THE FARMHOUSE
None of us felt different, but the air in the room seemed heavier, as if the world itself had grown stagnant. We sat in the living space, the silence occasionally broken by the soft breathing of Flora as she slept on the rug.
"How did he actually do it?" Aubrey asked, her voice barely a whisper.
I stared at my hands. "He used my power as a catalyst. He cast a spell that locked every human being in their current state. We can't age anymore, Aubrey. No one can."
"But if we can't age, what's the problem?" Karr asked, leaning forward. "Isn't that what everyone wants? To live forever?"
"It's a nightmare, Karr," I said. "If no one ages, the cruelest people in this land will never grow old and die. They'll just keep hurting people forever. And it's not just that."
Aubrey nodded in agreement. "He's right. Think about the resources. If the population never stops growing because no one is dying of old age, the land will be overpopulated within a few generations. Food, water, wood—everything will perish. We'll be fighting each other just to breathe."
"So how do we stop it?" Karr asked. "We don't have magic like that."
"He used my power to start it," I said. "So I should be able to reverse it. But I don't know how. Not yet."
We sat in the dim light for a while. The mood was somber, the weight of the future pressing down on us. Eventually, Karr looked around the room.
"Noah... where's your dog?"
I felt a sharp pang in my chest. "Dalten absorbed him. He's gone."
The silence returned, deeper than before. I stood up and walked toward the kitchen, needing to move, needing to do something. Just as I reached the counter, the front door swung open.
My mother stepped inside, her hair tangled and her cloak stained with travel dust. "Karr, Aubrey—I haven't found him yet, but I need to keep looki—"
She stopped. Her eyes locked onto mine. A second later, she lunged across the room and pulled me into a crushing embrace, her body shaking.
"Noah! Where were you?" she cried, pulling back to check my face for injuries.
"I was with Dalten, Mom."
Her expression shifted to one of pure terror. "Did he... did he hurt you?"
"He tried. He used me for his ritual. But for some reason, I still have my power." I looked at her solemnly. "And he did exactly what Dad tried to prevent. He made everyone immortal."
"I know," she whispered, looking at the faint white glow surrounding her own hands. "I noticed the aura on the road."
I told her about my trip to the Dead Realm and my conversation with my father. Her face grew tense at the mention of Zero, but she didn't interrupt. When I finished, I looked her in the eye.
"If he comes near you or Flora again, I will kill him. I mean it."
"Noah, I know you want to protect us," she said, her voice firm. "But he is still more dangerous than you can imagine. Stay away from him. Promise me."
I didn't want to, but I nodded anyway. She believed me, for now. She told us to stay close to the house while I rested to let my eyes recover from the strain of the rifts.
THE DARK REGION
Aretha paced the obsidian floor of the throne room, her heels clicking sharply against the stone. "Are you crazy, Dalten? You're inviting disaster."
Dalten sat on his throne, his scarred eye fixed on a map of the continent. "War is the only option. I need that boy dead. If what the Noble Ones say is true, then he is a threat to everything I am building. He must die at all costs."
"But a full-scale war?" Magnus asked, leaning against a pillar. "We could just go back and finish him ourselves."
"If you are willing to risk fighting the power of a demon, then by all means, volunteer," Dalten sneered. "But the Noble Ones have spoken. The kid is the Child of Darkness. Eventually, his power will consume the land and bring an end to the immortality I've granted. He is the only variable I cannot control."
Circel stepped out of the shadows, a cruel smile on her lips. "Dalton is right. The boy is an opportunity to kill. A reason to sweep across the North and claim what is ours."
Dalten stood, his black cloak billowing. "It is decided. I am declaring war on the Northern Region. This world will be mine, and Zero's son will be its first sacrifice."
Magnus sighed. "I hope you're right about this, brother."
"Don't worry," Dalten replied. "This war is already in our favor."
THE NORTHERN REGION
Aubrey had gone home to retrieve something, leaving Karr and me alone at the farmhouse. I changed into fresh clothes and ate a quiet meal. Karr watched me for a while before speaking.
"Noah... Aubrey knows you like her."
I didn't look up from my plate. "I know she does. But I could die any day now, Karr. I can't afford to get attached to her. Not yet."
"I'm no expert," Karr said, leaning back in his chair. "But I think she likes you back. A lot."
"It can wait for a better time," I replied. "Right now, I have to worry about killing Dalten."
The door opened, and Aubrey returned. She wasn't empty-handed. She held an object wrapped in an old, dusty cloth. When she unwrapped it, I saw a mask. It was ancient, made of silver with intricate black eye holes and a heavy, reinforced jawline.
"What is that for?" I asked.
"This is the Mask of the Earth," Aubrey explained. "It's an artifact that draws power directly from the ground. It allows someone without cosmic power to reach an immense level of strength."
"How did you get it?"
Karr snickered. "She stole it from our mother. Mom found it in a high-level dungeon years ago and kept it hidden."
I looked at my friends—Karr with his fire and air, and Aubrey with her lightning and this new artifact. Combined with the power my father left me, we were no longer just kids.
"We're ready," I said.
Now, we just had to wait for the war to find us.