-- Kayla --
"Promise me you'll stay home today, alright?"
The woman's voice was gentle, her words soft like a melody. As Kayla looked up at her, something inside her just knew — she was beautiful.
Her dark skin glowed softly under the morning light, her scent warm and familiar, as if it belonged here, wrapped around Kayla like a blanket.
The little girl felt safe.Safe in a way she couldn't quite explain.
Large, round eyes stared up at the woman, trying to take in every detail — the shape of her face, the flow of her hair, the kindness in her voice. But no matter how hard Kayla tried to focus, the image stayed blurred, like a dream that wouldn't come into full view.
Still, even without recognizing her face, Kayla knew one thing with absolute certainty:She didn't want this woman to leave.
Her small fingers reached forward, trembling, as if trying to hold on to her.
The woman laughed softly, her voice ringing like a bell."I'm sorry, sweetheart."
She knelt down to Kayla's level, reaching out her own hand. The moment her warm, graceful fingers touched Kayla's tiny ones, a strange jolt ran through Kayla's body — like sparks of warmth bursting inside her chest.
Without knowing why, tears welled up in Kayla's wide eyes and rolled down her round cheeks.
In a choked whisper, she said, "But, Mama, I—"
Mama.
The word had slipped from her lips naturally, instinctively. As soon as she said it, Kayla blinked, surprised. Was that really her mother? Was that who she was?
Desperately, she tried to see the woman's face again, to know for sure — but the fog never lifted. Her features remained lost behind a soft, unreachable haze.
"No buts," the woman said, a little firmer now, though her voice still carried warmth. "It's too dangerous."
Her tone softened once more, full of affection."I'll be back for lunch, my little one. Just a few hours, that's all."
She leaned forward and pressed a gentle kiss into Kayla's dark, curly hair. Kayla pouted, lips quivering, wanting to say something more — to beg her to stay.
But before any words could leave her mouth…She was gone.
And the little girl suddenly stood alone. Don't go, she wanted to scream. Please stay! But no sound came.
Kayla woke with a shiver, her body trembling beneath the heavy blankets.
Her wide eyes drifted up to the ornate ceiling above — tall, elegant, and far too grand to bring any comfort. The soft pillows surrounding her only reminded her of how alone she was in this vast, empty room.
She was no longer the little girl from her dream. Nor, did she live in that place anymore.And the woman from her vision… she couldn't even remember her face.
Yet the ache in her chest remained, sharp and raw. Her heart clenched tighter, and her breath grew shallow, as if something inside her was twisting, making it harder and harder to breathe.
Air. She needed air.
Without thinking, she slipped from her bed, her bare feet meeting the cold, polished floor. Moving quickly, she crossed the oversized chamber and reached the tall window framed in gold.
Her fingers fumbled for a moment at the latch, but then the crystal-clear pane swung open. At once, the cool night air rushed in, brushing against her skin like a quiet whisper.
She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, as though trying to draw the heaviness from her chest and cast it out into the dark sky. Only then did her breathing finally slow.
In the stillness, Kayla tried once more to pull the woman's image back into focus — that soft voice, that warmth, that gentle touch. She could still feel it. That sense of safety, of belonging.
It wasn't just a dream. She was certain of that.
That tenderness, that closeness — it was real.A memory. One that still lived somewhere deep inside her.
But why can't I remember?Why is everything always so blurry?
The answers remained just beyond her reach, like distant stars hidden behind clouds.
All the drawings that had once shown her mother were gone — lost to the great fire that had devoured her hometown. But the flames hadn't only stolen ink and paper.They had taken something far more precious. Her memories.
Kayla let out a quiet breath and gently pushed a few strands of her dark curls back from her face. She closed her eyes for a moment, concentrating, reaching into the fog that always clouded her mind whenever she tried to remember.
Her brow furrowed. She tried to picture her mother's face — the eyes, the smile, the warmth. But nothing came. Only that same hazy dream, playing like a distant echo in her mind. And yet, she knew. That moment she had just seen again — that one brief, flickering memory — was real. It had been the day her life was torn apart.The last day she had seen her mother.
Back then, Samael had only just appeared. A young preacher — still unknown, still full of ambition — rising from the east, near the borders of the Flame Empire, close to the town where Kayla had lived.
Even now, no one knew for certain where he had truly come from.Some said he was born of the Flame People.Others whispered darker things. Perhaps even Samael himself no longer remembered the truth.
But what mattered was that he had arrived at the perfect moment.
The empire was restless. The people hungry for purpose, for something new. And Samael offered them both — with words like honey and eyes full of promises.
At first, only a few had followed him.But then dozens.Then hundreds.And before long, the entire Flame Empire stood behind him — drawn to his voice like moths to a flame.
Now, years later, Kayla understood the extent of Samael's power — his charisma, the fire that seemed to burn within him whenever he stood before the masses.
He still looked as young as the day he first appeared.But his mind… his cunning… belonged to someone far older.Someone dangerous.
And Kayla could understand why so many followed him without question.
Samael offered them hope. A future.
He spoke of a world where the Fire Warriors — and all who stood at his side — would rise into a golden age. Where hunger would end. Where their children would know peace.
For a land that had been plagued by poverty for generations, his words sounded like salvation.
It hadn't taken long for Samael to seize control over the eastern provinces of the Empire. His rise was swift — relentless. And as his influence spread, the rest of the Empire could do little but watch, fearful and uncertain.
The day Samael's Black Army — his first and most loyal followers — descended upon Ceceres was on of his first big successes. Ceceres. Her home.
The desert city had trembled beneath the force of their arrival.
Those who resisted to kneel in front of him were crushed without mercy. Entire families erased. The rest were bent into submission, their will broken.
Only a few had managed to escape his wrath. A handful had earned his favor.
And among them… was Kayla.
She had left Ceceres alive — and free. Or at least as free as you could get in this country...
For years, Kayla had asked herself the same question: Why her? Why had she been spared? Why had she, of all people, not only survived… but been drawn into Samael's innermost circle?
The cold night air brushed against her skin, making her shiver. Or was it the memories that sent the chill through her? The thoughts of Samael… and of everything that had happened since?
There was one moment she remembered clearly — far more clearly than her final goodbye to her mother. The moment her fate had been sealed.
Perhaps it was because that was the first time she had met him.
Her heart gave a faint, involuntary flutter at the thought.
Brutus.
Even now, though he was far away — out on one of Samael's missions, likely somewhere deep behind distant borders — she still felt close to him.As if no distance could ever truly separate them.
It had been him who spared her that day — no, not just spared her. Saved her. Not by chance. By choice.
Brutus.
The shadow-elf whose presence had seemed to part the smoke and flames of Ceceres. Even as the screams echoed through the burning streets, his eyes had found hers — dark, steady, curious. He had recognized what she was. An Amazon.
He had looked at her with wide, intrigued eyes — not with cold indifference, but with something almost like awe. And in that moment, he made her a promise, that he would protect her. His offer was made with few words, but Kayla could still feel them, even now: Stay by my side. Pledge your strength to Samael — to me — and you will never be alone.
She had been young. Frightened. Grateful. And so, she had followed him.
Since that day, Brutus had never strayed far from her side — like a dark sentinel, her guardian. Always watching. Always protecting. His presence was constant as Samael's black army swept from city to city, leaving nothing but submission and ash in its path, drawing closer and closer to the imperial capital: Liones.
She still remembered the weight of his hand in hers, steady as stone, as they stood beneath the execution platform. Samael's voice had carried across the square, cold and unwavering, as Emperor Nokoribi fell before the eyes of his people. He had been emperor of the Fire Imperium for decades.
She had been there. She had witnessed it all. The raise of Nokoribi's eldest son — Kasō — to power.
The boy was barely eighteen, but already there burned inside him an ambition as fierce as wildfire, fueled by a deep hatred for his father's weak rule. Eyes that burned. Not with idealism, but with hunger. The kind of hunger that devours weakness. That despises mercy. The same ambition that had once simmered quietly beneath his father's rule now blazed unchecked under Samael's guidance.
In Kasō, Samael had found a perfect ally.One who would march beside him — merciless and unyielding — as they pushed the empire further into submission.
He would sow fire. And burn all that refused to kneel. Together with Samael, Kasō had risen to become the new Emperor of the Flame Empire.
Kayla still remembered that moment as if it had happened only yesterday.
She had stood mere meters from the newly crowned emperor, Brutus holding her tightly at his side. His steady grip had been the only thing keeping her grounded as her body trembled. She could still feel it even now — the way she had instinctively drawn closer to him, trying to disappear behind his protective presence.
Kasō's gaze had swept over his people, sharp and burning with a fire far older than his years. His voice had carried across the grand plaza as he declared the official unification of the Flame Empire with Samael's Black Army.
And then came the words that never left her — words burned into her memory, as clear now as they had been that day: "Let the other nations tremble when the flames lick at their gates!"
From that day forward, the combined forces of the Flame Empire and Samael's army had risen as the Red-Black Alliance.
"Nine years," Kayla whispered into the cold air.
Nine years had passed since that day.Nine years she had lived within these majestic chambers of the imperial fortress — under the same roof as Kasō and Samael.
And yet, the dreams of Ceceres refused to let her go.