They found survivors.
Not many.
A small group hiding beneath what used to be a transport station.
The entrance was half-collapsed, concrete bent inward like something had tried to crush it from above. Dim emergency lights flickered weakly, casting long, unstable shadows along the walls.
Inside—
Life.
Barely.
Hungry.
Injured.
Terrified.
Kael stood at the entrance, unmoving.
Watching.
Lira was already inside.
Kneeling beside a young boy, wrapping cloth around his arm. Speaking softly. Reassuring him in a voice that didn't belong in a broken place like this.
"Hey… it's okay," she murmured. "You're safe now."
Safe.
The word felt… wrong.
Kael's gaze shifted across the room.
A woman clutching two children too tightly.
An older man leaning against the wall, breathing unevenly.
A group huddled together, whispering like sound itself might attract something.
He could feel them.
Not just see them.
Feel.
Their fear pressed against his skin.
Their pain crawled through his veins.
Their futures—
Faint.
Fragile.
Like thin glass ready to shatter at the slightest touch.
Easy to break.
"…Why aren't you coming in?"
Lira's voice pulled at him.
He hadn't noticed she was looking at him now.
Waiting.
Kael didn't answer immediately.
Because he didn't trust his voice.
Didn't trust himself.
"I'm fine here," he said finally.
Lira frowned slightly.
"That's not an answer."
Silence.
The flickering lights buzzed faintly overhead.
"…Kael?"
He exhaled slowly.
Then stepped forward.
One step.
Then another.
The moment he crossed the threshold—
Something snapped.
Not outside.
Inside him.
The shadows reacted instantly.
They sharpened.
Darkened.
Twisted.
Like predators catching the scent of blood.
Kael's breath hitched.
No—
Not here.
Not them.
One of the survivors noticed first.
A woman near the back.
Her eyes widened.
"Stay back!"
Panic spread like fire.
The shadows lashed out.
Fast.
Instinctive.
Alive.
They stretched across the floor, reaching—grasping—hungry for something they couldn't name but needed.
A child screamed.
The sound cut through everything.
Kael's hand clenched into a fist.
"STOP."
The word slammed into the air.
Everything froze.
The shadows halted mid-motion, trembling violently, like beasts straining against chains.
The room fell into silence.
Heavy.
Suffocating.
Slowly—
Slowly—
The darkness pulled back.
Retreating.
Reluctant.
But obeying.
Kael stood there, breathing hard, every muscle locked in place.
He didn't move.
Didn't speak.
Because he already knew.
The damage was done.
He could feel it.
Not their injuries.
Not their hunger.
Their fear.
It had changed.
Shifted.
Focused.
On him.
Kael lifted his head.
And saw it.
Every single one of them staring.
Not with relief.
Not with gratitude.
With fear.
Pure.
Undeniable.
The same way they would look at the thing that destroyed their city.
Lira stepped forward.
Placing herself between Kael and the survivors.
Not aggressively.
Not attacking.
But clearly.
A barrier.
That hurt more than anything.
"…You need to leave," she said softly.
Not cold.
Not angry.
Which made it worse.
Kael stared at her.
For a moment, something flickered in his expression.
Not anger.
Not confusion.
Just…
Understanding.
A slow, quiet nod.
"Yeah," he said.
Barely audible.
He turned.
No hesitation.
No argument.
And walked away.
Each step echoed too loudly in the narrow corridor.
Behind him, the survivors didn't speak.
Didn't move.
They just watched—
Until he disappeared into the darkness above.
Outside, the air felt colder.
Empty.
Kael stopped.
For a moment, he just stood there.
Alone.
His hand trembled slightly at his side.
"…So this is it," he murmured.
The price.
Power without control.
Strength that protected nothing.
He looked down at his shadow.
It stared back.
Not like a reflection.
Like something else entirely.
Waiting.
Watching.
Hungry.
Kael's eyes hardened.
"…I won't lose to you."
The shadow didn't move.
Didn't react.
But somehow—
He felt it.
Amusement.