Episode 3: Distance Before the Storm
861 Words
The world was no longer standing still.
It was moving faster than anyone could properly understand.
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Across the kingdoms, the search for Invasives had officially begun.
And leading part of the investigation force was Nexus Gareth Volen of Ashfall.
One of only two Nexus members in the kingdom.
The other remained in Ashfall’s capital, guarding the King and maintaining internal order while the outside world slowly grew unstable.
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Armies from multiple kingdoms moved under unified coordination.
Varelden. Solmire. Thorneveil. Ashfall.
All forced into the same goal:
Find the Invasives.
Confirm what they are.
Survive if possible.
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But what they found… was nothing stable.
Only destruction.
Only traces of something that had already left.
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Gareth Volen: “It’s not staying in one place.”
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Because something that cannot be found…
is not hiding.
It is changing.
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In Ashfall, something else was happening.
A new recruitment notice had spread across the kingdom.
A call for additional Nexus candidates.
The kingdom had only two Nexus-level fighters.
And after eight years without reinforcement, pressure was rising.
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But none of that mattered to us.
Not me.
Not Hanori.
Not Draight.
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We were focused on something else.
The mark.
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We trained again in the same field.
Same weapons.
Same routine.
But everything felt different now.
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The moment our blades clashed—
it appeared.
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The mark.
On my hand.
Dark.
Alive.
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And suddenly—
my body moved faster than before.
Stronger.
Sharper.
Like something inside me had finally learned how to respond.
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Draight: “There it is again…”
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He attacked harder.
But I read him too easily.
Too naturally.
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Hanori stepped back, observing carefully.
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Hanori: “…It’s not just enhancement.”
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It was adaptation.
Something that reacts.
Something that learns.
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That night, none of us rested.
We trained separately and together.
Trying to understand the mark.
Trying to force it to reveal its rules.
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Fifteen days passed like that.
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Then our families made decisions.
Not for danger.
Not for evacuation.
But because of old family arrangements and regional lineage decisions.
And only one person truly understood the deeper reason behind it all.
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My uncle.
Kael Viremont — retired Ashfall Nexus.
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He called us together that day.
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Kael Viremont: “Your fathers have decided your paths for now.”
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Silence followed.
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Kael Viremont: “Hanori, you will return to your father’s hometown region within Ashfall territory.”
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Kael Viremont: “Draight, the same. Another branch region under Ashfall jurisdiction.”
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Still Ashfall.
Still the same kingdom.
But separated by distance.
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Then he looked at me.
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Kael Viremont: “And Shin… you will return to your father’s countryside home.”
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We were not leaving the kingdom.
We were being divided across its roots.
And Kael knew something we didn’t.
Something he refused to say.
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Before we left, we trained one final time together.
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That was when it happened.
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Something from the forest.
Wrong.
Heavy.
Unnatural.
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A figure stood at the edge of the trees.
At first, it looked human.
Too human.
But then—
it changed.
Its body twisted.
Shifted.
Rebuilt itself like reality couldn’t agree on what it should be.
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Draight: “…That’s an Invasive.”
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But this one was different.
It wasn’t just a monster.
It was imitation.
It was learning form.
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Hanori: “Shapeshifting type…”
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It smiled.
Wrong.
Unnatural.
And stepped forward.
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But then—
it stopped.
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The air changed.
Not loudly.
Not visibly.
But deeply.
Like something had pressed down on reality itself.
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The mark.
It activated.
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A faint aura spread from us—especially from me.
Not visible.
Not physical.
But present.
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The Invasive froze.
Not in fear.
But in resistance.
Like something inside it was being pushed away.
Its body twisted violently for a moment—
then it retreated.
Not fleeing.
Not escaping.
But forcibly unable to remain.
And then—
it vanished into the forest.
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Silence followed.
Heavy.
Real.
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Draight: “…It didn’t run.”
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Hanori: “…Something pushed it away.”
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I looked at my hand.
The mark was gone again.
But I could still feel it.
Like it had protected us without permission.
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And far away, Kael Viremont watched silently from a distance.
His expression unreadable.
Because he knew exactly what just happened.
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And he still said nothing.
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Before we left, we made a promise.
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Hanori: “We come back stronger.”
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Draight: “Strong enough to face that thing.”
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I looked at them.
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Shin: “Strong enough… to survive this world.”
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We didn’t say goodbye.
We didn’t need to.
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We simply separated.
Still in Ashfall.
But no longer together.
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And far beyond the kingdom…
Gareth Volen continued his investigation.
With one growing realization.
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The Invasives were no longer random.
They were evolving.
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And something else…
was protecting humanity in ways no one understood yet.
- Writer
