A new bond

The city's noise felt distant,For a moment, the city's noise faded into the background, like it belonged to someone else. I felt the fragile hope flicker inside me as we stood deeper in Lincoln Park near the lake.
He rested his hand on the low fence by the lake, gaze drifting away for a moment.
"And you were almost right about what you just said."
"We never introduced ourselves earlier."
He hesitated, then added, "My name's Leo. I just arrived this morning. I'm from The city Sancteros."
His voice dropped,nearly swallowed by the the wind through the trees.He searched my face for recognition but found none.I didn't know anything about Sancteros.
"It's a popular city. Everyone I've met knows a lot about it. But looking at you, it's like you're hearing about it for the first time. Guess I'll have to tell you," he said.
"Sancteros is just a neighboring city—not far, not that far. It took me just one day to get here."
"And it's a city built on devotion… but really, it's built on fear. Music, dancing, art, and all types of entertainment are gone. Even laughter feels like a crime. They call it purity. I call it a cage."
His voice sharpened."Worst of all, I was born an Awakened there—treated like a divine relic, like a god. But I really hated that. I couldn't live the way I wanted. I couldn't even take a moment to chase my dreams… It's a place I believed I should have been living in—that's why I ran away. I came here to start a new life.And everything I smell, see, hear, and even feel… none of it exists in that city. This city is different. It's even the opposite."
I didn't know places like that existed. From the way he spoke, Sancteros must be one of the cities twisted after the Lightfall. And he was here to escape it all.
He had the courage to leave his past behind and face his future. I wondered why I couldn't do the same—but still, I'm trying. I'm not giving up.
"I think you made a great choice. A smile is the light in the window of the soul," I added quietly. "If you couldn't smile there… maybe your soul was never meant to be in that place."
He smiled—for real this time."Good thing I left. My soul belongs here. A place where I can make my dreams come true."
"Your dreams?" I asked curious.
"Yeah. I'm going to be a hero!" he said, confidence and determination shining in his voice.
The word scraped against something raw inside me. Once, I'd said the same thing—with the same conviction, maybe even the same smile. Back before I was traumatized.
"This city's called the City of Heroes, right? I thought this was the right place for me to start over," he said.
"You have a nice dream, Leo."
I wished I had the courage to tell him I once had the same dream—before everything changed. But I couldn't.
"I like heroes too," I said instead. "Since you're new here, I'd love to show you around the city. There's a lot more than just this park. What do you say?"
"Really? I'd love to."
Then he hesitated."I haven't found a place to stay yet. I need to do that first. Then… we can have more fun."
"You can stay with me," I offered. "If you don't mind."
The words left my mouth before I could stop them. Maybe because silence had become a weight too heavy to carry alone. Maybe because, beneath my own wreckage, I remembered what it meant to be saved.
His eyes widened. A tear slipped free before he caught it.
"Did I say something wrong?" I asked, panic flickering in my chest.
"No, not at all," he said quickly, wiping it away."I left home without thinking. I didn't care what would even happen to me… But meeting you—" His voice wavered. "I'm more grateful than you know."
A strange warmth bloomed in my chest—something I hadn't felt in years."My name's Cain," I said quietly, meeting his gaze."It's good to have you here, Leo. And don't thank me. If you're going to be a hero who saves countless lives—something I can't do—then let me be a hero for you, right now."
A spark flickered in his eyes, lighting up his face."Thank you so much," he whispered.
He must be exhausted Ftom his journey. I should get him home. 
"Let's go home."
We started walking toward the park's edge when suddenly the atmosphere twisted, sharp and wrong, stabbing at the space around us,Then, without warning, the air sliced sharp and cold, cutting through the calm like a blade. The laughter snapped off—like a wire breaking—and the scent of roasted nuts vanished, replaced by a thick, coppery fog that clung to the skin Children's eyes grew wide; mothers clutched their young. Even the wind stilled, as if holding its breath.

Leo's hands trembled as if the world beneath him was cracking open. His breath hitched, eyes wide and wild, caught between wanting to run and being frozen in place.
Then I saw him.
The man moved with a slow, terrible grace. Blood dripped in thick drops that marked each step like a heartbeat — a dark pulse in the city's light. His eyes were empty wells, searching, endless and hollow.
He didn't run. Didn't hide.Every gaze he passed was pulled like metal to a magnet, stuck fast by some terrible gravity.
Leo's breath hitched. His eyes locked on the trail of red like it might move on its own."Is that a man covered in… blood?" he whispered, voice tight and small.
I'd never seen this before. Leo hadn't.His silence wasn't calm—it was the stunned stillness of someone whose world had just tilted off its axis, and he hadn't yet decided whether to fall or run.
The armored vehicles tore through the park gates like thunderclaps, tires grinding against stone, engines roaring with unholy power. The crowd scattered, screams rising in a desperate tide.They were not ordinary patrol cars—reinforced, armored, stamped with the emblem of the Hero Regulation Authority.
Doors slammed. Boots hit the ground in hard, precise rhythm.Officers in black-and-grey armor fanned out, cutting off every exit.
"Hands where we can see them!" one barked.
"Resist, and we will shoot!"
The man kept walking, unfazed.
A second officer stepped forward, voice cold and sharp."You're under arrest—for breaking Article Seven. Multiple counts of civilian termination."
"What are you even?"
"A monster?"
The word 'monster' echoed like a death sentence — a verdict written in blood for those marked by fear. The man's smile twisted wide — a razor's edge slicing warmth from the air. The park held its breath, caught in the storm of madness about to break