Chapter 5 :The First Scar

At dawn,

the sun had not yet risen.

Across Elinoria, trees began shedding their leaves, one by one, as a thick, unnatural cold filled the air.

Children slept. Adults stirred awake for their usual labor.

And inside a small, quiet house, Aurel and Rin slept side by side in their shared room-until the cold crept in.

Aurel woke first.

He noticed Rin shivering beneath the blankets. Without a word, he rose and gently laid another blanket over his younger brother. As he did, he heard the front door open.

His father was leaving.

Aurel followed him quietly.

“Dad,” he called.

Kaelar turned. “Oh… you’re awake?” His voice was low and tired. “I’m going down to check on… whatever might be happening.”

“Okay,” Aurel said. “Can I light the fireplace?”

His father nodded. “Yeah. Go ahead. I’ll be back as soon as I can. Take care of the house.”

“I will,” Aurel replied.

Kaelar stepped out into the cold.

Aurel lit the fireplace and sat beside it, watching the flames slowly grow.

Soon after, his mother woke and noticed him there. She approached quietly.

“Good morning,” she said softly.

He looked up. “Morning, Mom.”

“You’re up early,” she said with a faint smile. “Want something warm to drink?”

“Do we even have anything left?” he asked gently.

She nodded. “Enough tea. Tea and milk?”

He smiled. “Only if you drink with me.”

She smiled back, ruffled his hair, and went to the kitchen.

Alone again, Aurel stared into the fire.

Are we going to be poor?

Will anything ever be the same again?

She returned and placed a warm cup beside him before sitting down with her own.

“Here,” she said softly.

“Thanks, Mom.”

She hesitated, then spoke. “Can we talk for a moment?”

His shoulders stiffened. “Uh… sure.” with a realization that this was going to be a serious lecture.

“If things get worse,” she said gently, “I won’t let you and Rin starve. I promise.”

He frowned. “What do you mean… worse?”

“I mean the food.” She met his eyes. “If we can’t provide enough… I’ll do something.”

She paused.

“My father,” she continued. “Your grandfather. You’ve never met him, right?”

Aurel shook his head. “Yeah we never met him, You said he works at the kingdom walls.”

“He does. He’s a guard there. He’s provided with food and water.” She took a breath.

“If things don’t improve, I’ll send you and Rin to live with him-until we solve this.”

Aurel’s eyes widened. “No, no and no. we’re not leaving and we’re not going anywhere without you two”

“Aurel,” she said softly, “you’re still children. You need food. Safety. I don’t want to see that.. okay?”

“We’re a family!” he said, raising his voice. “MOM! I am not going anywhere without you two, if we suffer, we suffer together.. we’re a family! You always said we shouldn’t separate!”

“Watch your tone,” she said firmly. “Families don’t separate unless it’s necessary.”

He looked back at the fire, breathing deeply.

“And what if nothing works?” he asked. “You send us away that easily? Then come with us. All of us.”

She shook her head. “That’s not possible. And maybe… maybe this could be an adventure for you. You’ve never left the village before its only you two.. and yet, use it as and excuse to discover the out world.., so that would be a cool exploration for you and Rin.. right?””

“No,” he said quietly.

“That’s enough,” she replied, her voice firm. “I’ve said what needed to be said. No more arguing.”

The fire cracked softly between them.

After a while,

Aurel was left alone in the room, sitting next to the fireplace, drinking his cup of milk tea without even tasting it.

His mind was full of thoughts. He kept overthinking the entire situation, repeating to himself: No way we’re leaving Dad and Mom to go to a grandpa we’ve never even met before… And no way things can get any worse. It has to get better soon.

The thoughts overwhelmed the young boy.

Until he suddenly heard a lot of footsteps outside, loud enough to make him stir and stand immediately.

He looked through the window and noticed villagers gathered near the shore, all staring at something.

He quickly opened the door and ran toward the crowd.

When he arrived, he saw something new.

One villager said, “Okay… this is too bad. We’re literally doomed.”

Another said, “Oh my… what’s going on now?!”

A third shouted, “No way… this can’t be happening!”

Aurel slipped through the crowd to see what they were looking at.

The blue sea was no longer blue.

The water stretched before them in a thick, dark red shade, heavy and still, as if the ocean itself had been wounded. Waves rolled slowly toward the shore, leaving red foam behind, and the smell in the air felt wrong - metallic, sharp, and unfamiliar. What was once clear and alive now looked like a vast open wound, bleeding endlessly beneath the sky.

the blue sea was now blood

“W–what the…?!” Aurel said in shock. “The sea… the sea is blood…”

Aurel felt a cold shiver run through his body despite the air around him.

The villagers around him started snapping at each other.

“The water is BLOOD!”

“Either this is a divine punishment, or something terrible is happening!”

“No, it’s not that… something must be happening on the other side!”

“The island of Belonjia… what might have happened to them?!”

All the villagers stared toward the horizon, toward the island of Belonjia.

What was going on over there?

Aurel’s golden eyes stared as well, frozen in shock.

He thought to himself: This is not even close to being okay.

Aurel ran back home to his mother.

He opened the door and shut it behind him quickly.

He noticed his mother was already watching from the window.

“Aurel…” she said, her voice trembling. “Is the sea…?”

“Yes,” he replied. “The sea is blood. People are saying Belonjia is gone… and it’s their blood.”

Fear was clear on his mother’s face.

“Their… blood?” she whispered. “Why would they bleed this much?!”

Then she raised her voice, panic creeping in.

“Aurel! Get ready! Prepare your bags, now! Yours and Rin’s, okay?!”

“Prepare WHAT?!” Aurel shouted.

Suddenly, a deep, unnatural trumpet sound echoed from afar.

It wasn’t loud at first, but heavy, stretching through the air like a warning dragged across the sky. The sound rolled over the village, making the walls hum and the windows tremble softly in their frames.

“Uh-wh-” his mother gasped, her breath catching as she slowly moved toward the window, her steps unsteady.

Then it happened.

A violent explosion tore through the distance. The ground shook beneath their feet, dust fell from the ceiling, and the air itself seemed to crack as a thunderous blast slammed into the village. The shockwave sent everyone stumbling in place, ears ringing, hearts pounding as the echo swallowed the silence that followed.

She immediately pulled Aurel into her arms.

“RIN! COME HERE!” she cried out.

Rin ran out of his room, terrified and already crying.

She pulled both boys into her arms, holding them tightly.

The mother held the two boys tightly in her arms, covering their heads with her own body.

Rin was crying and screaming in panic as the sudden chaos unfolded, while Aurel stood frozen in shock, gripping Rin’s hand as hard as he could.

Then… everything went still.

“WE ARE UNDER ATTACK!”

A villager’s scream tore through the air, shaking everything they had ever known in their short lives.

The words barely faded when the mother grabbed both boys by their hands and rushed toward the wooden closet. She dragged them inside in a single breath, her movements rushed but precise.

“Boys… please…” she whispered, forcing a weak smile. “Whatever happens, don’t leave this closet unless it’s your only way out… okay?”

Aurel stared at her, disbelief flooding his face.

“A….a….and what about you and Dad?!” he said, trying to keep his voice low, but it cracked despite him. “You have nowhere to run…!”

“Don’t leave us, Mom… please,” Rin cried, reaching for her.

She caught his small hand and gently pushed him back inside. Then she leaned in, kissing both of them on their foreheads and cheeks, her smile trembling just once…

before she closed the closet door on them.

Suddenly, the front door burst open. The father stepped in, closing it quickly behind him.

"Are you okay?!" he whispered urgently to his wife.

"Yes, yes… the boys are in the closet, safe for now," she replied, gripping his hands.

He approached the closet and opened it, facing the boys.

"Good job, both of you. I love you both. Stay here… no one moves… everything will be alright… got it?"

Both boys nodded, their eyes wide and trembling.

He closed the closet door back at the kids.

Outside, slashing and screams echoed. The parents held each other, the father keeping his wife behind him.

Through the tiny crack, Aurel watched.

The front door forced open.

Aurel watched through the tiny crack. It was a black knight, A long sword hung in his hand, still wet with blood

He stepped in, The hilt caught the light-dark gold, twisted into a snarling demon’s head.. The pommel sculpted into a horned, snarling "Demon's Head." The grip wrapped in dark, blood-red leather. The cross-guard was like spreading bat wings centering on a human skull while the Blade was long, dark folded steel, rusted and worn, etched with a coiling dragon motif.

The knight’s armor was battle-worn, dark leather and metal plates, riveted, rusty and dirty. His face hidden behind a bone-white skull mask, with a tattered deep red cloak draped across his chest. His arms were covered in segmented vambraces, his hands in dark gauntlets - a hardened warrior in a bleak, stormy world.

The father raised his agricultural sickle. "Don't you dare come closer!" he shouted.

Rin gasped in the closet.

The knight advanced. The father’s grip tightened on the sickle, knuckles turning white despite the shaking in his arms. The father tried to strike multiple times, but the knight dodged with impossible speed.

Golden snakes curled around the grip of the sword, their ruby eyes glinting as the blade shifted can be seen by the golden eyes of Aurel.

Runes were etched near the guard-words Aurel couldn’t read, but somehow feared.

In a sudden slash, blood gushed from the father’s jugular, like a fountain.

A heavy pressure crushed Aurel’s chest, making every breath shallow.

Rin’s small body trembled violently, as if the fear itself was shaking him apart.

The mother screamed, Her breath hitched, but she stepped forward anyway, standing between the blade and her children, lunging with her knife, but the knight’s blade sliced her stomach, pulling it slowly out. She fell to the ground.

Rin stirred-a tiny, instinctive movement. A sound escaped his lips… not a scream, just an attempt. Aurel didn’t think; he clamped his hand over his brother’s mouth, pressing harder than ever before. Not to harm him, but because here sound meant the end of everything. The small body writhed, convulsed, and the sound… broke, as if his throat had sealed itself shut forever.

Aurel’s eyes remained fixed on his parents’ motionless bodies, frozen in shock.

The knight scavenged the chests, taking what he found, and left as if nothing had happened.

Outside, screams echoed from other houses, carried by the wind like distant cries of death.

The night beyond the door roared with chaos-shattering wood, steel clashing, and people running for their lives.

The silence he left behind was heavier than the screams, pressing down on the boys.

From the Sacred Text of Lumiraen

Moriel telyn en osialel,

Nareth varun thysar veloriel.

Telel en shadyr, non endel,

Moriel ven lumirael.

Death flows within the heart,

Silent, it guards the sacred world.

It passes through shadow, not as an ending,

But as a step toward the eternal light.

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