For a moment, there was only darkness. He didn't know if he was falling or floating. He tried to breathe, but the air around him was pressing tight against him.
Then suddenly—
Thud.
Elion was on the ground. His eyes shot open. He gasped, coughing and pulling the air to breathe.
He wasn't in his room. He was lying on grass—bright green, soft, and almost glowing
Above him, tall trees stretched into the blue sky that looked too perfect to be real. Elion sat slowly.
The forest around him looked familiar. The leaves shimmered with silver light.
Elion whispered, "No way... this can't be real."
He knew this place.
The Silverwood Forest—from the book "THE KINGDOM OF ASTERFALL."
The Kingdom of Asterfall was born centuries ago when a cluster of star-like lights fell into a hidden valley between two mountain ranges. The early tribes believed this celestial event was a blessing from the sky-spirit Astraea and united around the glowing shard they found at the impact site. From this unity rose the first city, Asterion, and eventually the kingdom itself.
Under King Lorian the Builder, AsterFall grew into a realm of learning, peace, and strong stone fortresses. Its scholars became known across the lands, and the Star Guard—elite knights sworn to protect the celestial shard—was established.
Its golden age lasted until the Shadowfall War, when a dark cult called the Veilborn sought to claim the shard for their god of darkness. After decades of conflict, AsterFall survived only through greater sacrifice and the mysterious flare of power from the shard, an event now known as the Dawnburst.
Since that day, the shard has remained dim and silent.
Recently, strange omens and flickers of light have returned. Whispers speak of ancient forces stirring once more and of a prophecy that promises a new awakening—one tied to a single decision that could reshape all of AsterFall's future.
Before Elion organized his thoughts, a sharp sound cut through the stillness. Metal striking each other. Elion turned slowly. Not far away, someone was fighting.
Blades clashed, shadows moved between the trees. Elion took a step with caution. Then a figure stumbled out of the bushes.
A boy of his age, maybe slightly younger, with silver hair that caught the sunlight and a sword glowing faintly at the edges. He has seen this boy before. On the book cover, in every sketch he had drawn of the story's hero. Acel.
Acel looked at him with shock.
"You..." Acel breathed, lowering his sword slightly.
"Who are you? You're not... you're not supposed to be here."
Elion opened his mouth. He didn't have an answer.
He didn't know why he was here. He wasn't sure how he got here.
Before either of them could speak, a high-pitched shriek rang behind Acel.
Stay behind me. The creature lunged.
Acel slashed cleanly, but instead of bleeding, the creature dissolved into black dust, upward into the trees, and vanished, leaving only smoke.
Acel exhaled slowly and turned towards Elion with narrowed eyes.
"How did you get here?" and why does the air around you feel distorted? Elion swallowed. "I... I don't know," he whispered. It was that... the ink formed a circle on the floor and pulled me into it. Elion's words hung in the air like something impossible. Acel's expression didn't change, but his grip on his sword tightened.
"Ink... circle... pulled you..."
Elion nodded. "I was in my room. I was drawing. Then ink flowed out of the page like wet paint, forming a circle on the floor around me, and pulled me in. When I opened my eyes, I was here."
Acel came closer, eyes sharp, studying him with seriousness that made him feel completely exposed. For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Moment of silence