking, he pushed that energy into his thumb.
The crystal lit up. It flashed with a bright, silent, blue light that was so bright he had to look away. The silver lines on the disc also glowed blue, and he heard a low hum. The light lasted for one second and then disappeared. The disc was cold and dark again.
Kael stared at it, his heart pounding. What did he just do?
Far away, in a room with walls that looked like they were made of stars and a floor made of smooth, black stone, an old man's eyes opened.
Lord Commander Valerius Kaelen was sitting on the floor. He was very old, but he sat up straight and strong. For fifteen years, the special signal device that connected him to his son, Elian, had been silent. He thought his son, his son's wife, and his grandson were all dead, killed by their enemies.
But now, he felt a signal.
It was a single, bright flash. It wasn't a message, but a call for help. And it came from the worst, dirtiest place on the planet: the Sump under the city of Aethelgard.
Valerius stood up. A helper in a silver and black uniform appeared quietly in the room.
"My Lord?" the helper asked.
"Find it," Valerius ordered. His voice was deep and powerful. "The Cerulean Beacon. I have a signal. Find out where it came from."
The helper looked surprised. "The Cerulean Beacon, my Lord? But that belonged to your son. It hasn't worked in fifteen years."
"I know," Valerius said sharply. "The beacon is on. The power from it is messy and not trained, but it is very strong. Only one person could turn it on with that much power. Someone from my family who has not been trained yet."
The helper understood. "Your grandson."
"He's alive," Valerius whispered. He felt a mix of sadness, anger, and hope. His son had hidden the boy to keep him safe. And now, the boy was in trouble. "He sent a signal. I'm going to answer it."
Back in the Sump, Kael had no idea what he had just started. The quiet in his home was broken by the familiar, cold presence in his mind.
[Outside Energy Signal Found.][Signal Device. Simple Technology.][Warning: Stop using it. Your energy can be seen and might bring unwanted attention.]
Kael felt a chill. The System had seen it and knew what the device was. 'Unwanted attention' was the last thing he needed. He quickly wrapped the disc back in the cloth and put it in the box.
Now he had two scary secrets. His body was getting stronger and stronger every day, and he had a magic device that could call for help from across the world. His parents weren't so simple after all.
He had to get out of the Sump. Not just to escape Grist's friends, but to find answers. But how? The only way out was up, through the middle levels of the city. That would cost money, and he would need papers to prove who he was. He had none of those things.
He felt trapped. He was trapped with a power that could make him a target, and a past that was coming back to find him. He looked at his hands, which now had a terrifying strength. He had heard of the Union, the group that controlled powerful people called the Awakened. He knew they had strict laws. What was happening to him was not normal.
He sat in the dark, feeling the weight of everything on him. He was alone, hunted, and changing into something he didn't understand. And he knew that the sun was coming. And with it, his strength would grow six times more. He could only hope he learned how to control it before it destroyed him.