The storm had passed, but Ka'thar did not return to the cave.
The moment he carved his name onto stone, he no longer belonged to the past. The world had shifted, and so had he. His body was still a beast—scarred, plated, monstrous—but his eyes saw more than prey. His mind burned with questions no creature had ever asked.
Why do we fight?
Why do we kill?
What lies beyond the stars?
No answer came from the wind. The Cradle Sky offered only flickering violet arcs and the slow churn of clouds that never rained. Yet Ka'thar felt the world listening.
⸻
🪵 The Fire Beneath the Stone
Days turned to cycles. Ka'thar wandered deeper into the forbidden regions of Kev—lands untouched by fang or claw.
And then… he found it.
A crack in the earth, wide and breathing heat. From it rose glowing embers and whispers of flame, licking at the darkness.
He stood over the crevice.
Something called to him.
Not with words.
With memory.
Not his own.
Ancient flame. Memory of stars.
Echoes of that which fell.
Ka'thar reached out with his claw, not to take—but to understand.
And as he touched the edge of the stone, a flash overwhelmed him.
⸻
⚡ The Vision of the Fall
In an instant, he was no longer in his body.
He stood above the world.
And above him—looming across the void—was a colossal object, wreathed in flames, trailing energy like bleeding gods.
The sky split open.
The world screamed.
The object crashed into Kev, shattering a third of its surface and birthing the Cradle Sky. From its core spilled not death, but life—unformed, primal, seeding the planet with the essence of transformation.
Ka'thar fell to his knees—still within the vision.
And then, he saw them.
Figures within the falling object.
Not beasts. Not gods. Not machines.
Something else.
Frozen in glass, sealed in stasis.
One of them opened its eyes.
And looked directly at him.
"Awaken… the Flame of Mind."
⸻
🌌 Return
Ka'thar's body spasmed. The vision ended.
He lay at the edge of the chasm, breath ragged, eyes wide. The glow had faded. The embers no longer called.
But his mind burned brighter than ever.
⸻
👁️ The Stalker of Questions
That night, Ka'thar was not alone.
In the shadows beyond the flame-crack, something moved.
A creature, four-legged and sleek, eyes like shards of moonlight. It did not attack. It watched.
Ka'thar turned, locking eyes with it.
He felt… curiosity.
And to his surprise—the creature blinked. Once. Slowly.
He took a step forward.
So did it.
Not predator.
Not prey.
Something else.
He stopped.
"Do you… think?" he asked. Not aloud. With his will.
The creature tilted its head.
And in response, Ka'thar felt a flicker—not a word, but a presence. A beginning.
"I… wonder," it seemed to say.
And then it vanished.
⸻
🧬 The Age of Silence Ends
Ka'thar stood in the starlight.
He was no longer alone.
Another mind was awakening.
The flame had spread.
The era of mindless beasts had cracked.
And though the world did not yet know it… the First Era was ending.
What would come next would not be written in fang or claw—but in thought, in choice, in identity.
But in the depths of the Bone Forest, far from light and warmth, the ancient one stirred.
The Undead, watcher of death before death had a name, opened its eyeless sockets and smiled.
"So it begins…"
⸻
To be continued…