"He's just a child! He's not ready yet." Emrys could hear his father's voice from afar.
"Sending him to the police academy won't protect him, if you really want to protect him, teach him, tell him who he really is now before it's too late." The other voice belonged to a woman.
It was sharp and urgent,like she was trying to say everything in one sentence.
"He doesn't need to know now, I'm here, I'll always protect him." His father added dismissively.
He slowed right outside the door and stopped to listen more carefully. A small sound caught his attention and he turned briefly to see Betsy lazily lounging on the railings.
A neighbour opened her door and waved a greeting to him,he nodded and they retreated back into their apartment with a small smile.
It was like this, people didn't really come close to him but they were kind and polite from afar.
"With what? Your powers have weakened, you can't even last a fight, your body's dying, oh be serious for once Aries!" The woman cut him off almost immediately.
Emrys didn't know who she was or what they were talking about but he didn't like the way she was speaking to.
He reached out for the door handle and turned it. It creaked and when he pushed the door open, he saw his father standing close to the stove and the woman, tall, almost as pale as he was sitting in a chair,arms folded across her chest.
He stared at them and they stared back.
"You're back early." His father said, clearing his throat
Emrys didn't move, he leaned against the doorframe as the conversation between his father and the woman paused. The silence grew thick and unbearable and his father's jaw tightened,his hands gripping the edge of the counter.
The woman's eyes flickered towards him briefly and he caught the glint of something, something sharp like a warning.
"You think you're ready for them? Aries this boy doesn't even know the weight of his own powers." She said, her voice softening almost immediately but every word carries a strange undertone.
"One day, he'll understand or he won't survive at all."
Emrys froze as the last words lingered in the air like smoke and a chill ran down his spine.
Before he could ask what she meant,the woman rose smoothly,her tall frame gliding passed him towards the door.
"I suppose there's nothing more I can do here." She said lightly,almost as if she was testing him. She paused at the door and glanced back "remember,Aries..even shadows hide monsters and this place you are,has too much shadows,you cannot trust anyone so easily"
And after that she walked out and then she was gone with the soft click of the door closing echoing through the apartment.
Emrys blinked,unsure if he had heard her correctly, what did she mean by shadows hiding monsters? What did that even mean? And why did she call her father "Aries"? A name he'd never heard anyone call his father.
Funny how he didn't even know his own father's name. His father didn't look at him immediately, he walked over to the stove,turned it on and stirred something in the pan that had already been sitting on it.
When he finally spoke, he simply said, "she's gone."
His father's shoulders sagged slightly and he turned to Emrys, his eyes dark with worry. "Sit," he said softly, motioning to the chair near the kitchen table.
Emrys obeyed, setting down onto the edge of the chair,his hands gripping the sides, the smell of frying eggs and stale oil filled the room but it couldn't mask the chill of the unease he felt.
"I need to tell you something," his father began but his voice faltered. He exhaled slowly, trying to find the right words.
"Something I should have told you long ago, something I've been trying to keep you safe from."
Emrys frowned,his pulse picking up in his ears. He had known there were things his father never told him, Secrets buried beneath years of quiet caution but hearing this now made his chest tighten with something close to fear.
"What is it?" He asked, trying to steady his quivering voice and beating heart.
His father looked awayz staring at the cracked tiles on the floor as if they might offer guidance. " There are people…grounds that..that hunt people like us." He swallowed. "The unknown Sect."
The words hit Emrys hard like a stone had been thrown at him. He blinked, trying to process what his father was saying. "Unknown sect?" He repeated, his voice barely above a whisper.
His father nodded slowly,each movement measured and heavy with exgaustion.
"They've existed longer than most can remember. They move in shadows,hidden from the eyes of the world. They seem out those born with abilities like yours,like mine..like yours might be."
Emrys felt a chill creep up his spine, his hands tightened into fists on his laps. "Abilities?" He echoed, a part of his already suspected there was more to his father than the quiet man who had taught him how to survive in the slums. But hearing him say it out loud made it real and more terrifying.
"Yes," his father said,his voice now sharper and more desperate. "You're not like others,you're different, Emrys. You were born with something they fear,something they cannot allow to exist unchecked."
The words made Emrys's head spin, he opened his mouth to speak but no sound came,the pieces of memory he had…tiny flashes of instinctive strength,the way he had dodged and absorbed blows without knowing why..all began to align in his head. He had always felt different but hearing it made it sound more scary and dangerous
"They'll come for you if they find you unprepared" his father continued. "I've spent my entire life keeping you hidden, keeping you safe. But… I cannot do it forever. If they see you,if they sense it…you'll be a target before you even know how to fight back."
Emrys's stomach twisted with an ugly grumble. "Fight back? I… I don't even know what I am." he admitted.
His father's expression softened but the worry remained in his eyes. "That's why you must listen, you need to understand who you are before it's too late. You need to train, prepare and learn your own strength and above all…" he paused, his voice dropping lower to a whisper.
"Above all,never ever trust anyone blindly. Not the academy,not strangers,not even those who seem to help you."
Emrys swallowed,the weight of his father's words pressing down on him, he thought of the woman who had been here moments ago.. the way her eyes has glimmered with knowledge and the urgency in her voice. She knew too but who was she really? A friend? An enemy?
His father's gaze was fixed on him now, unwavering. "I didn't tell you before because…because I wanted to shield you. I wanted you to have some semblance of a childhood,to feel like a normal child. I'm sorry but fear is nothing compared to what's coming. You need to accept it,embrace it or they will destroy you without hesitation."
Emrys's mins raced, the things he had caught glimpses of in the alleyways..the strange shadows in the puddle,the feeling of being watched and followed suddenly made sense to him. And the police academy…he had been thinking of it as a chance for a way to improve life but now he realized it could be a trap. Academy scouts were likely the first to notice anyone with powers.
His father sighed, rubbing a hand over his face. "I'm sorry I've kept you ignorant for so long but it ends tonight, you need to understand the truth of your bloodline Emrys. You're the last of the Omni-Born."
The words echoed in the small apartment and Emrys stared at him with his mind blank and unable to fully grasp the meaning. "Omni-Born…last if them?" He said slowly.
"Yes," his father said,his tone steady but heavy with grief. "Millennia ago, a line of beings existed—Omni-Borns. Beings capable of absorbing, evolving, mastering any power and controlling realms across the universe. They were feared by kings,hunted by sects and worshipped by those who sought control. I hid you, trained you to survive in secrecy,so you could survive but now the world knows about your existence."
Emrys felt a shiver crawl down his spine. "The world …knows?" He asked.
His father nodded gravely. "The raid yesterday across town wasn't random. That was a warnin, the Unknown Sect is now fully aware and once they realize your power is surfacing, they won't hesitate to eliminate you. Not just to control you but to prevent the destabilizaton you could bring.
Emrys's chest tighter with a mixture of fear and an odd surge of something else— something primal and dangerous,a spark he had felt but never understood.
His father moved closer, placing a hand on his shoulder. "You'll need to train with what little time we have left. You need to learn how to control yourself,how to harness your instincts. The power you hold, it's not a gift, at least not yet. But if you can master it,you will survive but if you fail,they will hunt you relentlessly."
Emrys looked down at his hands,he had always felt different,stronger than others in way he couldn't explain and now the truth was clear. He was not ordinary and the stakes were far higher than he had imagined.
His father stepped back and began cleaning the kitchen, though his eye never left Emrys. "I've left hidden tomes,scrolls.. exercises for you. Start tonight, understand the codex, understand the dangers, you're no longer just a boy from the slums."
Emrys's mind whirled with questions but his father shook his head. "Questions can come later,for now..you must focus on learning who you are. There's no time to waste anymore. They will come for you sooner than you expected.
A quiet moment passed and the only sounds were the hiss of the stove and Betsy's contented purring. But beaneth that,Emrys could feel something awakening inside him—a subtle heat at the base of his spine,a pull in his chest,an instinct he could neither name or control.
His father's voice cut through his thoughts again,low and firm. "Whatever you do, Emrys..trust yourself first,trust no one else and remember—your blood is your own,your power is your own. They may seek it but they cannot take it unless you allow it.
Emrys nodded, though he barely understood. "I…I'll try" he said, his voice trembling slightly.
His father gave a small,sad smile. "Trying is all anyone can do at first but you'll have to do more than try. You'll have to survive and that is your first lesson."
Emrys watched his father return to his work at the stove with tense shoulders. The man who had always seemed quiet and reserved now carried the weight of secrets,danger and an entire hidden world on his shoulders.
Betsy meandered back into his laps, the warmth of the cat offering a small comfort against the storm of thoughts in this mind.
He stroked her fur, feeling the calm and peace before everything changed.
The night outside pressed against the widow with a silent but foreboding danger that awaited him—thr Unknown Sect,the Academy scouts and the untamed power rising inside him.
He didn't know if he understood or was ready yet but for the first time, he really understood that he had no choice and the word had already set it's price in motion and he Emrys..no Emrys the Omni-Born was a piece it had underestimated.