Kaito wakes up, never realizing when he passed out. He struggles to his feet, peering up into the ravine seeing dim sunlight.
Kaito begins crying out as his mind becomes aware of the pain he's in, his entire body is screaming feeling as if it's on fire. "MOM!" He yells out, Kaito grabs onto the jagged wall of the ravine, desperately attempting to climb out.
He must've fell one hundred miles down, no matter how much he tried, no matter how hard. He always ended up just falling back down. "DAD, KATE, KAID!" He cried, "I'm down here, help me!" Kaito shrieked.
His legs ached with pain, his arm throbbed, his head rang. "Please, it hurts!" Kaito cried, and cried, and cried. For what seemed like hours he sat helplessly, awaiting someone to come down and save him... but nobody came.
The low bellow of a beast echoed through the ravine cavern, Kaito jumped, startled by the noise.
He stood, not knowing where he would go, but he needed to go. The wind blew all around him, but it seemed like it was converging to a single place so he followed. He wanted a sign, for someone in his family to tell him what to do, someone to tell him how to escape.
Having none of that he just walked deeper into the cavern.
Kaito walked through the cavern the wind growing more violent, but as he approached he began to see something, getting close enough he noticed it all led to... a door? He was confused, what was a door doing all the way down here.
It was grand, so grand it had seemed a palace once stood here. The marble columns were destroyed with time, it's once great shine, now dusty, the carvings in the door too were unfamiliar. It raised too many questions, but no alarm bells. He felt... he didn't know actually, but he wasn't scared.
He pushed the doors open, they gave way rather easily. Inside there were murals covering the walls depicting a war between four unknown beings. The war depicted a battle between two flying beast through the air, down below two more beast ripping the world apart, over to the side a small entity facing off against a giant beast.
Finally it showed two humans faced off against one another. And under it all as Kaito passed through the hall was a book resting atop a pedestal, the titled read Unifates.
Kaito was confused by all of this not understanding the meaning of anything, he flipped the book open.
The Tale of the UnifatesThe Unifates is a legendary treasure created by four ascended mortals turned gods. Said to grant any wish, its power is limitless, capable of bringing either peace or destruction.
The four gods are:
Melchior, god of wrath, a destructive force seeking control over all life.
Kukyo, god of emptiness, shaped by loss and isolation.
Magi, god of sloth, powerful but indifferent, who failed to protect her people.
Raya, god of hope, revered for her courage and ability to inspire change.
Conflict arose when Melchior sought domination, while Raya fought for peace. Melchior allied with Kukyo; Raya with Magi. Their clash nearly destroyed the universe. To prevent total annihilation, Raya used the combined power of all four gods to transform the chaos into a treasure, the Unifates, before fading from existence.
Before dying, Raya created two lesser gods to watch over the Unifates. These playful beings turned the treasure into a game, forming a new universe where artifacts were scattered across a planet and hidden under civilizations.
They crafted special books and artifacts. To unlock the Unifates, one must find a book, place a central "spearhead" artifact into it, and insert four other artifacts to reveal the path to the treasure.
The story of the treasure blew him away, he was left wondering things about this treasure about this book, was it all real, could he really have any wish of his choice? The cities, he had never even thought of the world outside of the forest.
It gave him a sense of wanting something more but he had to get out of here.
Kaito flipped the pages, but it was blank, such a large book with hundreds of empty pages. "A treasure that can grant any wish!?" He thinks about all of the possibilities. "I wish to escape!" He wishes.
The books blank page gleams with light, it begins writing a new line before his eyes. "You must carve your own path." It read.
Kaito's face scrunches up as he pouts, "I thought you granted wishes!" He shouts.
Kaito stepped from the hall, a low rumble in his stomach, he was so hungry. Looking around all he saw was bug beasts, but he had no choice, if he wanted to survive this, no one was coming to save him. If he wanted to reach the top, he had to be strong enough to save himself, he had too... carve his own path forwards.
Unsheathing his blade, he stepped forwards.
The bug beasts were massive, their chitinous shells hard as stone and their mandibles sharp enough to cut through bone. The first time one lunged at him, Kaito thought it was over. But instinct and sheer stubbornness carried him through. He fought, he bled, and when it was done, he roasted the thing over a fire. The smell was foul, the taste worse, but he ate every bite.
Day after day, the pattern repeated. Hunt. Fight. Eat. Try to climb. Fall. Try again.
At first, he cursed his own weakness, shouted into the dark that this wasn't fair, that he wasn't meant to rot in some hole. But the more he fought, the more he climbed, the more something inside him changed.
If I want strength… I can't wait for it to just appear. I can't expect anyone to hand it to me. I have to take it.
The thought burned into him, deeper each time his fingers slipped on stone, each time he dragged his battered body back up to try again. Slowly over time, his eyes began to glow.
He drank from the dripping walls, chewed on stringy meat, and pushed himself past the edge of exhaustion. Days blurred together. But with each one, he grew leaner, harder, sharper.
Until finally, the day came.
His hands were raw, nails split and bleeding, muscles screaming with every pull. But this time, he didn't let go. This time, he clawed his way past the ledges where he'd fallen before. Higher. Higher. His breath tore in and out of his chest like fire, but he didn't stop.
And then.... sunlight.
Kaito hauled himself over the edge, collapsing onto solid ground, staring up at the endless blue sky. For a moment, he just lay there, trembling, gasping, a laugh bubbling out of his chest.
He forced himself upright, throwing his fists into the air. "I did it!" His voice rang across the trees. "I made it out! I'm undefeatable!"
He grinned wide, a boy who had been broken down in the dark and clawed his way back into the light.
Kaito Nakaya. Stronger than yesterday.
Kaito staggered back into the forest clearing, still dizzy with triumph, only for his breath to catch. His father was there.
Sun stood with arms crossed, silent as a statue, eyes sharp as steel. He had been there the whole time. Watching. Waiting.
"You… you're here?" Kaito's voice cracked with disbelief. "All this time, you were there? Why didn't you, why didn't you help me?"
Sun's expression didn't shift. "Because I was testing you. If you couldn't climb out on your own, then you didn't deserve saving."
The words slammed into Kaito harder than any fall. His throat tightened. He looked away, but then Sun's heavy hand came down on his shoulder.
"…But you did make it. You proved me wrong," Sun said, his tone low and steady. "You did well to escape."
Hope flared in Kaito's chest. He dug into his pack and pulled out the book, holding it out with pride. "And I found this! There's treasure out there, stories of things beyond the forest. I want to explore it all-"
Before he could finish, Sun's hand swept the book from his grasp, tossing it into the dirt. "Forget your fairytales," he said flatly. "You've proven you can be a warrior. That's what matters. That's all that matters."
Kaito snatched the book up again, clutching it to his chest. His voice trembled, but he forced the words out. "No! I don't want to be a warrior. I don't care about conquering. I want to explore. I want to see what's outside this forest!"
"I never thought about it, but I am now!" Kaito said happily.
Sun's eyes glazed with disinterest, his face bored as if he'd heard nothing at all. Finally, he turned his back. "You're a disappointment," he said, his voice sharp as a blade. "Find your own way home." Sun said before he was gone in the wind.
Kaito froze. The words carved into him deeper than the ravine's stones ever had. His lips parted, but no sound came out. Slowly, he hugged the book closer and trudged back toward the village, shoulders slumped, the sting of his father's rejection trailing behind him like a shadow.
Kaito trudged into the village, dragging his feet, the book hugged tight to his chest like a fragile treasure. The sting of Sun's words clung to him. You're a disappointment."
Moon was waiting by the firepit, her hands busy weaving a basket, but her eyes immediately found her son. She set everything aside. "Oh, Kaito I haven't seen you in weeks, how was your camping with your father?" She asked but seeing his eyes, she knew something was wrong.
"Kaito," she called softly, "what's wrong?"
He froze, fighting the lump in his throat. "I… don't wanna talk about it." His voice cracked, but he kept his head down.
Moon didn't pry. Instead, she reached out and pulled him into her arms, resting her chin lightly on his messy hair. "Then don't. Not yet. But you can still tell me what you do want to share."
Slowly, Kaito loosened his grip just enough to hold the book up. His eyes gleamed again, though rimmed with fatigue. "This. This is what I found. There's treasure out there, whole places outside the forest. I don't wanna be a warrior like Dad wants. I wanna explore it all. I wanna see everything."
Moon's smile spread, soft but fierce. "I knew you'd have your interest in the outside eventually, do you really wanna find that treasure?" She asked, Kaito nodding. "That's wonderful. Truly wonderful, Kaito. Do you know how happy it makes me to see you find your dream?"
Kaito blinked, his lips parting. "You're… happy? Even though Dad said it was stupid?"
She brushed his cheek with her thumb, shaking her head. "Your father and I don't see the world the same way. He wants conquerors, but I want my children to be themselves. If this book is what makes your heart race, then hold onto it. Treasure it."
Kaito felt the weight lift from his chest, replaced by a spark of joy. He hugged the book tighter and grinned. "Yeah… yeah! I'll do it. I'll see everything, Mom!"
"As you must know though, rules are you can't leave this forest until you're fourteen!" She said and Kaito nodded vigorously.
Moon chuckled, but her eyes grew more serious. "You'll have to work harder than you've ever imagined. The world outside this forest isn't gentle. It's dangerous, unpredictable. If you want to survive, let alone explore it, you'll have to train ten times as hard as anyone else. Do you understand?"
Kaito nodded fast, his grin turning determined. "Then I'll do it. I'll train twenty times as hard if I have to! I'll get strong enough to handle anything. I'll never give up, not ever!"
"That's my boy." Moon pulled him close again, pride shining in her voice. "Then go chase it, Kaito. Go make your dream real."
Kaito's heart swelled, the sting of Sun's rejection completely washed away. He laughed, bright and loud, the fire in him reignited. "Just you watch, Mom, I'm gonna do it. I'm gonna see it all!"
And so he did, Kaito worked harder every single day when his family was training. When Kaid jogged he ran. When they lifted tons he lifted two, for years he worked harder and harder.
Kate could do ten times what he could and she never even trained, she read books all day and she was still stronger, but he never slowed down, he kept working harder! Even though now occasionally he sat with her as she read her books of the outside world.
When he would fall behind, he just worked even harder! When he would fail He'd just keep working!