Chapter 3 — Return to the Hill

The landing was rough.
The gravity glider cushioned their fall, but not enough to stop them from crashing through several layers of dense foliage. Kael grunted as his shoulder slammed against a tree trunk, while Kuro flipped mid-air and landed gracefully like a cat.
“You need to work on your landings,” Kuro quipped, dusting off his coat.
Kael stood up, breathing heavily, bruises forming on his arms. His eyes scanned their surroundings. The forest was familiar—too familiar.
“This… this is near the valley,” Kael murmured.
“That’s good, right?” Kuro asked, stretching his arms lazily.
“No,” Kael said, his jaw tightening. “It means we’re close to my family… and if they took me, they’re not far behind.”
Without waiting for Kuro’s reply, Kael took off running.



The sun was dipping behind the hills, casting long shadows across the familiar plains. Kael’s heart pounded as he sprinted toward the small wooden house perched on the slope.
He knew something was wrong even before he saw the smoke.
Thick, black, suffocating smoke rising into the sky. Flames licked at the wooden beams of the house. The garden was trampled, the earth scarred by mechanical tracks.
“Elira!” Kael’s voice cracked as he dashed forward, ignoring Kuro’s warning shout behind him.
Figures moved in the haze—soldiers in exo-suits, sleek and faceless, their armor engraved with the same glyphs as the ship. They moved methodically, searching, scanning.
Kael didn’t hesitate. He rushed the first soldier, grabbing the arm of his exo-suit and twisting with brutal force. The armor crunched as the man collapsed. Kael spun, grabbed the fallen weapon, and opened fire.
But there were too many.
Two, four, six—more figures emerged from the treeline, encircling him.
“Get down!” Kuro’s voice rang out.
A searing arc of blue light flashed past Kael’s head. Kuro appeared behind him, wielding a Relic Blade, its edge humming with ancient energy. He moved like a phantom, slicing through the exo-suits with inhuman precision.
Kael barely had time to register it.
“That’s a Relic… how do you have one?” Kael asked, dodging a plasma shot.
“I borrow things,” Kuro grinned, parrying an incoming strike.
Together, they fought, back-to-back, but for every enemy they downed, more took their place. Kael's lungs burned. His arms were growing heavy. The attackers were relentless.
And then, a sound pierced through the chaos.
“Papa!”
Kael turned his head sharply.
At the far end of the field, near the edge of the collapsing house, Elira stood with Aen, Lira, and Kian. She was holding a salvaged energy rifle, covering the children with her body.
Kael’s breath caught. Relief mixed with dread.
“Elira! Get them out of here!” he shouted.
But Elira shook her head. “We can’t outrun them!”
The soldiers regrouped, weapons trained on them. The inevitable was closing in.
Kuro’s expression darkened. “Guess I have to show off.”
He stabbed the Relic Blade into the ground. The glyphs along its edge glowed violently. The earth beneath them rumbled. A pulse of energy exploded outward, a shockwave that sent the soldiers sprawling.
Kael stumbled, barely keeping his footing. The entire battlefield had changed—the Relic’s activation had created a protective barrier, a dome of light enclosing them.
“What… what did you do?” Kael asked, astonished.
“I made some noise,” Kuro said, catching his breath. “It won’t last long. Get to your family.”
Kael didn’t wait.
He sprinted toward Elira, enveloping her and the children in a fierce embrace.
“I thought I lost you,” he whispered, voice cracking.
“We’re not that easy to get rid of,” Elira replied, though her trembling hands betrayed her fear.
But Kael could feel it.
There was a pulse, a strange resonance vibrating through his very bones. He looked at the remnants of the Relic embedded in the ground. It wasn’t just Kuro. He felt connected to it too.
“What’s happening to me?” Kael murmured, feeling his heartbeat sync with the glowing glyphs.
Kuro approached, panting. “Congratulations. You’re one of us.”
Kael looked at him, confused.
“One of what?”
Kuro’s eyes narrowed. “A Relic-Bound.”
Before Kael could respond, alarms echoed in the distance. Reinforcements were coming.
Kuro grabbed his shoulder. “We need to move. Now.”
Kael’s grip tightened around Elira’s hand as he looked back at their burning home.
This wasn’t over.
This was just the beginning.