The night was still. The wind hummed low, as if paying respect to the silence. No crickets sang, no leaves rustled. The trees stood motionless, and animals lay hidden in their dens. Owls glided through the sky, their wings cutting through the darkness without a sound. The world held its breath, waiting—watching—for a single moment.

Then, a cry shattered the silence. Followed by a boom.

Nestled in trembling arms, a newborn wailed into the night—the only sound in the vast emptiness. Next to him, a chasm of swirling color and energy erupted like an angry volcano—a Color Well. Its vibrant energy flowed toward the child, casting him in a faint glow. His mother, drenched in sweat and tears, clutched him close, pressing his tiny head against her warm chest. His father stood, eyes darting through the darkness. He knew what lurked in the silent forest—wild beasts, nightmares, or worse... them.

He stilled, tilting his head slightly, listening. Footsteps. Too many.

He knew what they were after.

Without hesitation, he gathered his wife and child and ran.

"They're over here! Get 'em!" A ragged voice echoed through the trees.

They pushed forward, weaving through the forest, but exhaustion gnawed at them. His wife, weak from childbirth, stumbled. Her legs trembled, unable to keep pace. Seeing this, the husband hoisted her onto his back, gripping her tightly as he forced himself to run faster.

Beams of light tore through the trees, ripping bark from their trunks, scorching the earth where they landed. The father dodged as best he could, but burdened by his wife and child, he couldn't outrun them for long. He needed a plan. A place to hide. He scanned the darkness, searching for shelter—there! A cave. If he could just—

An arrow whistled through the air.

His wife gasped.

The impact sent them tumbling to the ground.

Pain surged through her shoulder, the arrow buried deep. Her scream rang through the trees as the shaft snapped against the earth. Her husband, disoriented, struggled to his feet—but the fall had already stolen his last breath. He collapsed, falling like a doll.

She choked on a sob, her body trembling as the world around her blurred. Blood soaked into the dirt. Her strength was fading, her vision darkening. But her child... Her child remained untouched, merely dirtied.

With the last of her will, she curled around him, shielding him in her arms. Her voice was weak, barely a whisper.

"Do not make a sound, my child. I will protect you."

Her color—her very essence—began to drain away. Her breaths grew shallow. With one final kiss on her son's forehead, she exhaled her last. A brilliant red glow surrounded her before fading into nothingness. Her body became a white, featureless husk. A Null.

The Dream-Killers emerged from the darkness, their boots crunching against the dirt. One of them cursed under his breath.

"She's dead."

"Shit, no money for us, I guess..."

A sigh. "It's fine. We've got bigger fish to fry anyway." He chuckled.

Their lights flickered, then disappeared into the night.

The forest fell silent once more. Minutes turned into hours as the baby lay in his mother's cold, lifeless arms. Then that same wail pierced the silent night once more, this time louder than before. The lights came back. Except it was a single light, a person. Coming from the opposite direction, he threaded through the thick forest, attempting to find the source of the wail. He encountered a body—no, two. But no sign of the source of the cry. He drew closer, approaching the baby cautiously.

"A… Null." His voice was somber and remorseful as he realized the unfortunate circumstances this baby was in.

The sun began to rise, and as the first rays of sunlight began to pierce the horizon, the man picked up the baby and hugged it tightly.

"I'm sorry, you unfortunate souls," He knelt down, clasping his hands together, bowing his head, "I will raise this child in your stead. Please find rest in the afterlife."

Then, he sobbed. He knew this was his only second chance for another shot at life, so he sobbed. Despite knowing what he had done, God answered his prayers. He stood up, one leg after the other, and buried the unfortunate souls. Then he began walking back to his home, clutching the baby's head on his shoulder.

Entering his small cabin in the woods, the man didn't know what to do with him; he had no clue how to raise a boy. He carried the child into the living room and sat him on the couch; pictures of the man and 2 other people hung on the wall. A woman and a child, wearing white dresses, which accented their black silky hair. All are smiling gleefully in the picture.

"Hmm, what should I do..." He paused his thought, "Wait, what should I name him?"

The man was never good with names, so he began looking at the child's features: "Green eyes, brown hair, chubby, and a silly smile." The man thought for a while, grabbing his chin and racking his brain for a name.

"James…? No, too ordinary. Aster… No, that won't make sense…" Then, a name rang in his head, "Elias." He picked the baby up and raised him into the air. "Your name is Elias."

"Elias, I am Reign. I hope you forgive me and accept me as your father."

Years passed. The crying baby grew into a boy. Under Reigns' guidance, Elias learned how to walk, talk, and spell. And soon, he learned how to wield a blade, track animals, and read the land like a map written in nature's own hand. Reign raised Elias like his own and gave him love like no other. And gave Elias something that he would have never had. A father—a man who saved him from his otherwise deathly fate. And now, that crying infant is now sixteen years old.

"Strike the core, finish the kill." Elias repeated to himself, treading through and cutting down thick leaves in front of him.

"That's what Dad told me every time we went hunting. I thought he would come with me on this hunt. But Dad sent me away on my own this time. He seemed in a rush, so I guess it was important. I just hope—"

He paused his thought. A shuffle in the distance caused his ear to twitch. He quickly stooped low, behind the towering trees and stocky bushes, approaching the sound. The sound continued as he peered from his hiding spot.

Rustle, Rustle…

The bushes shook, shaking out twigs and removing leaves from their branches; out came a small white horned rabbit.

"Oh! It's a horned rabbit! The lowest level of Nightmares, an N0. Its white fuzzy fur, beady black eyes, and razor-sharp horn could easily be made into weapons, clothes, or even accessories."

The rabbit hopped along the clearing, stopping ever so often to smell for food.

"It's the perfect kill." A malice-filled smile grew on Elias' face as he began to approach the horned rabbit. Unbuckling his sickle, he prepared to strike. He watched carefully, studying its movements and attempting to predict its patterns, his eyes filled with determination and confidence. The horned rabbit continued to hop along the small path, stopping to sniff for food, not knowing its impending doom. Elias shot out of the bushes like a bullet; he knew exactly where to strike to ensure a painless death for the creature. The horned rabbit quickly moved out of the way, its feet rapidly kicking. Elias went crashing towards a tree, recovering in the nick of time, just before hitting the tree.

"Crap!"

Now on all fours, he launched himself at the rabbit once again; instead of evading, the rabbit charged at him straight on with its sharp horn pointed ahead of him.

"I won't make that mistake again!"

Elias stooped low, pivoting on his heel to change his trajectory. slightly missing the sharp horn of the rabbit. However he was a second short, the horn nicked his arm and began to bleed. It wasn't a gash, so he'd be fine; he ripped a piece of cloth from his belt and tied the wound so it wouldn't bleed anymore. He looked at the rabbit now with the eyes of a predator. Which instilled fear in the rabbit, it attempted to run away, but Elias had already leaped; he reached his sickle to its core and struck; normally it was supposed to kill the rabbit, but he missed. He stabbed it, and viscous black blood oozed out of the wound he created. The creature tumbled and slid on the ground, leaving a trail of black blood in its path. Elias exhaled, wiping his brow as he thought he had killed the creature off, but he only wounded it, causing it immense pain. It twitched and kicked its hind legs while lying on its side. Attempting to flee from death, but it was already in its grasp. Approaching it, he realized it wasn't dead.

"I'm so sorry!" Elias quickly knelt down and held the creature in his arms, still twitching and kicking rapidly.

Elias shushed the wounded rabbit, "It's going to be okay..."

He silenced the rabbit with a quick strike to its dream core; it twitched one final time before going limp. Black blood oozed on Elias' sickle. Removing it, he picked the rabbit up by its hind legs, wrapped it around his waist, and made his way home to the small cabin.

"Dad! I'm home! I caught a good rabbit!"

He entered the cabin, but it was dark. This was new for him, since it's the middle of the day; usually it would be very bright there. Since his eyes hadn't fully adjusted to the darkness, he struggled to find a source of light. Suddenly a shuffle to his right caught his attention, and he once again unbuckled his sickle and held it in front of him. The shuffle continued as he approached; once again he called out,

"Dad…?"

He found a light switch and quickly turned it on; what he saw left him speechless; it was a surprise birthday party.

"Surprise!" Reign shouted as the lights came on.

The shuffling that he heard was his dad attempting to wrap his gift quickly. He stood in shock; every year his dad would do this, but not to this extent. There was a table filled with different foods; the smells finally hitting his nose, he felt relief. He knew nothing bad could happen to his dad. He was strong.

"Hey! Don't just stand there; you're getting black blood all over the floor I just cleaned! Place the rabbit on the counter and…" They began celebrating Elias' sixteenth birthday. However, something lurked, something evil, stalking nearby. Following the trail of black blood that Elias left, it traced him. Its 6 red eyes gleamed with bloodlust and malice, like a predator stalking its prey.

Hours passed, the sun set, and the party continued into the night, the light from the cabin like a beacon in the darkness. They laughed and danced to the songs on the gramophone; Elias was having so much fun he tripped on his own heel. He and his father laughed until they cried. Truly this was the best night of their lives. When everything had died down, and they calmed down. Reign grabbed one of Elias' gifts.

"Elias', my son. You have used that raggedy, worn, and torn sickle for most of your life. I want to give you this so you are able to hunt efficiently."

He opened the box to reveal a pure black obsidian sickle, wrapped in clean white bandage wraps; the blade reflected the light from the ceiling like a mirror. Elias marveled at the sickle, thinking how much he had wanted a new hunting weapon. He set it down on the table and hugged Reign. Reign didn't expect this; most of the time, Elias was indifferent to any gift he gives him and is only happy when spending time with him. This was new, but he didn't mind it. He gently wrapped his arms around him and embraced him warmly.

"Ah, I have one more thing for you!" He turned around with a big smile. Just then, Reign stopped. He looked around the room and felt something was off.

"Dad…? What's wrong?"

"Wait a moment." The playful tone instantly shifted to serious and grim. His smile dropped and he began listening to his surroundings and expanding his senses. Then his face dropped and fear struck him; he panicked.

"Shit! I was too late!" He thought and quickly turned around.