The city didn't stop burning.
Flames licked the broken skyline, turning the night into a canvas of orange and black. Sirens had long gone silent. The screams had become fewer, fainter. The monsters were still out there, roaming, searching.
Kairis pushed forward, dragging Elyra by the wrist while keeping Aeren close under his arm. His sister stumbled on the cracked pavement, her breath sharp and uneven. His little brother was shaking so hard it felt like he was vibrating against Kairis's side.
They were alive. That was all that mattered right now.
He led them through ruined streets, ducking into alleys when shadows moved in the distance. Twice he saw bodies—people he recognized from the plaza. A vendor who had once given Aeren extra toppings, a neighbor who always greeted their mother. They lay crumpled and broken, as if the world had simply decided they no longer belonged.
Elyra turned her face away, biting her lip until it bled. Aeren buried his head against Kairis's chest.
Kairis didn't let himself flinch. Not once.
Eventually, they found it. An old house, half-collapsed at the edge of the district, its windows shattered and door hanging loose. Most people had already fled the area. That made it safer.
"In here," he said, his voice steady. He didn't ask. He didn't explain. He just made the choice.
Inside, the air smelled of dust and mold. Furniture was overturned, as if the owners had left in a rush. It wasn't much, but the walls were still standing, and for now, that was enough.
"Sit down," he told them, setting Aeren on the torn couch. Elyra sank beside her brother, her shoulders trembling.
Kairis moved. He didn't sit. Didn't rest. He went through the house, searching every room, every corner. He found a rusted kitchen knife, some canned food, bottles of water left behind. In the bedroom upstairs, he discovered blankets and dragged them down, layering them across his siblings to keep out the cold.
He nailed broken planks across the front door, shoved a cabinet against the back entrance, and wedged chairs beneath the window frames. Every sound outside made him pause, listening, waiting.
When he was finally done, he stood in the center of the room, watching Elyra and Aeren. His chest tightened, but his face remained calm.
Aeren's small voice cracked the silence. "Dad… Mom…"
The boy's eyes were red, his tears shining in the flicker of firelight. Elyra wrapped her arms around him, her own face wet.
Kairis crouched in front of them. For a moment, he couldn't find the words. His throat burned, but he swallowed it down. They didn't need his grief. They needed his strength.
"They're gone," he said flatly. The words were knives, but truth always was. "They gave us their lives so we could live. So we will. Do you hear me?"
Elyra looked at him, hurt flashing in her eyes. "How can you say it like that? Like it's nothing—"
"It's not nothing," he interrupted, his voice low, controlled. "But crying won't bring them back. Surviving will honor them. If we fall apart now, their sacrifice means nothing."
His sister choked back a sob, but she nodded. Aeren buried his face in her shoulder, whispering for their parents again and again until exhaustion pulled him into sleep.
When they were quiet, Kairis finally sat. Not to rest. His eyes didn't close. He stared at the boarded door, at the cracks of light seeping in from outside.
His hands clenched. His thoughts were sharp, bitter.
The world is a lie. Safety was a lie. Peace was a lie.
He could still see his father's hand reaching, his mother's voice screaming at him to run. He felt nothing now. No fear. No tears. Just a heavy coldness spreading through his chest, filling the space where his heart should have been.
And beneath it, something else stirred. Something strange.
The image of the monsters crushing buildings, devouring humans… and the flashes of people fighting back. Fire erupting from bare hands. Lightning lashing through the smoke. Shadows moving like weapons. Humans awakening into something more.
It wasn't random. It couldn't be.
He pressed his palm against the floor, steadying his breath. He didn't know how yet, but he could feel it. The same power was inside him. It was waiting.
And when it woke… he swore he would never let anyone take Elyra or Aeren from him. Not monsters. Not men. Not even the gods who had made this world.