NOVEL WEB Chapter 4: Chapter 4: Chosen
The sea stretched out, a vast, indifferent expanse mirroring the emptiness within Kaius. The waves, cold and relentless, lapped at his bare feet, a constant, rhythmic reminder of time passing, of moments lost. The wind, laced with salt and the faint scent of decaying seaweed, stung his face, but he didn't flinch. He stood at the edge of the world, or so it felt, letting the nothingness settle around him like a shroud.
He wasn't waiting for anything. He never waited. He existed—a ghost in his own life, a shadow without substance. Each breath was a mechanical function, each heartbeat a dull thrum.
A stray horse, a sturdy gray with a wild mane, wandered near him. Its eyes, bright and curious, held a spark of life that Kaius had long extinguished within himself. It nudged his palm, a gentle, inquisitive touch. He reached out, his fingers tracing the coarse hair of its neck, and for the first time in a long time, he felt a flicker of something other than the hollow ache of his existence. A fragile connection, a momentary reprieve.
The rhythmic thunder of hooves, a distant rumble that grew with alarming speed, shattered the fragile peace. Kaius turned, his gaze drawn to the horizon. A caravan of soldiers and nobles, a procession of power, emerged from the winding coastal path. Their armor gleamed under the midday sun, their presence radiating an almost suffocating grandeur. Carriages, adorned with elaborate crests, rolled along the path, pulled by magnificent steeds.
He wasn't the only one staring. The small fishing village, usually bustling with activity, fell silent. Even the air seemed to still, the gulls' cries fading into a hushed anticipation. These people were above them, beyond reach, their lives a world away from the harsh realities of the shoreline.
At the front of the procession, a woman rode with effortless control, her posture commanding and regal. Eira. Her dark cloak rippled behind her, a stark contrast to the gleaming armor beneath, but her eyes, dark and sharp, were colder than the sea itself. She scanned the crowd, her gaze sweeping across the villagers, across Kaius, as if searching for something—someone.
Kaius didn't move, didn't even breathe. He was a shadow, a ghost, invisible. But her gaze lingered on him, a moment that stretched into an eternity. He felt a prickle of unease, a sense of being seen, truly seen, for the first time in years.
Without warning, one of her men, a hulking soldier with a scarred face, dismounted and strode toward him. "You," he barked, his voice rough and commanding. "Pick up a sword." He tossed a practice blade at Kaius's feet, the steel ringing against the sand.
Kaius didn't move. He wasn't a soldier. He wasn't anything. He had no right to hold a sword, no purpose to wield it.
The soldier sneered, his eyes filled with contempt. "Too scared?"
Something in Kaius snapped, a raw, primal instinct that had been buried beneath layers of apathy. Before he could think, before he could question, he was holding the sword, his grip tight, his knuckles white.
He didn't fight to win. He fought to prove something to himself, to the ghost that haunted him, to the empty space where his will should have been. He fought to feel something, anything, other than the crushing weight of his own nothingness.
The soldier, initially amused, toyed with him, his movements slow and deliberate. But when Kaius didn't yield, when he met each blow with a desperate, unwavering defense, something changed. The soldier's amusement turned to a flicker of surprise, then to a grudging respect.
A sharp clang echoed through the air as Kaius, driven by a surge of raw instinct, parried a blow and twisted his blade, sending the soldier stumbling back. A flicker of surprise, a flash of something akin to fear, crossed the soldier's eyes.
Eira spoke for the first time, her voice clear and commanding. "Enough."
The fight stopped, the world stopping with it. The soldier, his face flushed, sheathed his sword, his eyes flickering between Eira and Kaius.
She looked at Kaius, not with amusement, not with pity, but with a sharp, assessing gaze that seemed to pierce his very core. With interest and, perhaps, a hint of something else, something Kaius couldn't quite decipher.
"What do you want?" she asked, her voice devoid of emotion, a simple, direct question.
Kaius couldn't answer. He didn't know. He'd never known. He'd never been given the choice.
She exhaled, a soft sigh that seemed to carry the weight of her own expectations. Then, she turned her horse, her gaze still fixed on him, and gestured with a subtle flick of her hand. "Get on."
He hesitated, his mind a whirlwind of confusion and fear. But only for a second. Then, before he understood why, before he could question the madness of it all, he moved. He stepped forward, his feet heavy, his heart pounding in his chest, and climbed onto the horse behind her. He had been chosen and Finally the feeling of saw him.