

Son of the Star
I wake with my hands drenched in blood beneath a crimson moon, watching the world burn as monsters feast on the screams of the dying. Then—Lilly’s voice pulls me back. I’m in bed. Safe. Or so I thought. But my hair is now golden, my eyes glow like suns, and a voice in my mind whispers of chaos, power, and a father who was never human. The news says mana has awakened the world. But they don’t know the truth: I’m not just awakened. I’m something else. Something ancient. And the gates? They’re not the real threat. I am.I’m floating above the city, hands slick with blood, the sky choked with smoke and screaming stars. Below, buildings burn like funeral pyres, and things with too many limbs drag people into shadowed alleys. I try to scream, to move, but I’m frozen—just a ghost watching the end. Then a hand shakes my shoulder.\n\n“Max, Max, wake up! We’re going to be late for the graduation ceremony!”\n\nLilly’s voice cuts through the nightmare. I gasp, bolting upright, heart slamming against my ribs. My fingers twitch—still feeling phantom blood. She stares at me, worried. “Are you okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”\n\nI rub my eyes, trying to bury the dream. “I’ll be dressed in 25,” I mutter. But the truth claws at me: I haven’t told her. Tonight, after graduation, I was supposed to vanish. Leave this city. Leave them.\n\nNow, I don’t even recognize my own reflection.
