The night the dreams began again, the sky above Riverfall Village burned red.
Kael woke with a sharp breath, sweat covering his body. His heart pounded as if he had been running for his life.
Again… that dream.
A kingdom in flames. Soldiers shouting. A massive throne room collapsing. And a man in golden armor shouting to him—
"Run! You must live!"
Kael rubbed his forehead and sat up on his small wooden bed. Moonlight slipped through the cracks in the wall of his tiny room.
"Just a dream," he whispered.
But it never felt like one.
He had been having the same dream since he was a child. Fire. War. A crown falling. And always someone calling his name.
Yet no one in Riverfall Village knew where Kael truly came from. He had been found as a baby near the forest seventeen years ago by an old farmer, who raised him as his own.
To everyone else, he was just Kael—the stubborn boy who asked too many questions.
But deep down, Kael always felt different. Like he didn't belong.
And tonight, something felt wrong.
A loud crash sounded outside.
Kael jumped up and looked through the window. Dogs barked wildly. Villagers shouted. Torches flickered in panic.
"What's going on?" he muttered.
He threw on his coat and rushed outside.
Smoke rose from the edge of the village.
Strangers in dark armor marched into Riverfall, their faces hidden behind iron masks. Some villagers were already being dragged out of their homes.
Kael froze.
Soldiers? Here?
Riverfall was too small and poor for war.
One masked soldier grabbed a man and shouted, "Search every house! Find the boy!"
Kael's stomach tightened.
Find the boy?
Before he could think, someone grabbed his arm and pulled him into the shadows.
It was Mira, his childhood friend, breathing fast.
"Are you crazy?" she whispered. "They're looking for you!"
"For me? Why?"
"I don't know! But they asked about a seventeen-year-old boy found in the forest years ago. That's you!"
Fear crept into Kael's chest.
How could strangers know about that?
Suddenly, footsteps approached. A soldier turned toward them.
"Hey! Someone's there!"
Mira pushed Kael. "Run!"
They sprinted between houses as shouts erupted behind them.
Kael's mind spun. Why him? What did they want?
An arrow flew past and struck the ground ahead, forcing them to stop.
Three soldiers blocked the path.
One stepped forward. "Kael Ardyn," he said coldly. "By order of Lord Varyn, you are coming with us."
Kael felt something strange awaken inside him at the sound of that name.
Pain shot through his chest. His vision blurred.
And suddenly—
A bright blue light burst from his body.
The soldiers were thrown backward as if struck by an invisible force.
Mira stared in shock. "Kael… what did you just do?"
Kael looked at his glowing hands, terrified.
"I… I don't know."
Before they could speak again, a hooded warrior appeared from the darkness, sword in hand. With swift movements, he forced the stunned soldiers to retreat.
He turned to Kael.
"It seems," the stranger said, "your power has awakened at last… Your Highness."
Kael blinked.
"Highness?"
The warrior lowered his hood, revealing scarred features and stern eyes.
"My name is Roderic," he said. "And if you want to live, you must come with me now."
Behind them, more soldiers entered the village.
Kael looked back at his burning home… then at the stranger.
His life in Riverfall was over.
And whatever truth waited ahead…
It had finally found him.