Past midnight, the storm crawled across the sky.
There was no rain.
Only violent wind and endless flashes of lightning tearing through the darkness above the sleeping city.
Inside the house, silence ruled.
Until—
BANG.
The sound exploded through the walls.
Not a knock.
A strike.
The entire house trembled from the impact.
Another followed instantly.
BANG. BANG.
The force echoed through every room like metal crashing against bone.
Upstairs, Marcus's eyes snapped open.
Beside him, Liya had already awakened.
Both sat in silence.
Tense.
Listening.
The strikes continued.
Heavy.
Deliberate.
Controlled.
Dust drifted through pale moonlight leaking between the blinds.
Marcus slowly stood.
His jaw tightened.
Liya looked at him calmly, though her eyes had already sharpened into something dangerous.
Neither of them needed to speak.
Both already understood.
Marcus moved toward the wardrobe and pressed against a hidden section beside it.
Click.
A concealed compartment opened.
Weapons rested inside.
Blades.
Firearms.
Everything was covered in runes carved with ancient symbols.
Tools prepared for a night like this.
Liya reached beneath the bed and pulled out a curved black blade etched with faded runes glowing faintly beneath the steel.
Marcus pressed another hidden switch.
Far beneath the house, mechanisms awakened.
Traps armed themselves silently.
The pounding downstairs continued.
BANG.
BANG.
Marcus and Liya moved downstairs together.
The sound stopped the moment they reached the front door.
Silence consumed the house again.
Marcus stared at the entrance.
Then finally asked,
"Who's calling?"
For a moment, nothing answered.
Then a calm voice cut through the darkness beyond the door.
Cold.
Sharp.
Chilling.
"It's your enemy. Open the door, weaklings."
Marcus froze.
Only for a second.
Then he unlocked the door and pulled it open.
Kala stood there.
His clothes were stretched and torn apart as if something monstrous had tried to burst through them from within.
His long hair hung loose and damp around his face.
Wild.
His body was covered in dried blood marks.
Muscles flexed beneath the shredded cloth with unnatural control.
Every movement radiated restrained violence.
Marcus stared at him.
Then suddenly stepped forward—
and hugged him.
Kala stood motionless.
Marcus laughed quietly.
"You changed… but I still know the beast who tried to kill us all our entire life."
He pulled away slightly and smiled.
"Stay smiling."
Behind Kala—
Liya noticed someone else.
"Honey…"
Marcus looked past Kala's shoulder.
Varna stood there.
Pale.
Wide-eyed.
Almost lifeless.
Fear lived inside her expression.
Not confusion.
Not shock.
Fear.
Real fear.
Marcus slowly released Kala.
Then quietly said,
"Get inside."
All of them entered.
The door shut behind them.
Marcus immediately grabbed a small clay pot resting near the entrance table.
Inside was ash.
He took some in his hand and formed a line across the doorway.
The atmosphere inside the house grew unbearably heavy.
They moved into the living room and sat on the couch.
Marcus handed Varna a glass of water.
She accepted it silently.
But never drank.
She only stared at the trembling water inside the glass.
Marcus looked toward Kala.
"Hi. What's your name? What happened to you guys…?"
Varna said nothing.
Her eyes remained fixed downward.
She could still see the horror of what Kala had become.
Marcus noticed the fear in her eyes.
His tone softened slightly.
"You're a water mage, right?"
He paused.
"We are too."
"It's rare, you know."
He looked at her carefully.
"So he brought you here. Are you an Ancient Blood or a Legacy?"
He studied her expression.
"Or are you a demihuman with magic?"
He leaned back slightly.
"Either way… what are you?"
Varna suddenly looked at both of them with anger burning through her fear.
"I DON'T KNOW WHAT I AM!"
Her voice cracked through the room.
"The person I knew my entire life changed and transformed in front of me! I didn't know what was happening! I don't even know what he is!"
Marcus stared at her.
Then looked toward Kala.
"And who is she? What were you doing all this time? Someone defeated you? Who was it?"
Then Marcus smirked faintly.
"And why didn't you contact us, you beast?"
Kala turned his head in annoyance.
For a passing moment, he saw his own hand.
It was covered in blood.
He looked at it.
Really looked at it.
Then he looked at Marcus.
Then Liya.
Finally—
his eyes moved toward Varna.
She was scared of him.
She wouldn't look at him.
Not even once.
Kala stared at her for a few seconds.
Then quietly said,
"I need to change."
Marcus already knew what he meant.
As Kala stood, Marcus spoke.
"You can use my clothes."
Kala glanced toward him.
Then nodded.
Without another word, he walked upstairs.
The moment Kala disappeared from sight, Marcus reached beneath the couch and pressed a hidden button.
Click.
Deep beneath the house, the mechanisms stopped.
The traps disarmed.
Marcus looked toward the stairs.
"He won't need them."
Upstairs, lightning flashed across the windows.
Thunder rolled through the night.
Kala entered the bathroom.
He stood silently in front of the mirror.
Then he began ripping the ruined cloth from his body.
Piece by piece.
He tore it away and threw every piece aside.
As the ruined clothing fell to the floor, more blood became visible across his body.
Dark blood.
Dried blood.
Fresh blood.
His skin was stained with it.
Kala stood motionless.
His breathing remained calm.
His hair had grown long and wild, hanging over his face and partially covering his eyes.
Blood was stained red in his hair.
Kala stared at himself.
Then—
he remembered.
A scene from before.
A nightmare.
Everything was like an old movie.
Everything was foggy.
Moving in a blur.
He couldn't remember anyone's face.
He was fighting on the frontline of a battle.
Countless soldiers were trying to attack him.
Kala fought with swords.
One sword broke apart in his hands.
He grabbed scattered weapons from the ground.
A broken blade.
Another sword.
A spear.
Anything he could reach.
But the army was more than he could handle.
They kept coming.
Wave after wave.
A group of people slammed into him.
Kala crashed into the ground.
They pinned him down.
More people came.
Then more.
A pile of bodies began forming over him, crushing him into the earth.
People kept coming to increase the pile.
More.
More.
More.
Until Kala could barely move.
Through the chaos, he saw someone standing in the distance.
Moothon.
Standing upon a massive boulder.
Screaming at him.
His voice sounded like the roar of a wild beast.
Then—
Kala's eyes turned black.
Power exploded from his body.
The enormous pile of bodies was thrown away from him.
People flew through the air.
Moothon raised his arm.
"Seal him!"
His voice thundered across the battlefield.
"Use your powers!"
"Don't worry about the restrictions!"
The soldiers obeyed.
People in armor rushed forward.
Their armor shifted and transformed across their bodies.
Some transformed into animals.
Some became giants.
Some grew wings and took to the sky.
Others dug beneath the ground to reach him.
Some fired projectile magic.
Others unleashed dark powers.
And some poured light-like energy into the monsters, empowering them.
One by one—
everyone's eyes turned completely black.
Kala stood in the center of the battlefield.
He fought them.
With his strength.
With his magic.
With everything he had.
The battle continued.
His long hair had covered his eyes, forcing him to push it back.
Blood had been dripping down his face through the strands of hair.
He remembered pushing the hair away from his eye again and again.
Again.
And again.
Kala blinked.
The memory disappeared.
He returned to the mirror.
His breathing was steady.
His eyes remained cold.
Then his hand began to change.
Flesh shifted.
Bones moved.
His fingers fused together.
The entire hand transformed.
It became a blade.
Completely.
A sharp black blade formed where his hand had been.
Sharper than anything forged by human hands.
Kala raised the blade toward his face.
He moved it through his long hair.
SHHKK.
The strands fell.
Another movement.
More hair dropped.
He cut through it again and again.
The blade passed through the hair effortlessly.
Until finally—
his eyes were uncovered.
Kala stared into the mirror.
The blade slowly transformed back into his hand.
He turned toward the shower.
Then stepped beneath it.
Dark water mixed with blood as it washed from his skin and spiraled into the drain.
The blood disappeared down the pipes.
His body slowly became clean.
Every movement reshaped him further away from the boy Varna once knew.
Downstairs, Marcus, Liya, and Varna remained on the living-room couch.
None spoke.
The silence stretched.
Varna stared at the glass of water in her hands.
Then—
footsteps.
Varna looked up.
Kala was descending the stairs.
He wore Marcus's clothes.
Black from head to toe.
Clean.
Sharp.
Different.
His hair was shorter now, no longer covering his eyes.
Earlier, during the transformation, Varna had never properly seen his face.
Now she finally did.
And for the first time—
she truly looked at him.
He was beautiful.
Not humanly beautiful.
Something else.
Something dangerous, like looking into the eyes of a predator.
Varna stared without realizing it.
She was seeing the real man in him that day.
All this time, she had only seen a smart, quirky boy with many interests.
A boy she thought she liked all this time.
Kala walked past her and stopped near Liya.
"You three need to go."
His voice remained calm.
"Prepare the circle."
Marcus and Liya obeyed without question.
Varna looked at him.
"You're not coming?"
Kala answered immediately.
"My task is done."
He looked toward her.
"Now they will take you off my hands."
He paused.
"Finally… I am free of you."
Varna stared at him.
"Free of me? I never told you to take care of me. I lived my life on my own in the orphanage, as did you."
Kala looked at her.
"I've been taking care of you because of a contract with someone."
He paused.
"I was restrained to you."
His smile slowly grew wider.
"But now you've awakened."
"I'm free."
Varna became angry hearing that.
Kala looked at her.
"You don't get it."
"I've been watching you all my life."
"That's why I was placed at the orphanage."
"All your life, I've been taking care of you, even without you ever knowing."
"And when I thought nothing was going to happen…"
He stared at her.
"When I thought you would never awaken…"
His expression changed.
"Then this happened."
Varna stepped toward him slightly.
Her voice became weak.
"I'm sorry…"
Her eyes filled with tears.
"Please don't leave me."
"I don't want to go without you."
She was crying inside, completely broken, but she made no sound.
"We can go into hiding together," she said.
"We'll be safe then. There will be no danger."
She looked toward Marcus and Liya.
"You said the three of us need to go. That's because there is danger, right?"
Kala stared at her.
"You don't even know anything."
"They can't do anything to me."
His voice became colder.
"For them, I am the danger."
Varna remained silent.
Kala looked at her for a moment longer.
"And you…"
He paused.
"You were the only thing holding me back."
"Now that you're awakened, our contract is complete."
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"Finally… I'm free."
"I can return to my own name."
Varna couldn't answer.
Something inside her broke hearing those words.
Kala turned away.
Marcus led Varna into the garage.
There were no windows.
No light escaped.
Only dim lights hung overhead.
The cement floor looked ordinary—
until Marcus grabbed a hammer and smashed the concrete open.
CRACK.
Varna noticed the hammer was coated in some kind of energy.
The impact hit again.
Concrete cracked apart violently.
Underneath lay another layer.
Ancient symbols covered the ground beneath.
Massive circles.
Runes.
Carvings.
Marcus moved further and smashed another section open.
Barrels rested beneath the floor.
He struck one hard enough to split it open.
Marcus lifted his arm, coated in energy.
Crimson liquid burst outward.
Blood flowed.
But it moved unnaturally.
Alive.
The blood crawled across the floor toward the carved circle.
Filling every symbol.
Every line.
The carvings began glowing.
Magic awakened.
The air distorted.
Red thunder erupted from the circle toward the ceiling.
A portal formed.
It was like a crack in space itself.
Liya arrived carrying four heavy bags.
"Got all the supplies," she said.
She nodded slightly toward Kala, as if saying goodbye.
"Let's go," Marcus said.
Marcus stepped into the portal with Liya.
Their bodies slowly vanished into light.
Kala looked at Varna as if telling her to follow them.
Varna hesitated.
She looked at Kala desperately.
Trying to speak.
Trying to say something.
Anything.
But nothing came out.
Her voice failed completely.
Kala looked away from her.
Then quietly said,
"They'll teach you everything."
He walked toward the barrels.
Varna stepped through as her eyes filled with tears.
The portal swallowed her whole.
The crack closed as if it had consumed her.
Then—
gone.
Silence returned.
Kala stood alone.
He looked down.
Then quietly whispered to himself.
A smile slowly appeared on his face.
"At least you're safe now."
Kala turned toward the ancient carving.
He raised one foot.
Then—
CRACK.
He kicked the magic carving into many pieces with one stomp of his foot.
The ancient circle shattered.
Kala turned toward the second barrel.
He grabbed it with one hand.
Then dragged it into the living room.
The heavy barrel scraped across the floor.
Kala stopped.
He raised his leg.
One kick—
BOOM.
The barrel exploded open.
Fuel flooded across the living-room floor.
Kala walked toward the sofa.
He sat down.
For a moment, he simply stared ahead.
Then—
the view shifted.
Far from the house, a distant view showed the entire building standing silently in the darkness.
Then—
BOOOOOOM.
The house detonated.
A wild explosion tore through the night.
Flames erupted from every window.
The roof was thrown apart.
Walls collapsed.
Fire consumed everything.
The next morning—
nothing remained.
Emergency forces flooded the area.
Firefighters.
Ambulances.
Police.
Only ash and blackened debris remained where the house once stood.
Crowds gathered outside the ruins.
But not all of them were human.
Some watched silently from the edges.
Watching.
Waiting.
Some understood what had happened.
Some feared it.
Others anticipated it.
Not one faction.
Many.
After everything was finished, several figures arrived at the burned site.
They walked through the ashes.
One of them crouched down and touched the remains.
Another closed his eyes and sensed the magical residue.
Then he spoke.
"He didn't die here."
Another looked at him.
"He is not in the reincarnation cycle."
"This is a diversion."
The magical energy was hidden.
But faint traces remained.
"He is planning something."
"Without our magical sensing, we couldn't have noticed it."
"The other Anothers can't notice it like we can."
"He is alive."
"In his current form."
The information had to reach the leader.
"We need to get him."
"Our species will be the top of the food chain."
"Shadows will rule the world again."
But they were not the only ones searching.
Everyone was after him.
They all followed his trail.
For many years, they had been searching for him.
Now they had confirmation.
He had not died.
He was not a slave to someone.
He was not sealed.
The search would intensify.
They all knew something ancient had begun moving again.
The prophecy had started.
Far from the burned house, Kala approached an old British telephone booth standing alone in darkness.
He placed his hand against the glass.
Energy spread across its surface.
The door slowly opened.
Inside—
was not a booth.
It was endless space.
A void.
Kala stepped inside.
The world changed.
A forest surrounded him.
White fog swallowed everything around him.
Kala walked forward through the mist.
Then—
he saw an old, run-down bridge.
The bridge seemed to divide two lands.
A small waterway flowed beneath it.
There was only a little water.
Kala stopped.
He felt something watching him.
An eye appeared beneath the bridge.
A small creature looked at Kala.
Below the bridge, a green creature slowly crawled upward from the darkness.
It looked shy.
It looked like a child, mostly trying to mimic one.
Its clothes were layered strangely, as if it had copied the appearance of humans without truly understanding them.
It was weirdly shaped.
A rock rested upon its head.
It was not fur.
It was moss.
Something unnatural.
The creature came closer to Kala.
Its height reached almost to his leg.
It stood in front of him.
The creature stretched out its hand.
Kala looked at it.
Then he took a stone from the ground and handed it to the creature.
The creature became angry.
Its face turned red.
It growled toward Kala.
Kala looked at it.
His eyes slowly turned black.
Their eyes met.
The creature immediately looked down.
Kala smiled faintly.
"Open your hand, kiddo."
The creature hesitated.
Then opened its hand.
The stone began transforming.
Gold spread across its surface.
The rock transformed completely into gold right before the creature's eyes.
The creature burst into childlike laughter.
It smiled at Kala.
Then ran beneath the bridge, holding its treasure like a kid who had just received a new toy.
Kala walked across the bridge.
He glanced down.
"You'll be useful."
Below the bridge, the creature looked around.
It searched for a place.
Finally, it stopped.
It dug into the dirt.
The green layer disappeared.
The ground turned into ordinary dirt.
Then—
bloody red.
Then—
rotten corpses.
Then—
a pile of gold.
The creature placed the gold inside.
It began closing the pit.
Its two eyes reflected the gold.
Shining gold.
And blood red.
Kala continued walking.
The fog slowly lifted.
And a market appeared.
Massive.
Chaotic.
Supernatural.
It was completely different from the forest behind him.
It was like another world.
Creatures moved through crowded streets.
Mages.
Monsters.
Demihumans.
Traders.
Killers.
Things humanity had never named.
They were all there.
Kala walked through them calmly.
He saw vendors selling exotic meat.
Slaves.
Magic.
Strange artifacts.
Weapons.
Things that should never have existed.
Then Kala saw a bar.
He entered.
A sign hung outside:
NO ENTRY FOR DEMI-HUMANS
Kala entered anyway.
Every table was filled with creatures.
Every eye turned toward him.
Kala walked toward the bar.
Behind it stood a goat-headed creature.
The creature looked at Kala.
Then looked toward a nearby plate.
On the plate was a cooked hand.
It looked human.
A ring remained on its ring finger.
The goat-headed creature looked back at Kala.
It opened its mouth to threaten him—
but its head flew across the room before the sentence even finished.
THUD.
Silence.
Fear spread instantly through the bar.
Someone whispered,
"Gold grade… or above…"
People rushed toward the exits.
The entire place emptied within seconds.
Security forces arrived shortly afterward.
Black-market officers surrounded the area.
Among them stood a golden snake-like creature.
He was their leader.
Kala ignored them completely.
He grabbed barrels of Soma.
He drank directly from them.
One after another.
Then another.
And another.
The empty barrels began piling around him.
Kala laughed.
Louder.
And louder.
The place filled with the sound of his laughter.
Then—
the ground began shaking violently.
An earthquake.
Cracks spread through the floor.
Tables trembled.
Walls shook.
Kala smiled.
"Never trust a backstabber…"
His eyes slowly turned black.
One creature whispered in horror,
"god aura…"
No
"Its demon aura..."
Another stared at him.
"It's a black grade…"
The snake leader's eyes widened.
His voice trembled.
"No…"
He accidentally spoke the one of 390.
Kala's eyes immediately turned toward him.
The leader froze.
He knew he had to flee.
Not fight.
Not challenge him.
Survive.
This was not about defeating them.
It was just about surviving them.
The leader turned and began crawling away.
Then—
blood sprayed across the walls.
Bodies collapsed.
Kala was suddenly standing directly in front of him.
The leader looked up.
Their eyes met.
His body froze.
He fell backward.
His consciousness disappeared.
Everything went black.
The creature woke up.
He slowly opened his eyes.
Kala was still there.
Calmly standing among the destruction.
The leader tried to move.
He couldn't.
Kala looked down at him.
Then spoke.
"If you cross a bridge without paying the troll tax…"
He paused.
"You violate the rule."
His eyes darkened.
"And it hunts you forever."
Something emerged from the darkness behind the officers.
Red eyes.
Drooling jaws.
A nightmare made flesh.
The creature opened its mouth.
Screams erupted instantly.
The snake-eyed officer tried to flee.
Too late.
Far too late.
Kala walked away without looking back.
Behind him remained only echoes.
Screams of agony.
Collapsing bodies.
And the distant sirens of battle spreading through the supernatural market.
END OF CHAPTER 3