Born In Ashes: The Enigma

In a faraway place— a world dominated by terrifying gales of wind...

Black clouds blanketed the sky as stormy winds continued to lay waste to everything in sight.

One after another, world destroying tornadoes descended to the ground from behind the veil of black clouds, and in an instant, the entire world was plunged into an endless calamity of wind.

The high mountains, which had stood since the birth of the world crumbled under the might of the wind, reduced to dust in mere seconds.

All the forests across the world were uprooted in an instant as powerful tornadoes tore through the land, sweeping away every tree and turning them into part of the wreckage carried within their destructive winds.

The ground split apart, filling the entire world with cracks, making it look as if everything would shatter at any moment.

Crackle! Crackle! Crackle! — — —

The black clouds surged with heavenly might and began to rain down bolts of terrifying lightning upon the world alongside the tornadoes.

The wind tornadoes and lightning seemed hell bent on destroying the entire world, their power continuing to grow with each passing moment.

However, at one point—after everything on the surface of the world had been annihilated, leaving behind only cracked, barren ground—the tornadoes and lightning could do no further damage.

Even though their power continued to increase with every passing second, they could not destroy the cracked land any further.

"Hmm?"

Suddenly, a faint voice filled with confusion echoed amidst the raging chaos.

The moment the voice sounded, all destruction came to an abrupt halt.

The black clouds immediately parted, allowing rays of sunlight to reach the ground.

The world-destroying tornadoes burst apart and transformed into gentle winds that now flowed softly, carrying with them the warm breath of the sun.

Woosh!

Suddenly, all the wind flowing throughout the world moved at once and gathered in a single place, taking the shape of a green-colored wolf composed entirely of wind element.

The wolf stood about two meters tall, and although it was composed entirely of the wind element, it was nearly indistinguishable from an ordinary wolf found in the forests.

The wolf looked toward a specific direction, and its beautiful eyes glowed with a radiant green light.

After a few minutes, the light in its eyes faded, and its body dispersed into gusts of wind that flowed underground through the many cracks covering the surface of the world.

The gusts of wind traveled tens of thousands of meters deep underground and soon reached a wide open space hidden beneath the surface.

There, the wind once again took the shape of the wolf, which walked toward a glowing orb suspended in the center of the chamber.

The orb was green in color, but from time to time, bursts of golden energy erupted from it.

Each time the golden energy surged, everything within the underground space trembled violently, as though the entire chamber might collapse at any moment.

However, a protective layer of wind surrounded the entire underground structure, preserving it in spite of the unnatural force of the golden energy.

The nearly two meter tall wolf approached the glowing green orb, and as it came to a stop before it, a very small wolf cub— no more than ten centimeters in size could be seen sleeping inside.

Just like the larger wolf, the cub was made entirely of wind element.

However, at the center of its forehead was a small, star shaped golden mark.

The golden energy that erupted from the orb originated from this very mark.

The large wolf looked at the sleeping cub with gentle, affectionate eyes before an aged female voice emerged from its mouth.

"My child, it seems someone capable of wielding your powers has finally appeared..."

As the wolf spoke, it lifted one of its front paws and gently touched the glowing orb.

"But he is still too weak. If you go to him now, you wouldn't even be able to lend him your power before he turns into a handful of dust."

As if the cub had heard the voice, it slowly opened its deep golden eyes, which were filled with the innocent light of a newborn.

At the same time, there was a visible confusion in its gaze— as if wondering why it was trapped inside this small orb instead of freely roaming outside, running and playing wherever it pleased.

It looked at the older wolf with shining, expectant eyes, as if asking to be let out so it could play.

The larger wolf smiled at the cub's expression and shook its head.

"Not yet. You wouldn't survive for long if you came out now. Wait a little longer. Once that person becomes a bit stronger, you will be able to sense him on your own. As of now, he has become the most beloved child of the wind. When you are finally able to sense him without my guidance, it will mean he is ready to wield your power and free you from your suffering as well."

The little wolf raised one of its paws in protest upon hearing that it still couldn't leave the small space it was confined to, and then closed its eyes, as if refusing to speak further.

The large wolf showed a helpless expression at the cub's reaction and sighed inwardly.

'Everything is for your own good, my child. Just wait a little longer. It won't be long before you too will be able to roam this world freely— just like the others.'

The wolf's body once again dissolved into gusts of wind and left the underground chamber, returning to the ruined surface of the world.

'Let's hope, whoever you are, that you don't fall before reaching a level where you can wield his powers freely…'

*****

Meanwhile…

At that very moment, the entire Stardust Galaxy— where the planet Arkanis was located was in utter turmoil... As all of the powerful beings across the galaxy had just felt the presence of an overwhelmingly powerful and terrifying existence watching this place from afar.