The orphanage was a cold, dreary place that seemed to sap the very life from its inhabitants. Its walls were cracked, its floors creaked under the weight of forgotten dreams, and the air was thick with the scent of stale bread and dust. To the world outside, it was a mere pit of despair. But to the children who lived there, it was a prison.
Among the many faces that populated the orphanage, there was one who stood apart, a boy by the name of Kael. He was a small, frail child, with dark, hollow eyes that rarely shone with the spark of youth. His body was weak and thin, often mocked by the other children for his inability to stand up for himself. But there was something else about him, something that none of the others could see, a shadow that seemed to cling to him in the most unsettling way.
Kael had no memory of his parents, and in truth, he never really cared to know. The orphanage was the only home he had ever known. The caretakers were indifferent at best, and the other children were cruel in their own subtle ways. He had never understood why he was so different. While the others played and laughed, Kael was often alone, sitting in the shadows, his mind wandering to places where he felt he belonged.
At night, the dark aura would come to life.
It was hard to explain, even to himself, what it was that followed him. It wasn't something he could touch or see, but it was there, always lurking at the edges of his senses, a presence that filled the empty spaces around him. It seemed to whisper, urging him into silence, into solitude. It had started when he was just a child, a mere whisper in the back of his mind. But now, as he grew older, it began to manifest in ways he couldn't ignore.
The other children had noticed it too, but they did not understand what it was. They simply saw Kael's strange behavior and the way he avoided the light. They didn't see the darkness that surrounded him; they only saw the weakness. And they mocked him for it.
"You're a freak, Kael," one of the older boys, Ren, sneered one afternoon. "You're nothing but a shadow, hiding in the corners. Why don't you just go away? No one wants you here."
Ren's words were harsh, but Kael had grown accustomed to them. He didn't speak much, and when he did, his voice was low and distant. His eyes would often drift away, as if searching for something beyond the physical world. But inside, something was stirring—something dark and ancient, something he couldn't yet comprehend.
It was the kind of feeling that crept up on him, like the slow descent of a storm cloud, quiet at first but gaining momentum. It was always in the silence, when the others had gone to bed and the orphanage settled into its nightly rhythm. The shadows would grow deeper, darker, and Kael would feel the familiar chill crawl up his spine.
One night, as Kael sat near the cracked window of the orphanage's attic, the dark aura seemed to grow stronger. The wind howled outside, rattling the panes of glass, but Kael sat still, his eyes fixed on the moonlit sky. He could feel the presence, the heaviness in the air, and for the first time, he didn't fear it. In fact, it almost felt like a comfort, like an old friend returning after a long absence.
His hand trembled slightly as he reached out, fingers brushing against the window frame. And then, as if the very fabric of reality had split open, the room grew colder. A deep, menacing voice echoed in his mind.
Kael…
He froze, his heart pounding in his chest. The voice was unfamiliar, but at the same time, it felt… personal. As if it had always been there, waiting for him to acknowledge it. He shuddered, feeling the dark power surge within him, like a current of energy running through his veins.
Do you remember?
The words were barely a whisper, yet they felt as if they had been spoken aloud. Kael's breath hitched, and his hand pulled back from the window. He turned, eyes wide with confusion and fear.
He had never heard that voice before, never understood the strange feelings that came with it. But tonight, it felt different. Stronger. The shadows in the room seemed to shift, their shapes elongating, as if they were alive. The cold air turned to a biting frost, and Kael felt his pulse quicken, his heart racing in his chest.
It was then that he saw it—just a flicker at the edge of his vision, a shape that seemed to materialize from the darkness. It was brief, but it was enough to make Kael's blood run cold.
A figure. A tall, cloaked figure with glowing eyes that stared directly at him. It was not human, not entirely, but it was unmistakably real.
The figure raised a hand, and in that instant, Kael felt an overwhelming sense of power, something beyond anything he had ever known. The shadows surged around him, wrapping themselves tightly, binding him in a cocoon of darkness. His body tensed, and for the first time, he felt the presence of something ancient and terrifying stirring within him.
"Who are you?" Kael whispered, his voice trembling with a mix of fear and awe.
The figure did not respond, but Kael could feel its gaze on him, the weight of its attention pressing down on him like a physical force.
And then, just as quickly as it had appeared, the figure was gone. The shadows receded, and the cold air faded into the normal chill of the night. Kael was left standing in the darkness, alone once more, but the feeling of the dark aura lingered, as if it had left a part of itself behind.
The next day, Kael couldn't shake the feeling that something had changed. The other children still mocked him, but there was a subtle difference now. They looked at him with a mix of fear and curiosity, as if they could sense something in him that they couldn't understand. Kael felt the weight of their gazes, but he didn't care. It didn't matter anymore. He knew that something had awoken within him, something that would change the course of his life forever.
That evening, when the orphanage settled into its usual stillness, Kael retreated to the attic once more. The dark aura surrounded him, and he could feel the whispers calling to him, urging him to remember. To embrace the power that had been hidden within him for so long.
For the first time in his life, Kael did not feel weak. The darkness was no longer something to fear. It was a part of him, and he knew that he could not escape it. But perhaps… perhaps he didn't need to.
The shadows of his past were no longer just memories; they were the key to his future.
As the night deepened, Kael stood up, his eyes burning with a newfound determination. The voice, the figure, the power—they were all connected to him, to his blood, to his past. And he would uncover the truth.
The darkness had always been there, lurking in the background, and now, it was ready to consume everything.