Kinuki Bridge
The ancient stone bridge stretched across the sea, its massive form cutting through the frozen air like a scar that refused to heal. It reached from the land of Nivalis to Kragmor mountains, binding the two realms together in a way that felt both necessary and cursed. Stone upon stone, laid centuries ago, now bore the weight of countless battles, footsteps, and unspoken fears.
It was a wounded structure.
Scars left behind by elemental abilities crawled across its surface—burn marks, shattered stone, cracks filled with frozen residue. Dried blood stained the bridge in places where it had soaked too deep to ever be washed away, no matter how many storms passed. Three enormous pillars rose from the sea below, their bases swallowed by dark, icy water, holding the bridge upright like exhausted sentinels that refused to fall.
This bridge was more than stone and mortar.
It was the only path to Kragmor Island—a snow-covered land surrounded by an endless, cold sea. One narrow crossing that separated two worlds. One mistake here, one failure, and the consequences would reach far beyond this stretch of stone.
Nivalis Soldier – POV
"Ah… another day on the job."
The words left my mouth quietly, more like a sigh than a sentence.
As I did every morning, I put on my brown uniform and prepared myself to defend the bridge from trolls—or anything else that might attempt to cross it. I hadn't been stationed here for long, but lately the routine had started to settle heavily on my shoulders. At first, it felt honorable. Important. Necessary.
Now, it felt… repetitive.
This was what I had chosen, wasn't it? What I had worked toward?
And yet, as I stood there most days, staring across the bridge into the distance, I couldn't help but wonder—was this really all there was? Standing still. Waiting. Watching the same empty stone path, hoping that nothing appeared… and dreading the moment something finally did.
A few of us were stationed at Kinuki Bridge at a time. We guarded the crossing to make sure no troll or monsters could ever reach our land. We arrived together on foot, stayed for hours, sometimes entire shifts blending into one another. We talked to pass the time, shared food, trained each other, argued about meaningless things—yet our eyes never truly left the bridge.
Every day followed the same rhythm.
Wake up early.
Wash my face with freezing water to force myself awake.
Brush my teeth.
Meet the others at the exit of Velor City.
But today…
Today felt different.
I hadn't slept well.
Something had followed me in my dream.
I was on the bridge—Kinuki Bridge—and I knew it immediately. The air was wrong. Too quiet. My footsteps echoed louder than they should have. Then I felt it. Something behind me.
I ran insticntivly.
No matter how hard I tried, my mana wouldn't respond. My energy felt distant, unreachable, like it had abandoned me completely. I couldn't fight. I couldn't defend myself. All I could do was run.
In the end, my foot slipped.
The bridge vanished beneath me, and I fell.
Down into a dark abyss where there was no sound, no ground, no sense of direction. The darkness swallowed me whole, pressing against my body, invading my thoughts. I was paralyzed—unable to move a single inch. I lay there helpless, trapped in that void for what felt like minutes… maybe hours. Time lost all meaning.
Then—
A golden light appeared.
Soft at first, barely visible. Then brighter. Warmer.
It drew closer, extending a glowing arm toward me.
"Hey, Mark. Wake up."
I gasped sharply, my body jerking forward as if pulled back into itself.
A hand was on my shoulder, shaking me gently but insistently. I snapped awake, lungs burning as I struggled to breathe properly. My chest rose and fell rapidly, my heart pounding like it was trying to escape.
My mother stood over me.
Worry filled her eyes.
"Are you okay, son?" she asked softly.
"I—yeah… I think so," I said, dragging in another breath, trying to steady myself. "Thanks for waking me up."
"You didn't sleep well, did you?"
I wiped sweat from my forehead and nodded. "No. What time is it? Did I oversleep?"
"The sun has barely risen," she said gently. "You still have time."
That eased something in my chest.
"Thanks, Mom. Could you step outside for a moment so I can change my clothes?"
"Of course," she said, turning toward the door. "Are you hungry? I can make something for you."
"Sure." I replied.
Once she left, I sat on the edge of the bed for a moment, letting my breathing settle. Then I stood and opened the closet.
My uniform hung there, exactly where I left it. Next to my iron spear.
Brown. Plain, and rough.
When I first received it, I had expected more. Something sharper. Something that felt… important. Instead, it looked unremarkable, almost disappointing at first glance.
But looks were deceiving.
Beneath its simple exterior, the uniform trapped warmth—enough to survive Nivalis's unforgiving cold. It wasn't designed to impress. It was designed to endure.
Only the Snow Guards were granted that luxury.
Their uniforms were white, crafted to blend seamlessly with snow and ice. No matter who wore them—man or woman—they looked magnificent. Almost unreal. Like symbols rather than soldiers.
That is my dream.
To become one of them.
To stand proudly, ready to protect anyone in need. To protect weaker then me.
But that dream felt distant.
Painfully distant.
My mana capacity was low. My techniques lacked power and precesion. No matter how much I trained and train, someone was always more gifted. Their control over mana and energy surpassed mine, and their elemental power reflected that gap clearly. My techniques couldn't compare with other soldiers, some of them had a special powers inherited by their mother or father genes. And some soldiers had special techniques passed down through the clans. I am just too weak... Compared to them.
Even as a water-element user, I couldn't compare.
Some soldiers could wield multiple elements—two, three, and some can wield even all of them.
That was why I was here.
Guarding Kinuki Bridge.
I fastened the uniform over my chest. On the left side, near my heart, rested my insignia: a yellow, diamond-shaped badge—a square turned on its edge—with white wings engraved on both sides. The color represented rank: yellow, green, blue, and red.
Each color reflected a soldier's overall capability.
Strength.
Speed.
Mana and energy.
Endurance.
Battle knowledge.
Five categories that decided your worth.
To become a Snow Guard, one had to reach second-tier soldier rank. Passing multiple tests at red rank earned a black badge. Black-ranked soldiers were sent on solo missions—dangerous ones—to prove themselves worthy of the final trial. A trial where most fail, a trial of all trials for a soldier.
Combat against actual Snow Guards.
Only they could decide if you were ready to become one.
Failure meant waiting.
Success meant everything.
It sounded simple but...
It wasn't.
"Maybe I'm asking for too much," I whispered.
I finished my routine and joined my mother at the table.
A metal pot sat in the center, its lid still closed. Steam escaped faintly from the edges, carrying a rich, comforting smell that immediately made my stomach react. She had made soup—meat soup, judging by the aroma, with vegetables. Something warm. Something grounding.
I lifted the lid, letting more steam rise into the air. Inside, the broth shimmered softly, pieces of meat and vegetables resting beneath the surface. I poured some into my bowl and sat down across from her.
For a moment, neither of us spoke.
We ate quietly, the clinking of metal against the bowl filling the silence. It was peaceful. Familiar. Moments like this reminded me why I kept going, even when doubt crept in.
"Where are you going today, son?" she asked after a while, her voice calm.
"Kinuki Bridge again," I replied.
She paused slightly. "Didn't you and your squad go there yesterday?"
"Yeah," I said, swallowing another spoonful. "But the other squad was sent on an operation near Avenra City. Their captain asked ours to take over today instead."
She frowned faintly. "Why didn't your captain refuse? You all could use some rest."
"There wasn't much he could do," I answered. "The order came from above. We can't really ignore the Snow Guards decisions."
She looked at me for a second longer, then nodded. "You're right."
After breakfast, I stood, put on my boots, and moved toward the front door. The familiar creak of the floorboards followed me.
"Thanks for the food, Mom. It was really good."
"I'm glad," she said softly.
I opened the door, cold air brushing against my face.
"See you later," I said before stepping outside.
Velor City greeted me as it always did.
Stone houses lined the streets, their chimneys releasing thin trails of smoke into the cold morning air. The streets were wide, paved with brick, making them easy to walk even with snow piled along the sides. People were already out—shopkeepers opening their stores, neighbors exchanging greetings, children running about without a care in the world.
The city felt alive.
Every time I walked through Velor like this, I felt a strange mix of pride and responsibility. This was what we are protecting. These people. Their mornings. Their routines.
As I passed through the streets in my uniform, people greeted me with smiles and nods. Some waved. Others simply watched with quiet respect. Children, as always, gathered quickly.
"Mark!" one of them shouted, running toward me.
"Hey," I said, smiling.
"Can you play with us?" another asked eagerly.
"I'd like to," I replied honestly, "but I have to work today."
"You said that yesterday too!" one complained. "Where are you going now?"
"Kinuki Bridge."
One of them tilted his head. "Isn't that near the forest?"
"Yes it is." I replied.
"But isn't it dangerous?" another asked. "My mom says I'm not allowed to go there."
I chuckled softly and rested my right hand on his head. "It is dangerous. And your mom's right to worry. You should listen to her."
One of the children pulled my sleeve. "Can you show us that water magic again? Like last time?"
Their eyes were full of anticipation. As if it said please Mark, on their heads.
"Alright," I said, holding out my hand. "Watch closely."
I focused, slowly gathering mana into my palm. A cool sensation spread across my skin as i squeezed mana and water slowly formed, pooling between my fingers. I closed my hand into a fist, then opened it again. Water poured out, splashing gently onto the ground.
Their reactions were immediate—wide eyes, gasps, excitement.
"It's real!" one said, touching it.
"How did you do that?!" another shouted.
"It's not that special," I said. "I just created it."
"But how?"
"You'll learn when you're older," I replied. "When you go to school you will find how."
One of them hesitated before asking quietly, "Can I become a soldier like you?"
I knelt slightly to meet his gaze. "Of course you can. Anyone can. If I can do it, so can you."
He smiled shyly and stepped back hiding behind other kid.
Then a familiar voice cut through the moment.
"So this is where you are."
I looked up to see Sofia standing a short distance away, arms crossed. She wore the same brown uniform as mine, the yellow badge on her chest catching the light.
"We've been waiting," she said. "Come on. We need to move." She said.
Something about her expression told me this wasn't ideal.
"What happened?" I asked as I walked toward her.
"The trolls started moving again," she replied. "Earlier than expected."
"But didn't they moved yesterday as well?"
"Yes, the other squad killed three of them yesterday, but it seems they managed to be on lose again. A barrier Nicolas placed was triggered so we got to go and be prepared. "
We walked for a few minutes, people watched us, some waved some greeted us.
"I guess we are popular" i said.
Sofia glanced at me, then at people around us.
"Seems like it" she continued. „After all Nivalis is millitary organized country so no doubt we will be." She sid calmy looking at path.
We regrouped near the edge of the city.
John stood at the front, his posture solid and commanding. The blue badge on his uniform marked him clearly as our captain. He was powerful—not just in strength, but in presence. An earth-element user first and foremost, capable of wielding fire and wind as well. Some says he is at red color rank. His earth element power proved his rank and his leadership never let us down. He is indeed a true captain. He is our strongest frontline fighter and he always lung first into a battle with no fear or hesitation. His weapon skills are magnificent and he teaches me in hand to hand combat. On a battlefield he is unstoppable force, and he proved that multiple times.
Behind him stood Nicolas a tall man 1,93 centimeters tall. his green badge visible. Not a frontline fighter like John, he is mostly attacking from back lines supporting John and me in battles. He is a wind element user and his defense abilities are usefull against trolls and other monsters. Especially the barrier he could place, that's a special technique he got from his mother genes. A barrier no one can see, only those with good mana and energy control could see it, within our squad captain is the only one who can see it besides Nicolas. He would place it on other side of Kinuki bridge, on Kragmor land and with it Nicolas can sense if something is not right. That techniques saved us a lot of times and it seems it's been triggered again.
Sofia stood near me. She is the only one among us who could use Revia—a healing technique so hard to learn that even some Snow Guards couldn't do it. She is the most imoprtant soldier here beacuse of that technique. A technique that requieres both usage of mana and energy to do it. It's a special technique that comes more naturally to women than men. Even she says she doesnt know how she is able to do it since she cant control energy. She said it's the moments she thinks of it and technique start reacting. She is hard worker, and she works every day so that she can learn controling energy better. And John even injure himself on purpose so that she can use Revia techniques on him in order to gain better control of it. Besides all that, she is a water element user just like me, and from time to time she attacks from back line just as Nicolas.
And then there was Kohoi.
And there was Kohoi, he joined this squad no so long after me. He is unable to speak, Communicating to us through gestures. He is a frontline figher, just like me and John. His control over energy surpasses all of us, most of his abilites that he uses comes from energy source, not from mana like ours. Most of times i saw him he was with Sofia trying to teach her how to control energy, but his lack of talking effects that training a lot. He is a great dude, he would help us and try to keep positivity of group up. Beacuse of his problem being mute he had to work a lot as a kid so the kids around him would accept him. He is a user of two elements, fire and water. He never said which one is his main but he doesnt lack power in both of them. He is a green color rank just as Nicolas.
And then… there was me.
"Here he is," John said, pulling me into a brief, rough hug. "My boy Mark."
"Didn't sleep well?" Nicolas asked.
"Not really," I admitted.
"A soldier shouldn't be tired," John said with a grin. "You ready if something happens?"
"I am," I replied. "Just had a strange dream."
As we walked through the forest toward Kinuki Bridge, Nicolas asked, "What kind of dream you had?"
I hesitated. "I was on the bridge. Something was following me. I couldn't use mana or energy. I ran… and fell."
John laughed. "Happens when you're stationed somewhere too long."
But Kohoi stopped and gestured sharply, mimicking combat movements.
"Did you fight it?" Nicolas asked.
"No," I said quietly. "I couldn't."
That earned a thoughtful silence.
The forest opened up, revealing Kinuki Bridge ahead.
Cracked stone. Old blood stains. The sea stretching endlessly below.
"We're here," John said.
We took our positions. The tent stood on the left side of the bridge—our temporary shelter.
Tasks were assigned, routines resumed.
Sofia and I gathered wood. John and Kohoi inspected the bridge and fixed the damage. Nicolas refreshed the barrier.
Sofia and me stepped into forest, it was big and white. We were looking for wood, eventually finding more than enough. I looked downd and beneath the snow was chunk of wood, i streched my left hand to grab it. When Sofia asked.
"Why did you become a soldier?"
The question caught me off guard.
"Why do you ask" i replied.
„I just want to know" she continued, „I never asked you that question. I think we have enough wood we can go back."
After a moment, I answered honestly.
"Well there is a lot reasons why i become one. One of them is beacuse i wanted to help other people, i always wanted to become a Snow guard, and in order to become one i had to become a soldier first. Since i never met my father, my mom needed to do everything for us to survive. Now that i got this job i can provide money for our house and we can live happy, I wanted to help her however i can that's probabbly the second reason. And the last reason why i become a soldier is to get stronger, to be able to defend anyone around me when they needed my help, especially my mom." I said looking at snow.
She smiled softly. "You really are a good man."
„What's that supposed to mean?"
„I always thought you were a good man, you just proved my theory was right."
„I guess i am. When we already got this theme, why did you become a soldier?"
I looked at Sofia, she didn't anwsered right away, a few seconds passed before she began talking.
„I became a soldier beacuse of my family, they insisted me to become one. That is why i become a soldier of Nivalis."
Hmm? She become a soldier beacuse her family wanted that? I didnt expected such a anwser, It seems i dont know that much about her. I said to myself walking. I looked ahead and we were out of forest, with bridge being in front of us. No one was on it though, it seems John fixed the bridge. We walked to entrace of our tent, i pulled tent flap and we stepped inside.
Everyone was already in, Kohoi and Nicolas were sitting on earth chair looking at us, while John readed some papers on earth desk. Probabbly reviewing a shift report from previous squad. To my left were our gear and stuff, while to our right was a small earth box where we put our wood. I put the wood inside the box, and looked at them.
„Why is no one guarding the bridge?" i asked looking at kohei.
Kohei simply looked at me then pointed his finger multiple times at John. Capatain stood up from his chair, turned around.
„Now that we are all here let me say something to you guys, something is suspicious here."
„What is it?" Sofia said sitting at earth chair next to Nicolas.
„Trolls have become way too active this month, from this reports they already strike 7 times already, on some days they even attacked 2 times a day." John spoke with a serious tone.
„Yeah, that is unusal" Nicolas said.
I sat on eartch chair next to Kohei, I exchanged looks with Sofia, she reached her left hand to grab wood from the earth box, and put it into a campfire pit. Kohoi ignited it with his fire powers. Starting fire inside our tent. Wood cracked from inside, wood was wet from the snow, so it took some time for it to start, but the heat was there. Captain came and sat on chair between Nicolas and Kohei, i looked at him, he crossed his fingers.
„And, on top of that the bridge was damaged way more than a troll can do."
Huh? What happened to make our captain this worried? I asked myself.
We all glanced at John awaiting for his next words, the atmosphere inside the tent changed, it was serious. Silence filled the tent with burning wood being the only sound heard.
„John, just what happened to the bridge?" i asked, breaking the silence.
„The bridge was in very bad condition, from the report i read that the bridge was fixed once the other squad killed those trolls and ended their shift. But the thing worrying me is that bridge was shattered. On bridge there was a small crater which pierced the bridge, verry possibly made by elemental powers, not trolls. Bridges stone parapet was also shattered on right side. That damage looked like a trolls doing, it looked like it was destroyed with brute force, but... one of bridge pillars was greatly damaged, a second one. It was destroyed on half of pillar separating it in 2 pieces. That damage couldn't be done by trolls, only by a being able to use mana or energy. Which is why i think this could be Naxana's Empire doing. Perhaps i should send message to higher ups, to send someone from Snow Guards or maybe from S order to investigate this."
This was a lot information to process, i never saw John being this serious before.
Someone from Naxana Empire damaged the bridge? But why would they do it?
It seemed i wasn't the only one who thought that, Nicolas, Kohei, Sofia they all looked as surprised as me.
Maybe what captain said is truth, what if they really did it? Could this be considered as an attack on Nivalis land? No, wait Mark, there is no evidence to prove this. What i-
My thoughts were interupted by captain.
„there is no evidence of mana or energy trails behind, so i can't be saying this 100% sure. But if what i think is true, then that means whoever did this is good at mana and energy control, which means he is capable of doing far more then this. We cannot rush things now."
„So what do we do now?" Sofia asked.
„First of all let's focus on what we can do now. There is a chance trolls might strike so we will guard the bridge like always. We will change things a little, instead one of us going there, there will be 2 people now. I will be busy making message for higher ups, Nicolas will set another barrier for more protection and Kohoi can stay here for now. We will swap every hour so you can get some rest. Me and Kohoi are next in line for guard, after him Nicolas and someone from you two. Nicolas will watch the barriers and if something strange withing the barriers happens we will all come to help. The same is with you that guard bridge, if something appears on bridge we will all come immediately. You can always swap with us if you dont feel well, or tired. And one last thing, the damage on bridge was not done long ago, by my estimation damage was inflicted around half an hour ago. If my theory is right Naxanian Intruder can be close and strike again, so be extra carefull. That's all soldier.
John spoke with a serious tone.
Orders were given. Sofia and I were assigned first watch.
As we stepped onto the bridge, the bloodstains along the broken stone caught my eye.
And so, our patrol began.