(In the capital city of the planet "Division")
"Haa…"
The sound left his lips before he even noticed it.
"Another day… I didn't expect to still be alive for it."
Kael stood still for a moment, staring at the distant skyline of the capital. Towers of black glass and pale alloy pierced the gray sky like silent monuments to a world he was never meant to belong to. The upper levels of the city floated above layers of industrial smog, bathed in artificial sunlight that never reached the streets where he lived.
The air here smelled different.
Cleaner.
Colder.
Less… desperate.
He shifted his weight, ignoring the dull ache in his ribs. One of the bruises there was still fresh. Probably from yesterday. Or the day before. It was hard to remember anymore.
The young man looked like something life had already chewed up and spat out. Eyes black like a dead star. Short, uneven hair that looked like it had been cut with a dull blade. Thin body. Not very tall. Deep shadows beneath his eyes from years of poor sleep — or no sleep at all.
"Today is my birthday…" he whispered.
The words felt meaningless the moment they left his mouth.
"I wish I could eat something decent."
Not a feast.
Not luxury.
Just… something real.
The thought felt almost childish.
Kael belonged to the lowest layer of society — the kind of people officially called "citizens," but treated like background noise. In the slums, survival meant eating expired synthetic paste and working until your hands bled enough to stop feeling pain.
Some people dreamed of escaping.
Kael had stopped dreaming a long time ago.
Still, his feet carried him toward the upper districts.
The deeper he walked, the more unreal everything became.
Semi-floating vehicles moved silently above polished streets. Massive holographic advertisements displayed smiling faces selling things no one in the lower districts would ever touch. People walked past him wearing clothes made of materials he had only heard about in rumors.
Virgin wool.
Premium linen.
Natural fibers.
Things that came from real plants. Real animals. Real worlds.
Not lab-grown substitutes.
He wondered, briefly, what real fabric felt like
He slowed when he passed a restaurant.
Warm yellow light spilled through the glass windows. Inside, a boy sat beside his mother, swinging his legs under the table while laughing at something she said.
On the table sat real food.
A lobster — bright red, freshly prepared. Steam still rising from the shell.
Beside it, a dessert made from natural milk.
Real milk.
Not processed nutrient liquid.
Kael's stomach tightened.
But he wasn't staring at the food.
The boy…
For a moment, the angle of his face… the shape of his eyes…
"Haa… little brother…"
His throat tightened.
"I miss you."
The words almost didn't come out.
He forced himself to walk again.
If he stopped, he might not start moving again.
A few blocks later, he stopped in front of a synthetic food store.
Bright lights. Clean floors. Security drones hovering quietly near the ceiling.
Maybe this would be his last meal.
The thought didn't scare him as much as it should have.
The automatic doors opened with a soft mechanical hiss.
The clerk looked up immediately.
The disgust on the man's face wasn't even hidden.
Kael felt it like background noise.
"Are you lost, kid?"
Kael scanned the shelves. Rows and rows of packaged food. Artificial flavors. Preserved nutrients.
Still better than what he ate daily.
Then he saw it.
A small package. Bright colors. Clean design.
"Hey! I'm talking to you! You deaf?"
Kael turned slowly.
"No."
"I came to buy food."
The clerk looked him up and down.
His worn clothes.
His thin frame.
The way he stood like someone expecting to be hit.
"Sorry. This isn't really a place for someone like you."
Kael reached into his pocket and pulled out a thick stack of Astra bills.
He ignored the tight feeling in his chest.
"I want to buy food."
The man's expression changed instantly.
"Alright. What do you want?"
Kael pointed at the package.
"That. What is it? I saw someone eating it outside."
"French fries."
"…French fries?"
"From one of the original languages of Earth. Fried potatoes."
Kael hesitated.
"…What are potatoes?"
The man stared at him.
Then pointed at a faded poster.
"They come from Earth. Tubers. Plants that grow underground and store nutrients. This one's called a potato. You cut it. Fry it in natural oil."
Natural oil.
Kael tried to imagine that.
He grabbed the package.
"Natural lemon and salt flavor…"
"I'll take it. How much?"
"Three thousand Astras."
Kael handed over the money.
Every bill felt heavier than it should.
"That's expensive," he said quietly.
The man took the money.
"Why spend everything on this? That could last you weeks in the lower districts."
Kael lowered his head.
"Today is my sixteenth birthday."
The words felt strange.
"And… I've been summoned."
The man didn't speak.
"To enter the Invasion Portal."
Kael swallowed.
"To awaken."
Silence filled the store.
Even the hum of the lights felt quieter.
The clerk's expression changed. Something heavy settled behind his eyes. Something tired.
Like someone remembering the moment their life stopped belonging to them.
"…I see," he said quietly.