Prologue: "It's Not Okay"
Luneth
I clutched my dad's hand as we stood at the edge of the arena, cold air stabbing through my clothes. The sunbeams from above fell in long streaks down to the cracked stone floor. It was beautiful, yet I couldn't pull my gaze from the two standing figures in the middle. Even at such a young age, I knew precisely what was going to take place. Assignments. It was something we all had learned to grasp from a young age. But this time, it felt different.
I could feel it in the air, like a heavy, suffocating fog.
My father whispered something to me, his voice low and strained. He didn't meet my gaze, fixing his eyes on the couple in the center of the arena.
I watched the two. I had seen them before, passing by with their children, smiling, laughing, like nothing could touch them. They were strong, so full of life. And now, they were facing each other with weapons in their hands, assigned to kill each other because of a choice neither of them made.
The mother was beautiful, with long, dark hair that gleamed in the light. Her eyes were filled with tears, and yet there was a strange calmness to them. The father stood like a statue, his face set in a rigid mask, his hands shaking with a sword grasped tightly within them. I could see the torment in his eyes, the silent scream of a man forced to do the unthinkable.
I clutched my father's hand a little tighter, but he didn't turn. His attention was fixed upon the scene before us, a dark shadow fallen across his face.
"Why do they do this?" I whispered, my voice shaking. I knew the answer, yet I needed to hear it. I needed it to make sense.
My father's grip on my hand tightened. "Because… It's the way things are." I didn't want to believe it. How could this be life? Standing and watching while a family tore itself apart?
The mother stepped forward, and her silver sword scraped along the ground. The screech echoed through the large space and drew every eye to her. I could hardly believe it when she faced her husband with a melancholy smile pulling at the corners of her lips. She said something to him. Her words were too soft for me to hear, though the pain was cut in every line of her face.
In one swift motion, she had turned the blade upon herself.
A gasp ran through the crowd, and I felt my dad's hand twitch as the father dashed toward the woman. Her body crumpled to the ground, and a dark liquid pooled around her as her husband fell to his knees beside her, his weapon forgotten.
Time froze. The world held its collective breath at what had just happened. Then the silence was torn. A scream of a boy with silver hair about my age. Tears flowed down his cheeks as he tried to push through the crowd.
I felt numb, like I was out of my body, watching all that was happening from some distance. The mother had chosen this. To spare her husband the misery of killing his own wife. But the weight of it pressed down on me, a suffocating darkness that I didn't know how to escape.
My father finally broke his stare from the arena, looking down at me with haunted eyes. "Remember this, Luneth," he said, his voice hoarse. "Remember what you saw today. This is the world you live in. You have to be strong."
I nodded, but I didn't know what strength was supposed to feel like.
As we turned to leave, I cast a glance in that direction once more. The father knelt beside his wife's body, quivering with silent sobs. I knew I'd never forget this moment. It would remain inside of me, a scar on my heart, a reminder of how cruel this world can be… How cruel this world is.
***
"Nothing Is Forever"
Riven
Above me, the sky was that perfect blue you see on only the prettiest days, with clouds speckled across it. I leaned back into the soft grass and felt the sun warming my face, and for a second, it was easy to forget everything else. The world seemed so simple, peaceful. Like it was supposed to be, at least. Beside me, Livia let out a content sigh, and her hand grazed a small silver and purple ring on mine as she adjusted to get comfortable.
"I wish it could be like this every day," she whispered, her tone soft. I turned my head to look at her. She was lying with her eyes closed, the sun filtering through the leaves of the tree we were lying under, and her silver hair glistening. For once, she wasn't tense and not trying to listen for every little sound.
"Yeah." I agreed, though a part of me knew better. These moments never lasted long. Still, I didn't want to ruin it for her. Not now, when she looked so peaceful.
I stared up into the sky, watching the slow dance of the clouds. They could continue on forever, and in that moment, there was no end to the world above us. I liked to think that somewhere, somewhere well beyond what we could see, things were different. Better, perhaps. A nice thought, though I didn't know how much truth there was to it.
"Riven," Liv said suddenly, pulling me from my thoughts. "Do you ever wonder what's out there? Beyond all this?"
Her question hung in the air between us and I didn't answer right away. It was a thought that occupied my mind often, maybe more than it should. "Yeah," I said finally. "Sometimes. Maybe it's different, you know? Maybe one day we'll see it."
She smiled at that, her green eyes lighting up with the old, familiar spark of hope. "We will. I know we will."
I wished I could believe her. Really believe her. But for now, I just let the silence settle back in and enjoyed the rare calm. The world felt big and open, like we had all the time in the world. I could almost forget the pressure, the constant training, the Assignments.
Almost.
Almost.
Almost.
The sound of footsteps broke the silence, and I sat up. My heart was thumping in my chest. Our father was walking toward us. His face was pale and tear marks were smudged all over his cheeks. He had something in his hand. Two small, dark envelopes, the type that never brought good news.
"Riven. Livia," he said, his voice tight. He came to a stop in front of us, extending the letters like they weighed a ton. He shuddered. "We need to talk."
I stared at both envelopes, my mind racing. The sky above didn't seem endless anymore, and the shade we were lying in now felt frozen.
In that moment, my life had crumbled.
***
Chapter 1: "Remember"
Riven
My lungs were filled with the smell of moss and earth as I ran, my muscles on fire. The wind tore through the woods, buffeting with unseen terrors.
I didn't know how long I had been running, only that I needed to continue.
The trees thinned out ahead, the ground ramping down. Beyond the treetops, a faint glow pulsed, reflecting moonlight off something vast. Water. My heart pounded in my ears.
"Luneth! Where are you!?" I shouted, but it was to no avail.
Then, there was a shift. The soft crunch of movement behind me. Not wind. Not an animal, and definitely not Luneth.
Them.
I whipped around just as something shot toward me. I dropped low on instinct, my body reacting faster than thought. Time seemed to slow as a sleek black figure lunged to where I had stood a second ago, striking only air. It was fast, but not faster than me.
I sprang up, driving an elbow into my attacker's ribs. It made a sharp exhale. Its stance wavered. I followed up with a kick, sending it crashing into a tree.
But the forest continued to rustle.
There were more.
I turned and ran, sprinting toward the shoreline. I had nowhere else to go, so why not make a final stand?
A voice rang out, mechanical and cold. It was too late. "Subject located. Retrieving."
A second attacker flew in from my right, its fist aimed towards my ribs. I twisted, caught its wrist, and yanked it off balance. A sharp jab to its throat sent the figure sprawling. Another shadow plunged towards me, but I was already moving under their strike.
I was fast, untouchable, and every move was certain. My body knew exactly what it was doing. Had I trained just to get taken down like this?
Then, one misstep. A second's hesitation.
A figure blurred into my vision, faster than the others. I shifted to block, but something slammed into my temple. My vision exploded white. My knees buckled.
No. No! I forced my body to move, but my limbs felt distant and unresponsive. Hands seized my arms, locking around me.
Through the haze, a whisper cut through, familiar and desperate.
"You have to remember."
I focus on it. I try to grasp the voice. But it was slipping. The waves blurred. The sky darkened.
And then, nothing.
I wake with a start, my chest heaving. My room is quiet and still, but my skin is damp with sweat. The dream is already fading, dissolving like mist.
But the feeling remained.
Something inside me knew. That wasn't just a dream. It was too real.
And I had forgotten it.