The square was tense, too quiet for a place so full. Laura held Kira's hand like it was the only thing anchoring her to the ground. She tried not to show how hard her heart was pounding as they moved into the crowd. Alliance soldiers stood in silver and blue, unmoving. Statues with eyes. Their banner whipped in the wind above them, the crest of power glinting in the sun.
At the center of it all, a man with cold eyes and a spine-straight posture spoke with the mayor. his name is Ramzy, the man in charge of recruitment. Steven stood smugly beside him, pointing.
Laura's stomach turned.
Draven stepped forward before anything could escalate. "Steven's just a kid," he said. "His powers are new. His spell didn't go where it was supposed to. It was an accident."
Ramzy didn't blink. His eyes were already on Kira.
He crouched a little, dropping to eye level. "What's your name, boy?"
Kira looked confused, but not scared. "Kira."
Ramzy tilted his head slightly. "You ever wanted to learn how to use your powers properly? Do something big? Make people remember your name?"
"I wanna fly like Steven," Kira said, smiling.
"Do you now?" Ramzy chuckled. But there was something in his eyes that made Laura's grip on Kira tighten.
"How old are you?" he asked.
"Nine. But I'm really smart."
Ramzy stood straight. Whatever warmth had been in his voice was gone. "Start testing."
The soldiers moved like they'd been waiting for that exact command. One by one, children were brought forward. A glowing crystal was held above their heads.
When Steven stepped up, the orb lit with a strong blue hue.
"A sorcerer," one soldier announced.
Steven beamed. His father clapped loudly, proud as a rooster.
Then Steven spun and pointed. "Test him next!"
The soldiers hesitated, but eventually one approached Kira.
Laura's fingers gripped his wrist, hard enough to make him look up at her. "Just stay quiet," she whispered.
The orb hovered above Kira.
Nothing.
No light. No sound. Just silence. Laura's lungs finally let her breathe.
Draven stepped forward again. "Like I said. Steven lost control. Kira doesn't have powers."
The soldier moved to step away—but Ramzy raised his hand.
"Test the mother."
Everything stopped. The world seemed to hold its breath.
Draven moved fast, standing in front of Laura. "There's no reason to—"
"She protected him," Ramzy said simply. "I saw it."
Laura didn't wait.
She turned. She should've run right then, should've picked up her son and bolted—but she hesitated. And it was just long enough.
The soldiers surged. Draven got shoved aside. Laura tried to step back but it was too late. Something inside her cracked open, and it all came rushing out.
Light. Wind. Power.
Her hair shimmered blue. Her feet lifted off the ground. The world tilted. Leaves flew. The wind screamed.
"Stay. Away. From my son!" she shouted, her voice carried on a force no one could contain.
The soldiers stumbled, shielding their faces. Villagers gasped and stepped back.
Ramzy didn't flinch.
His voice was calm, too calm. "Princess Laura," he said. "Did you really think we wouldn't recognize you?"
Laura's eyes burned. "You made a mistake, Ramzy."
"Oh?" he said. "And what was that?"
"Coming here, I can make you regret ever knowing me"
The ground beneath his feet erupted. Earth and dust exploded into the air. Ramzy flew upward, out of sight.
People screamed. Draven was still on the ground, stunned, watching the truth fall into place like puzzle pieces that had always been there.
She was the Princess. The one from the old stories. The lost heir of the sorcerer clans.
Laura turned, grabbed Kira, and ran. Her legs moved faster than they should've, and suddenly the trees blurred around them. She was already casting a speed spell—hadn't even realized it. Her body knew what to do, even if her mind hadn't caught up yet.
Behind them, Ramzy slammed into the ground like a meteor. Dust rose in a ring. He knelt, coughing, and summoned a crystal blade into his hand, stabbing it into the dirt to hold himself upright.
"You can't run forever, Princess," he called. "They already know where you are."
Laura skidded to a stop, her breath catching in her throat.
A portal tore open right in front of her, swirling like a storm trying to decide what to become. And from it… stepped him.
Prince Garen. Her brother.
His armor gleamed like it had been polished just for this confrontation, every piece screaming arrogance. His smirk? That same smug tilt he wore the last time he betrayed her.
"Well, well," Garen drawled. "Running again, sister? You've got the whole fleeing thing down to an art." His gaze dropped to Kira, and the warmth in his voice died instantly. "But the son of Johan… he doesn't leave."
Laura's heart slammed against her ribs. "You don't touch him!" she snapped, throwing her arm in front of Kira like a living shield. She trembled, not from fear—never that—but from rage she could barely contain.
Garen just tilted his head. "You know the rules. He's the last of the warrior bloodline. His very existence is a threat."
Laura's scream ripped from her throat before she could stop it. Flames burst around her, wild and blue, licking the air with fury. She didn't hesitate—meteors screamed down from the sky like the wrath of old gods.
Garen flinched—she saw it, saw the twist of surprise on his face as he summoned his own flames to meet hers. The sky lit up in shades of war.
"You've improved," he muttered, fists blazing as he shattered meteors one by one. "Did motherhood teach you that?"
But she wasn't listening. Her hands came together with a sharp clap—and the fire turned to ice.
In a heartbeat, the battlefield went cold. Shards of frozen flame whipped through the air, slicing past Garen as he blinked—teleporting, barely dodging.
Almost.
His arm didn't make it. Ice locked it in place mid-movement.
And Laura was already behind him.
She summoned a hammer made of crystal and rage, and brought it down with every ounce of hate she'd buried over the years.
CRACK.
His scream cut through the frozen silence as shards of his arm flew.
Then the portals started opening.
More soldiers poured out like a dam had broken. Alliance colors. Alliance blades. Garen stumbled back, clutching what was left of his arm, face twisted in pain and disbelief.
Laura's eyes burned orange. Her forehead shimmered with a glowing sun mark—something ancient, something forbidden. She raised both arms. The ground beneath the soldiers exploded in flame.
Screams. Smoke. Fire so hot it turned steel to ash.
But then—a whisper of danger. A shift in the air.
She spun—just in time to dodge crystal daggers slicing past her head.
Ramzy.
He stepped from the shadows like he'd been waiting all along, one arm bloodied, the other wrapped tightly around Kira, knife pressed against her son's throat.
"Enough, Princess," he growled. "You want to see him live? Drop it. All of it."
Her legs gave slightly.
"Kira!" she screamed, the word breaking as it left her throat. "Let him go!"
The battlefield went quiet for a second. Too quiet.
And then—a roar. A sound from another world.
A massive golden lion burst through the tree line, radiant and terrible. Soldiers turned to run, but it was too late. A silver blur followed—a wolf, no, a beast—that lunged at Ramzy and ripped his arm clean off.
Ramzy howled, falling backward as the lion pounced, sinking its jaws into his torso. Like he weighed nothing, the body flung through the air.
Chaos exploded again.
The lion roared. Soldiers flew. The silver wolf grabbed Kira in its massive jaws, careful—gentle, even—and took off.
Laura didn't hesitate. Speed spell. Wind. Motion blurred as she bolted after them, every instinct screaming stay close. Behind her, the battlefield burned and broke apart.
But just ahead—a flash of lightning. A deafening crack.
Thunder split the sky.
And Kira—her son—was lying in the grass, arms wrapped around the still form of the silver wolf. Blood streaked his forehead. His cries tore at her soul.
"No…" she gasped. "Kira!"
She ran to him, falling to her knees, arms shaking as she touched his face. The wolf wasn't moving.
Then came the voice. Deep. Unforgiving.
"Laura."
She turned, slowly, like moving through water.
Her father stood atop the hill, black robes rustling like dead leaves in the wind. Mordrain. Beside him, Garen. Behind them—an army.
Thousands. A wall of death.
Laura choked on her own breath. "Please… Father…" Her tears spilled freely now. "Please, I'll do anything. Anything. Just don't hurt him. He's just a child. He's no threat to you."
Mordrain didn't blink. His voice was stone. "The boy must die."
Kira whimpered, grabbing her leg. "Mom…"
Something inside her broke—no, detonated.
Flames erupted from her back, brighter than the sun, her body a silhouette against the inferno. The ground beneath her cracked. A sun rose behind her, massive and blazing, its heat making the soldiers flinch.
But before she could release it, Mordrain lifted his staff.
Darkness poured from the sky like ink across a canvas. The sun died in her hands. Her knees buckled.
She had nothing left.
But Kira… she had to save Kira.
With the last flicker of strength, she reached into the earth and carved a portal open with her bare will. Magic bled from her skin. She touched Kira's face, pressed her lips to his forehead.
"Go. To the Ancestors' Woods," she whispered into his thoughts. "Find the spirit. Be strong. Live."
The portal closed just as Mordrain's hand wrapped around her throat.
Everything faded.
Her last thought was of her son, running into a forest older than kings, carrying everything she had left to give.