I don't know how long I've been fading—time blurring like ink dropped in water. The poison has shredded me, but somewhere beneath the pain, something stirs.
A faint warmth—almost like a hand reaching out in the dark.
Then a voice.
Deep. Steady. Unwavering.
"Anos."
The sound slices through the haze. Not a hallucination. Not a dream.
It's real.
Slowly, I open my eyes—just a crack—enough to see a figure standing over me.
His face is worn, weathered by time, but his eyes hold something I recognize.
Grandfather.
Hizashi's father.
The man who never talked much but whose presence filled rooms like a storm before the calm.
He kneels beside me, voice low but commanding.
"You're not done yet, boy. This isn't your time."
I want to speak, but my throat feels like sandpaper. Instead, I listen.
"I've seen this poison before," he says quietly. "Tried to warn your father. Tried to prepare you."
My mind drifts to Hizashi—my father. The man who carried more burdens than anyone should. And here, now, his father—my grandfather—stood as a silent guardian in my darkest hour.
"Why now?" I whisper, voice cracked, fragile. "Why me?"
He looks down at my trembling hands. "Because you're the legacy. The one who can carry the Genesis Flame forward."
His words stir a memory—father speaking once of the Genesis Flame, of the power that burns in our bloodline, of the price it demands.
"But it's killing me," I say, pain flashing across my face. "I'm breaking."
He shakes his head. "Pain is part of strength, Anos. The storm within you is fierce, but you're fiercer."
A hand brushes my forehead—a gesture so simple, yet it anchors me.
"Listen to me," he continues, voice softer now. "Your father believed in you. We all do."
I want to hold on to that—want to believe it.
The world around me pulses—faint sounds of chaos drifting like ghosts.
But here, in this quiet, the storm slows.
"Rest now," he says, "but don't give in."
I close my eyes again, this time willingly, feeling the weight of his presence like armor.
And somewhere deep inside, a flicker of hope.