The Attacked

BOOOOOM!

The ground lurched beneath Kaien's feet.

Cracks spread across the stone road like spiderwebs as villagers stumbled and screamed.

Dust poured into the sky.

The peaceful streets that had been filled with laughter only minutes before had transformed into complete chaos.

"Run!"

"Get to the shelters!"

"They're here!"

Parents scooped up terrified children.

Merchants abandoned their shops, leaving carts overturned as fruit and supplies spilled across the streets.

The academy bell joined the emergency bells, its frantic ringing mixing with cries of panic.

Kaien grabbed Riven by the shoulder.

"We have to move!"

But before any of them could take more than a few steps—

BOOOOOOOM!

A third impact shook the village.

This one was different.

It wasn't inside the village.

It came from the Veil itself.

Everyone instinctively looked north.

Towering over the rooftops stood the immense black wall that had protected the village for generations.

A cloud of stone dust erupted from its surface.

Then another.

Then another.

Each impact was followed by a deafening crash.

"What are they hitting us with?" Riven shouted over the noise.

Kaien narrowed his eyes.

Far beyond the Veil, barely visible through the smoke, he could make out enormous flashes of fire.

Seconds later—

BOOM!

Something slammed into the wall.

The impact sent chunks of black stone tumbling from its side.

"...Cannons," Seraphina whispered.

Riven looked at her.

"What?"

"They're using siege cannons."

Another blast.

Another shower of debris.

The ancient wall that everyone believed was unbreakable was beginning to crack.

Kaien's heart pounded.

His entire life...

The Veil had been treated like an eternal barrier.

A wall that no army could ever breach.

Yet now...

Someone was tearing it apart.

Soldiers rushed through the streets toward the northern gate, their armor clattering as commanders barked orders.

"Archers to the battlements!"

"Shield units forward!"

"Protect the civilians!"

The military base erupted into activity.

Trumpets sounded.

War banners were raised.

From the top of the wall, defenders returned fire with giant ballistae, launching massive bolts into the smoke beyond the Veil.

The bolts disappeared into the haze.

Moments later came distant explosions and screams.

But the cannon fire never stopped.

BOOOM!

BOOOM!

BOOOM!

Each blast struck the same section of the wall.

Dust now covered nearly the entire northern district.

Cracks spread wider.

The Veil groaned.

It sounded almost...

Alive.

Kaien had never imagined stone could make such a sound.

Then...

With a thunderous crack that echoed across the entire valley—

A section of the Veil shattered.

A huge portion of the black wall collapsed inward.

Stone the size of houses crashed into the ground below.

A massive hole had been opened.

For the first time in anyone's memory...

The world beyond the Veil was visible.

Kaien stared.

He expected endless darkness.

That was what everyone had been taught.

Instead...

Beyond the broken wall stretched a vast landscape beneath a gray sky.

Rolling hills.

Black forests.

Mountains in the distance.

And an army.

An enormous army.

Thousands upon thousands of soldiers marched beneath crimson banners bearing the emblem of a black wolf surrounded by a ring of iron.

Rows of armored infantry stretched farther than Kaien could see.

Behind them stood towering siege engines still smoking from repeated cannon fire.

The cannons were enormous, their bronze barrels longer than entire wagons.

Crews hurried to reload them.

Cavalry waited behind the infantry, mounted on powerful warhorses clad in steel armor.

The sight stole the breath from everyone watching.

"...There..."

Riven whispered.

"...There are people..."

Kaien couldn't answer.

People.

Not monsters.

Not endless darkness.

People lived beyond the Veil.

Everything they had been taught...

Everything...

Was a lie.

The invading soldiers let out a thunderous roar.

Their war horns echoed through the breach.

Then, surrounded by heavily armored guards, a rider emerged from the center of the enemy ranks.

He sat atop a massive black horse.

His armor was dark steel trimmed with crimson.

A long scar crossed one side of his face, and a crimson cloak flowed behind him in the wind.

He slowly removed his helmet.

Even from the village, his commanding presence was unmistakable.

He raised one hand.

Instantly...

The entire invading army fell silent.

His voice boomed across the battlefield, amplified by some kind of great bronze speaking horn carried beside him.

"Soldiers of the Iron Dominion!"

His words rolled like thunder.

"Before us stands another kingdom built upon lies!"

The invading army roared in response.

He pointed his sword toward the village.

"Their walls have hidden them long enough!"

Another roar shook the battlefield.

The commander lowered his blade.

His expression remained cold.

Without hesitation, he gave his order.

"Advance."

The front ranks began marching.

Steady.

Disciplined.

Unstoppable.

Then his voice echoed once more.

"Kill every man who resists."

The words carried across the valley.

"Capture every woman and every child."

A wave of horrified silence swept through the village.

Some people covered their mouths.

Others clutched their children tighter.

The commander continued.

"Leave no defenders standing."

"Take prisoners."

"Burn their resistance to ash."

The enemy army answered with a deafening battle cry.

They surged toward the shattered breach.

"No..."

A woman beside Kaien whispered.

"No..."

Panic exploded through the village.

"They're coming!"

"Run!"

"Take the children!"

Families scattered in every direction.

Some fled toward underground shelters.

Others searched desperately for missing loved ones.

The soldiers defending the breach locked their shields together.

Long spears lowered in unison.

Archers took position along the remaining wall.

Captains shouted themselves hoarse.

"Hold the line!"

"Do not let them through!"

Kaien stood frozen.

His eyes remained fixed on the breach.

Beyond it...

Beyond the wall...

The world was far larger than he had ever imagined.

There wasn't only his village.

There wasn't only one nation.

There were kingdoms.

Armies.

Wars.

Everything he had believed since childhood had shattered with the Veil itself.

Riven grabbed Kaien's arm.

"We have to go!"

Kaien didn't move.

His thoughts raced.

Nine nations...

For reasons he couldn't explain, the number suddenly surfaced in his mind.

It felt familiar.

As though he had heard it somewhere before.

Or perhaps...

Dreamed it.

Another cannon fired.

The battlefield erupted again.

The first wave of enemy soldiers charged through the breach as the village's defenders rushed to meet them.

Steel clashed against steel.

The first cries of battle echoed across the broken wall.

And for the first time in Kaien's life...

War had reached his home.

Kaien could barely hear his own thoughts.

The clash of steel echoed from the shattered breach in the Veil.

Smoke climbed into the sky in thick black columns while the thunder of cannons continued to shake the ground beneath the village.

Soldiers shouted orders.

Children cried.

Buildings burned.

Everything that had been ordinary that morning had disappeared.

"Kaien!"

Riven grabbed his shoulder.

"We have to go!"

Kaien finally snapped out of his daze.

"My mom!"

"My dad!"

Seraphina nodded urgently.

"Go!"

"We'll meet at the evacuation docks!"

Riven looked between them.

"No matter what happens."

"We meet there."

Kaien nodded.

"You too."

The three exchanged one last look before sprinting in different directions.

Kaien ran faster than he ever had in his life.

The streets were filled with terrified villagers.

Some carried injured relatives.

Others pulled crying children by the hand.

Several soldiers hurried toward the front lines, pushing through the crowds without stopping.

A burning wagon blocked one road.

Kaien climbed over it.

Another explosion erupted nearby.

Stone fragments rained across the street.

He barely noticed.

His only thought was home.

Please...

Please let them be okay...

He turned the final corner.

His heart stopped.

His house...

Half of it had collapsed.

The front wall had been torn open by falling debris from a nearby explosion.

Smoke drifted through what remained of the roof.

"No..."

Kaien sprinted toward the doorway.

"Mom!"

He climbed over broken beams and shattered stone.

"Mom!"

His voice cracked.

"I'm here!"

A weak voice answered.

"...Kaien..."

He followed it.

The kitchen...

Or what remained of it.

A massive wooden support beam had crashed through the ceiling.

Broken stone and heavy timbers pinned his mother beneath the rubble.

Her legs were trapped.

Blood stained one sleeve of her dress.

Her face was pale, but when she saw Kaien...

She smiled.

"There you are..."

Kaien dropped beside her.

"No..."

"No, no, no..."

He grabbed the beam with both hands.

"I'll get you out!"

He pulled with everything he had.

The wood didn't move.

He gritted his teeth harder.

His muscles trembled.

"Come on!"

Nothing.

The beam was simply too heavy.

Tears filled his eyes.

"Move!"

His mother gently reached up and touched his arm.

"It's okay."

"No!"

He tried again.

"Come on!"

The beam remained motionless.

His breathing became frantic.

"I can do it..."

"I can..."

Another explosion shook the house.

Dust fell from the broken ceiling.

His mother looked toward the doorway.

"...Your father."

Heavy footsteps echoed outside.

Then—

"Kaien!"

His father burst through the ruined entrance.

His work clothes were covered in dust, and there was a fresh cut across his forehead.

The moment he saw the collapsed roof...

His expression changed.

"...No."

He rushed over immediately.

Without wasting a second, he grabbed the beam beside Kaien.

"Together."

Kaien nodded desperately.

"One..."

"Two..."

"Three!"

Both strained with everything they had.

Veins bulged across his father's arms.

The beam groaned.

It lifted...

Only slightly.

Then slammed back into place.

His father stumbled backward, breathing heavily.

"No..."

He immediately tried again.

Again.

Again.

Every attempt ended the same.

The rubble refused to move.

Kaien's mother quietly watched them.

She wasn't crying from pain.

She wasn't screaming.

Instead...

A single tear slowly rolled down her cheek.

Not for herself.

For them.

She already understood what they refused to accept.

Another explosion rocked the village.

Closer this time.

Outside...

People continued rushing toward the southern district.

The evacuation bells never stopped ringing.

His mother looked at his father.

"...Listen to me."

He ignored her.

"There has to be a way."

She gently shook her head.

"There isn't."

"There has to be."

"There isn't."

Her voice remained calm.

Almost impossibly calm.

"You know that."

His father's hands trembled.

"I can still—"

"No."

She reached for his hand.

He froze.

"You have to take Kaien."

His breathing stopped.

"...Don't."

"You have to."

"No."

"The boats."

She looked toward the south.

"They're opening the evacuation docks."

Kaien looked up.

"The boats?"

His father swallowed.

"There are emergency boats..."

He whispered.

"They're behind the southern wall."

"They've never been used."

"They're only for..."

He couldn't finish the sentence.

His mother did.

"...For the day the village falls."

Silence filled the broken house.

Kaien shook his head.

"No."

"We'll all go."

His mother smiled sadly.

"I can't."

"You can!"

"I can't move."

"We'll lift it!"

"You tried."

"We'll keep trying!"

His father lowered his head.

He knew.

She knew.

Only Kaien still refused to believe it.

His mother's eyes met her husband's.

"You promised me..."

His father looked away.

"...Don't."

"If this day ever came..."

"You'd protect him."

Tears finally escaped his eyes.

"I know."

"You have to leave."

"I can't leave you."

"You have to."

Another deafening explosion shook the neighborhood.

Part of the remaining roof collapsed nearby.

The house groaned dangerously.

His mother looked toward Kaien.

"Come here."

He crawled beside her.

She gently placed a trembling hand against his cheek.

He leaned into it instinctively.

"I love you."

His voice broke.

"No..."

"I love you too."

She smiled through tears.

"You've grown into such a kind boy."

"I'm sorry..."

She whispered.

"I'm so sorry."

"For what?"

"I won't get to watch you grow up."

Kaien burst into tears.

"No!"

"Don't say that!"

"We'll save you!"

His father suddenly looked toward the doorway.

Outside...

The sounds of battle were getting closer.

Enemy horns echoed through the streets.

There wasn't any time left.

His mother's voice became firm.

"Go."

Neither of them moved.

"Go!"

Still...

Neither of them moved.

She looked directly at her husband.

"Please."

"If you love me..."

"Protect our son."

His father closed his eyes.

A broken sob escaped him.

"...I love you."

"I know."

"I always will."

"I know."

He kissed her forehead one last time.

Then...

Very slowly...

He stood.

Kaien looked up.

"Dad?"

His father walked toward him.

"No..."

Kaien stepped backward.

"No!"

His father suddenly wrapped both arms around him.

"What are you doing?!"

Kaien struggled wildly.

"No!"

"We can't leave her!"

His father lifted him onto his shoulder despite the desperate kicking and struggling.

"No!"

Kaien screamed.

"Dad!"

"We have to save her!"

His mother smiled through her tears.

"Be brave."

"NO!"

"I don't want to go!"

His father turned toward the door.

Each step felt heavier than the last.

Kaien reached toward his mother.

His fingers stretched desperately through the air.

"Mom!!"

She raised one shaking hand.

"I love you!"

"NOOOO!"

His scream echoed through the ruined house.

His father was crying openly now.

Every step away from the woman he loved felt like tearing away a piece of his own soul.

But he didn't stop.

He couldn't.

As they reached the doorway, Kaien twisted around one last time.

His mother was still smiling.

Even now.

Even as the house trembled around her.

She wanted the last thing her son remembered to be her smile...

Not her fear.

His father ran.

Kaien continued screaming.

"NO!"

"PLEASE!"

"DAD!"

"GO BACK!"

His father only held him tighter as tears streamed down his face.

"I'm sorry..."

He whispered over and over.

"I'm sorry..."

Behind them, the ruined house disappeared into the smoke as the roar of war swallowed the village.