Kael didn't remember falling.
One moment he was standing in the rain, staring at the silver-eyed man…
The next—
Darkness swallowed everything.
But this darkness was different.
It wasn't empty.
It was alive.
Kael opened his eyes.
Or at least… he thought he did.
Because there was nothing to see.
No sky.
No ground.
No body.
Just an endless void stretching in every direction.
"…Where am I?"
His voice didn't echo.
It sank.
Like sound had no right to exist here.
Then—
Something answered.
You are where you should not be.
The voice didn't come from one place.
It came from everywhere.
From the dark itself.
Kael's chest tightened. "Show yourself!"
Silence.
Then—
A ripple.
The void shifted.
And something began to form.
Not fully.
Not clearly.
Just… a shape.
Too large to understand.
Too wrong to describe.
Kael's instincts screamed at him to run.
But he couldn't move.
Because suddenly—
He realized something terrifying.
He didn't have a body.
"What… are you?" Kael whispered.
The shape pulsed.
Slow.
Heavy.
Like a heartbeat older than time.
I am what remained… when kings forgot how to die.
Kael didn't understand.
But his fear deepened anyway.
"Why am I here?"
The darkness leaned closer.
Not physically.
But closer in a way that pressed against his mind.
Because you opened the door.
"I didn't—"
You died.
The words hit like a blade.
And something answered.
Kael's thoughts shattered.
Images flashed—
The blade piercing his chest.
The cold ground.
The silence.
Then—
That whisper.
Let me answer.
Kael's breathing grew sharp. "That was you…"
No reply.
But the void seemed… pleased.
You are empty.
And I require a vessel.
Kael's voice shook. "I'm not… empty."
For a moment—
Everything stopped.
Then—
The darkness laughed.
Not loudly.
Not wildly.
But slowly.
Like something ancient finding amusement after centuries.
You survived death… without a Sigil.
Tell me, child—
The void tightened around him.
What else would you call that?
Kael had no answer.
Because deep down—
He already knew.
Nothing about him was normal anymore.
"Then what are you?" he asked, quieter this time.
The shape shifted again.
More defined now.
Still incomplete.
Still wrong.
A king without a throne.
A shadow without a world.
A pause.
And now…
The darkness pulsed once more.
Your beginning.
Kael felt something grip him.
Not physically.
But deeper.
Like his soul was being… held.
"No—wait—"
Too late.
The void collapsed.
Everything rushed back.
Rain.
Cold.
Pain.
Kael's eyes snapped open.
He was back.
On his knees.
In the ruined village.
The silver-eyed man stood in front of him.
Frozen.
Staring.
"…What did you just do?" the man whispered.
Kael didn't answer.
Because he didn't know.
But he felt it.
Something inside him had changed.
The emptiness was gone.
Replaced by something… heavier.
Alive.
Watching.
Kael slowly pushed himself to his feet.
His body trembled—but not from weakness anymore.
From pressure.
The air around him felt… thick.
Distorted.
The man stepped back.
Just slightly.
But enough.
That alone said everything.
"You're not a Hollow," the man said.
His voice had lost its certainty.
Kael looked down at his hands.
They looked the same.
Normal.
Human.
But when he focused—
The shadows beneath his fingers…
Moved.
Just a little.
His breath caught.
"Interesting."
The man raised his hand again.
But this time—
He didn't attack immediately.
"Tell me your name."
Kael hesitated.
Then—
"…Kael."
The man nodded slowly.
"Kael," he repeated.
"As of this moment… you are no longer unclaimed."
The air tightened.
"Which means…"
Power surged.
Invisible.
Crushing.
"You belong to someone."
Kael's chest tightened again.
But this time—
Something inside him reacted.
Not fear.
Anger.
The shadows at his feet twisted.
Sharpened.
The man's eyes widened.
"…Impossible."
Kael didn't understand what he was doing.
But his body moved anyway.
One step forward.
The ground beneath him darkened.
The rain…
Stopped touching him.
Like it was avoiding him.
The whisper returned.
Soft.
Close.
Don't kneel again.
Kael's gaze lifted.
Steady.
Different.
"Then I'll choose my own."
Silence.
For a brief moment—
The world held its breath.
Then—
The man smiled.
Not kindly.
"Good."
And then—
He attacked.
The air exploded forward.