Ascendant Fury

Kaien stood in front of the cracked mirror in the locker room, shirt clinging to his chest, steam rising from his skin.

The mark was still there.

A jagged spiral on his right palm, glowing faintly like a smoldering ember. Not ink. Not paint. It was under the skin, like it had been carved there from the inside out.

He scrubbed at it again—soap, water, grit—but it wouldn't fade. It pulsed. Almost like it was breathing.

Reina's voice echoed from outside the showers. "You coming or planning to drown in there?"

Kaien stared at his palm one more second. Then wrapped it in gauze.

"Be right out."

---

The rain hit hard that morning. Black clouds rolled in like wolves, and the city wore a cloak of gray.

Kaien and Zaira walked side by side down the causeway toward school. The rain didn't bother them—they were both too deep in their own thoughts.

"You've been quiet," she said after a while.

Kaien didn't look at her. "Didn't sleep much."

"You saw it again, didn't you?"

He froze.

Zaira noticed. Her tone dropped. "The dream. The wasteland. The cloaks. It's not just stress, Kaien. I think something's calling you."

He finally met her gaze. "You believe me?"

"Of course I do. You're not the only one who sees strange things."

Kaien blinked. "What do you mean?"

Zaira hesitated. Then tugged the sleeve of her hoodie down, revealing a tattoo on her wrist. A strange rune. Almost like—

"A match," Kaien said, eyes widening.

Zaira nodded. "I got this the day my mom died. It just... appeared."

The air between them felt heavier. As if the world had just taken a breath and was holding it.

"Something's coming," Zaira whispered. "And whatever it is—it's been waiting for us."

---

Later that day, the classroom buzzed with tension.

A guest instructor was visiting: Head Enforcer Ardyn Vale. Former war general. Now one of the High Ascendancy's elite hunters.

He stood tall and sharp, wearing a long crimson coat over combat armor. His voice carried like thunder in a canyon.

"Power is earned through pain," he said. "And survival is proof of purpose."

Kaien sat near the back, watching Vale with wary eyes. Something about the man's aura felt… familiar. Like the heat in Kaien's palm pulsed in sync with the man's presence.

"Some of you think strength is a gift," Vale continued. "But true strength? It's a curse. One that brands you. Burns you. And if you survive it—only then do you become something worth fearing."

Kaien's heart skipped.

Was he talking to him?

Their eyes met.

And for a single, frozen second, Kaien saw recognition in Vale's stare. Not confusion. Not curiosity.

Recognition.

As if Vale knew.

---

After class, Vale intercepted him outside.

"You," he said calmly. "What's your name?"

Kaien swallowed. "Kaien Nox."

Vale's gaze dropped to his bandaged hand. "How long has it been glowing?"

Kaien flinched. "What are you—?"

"Don't play dumb. That mark is not supposed to be awake yet. Not without a catalyst."

Kaien stepped back. "You're not making any sense."

Vale moved faster than thought. One hand on Kaien's shoulder, the other over his bandaged palm. The mark flared—blazing bright red—and Kaien screamed as heat flooded his nerves.

"You're not ready," Vale muttered. "But something forced it. Damn it…"

Kaien staggered back, gasping. "What the hell are you?!"

Vale turned away, voice clipped. "A warning. Stay away from the catacombs under Sector D. If the mark reacts again, you might not walk away."

And just like that, he vanished into the rain.

---

That night, Kaien sat on the edge of his bed, hand trembling.

What was this mark? Why could that man feel it? And why did it feel like something was slowly waking up inside his bones?

He opened his holo-tab and pulled up the old article again—one he'd bookmarked years ago.

> "Seventh Collapse: Explosion beneath Sector D—no survivors. Cause unknown. Rumors of pre-Ascension relics involved."

He stared at the date.

It was the same day his parents died.

Coincidence?

Or a cover-up?

---

The next morning, Kaien didn't go to school.

He went to Sector D.

Through the broken gates. Past rusted signs and collapsed buildings. Into the dark veins of the city's forgotten underworld.

He found the sealed catacomb entrance—chained shut, warning signs glowing red.

And his hand?

The mark burned.

Kaien took a deep breath, grabbed the chains—

And pulled.

---