The small village of Fennor lay nestled between two towering mountain ranges, its wooden cottages blanketed by the soft glow of an early morning sun. The rolling hills and meadows that surrounded it created an air of serene isolation, a place untouched by the chaos of the world beyond. Life here was simple, slow, and peaceful—a far cry from the noise and clamor that often filled the protagonist's restless thoughts.
Kael sat by the village's eastern edge, staring out at the shimmering expanse of the river that wound through the valley. The gentle ripple of the water almost seemed to echo the turmoil in his mind, the tug of something unfamiliar pulling at him. It had been years since he had settled in this village, years since he had left behind the strange flashes of memories that were like wisps of smoke—elusive and untouchable.
His life in Fennor felt...right, but also wrong. Everything about it was normal—too normal. The mundane simplicity of farming, the shared laughter of villagers in the square, the comforting routines. Yet, something deep inside Kael always felt like he was waiting. For what, he wasn't sure.
A voice broke him from his reverie. "Kael! Are you planning to sit there all day?"
It was Elira, his childhood friend. She was standing just behind him, hands on her hips, her eyes full of teasing but affectionate annoyance. Despite her seemingly carefree demeanor, Kael knew she saw more than most. She always had.
He turned to face her, offering a small smile. "Just thinking."
Elira walked up to him, sitting beside him on the grassy bank. "About what? You've been staring at that river for hours."
Kael shrugged, looking out at the water again. "I don't know. Just...feels like something's coming. Something I can't put my finger on."
Elira didn't respond immediately. Instead, she studied him for a moment, her expression shifting from playful to something softer. She, too, had always felt like there was something more to the world than what they saw in their little village. But unlike Kael, she had never voiced it aloud.
"You're being weird again, Kael," she said after a long silence. "First, you act all distant, and now you're talking about...feeling things. Maybe you need to get out more."
He chuckled softly. "Maybe. I guess I just..."
A sudden, almost imperceptible tremor in the ground beneath them interrupted Kael's words. He frowned, his gaze flicking to the trees lining the riverbank. The birds had stopped singing, and a stillness hung in the air, like the world had taken a deep breath, waiting.
"Elira," he murmured, his voice low, "Did you feel that?"
She nodded, her eyes narrowing as she stood up and scanned their surroundings. "What was that?"
Before Kael could answer, the sky above them darkened for just a moment—like a shadow had passed over the sun. He blinked, the odd sensation of déjà vu washing over him. This wasn't the first time something like this had happened, but it was the first time it felt...real.
A loud crash from the distance broke the tension, followed by the unmistakable sounds of panic. Villagers were shouting. The sound of wood splintering, of something—or someone—attacking their peaceful home.
"Elira, stay close," Kael ordered, his voice sharper than he intended.
She didn't argue. Instead, she followed him as they ran toward the center of the village, where the chaos was unfolding. As they neared the village square, the source of the disturbance became clear. A group of shadowy figures was clashing with the villagers, their movements swift and brutal, as though they had no regard for the lives they were threatening. They didn't look like bandits—they looked like soldiers.
Kael's heart pounded in his chest as he instinctively reached for a weapon—though he couldn't explain why he felt the urge to act. His hands gripped a rusty farming hoe, but as his fingers closed around it, he felt something strange surge through him, like an electric charge running up his arm. The hoedown weapon almost felt lighter in his hands, more...dangerous.
"Kael, wait!" Elira called out behind him, but it was too late. His body moved on its own.
Before he could even process what was happening, he swung the farming hoe at the nearest figure, striking them in a clean arc. The blow felt almost effortless, and the figure crumpled to the ground as if they had been struck by a much more powerful force. Kael stared at the weapon in his hands, wide-eyed, feeling an overwhelming rush of unfamiliar power. He hadn't meant to do that. He hadn't even thought about it. It was like his body simply knew what to do.
The remaining attackers paused, momentarily stunned. Kael's chest heaved as he looked down at the fallen figure. The feeling of power was still coursing through him, but it didn't feel like his. He didn't know where it came from or how he had done it.
"Kael! Behind you!" Elira shouted.
Kael turned just in time to see another attacker rushing at him. Without thinking, he raised the hoe defensively. But something in his gut told him that wasn't enough. The moment the attacker closed the distance, a strange sensation rippled through him—a tingling, a pulse. Before he could understand it, a force exploded from his body, a shockwave that sent the attacker flying backward into a tree.
He stood there, frozen. This wasn't supposed to be possible. He didn't even know how it happened. How could someone like him...?
"Elira..." he whispered, turning to her.
She was staring at him, wide-eyed and speechless.
And then, for the first time, Kael truly felt it—a deep, undeniable sense of something larger at play. Something that had been waiting for him.
He didn't know what it was, but one thing was certain: his peaceful life in Fennor was over.