Three years passed.
The seasons came and went across Durn Hollow.
Winter buried the hills beneath snow.
Spring painted the fields green.
Summer filled the air with warmth and laughter.
Autumn covered the land in gold.
Yet through every season, one thing remained unchanged.
Kael never stopped training.
At fifteen years old, he was taller than most boys his age.
Years of labor at the forge had strengthened his arms.
Years of discipline had hardened his mind.
The villagers often whispered about him.
Some admired him.
Others found him strange.
While most young men dreamed of marriage, harvests, or inheritance, Kael dreamed of distant lands.
His eyes were always fixed beyond the horizon.
As if he were searching for something he could not name.
Or perhaps something was searching for him.
---
One evening, Kael climbed his favorite hill overlooking the village.
The sky was clear.
Thousands of stars glittered above.
The silver crystal rested in his hand.
The same crystal the stranger had given him three years earlier.
He had carried it every day since.
Nothing unusual had ever happened.
No magic.
No visions.
No answers.
Only silence.
Kael sighed.
"Perhaps you're just a piece of stone."
The crystal suddenly grew warm.
Kael froze.
His heart skipped a beat.
For the first time since receiving it, the crystal reacted.
A faint silver light appeared within its center.
The glow pulsed like a heartbeat.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Then darkness returned.
Kael stared at it.
"What was that?"
No answer came.
But far above, a shooting star crossed the heavens.
Its trail lingered longer than normal.
Almost as if the sky itself were watching.
---
The following night, the dreams began.
Kael stood in a field of black ash.
The air smelled of smoke and blood.
Ruined castles burned in the distance.
Broken banners fluttered in the wind.
Thousands of bodies covered the ground.
Warriors.
Knights.
Kings.
All fallen.
A voice echoed across the battlefield.
Ancient.
Powerful.
Impossible to locate.
"The stars have shattered."
Kael turned.
No one stood there.
The voice continued.
"The kingdoms will fall."
The crystal appeared before him.
Floating in darkness.
Its silver light brighter than the sun.
"The heir of the broken sky must awaken."
Suddenly countless silver eyes opened across the heavens.
Watching him.
Judging him.
Waiting.
Kael tried to run.
But the battlefield cracked beneath his feet.
The world shattered.
And he woke.
---
Sweat covered his body.
His breathing was rapid.
The room was dark.
Moonlight spilled through the window.
The crystal glowed faintly beside his bed.
Kael stared at it.
Fear and curiosity battled inside him.
The dream had felt real.
Too real.
The smell of smoke still lingered in his memory.
The sound of distant screams echoed inside his mind.
For the first time, he wondered if the stranger's words had been more than a warning.
Perhaps they had been a message.
A message intended specifically for him.
---
Days later, strange events spread across the village.
Livestock became restless.
Dogs barked at empty fields.
Birds abandoned their nests.
Even the ancient oak tree appeared different.
Its leaves began turning silver.
Not gray.
Not white.
Silver.
The villagers gathered beneath its branches.
Fear spread quickly.
Some called it a curse.
Others claimed it was a blessing.
No one knew the truth.
But Kael felt the crystal growing warmer with each passing day.
As though it recognized whatever force was changing the village.
---
One evening Rowan entered the forge carrying an old wooden chest.
Kael had never seen it before.
Dust covered its surface.
Iron locks secured its lid.
His father placed it on the workbench.
For several moments neither spoke.
Then Rowan finally broke the silence.
"You've started having dreams."
Kael looked up sharply.
"How do you know?"
Rowan's expression darkened.
"Because your mother had them too."
The words struck Kael harder than any hammer.
"My mother?"
Rowan nodded.
"There are things I should have told you years ago."
He unlocked the chest.
Inside rested ancient maps.
Old journals.
And a silver pendant identical to Kael's crystal.
The same symbol.
The same strange glow.
The same star-shaped design.
Kael stared in disbelief.
"What is all this?"
Rowan exhaled slowly.
"The truth."
---
Outside, thunder rumbled across the horizon.
The sky darkened.
Wind swept through Durn Hollow.
The silver leaves of the ancient oak trembled violently.
And somewhere beyond the mountains, hidden deep within forgotten ruins, something awakened.
A creature older than kingdoms.
Older than history.
Older than memory itself.
Its eyes opened.
Silver light filled the darkness.
And for the first time in centuries, it spoke.
"The Starborn has been found."
The age of silence was ending.
The age of war was beginning.
And Kael's true journey had finally begun.
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