For years, the legends spoke of this moment. "When the sky breaks, so too shall the chains of the cursed." It had been a prophecy whispered by the desperate, the hopeful, and the damned alike. But Ha jun had always dismissed it as a tale for the naive. Yet here it was, unraveling before him—an omen he could no longer deny.
The ground beneath him trembled as another fracture snaked across the heavens. A low hum resonated through the air, growing louder, more insistent, until it was almost deafening. Ha jun clenched his fists, his long coat billowing behind him as he stared into the abyss above.
"You feel it too, don't you?" a voice called from behind.
Ha jun turned slowly, his expression unreadable. Standing a few paces away was a woman cloaked in black, her hood shadowing her face. Despite the distance, her piercing blue eyes locked onto his, unyielding.
"Reyna," Ha jun acknowledged, his voice cold but steady.
She stepped closer, the hem of her cloak brushing the uneven ground. "It's begun, just as they said it would. You can't run from this anymore."
"I'm not running," he replied, his tone sharp. "But that doesn't mean I'll play their game either."
Reyna's lips curved into a faint smile. "You think you have a choice? Look around you. The sky itself is breaking, Hajun. The world you once knew is gone."
He turned back toward the horizon, his gaze softening for just a moment. She was right. The life he had fought so hard to build, the peace he had tried to carve out for himself, was slipping through his fingers like sand. And yet, a part of him resisted. A part of him clung to the belief that he could rewrite the narrative forced upon him.
"Do you hear it?" Reyna's voice pulled him from his thoughts. "The hum… it's calling to you."
Hajun closed his eyes, focusing on the sound that seemed to vibrate in his very bones. It wasn't just a hum. It was a voice, faint but persistent, weaving words into his mind. Words he hadn't heard in years.
Come back. Embrace what you are.
"No," he whispered, shaking his head. "I won't."
Reyna's expression hardened. "You can't keep denying it. The longer you resist, the worse this will get—for all of us."
He opened his eyes and met her gaze, his resolve unshaken. "If the world burns because of me, so be it. I didn't ask for any of this."
"But you can't escape it," Reyna countered. "You're part of this, whether you like it or not. And if you don't act, they will."
The hum grew louder, the fractures in the sky glowing brighter. Hajun's jaw tightened as he felt the weight of the moment pressing down on him. He had spent years running from his past, from the power that had been thrust upon him. But now, as the world teetered on the brink, he realized that running was no longer an option.
"Fine," he said at last, his voice barely audible over the din. "I'll face it. But on my terms."
Reyna's smile returned, this time tinged with relief. "Good. Then let's begin."
As the sky continued to shatter above them, Ha jun took one last look at the horizon before turning to follow Reyna. The path ahead was uncertain, fraught with danger and despair. But for the first time in years, he felt something stir within him. Not hope, but something close enough to it.
And so, the legend of the broken Ha jun began.