Cid should have been an ordinary boy.
But when the summoning circle activated beneath his feet, the ancient runes didn't glow blue like every other hero-summoning in history
they turned black, gold, and void-white, colors that shouldn't exist together.
The High Priests froze.
Their crystal towers cracked.
The world trembled.
Because the moment Cid arrived
the summoning system tried to scan his power level and failed.
ERROR: Power cannot be measured.
ERROR: Subject breaks system logic.
ERROR: DO NOT APPROACH.
The priests stepped back in fear.
Cid blinked. "Uh… hello.
Before anyone could respond, the air behind Cid split open a thin, vertical tear of absolute darkness,
as if the world had been cut by a blade that could sever everything.
A woman stepped out.
Silent. Barefoot. Eyes glowing with white pupils on black void, like eclipses burning in her skull.
Her presence froze time.
Magic forgot how to work.
Space bent around her.
She was known as:
Shiki of the Void the FateKiller, the WorldSlasher, the Death Seer.
Her gaze landed on Cid.
Strange. Even I can't see your lines of death.
Cid frowned. "Is that bad?"
"No," she whispered, approaching him with slow, graceful steps.
"It means you exist outside fate… just like me."
And then for the first time in hundreds of years
Shiki smiled.
The king stuttered, shaking.
G Goddess Shiki why have you appeared?!
Shiki didn't even glance at him.
She pressed a finger lightly to Cid's chest.
This boy does not belong to your world.
Her touch should have erased him.
His soul should have collapsed.
Reality should have screamed.
But Cid didn't move an inch.
Her eyes widened. It was the first genuine shock she had felt in centuries.
"You're immune to void erosion
to fate collapse
to death severance.
Cid shrugged. "Guess I'm pretty durable.
Shiki stared at him longer than she intended.
Something warm flickered in her hollow chest.
A heartbeat.
Just one.
But enough to unsettle the Fate Killer.
Shiki turned her back on the terrified kingdom.
"Cid. Come with me."
"Uh we just met."
Her voice softened an emotion almost forgotten.
"You're the first person I've found who doesn't fall apart when I touch them."
Cid scratched his cheek. "So you want to travel together.
She nodded, void aura swirling like starlit darkness.
"And perhaps she murmured, "learn why my heart reacts to you."
Cid nearly choked. "W wait, heart.
Shiki stepped close, her eyes glowing gently this time.
"Do not misunderstand. I do not fall in love easily. But you…
you resonate with me."
Cid felt heat rise up his neck.
And so, the two most dangerous beings in existence
the boy who broke the system
and the woman who could cut fate itself
took their first step toward an unpredictable future