[At the moment of collapse]
*Chapter One*
Late at night, Kaya was practicing graceful movements, mastering the art of combat deep in the forest where the trees were intertwined with each other. She was navigating between the ancient trees with ease, as if she were part of nature itself.
Kaya was known to be a brave and kind girl to everyone, but deep within her, she carried an unparalleled determination. Her long hair, cascading gently down to the middle of her back, was as black as the night, radiating a natural glow. It swayed slowly with the wind, reflecting the strength of her will and ambition in every strand. Despite its length, her hair remained tidy and elegant, and when it danced in the sunlight, it seemed to carry a touch of power and courage.
Her rare, sparkling eyes under the moonlight captivated the attention of all who beheld her. As she trained, her mother's words echoed in her mind, serving as motivation.
"Heroes are not born, they are made."
The wind was howling around her, whispering mysterious sounds, as if the forest was warning her of something. Kaya felt a strange sensation, her heart pounding at an unusual pace. She thought for a moment, wondering if it was just her imagination. However, she soon spoke in a calm voice, returning to her training.
"It seems I've exhausted myself again... I should head back home."
But suddenly, the wind ceased, and an oppressive silence fell in its place. It was as if the forest was sensing something within its depths. In an unexpected moment, her heartbeats accelerated, and those strange feelings deepened within her.
She began to run, unaware of what drove her to do so. There was something inside her telling her she had to flee.
"What's this feeling? What's...?"
She didn't finish her sentence, for a large tree branch fell nearby, gently hitting the ground as if nature was announcing danger. Kaya recoiled in fright, but before she could regain her balance, she tripped over a large stone covered in something sticky and fell down the slope.
She rolled several times, and the pain quickly followed in her knees and hands. She felt as if the earth itself was warning her, her heartbeats echoing in her ears, as if the forest was whispering to her with all its might.
"I must move quickly."
Kaya thought, trying to get up despite her pain. She was unaware of what was happening around her, but she felt that danger was approaching, and the forest was trying to tell her something.
The forest, which had always been her sanctuary, had now become an arena for confronting something mysterious that was pursuing her.
Kaya continued running towards the village, and after a few minutes, she arrived. But what she saw in front of her made her heart stop for a moment. Her breaths halted in her chest, as if there was something unnatural in the air. She stood there at the entrance, staring at the scene her eyes couldn't believe, unable to comprehend what was happening.
The broken trees were like giant fingers stretched out, the damaged and destroyed houses scattered on the ground like large shards of glass, and the cries of children filling the air like a distant call for help, making her body feel heavy. Suddenly, she collapsed to her knees, as if the earth itself was pushing her down, and her entire body screamed with pain and fear.
Staring at the destruction surrounding her as if she were witnessing a world that had collapsed in an instant. The moonlight seeped through the clouds, as though it were a witness to this tragedy. In that moment, she remembered her family, and her heart ignited with fear and worry, as a hot tear slid down her cheek.
She felt helpless, as if she were unable to do anything. "Did they manage to survive?" she wondered to herself, and the voice inside her echoed as if something hidden was about to happen. Anger struck her, not only because of the chaos she saw around her, but also because she felt helpless in the face of it all.
She remembered her mother and brother, and with all her strength, she ran towards her house, screaming and crying. Every step she took carried a faint hope, but she held onto it, wishing her family was safe amidst this destruction.
As Kaya rushed towards her home, darkness surrounded her from all sides, with only the whispers of the wind filling the desolate space. Everything around her was eerily quiet, as if the entire world had stopped in that moment. Her eyes scanned the devastated ground, and her ears caught every faint sound, but nothing could ease the weight of the pain that clenched her heart.
She ran, breathing heavily, her heart pounding under the pressure. Her thoughts raced, but her only thought was: Would she find her family safe amidst this destruction? Every step she took was filled with a faint hope, but it was that hope that kept her going. As beautiful memories with her family faded before her eyes in a moment of panic. There was something in her chest, a mix of sadness and fear, weighing her down, to the point where she began to feel pain in her legs, but there was no time to stop.
Kaya finally reached her home, only to be shocked by the massive destruction that had befallen the place. She felt her heart breaking with every part of the house that had been destroyed, the home that had always been a refuge for her, now reduced to rubble and debris. The walls that once held the echoes of their laughter were now drowned in the darkness of devastation.
Despite the chaos that filled the place, she risked her life and entered, her heart almost bursting from her chest. She circled the debris, searching for any sign of her family. There, amidst the rubble, she saw her mother trapped between the furniture and the fallen wall of the house. Her black hair scattered around her face, and her torn clothes, filled Kaya's heart with an indescribable fear.
Then she spotted her older brother, three years her senior, lying on the ground, his right leg missing. Her eyes were filled with fear, and Kaya's eyes filled with tears. Suddenly, she felt a sharp pain grip her heart. Her mother was severely injured, and her nose was bleeding profusely. Kaya rushed toward her, trying to remove the debris that weighed down on her, her eyes shining with pain and sorrow.
No time for regret," she whispered to herself as she struggled bravely to free her mother. In that moment, everything in the world felt heavy, and her heart pounded fiercely from the fear for their lives, wishing she could do more.
She took a deep breath, then whispered to herself, "No, I won't give up, I have to save them." Her mother's eyes were filled with fear, as if silently pleading for help. And before Kaya, conflicting emotions of worry and anger accumulated.
She looked at her injured mother, and with swift movements, she began trying to move the rubble off her. Her heart was pounding fiercely, and her thoughts raced. "Will I be able to save her? Is there still time?" Each question was followed by a heart growing heavier with pain.
She hurried more, forcing her suppressed breaths. The blood was rushing from her mother's nose, and there was no time for hesitation. She thought quickly, "If I don't save her now, it may be too late.
The tools she had carried with her during her training in the forest were the ones that could help her now to clear the rubble, but her hands trembled under the pressure of the situation. In her desperate attempts to save her mother, her thoughts were fading away, focusing on only one goal: _save them now_.