The world was dead.

  Not dying, not decaying—*dead*. The ground beneath Kael’s boots was a jagged mosaic of cracked earth and shattered glass, remnants of a civilization that had once reached for the stars and touched the divine. Towering spires of blackened metal loomed in the distance, their surfaces etched with glowing runes that flickered faintly, like dying embers. The air was thick with the scent of ozone and ash, a bitter reminder of the cataclysm that had brought this world to its knees.

  Kael moved slowly, his cloak—a patchwork of faded fabrics and frayed edges—dragging behind him. His face was weathered, etched with lines that spoke of centuries of survival and loss. His eyes, sharp and piercing, scanned the horizon with a vigilance born of necessity. He had seen too much, endured too much, to let his guard down now.

  At his side walked Zero, a boy no older than ten, his small frame dwarfed by the desolation around them. Zero’s face was smudged with dirt, his clothes worn and patched, but his eyes burned with a determination that belied his age. He carried a makeshift spear, its tip sharpened to a fine point, and his gaze darted nervously across the landscape.

  “Do you think we’ll ever find it?” Zero asked, his voice barely above a whisper. He didn’t need to say what *it* was. They both knew.

  Kael didn’t answer. His attention was fixed on something in the distance—a structure that stood out against the monotony of the wasteland. It was a tower, ancient and crumbling, its surface covered in symbols that glowed faintly in the dim light. The air around it seemed to hum with an energy that made Kael’s skin prickle.

  They approached cautiously, the ground crunching beneath their boots. The closer they got, the heavier the air became, as if the tower itself was alive and watching them. At its base, they found it—a bundle of cloth, nestled in the shadow of the tower.

  Kael knelt, his hands trembling as he reached for the bundle. Inside was a baby, no more than a few months old, his skin pale and his eyes closed as if in peaceful sleep. But what struck them both was the air around him—a faint, almost imperceptible darkness that seemed to ripple like water.

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  “Ethan,” Kael murmured, the name slipping from his lips as if he had known it all along.

  Zero stared at the baby, his young mind struggling to make sense of what he was seeing. “How… how is he alive?”

  Kael didn’t answer. He couldn’t. All he knew was that this child—this fragile, impossible child—was the first sign of life they had seen in years. And in a world as dead as this, that could mean everything.

  Or nothing at all.

  Kael carefully lifted the baby from the bundle, cradling him in his arms. The child stirred slightly, his tiny fingers curling into a fist, but he did not wake. The darkness around him seemed to pulse faintly, as if responding to Kael’s presence.

  “What is that?” Zero asked, pointing to the rippling air. His voice was tinged with awe and fear.

  Kael hesitated, his gaze fixed on the child. “A power,” he said finally, his voice low and gravelly. “One that should not exist in a world like this.”

  Zero frowned, his young mind struggling to grasp the implications. “Is it… dangerous?”

  Kael’s expression darkened, but he did not answer. Instead, he turned his attention back to the tower. The symbols etched into its surface seemed to glow brighter now, as if reacting to the child’s presence. Kael’s eyes narrowed as he studied them, his mind racing with possibilities.

  “We need to move,” he said abruptly, his tone leaving no room for argument.

  Zero nodded, though his eyes lingered on the baby. “What about him?”

  Kael’s grip tightened slightly around the child. “He comes with us.”

  They moved quickly, the weight of the tower’s energy pressing down on them as they left it behind. The landscape around them was a blur of ash and ruins, the remnants of a world that had once been alive with magic and technology. Kael’s mind raced as he walked, his thoughts a whirlwind of questions and doubts.

  How had the child survived in this lifeless world? What was the source of the darkness that surrounded him? And why did Kael feel as though he had been waiting for this moment his entire life?

  Zero, meanwhile, struggled to keep up, his small legs pumping furiously as he tried to match Kael’s pace. “Do you think there are others?” he asked, his voice breathless.

  Kael shook his head. “No. He is the first. And perhaps the last.”

  The words hung in the air between them, heavy with unspoken meaning. Zero fell silent, his young mind grappling with the weight of Kael’s words.

  As they walked, the sky began to darken, the pale light of the sun giving way to the deep, oppressive gray of twilight. The air grew colder, and the shadows around them seemed to lengthen and twist, as if alive.

  Kael’s grip on the child tightened, his senses on high alert. He had seen this before—the way the shadows seemed to move, the way the air grew heavy with an unseen presence. It was a sign, one that he had hoped never to see again.

  “We need to find shelter,” he said, his voice tense.

  Zero nodded, his eyes wide with fear. “What’s out there?”

  Kael did not answer. He didn’t need to. The look in his eyes was enough.