Many years ago, in the quiet breath of an ancient forest, the laughter of children rippled between the trees like birdsong.
Seven-year-old Dreados dashed between trunks, breathless with joy. He was playing hide and seek—it was his turn to disappear. His feet padded across moss, his long ears twitching at every distant footfall. He darted farther than usual, deeper than any of them dared to go.
That's when he saw it.
A figure slumped against a stone, enormous and bloodied, steam rising faintly from its torn flesh.
Dreados froze.
It was not an elf.
The creature was massive, covered in dark, matted fur. Claws like curved knives glinted in the filtered sunlight. Its muzzle rose and fell with struggling breath. A Lycan.
Dreados's instincts told him to run. But his father's voice echoed in his heart:
A man must be brave.
He took a step forward.
Then another.
The leaves crunched underfoot.
Dreados crouched beside the beast and whispered, "Hey, mister… are you okay?"
The Lycan's golden eyes cracked open.
An elf? Katos thought. What is an elf doing here?
Dreados reached for the creature's arm. "Don't worry. I'll help you."
"Ahh—stop that!" the Lycan groaned as the boy tugged on him.
"You're really heavy, mister," Dreados muttered. He crouched beside him, inspecting him top to bottom. "Why do you have fur all over? And an animal face?"
He took the Lycan's massive hand and held it up, examining the nails. "Your nails are so long."
"They're claws," the Lycan corrected dryly, pulling his hand away.
Dreados tilted his head. "Are you cursed? My mom says people who get cursed sometimes turn into animals."
Katos narrowed his gaze. This child… is he fearless or just foolish?
The Lycan tried to sit up. Pain wracked his body, but he managed to prop himself against the stone.
Dreados didn't flinch. He watched him with nothing but wonder.
This child… truly has no fear of me. Katos smirked faintly.
"I'm Katos," he said. "I need your help."
Dreados stood. At seven years old, he was five-foot-three—but Katos, even slouched in pain, still towered over him. Dreados barely reached his lower chest.
"Can you bring me bandages? Medicine?"
Dreados looked skeptical. "Hmm. I can take you to my village instead."
"No," Katos snapped. "Tell no one I'm here."
"But you look like you're dying…"
"Keep my secret," Katos said, voice calm. "And I'll give you something in return."
Dreados eyed the dagger at the Lycan's side. "Okay. I'll help you if you give me that sword."
Katos frowned. "It's a dagger."
"Whatever. Give it to me."
"No."
"Okay, then I guess I'll go tell everyone about you."
Katos sighed, resigned. "Wait. Fine."
Dreados smiled, walked up, and grabbed the dagger with both hands. It didn't budge.
Katos chuckled. "You thought you could lift a warrior's weapon?"
Dreados fell on his back with a grunt. "Deal's off!"
He started to walk away.
"Wait," Katos said again, eyes narrowing. "You've never left your village, have you?"
Dreados paused.
"There's more out there than trees and treehouses," Katos said. "Floating islands. Rivers that glow in the dark. Races you've never heard of."
Dreados turned, eyes widening.
"I can tell you about it all," Katos offered. "If you bring what I need."
Dreados grinned. "Deal! Wait here—I'll be back!"
He ran off, heart pounding.
---
The village of Elves was nestled in the trees, its homes built high in the canopies. Wooden walkways connected huts like a web of living bridges. Markets bustled. Children played.
Dreados darted through a stall, toppling a crate of fruit.
"Dreados!" yelled the vendor. "Look what you did! Get back here!"
"Sorry, Mister Dylan!" he shouted, not slowing.
"I'm telling your father!"
He raced up the spiral steps of the great elder tree, reaching his home. He kicked the door open. "Mother! Father! I'm home!"
His mother peeked from the kitchen, apron on, hands busy with stew. "Where have you been?! Lunch is ready. And I told you not to run in the house!"
"Sorry, Mother—I won't do it again!"
A slipper flew through the air and nailed him at the back of his head.
He fell flat. "Ow—!"
"That's what you said last time. Now walk."
He walked.
Inside his room, he dug through clothes and pulled out a wooden box. He stuffed bandages and salves into a small satchel, slung it over his shoulder, and darted out again.
"Bye, Mother!"
"Dreados!"
He froze mid-step. Then slowly began walking… until he was out of sight. Then he ran.
---
He returned to the forest just as the sun dipped low.
"Mister!" he called out. "I'm here!"
Katos looked up.
Dreados dropped the bag into his lap.
The Lycan smiled faintly. "Thank you."
Then, before Dreados's eyes—he transformed.
Fur receded. Bones shifted. His figure shrank slightly. What sat before Dreados now was still undeniably powerful, but less beast, more man.
His skin was dark, his black hair long, his face sharp with golden eyes. His fangs remained—but smaller. His claws were now nails.
"What… was that?" Dreados whispered, eyes wide with awe.
"I'm a Lycan," Katos said. "We… can do things like this."
He raised a hand and slowly shifted it into a wolf's hand with long claws—then back to a normal hand.
Dreados stared in amazement.
"You elves aren't the only ones in this world," Katos said, wrapping his wounds.
He spoke as he worked—of distant lands, of ancient races, of floating cities, of ruins beneath the sea.
Dreados's eyes sparkled.
When the sun dipped below the trees, Katos leaned back and said, "That's enough for today. Come back tomorrow—bring food."
Dreados nodded excitedly. "Okay!"
He turned and ran home, the forest echoing with his joy.
He had made a friend.
An unexpected one.
But a friend nonetheless.
---
Dreados returned the next day with food. Then the next with clothes. The next with medicine.
And each time, Katos would repay him not with coin, but with stories—glimpses of the vast world beyond the forest, beyond the only home Dreados had ever known. They met beneath the sun and stars, by the waterside where the fish smoked over flickering flame. Over weeks, the forest clearing slowly turned into a makeshift camp. Blankets, dishes, a kettle. All borrowed. All stolen. All gifted.
Back at home, Dreados's mother narrowed her eyes at the cupboards. "Dreadar," she called, "have you noticed my things keep going missing?"
One afternoon by the river, Dreados asked what had haunted him since the beginning.
"Mister… why were you so beat up when I found you?"
Katos bit into his fish, chewed slowly, then spoke. "In this world, no matter how strong you are," he said with a low laugh, "there's always someone stronger."
He chuckled bitterly. "I fought a monster… no, the monster of monsters. I couldn't even scratch him."
He leaned back against a rock, gazing up through the trees.
"I—Katos—brought to my knees. Powerless."
Dreados leaned forward, fascinated. "What was it?"
"Not what," Katos murmured. "Who."
He closed his eyes, as if remembering a nightmare in perfect clarity. "He looked at me like I didn't matter. Like I was nothing."
"It's a miracle I escaped," he muttered. "I told you about Unbounds, didn't I? He was one of the ones who hunt them. I've danced with death a thousand times. But that man…"
He sat up. "I should go."
Dreados blinked. "You're… leaving?"
"I've healed. I have no reason to stay." He stood, stretching slowly. "Remember this, kid. Hard times make strong men. Go home. Spend time with your family. That's what matters."
As Katos turned to walk away, Dreados stood and waved. "Mister! Nice knowing you!"
Katos smiled faintly to himself as he disappeared into the trees.
"Stupid kid," he muttered. "I'll miss you too. But don't worry… before I leave, I'll make you strong."
---
That evening, Dreados sat across the table from his parents, a warm meal between them.
"You've been sneaking off a lot lately," his father said. "Where've you been going?"
"I made a friend," Dreados answered simply.
His mother smiled. "Just promise us you'll stay safe."
---
The next day, everything ended.
Dreados returned from the forest, laughter still in his breath, only to find smoke choking the sky. His village—burning.
People screamed. Bodies lay severed in the street. The stench of blood filled the air.
"No… no no no…"
He sprinted toward his home. "Mother! Father!"
No answer.
From the balcony, he saw them—wolf-like beasts, tall and savage, tearing his people apart. One of them snapped Alar's neck like twine. Dreados gasped, tears blurring his vision.
"Alar!"
He ran to the kitchen, grabbed a knife, and charged down the hill—screaming.
He stabbed a Lycan's leg. The blade bounced off.
The beast laughed. "This one has guts. I like him."
It grabbed Dreados like a toy.
He struggled. Bit its hand. Nothing.
As they walked, Dreados saw something that made him scream again.
"Mister Dylan…?"
His severed head lay in the dirt.
Another Lycan approached. "Let him go."
Dreados turned—and froze.
There, ahead of them, stood Katos.
Holding Dreados's mother in one hand, his father in the other.
"No…" Dreados whispered. "Mister…? What are you doing?"
Katos smiled. "These are your parents, aren't they? Come say hello."
"Dreados, run!" his mother screamed.
"Don't come closer," his father warned.
But Dreados ran. Ran straight into their arms, sobbing.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry—it's my fault, it's all my fault!"
His parents embraced him tightly.
"No, Dreados. It's not your fault," his mother said, tears running down her own cheeks.
His father placed a hand on his son's head. "You did good. You showed kindness to a stranger. That's nothing to regret."
"I gave him food… medicine… I thought he was my friend…"
His father pulled him tighter. "You'll meet many people in this life. Some will stand by you. Some will smile with white teeth and black hearts. But never let this experience turn your heart to stone."
His mother cupped his cheeks.
"You hear me, my beautiful boy? We will always love you."
And then—Katos pulled them away.
"No… no no no—"
Dreados screamed as another Lycan held him tight, forcing him to watch.
"Please," he begged. "Please, stop! I beg you!"
Katos crushed his mother's head.
Dreados choked on the scream.
"KATOS!"
Katos forced his father to kneel.
"Don't blame yourself," his father whispered, looking up one last time. "This isn't your fault… this is just…"
Katos's voice cracked.
"TO BE A MAN—A BOY MUST ENDURE CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT!"
Katos smiled—and slit his father's throat.
The boy collapsed, knees in the bloodied soil, the sound of death ringing in his ears.
Behind him, Katos gave the order: "Destroy everything. Leave the boy."
A Lycan with a blade stepped forward. One unsheathing slash—and the entire village was torn apart in a single wave.
Homes crumbled. Fires raged.
Everything Dreados had known—gone.
He was dropped to the ground, too broken to stand. Too hollow to speak.
Katos turned one last time as the Lycans walked away, hands in his pockets.
"Now that," he said with a smirk, "is how you turn a boy into a man."
One of the Lycans spat. "You did all that just for him? You're sick."
"I told him about Bravo," Katos said. "He'll chase it now. He'll become strong. Strong enough not to be trampled."
"You think killing his family will do that?"
Katos turned, smile hollow.
"Yes. This is my payment. For saving my life."
He looked up at the scorched sky.
"I even left him a few artifacts."
They walked away, their shadows long.
"I wonder how strong he'll be… when we meet again."
---
Back to the Present
Katos slowly released Dreados's arm, his gaze narrowing as recognition flickered across his face.
"…It's you," he said softly. "That child who saved me… what a small world."
A smile crept across his face—genuine, warm. "It's been centuries… and look at you now. All grown up. You've become a man. A strong one, too."
He nodded, as if in approval. "You're welcome."
Dreados's jaw clenched. A vein pulsed at his temple. His fists curled. Then—
Boom.
Katos's fist slammed into his side with brutal force, hurling Dreados across the crater like a broken arrow. Mid-flight, Dreados struck the air with his palm, twisting momentum to stop himself.
But Katos was already there.
The Lycan lunged forward and drove a punch down into Dreados's spine, slamming him into the stone. Then another. And another. A merciless flurry.
"All of it—everything I did," Katos growled between blows, "was necessary."
He drove his knee into Dreados's ribs, then threw a hook that sent a shockwave through the ground.
"You would've died a pathetic death—crying, weak, crushed by a world that eats the soft."
He lifted Dreados by the collar and drove him into the ground again. Blood streaked the crater walls. Bravo flared from every impact.
"The fire in your heart? I lit that flame. I gave you purpose."
Dreados tried to move, but Katos was faster—raining fists down like thunderclaps.
"I didn't do it out of hate," Katos said, voice hoarse with emotion. "I liked you. Genuinely. But you didn't understand the truth. This world—it has no place for boys with kind hearts and soft bones."
The ground cratered under them from the repeated impact.
"So yes… my method was cruel. But look at the result."
He stepped back, panting lightly, arms coated in blood.
"You're here, standing against me. As my equal."
He smiled wide—nostalgic. Proud.
"I'm stronger now than I was back then… but even so…"
He leaned close, voice like steel:
"I am the author of everything you are. And you, Dreados… should be thanking me."
To Be Continued...