Kael Vey sat in the dimly lit library, his fingers tracing the ancient pages of the book he had supposedly written. Beside him, the woman who had borrowed it, Elara ,watched him closely. She had not pried further, but the curiosity in her eyes was unmistakable.
The words on the page blurred as another pulse of déjà vu coursed through him. He clenched his jaw, pushing past the discomfort, determined to uncover what lay hidden in his fractured mind. His breath slowed as his eyes fixed on a passage:
"The heavens didn't leave me a leeway, and after countless times of experiencing the same thing I decided to not down my experience ."
Now even Elara at this point couldn't help but make some guesses that might sound absurd to a normal person, but giving Kael's reaction, she was a little bit certain that she understood what was happening.
A sharp pain shot through Kael's head. He winced, gripping the table, but before Elara could voice her concern....
The library disappeared.
---
He was standing in a field of golden grass beneath a violet sky. The air shimmered with power, thick like a storm about to break. In front of him stood a lone figure, cloaked in energy that distorted reality itself.
A Martial God.
Kael knew him. He did not know how, but the name came unbidden to his lips.
"Vaelin."
He called in a whisper..
The being before him turned, eyes burning like molten stars. "So, you do remember."
"Who are you? What's all this?"
Kael's questions made the martial god realise something.
"Kaanan oh Kaanan, I see you'll always be a threat to the heavens even as a mortal, so that man's bloodline can be this terrifying "
He mumbled more like talking to himself
"What is all this!! Who am I!"
Kael screamed in defiance..
Vaelin looked at him with eyes that looked like burning stars.Kael's fingers twitched as instincts long buried fought their way back to the surface,his body remembered, his soul remembered. Those eyes were something he somehow knew too well.
And now he stood here, in this vision, or perhaps a memory resurfacing through the cracks in reality.
"You look weak " Vaelin said with a voice that echoed through the infinite field of golden grasses, it seemed to travel through time as he continued. "even so you're a mistake the heavens will not allow.a mistake my people will not allow"
A flash of light, and the Martial God was upon him. Kael barely had time to move before a force like a collapsing star sent him hurtling backward. He struck the ground, the impact rattling his bones.
Move.
His body acted before thought. He moved his fingers making unfamiliar signs, and a barrier of searing blue light flared to life before him. The next strike slammed into it, sending shockwaves rippling across the field.
Vaelin paused, tilting his head. "Still clinging to power you do not understand? Why don't you give up and rest this time"
Kael staggered to his feet, his chest rising and falling rapidly. "I will understand it."
Vaelin's smirk was razor-sharp. "Then survive."
The world exploded into motion. Kael met Vaelin's assault with raw instinct, dodging by mere inches, countering with slashes of power his mind did not recognize but his body wielded effortlessly. The sky cracked as their clash sent ripples through the very fabric of this dreamlike realm. Each strike he delivered felt familiar, yet incomplete—like reaching for words in a language long forgotten.
Vaelin struck again, this time feinting left before twisting into a brutal backhanded strike. Kael caught the movement a second too late. A hot pain seared through his ribs, and he was sent skidding across the ground. The impact sent up plumes of golden dust, but he forced himself back onto his feet.
"You are strong," Vaelin said, lowering his stance. "But strength without clarity is wasted."
Kael exhaled sharply, eyes narrowing. His body pulsed with energy, but something was missing something crucial. He could feel it, just beyond reach.
He lunged forward. The fight continued, growing fiercer with every exchange. His strikes became sharper, more calculated. Memory and instinct melded. He wasn't just reacting he was beginning to remember.
And then
The vision shattered.
" I'll see you soon Kaanan blade" Vaelen's voice drifted into his soul as vanished from sight.
---
Kael gasped as reality snapped back into place. He was in the library again, his hands gripping the book so tightly his knuckles had turned white. Elara was leaning over him, concern flickering across her face.
"What just happened?" she asked.
Kael exhaled, his heart still hammering against his ribs. He ran a hand through his hair. "I saw… someone."
Elara frowned. "Who?"
"An enemy," Kael murmured. Then, after a pause, "Or perhaps a teacher."
He closed the book, feeling its weight not just in his hands but in his soul. He knew now, this book was a key, unlocking fragments of himself that had been lost. But it was also a beacon, a signal to those who had once stood against him.
The heavens were watching.
And so was Vaelin.
---
That night, sleep did not come easily. The battle replayed in his mind, each motion, each strike. The power Vaelin wielded was immense familiar but Kael could not grasp the full extent of his own abilities.
Morning arrived, and Kael found himself drawn back to the book. He flipped through the pages with purpose, searching for more.
Elara arrived early, holding two cups of coffee. She slid one toward him. "You stayed late."
Kael nodded absently, still engrossed. His fingers paused on a page. A diagram, a symbol etched in black ink. The moment his eyes landed on it, something inside him clicked.
A whisper drifted through his mind, ancient and commanding: You are not alone.
His grip tightened on the book. "I need to find more of these."
Elara raised an eyebrow. "What exactly are you looking for?"
Before he could answer, the library's door creaked open. A cold gust of wind swept through, unnatural for the still morning air. A presence loomed at the entrance.
Kael turned and froze.
A figure stood in the doorway, shrouded in dark robes, eyes burning with ethereal light. The air around them crackled with energy.
Not Vaelin. Another Martial God.
The visitor's gaze locked onto him. "You are awake."
The words were not a greeting. They were a warning.
Kael's fingers flexed against the table. His memories were still fractured, his abilities uncertain.
But one thing was clear.
His past was no longer content to stay buried.
---
Kael pushed back his chair and stood. Elara's breath hitched as Kael pushed her behind , but she remained silent. She couldn't help but stare at the book and wonder .... ' what did I uncover??, Who are you really Kael Vey?'
The library, once a place of quiet refuge, now felt like the eye of a storm about to break.
"I don't know you," Kael said, steadying his stance. "But I know what you are."
The Martial God stepped forward. "Then you know why I am here."
A slow exhale. Kael glanced at the book, then back at the figure.
"Not yet," he admitted. "But I'm about to find out."
Lightning flickered in the stranger's palm, illuminating the library's dark corners. The encounter with Vaelin had been a vision, a remnant of the past.
But this was real.
And Kael was ready to fight for the answers he sought.