The decision hung over the small village like a storm cloud.
They planned for tomorrow to be the day they set off on a three-day journey through the dense jungle and toward the main gate of the capital—the gleaming crown of Sylvaris, built for all species except humans.
When the other villagers heard the news, they gathered in the center of the clearing, their faces masks of confusion and dread. "Are you sure, Kael?" Silas asked, leaning heavily on his staff. "The city... it isn't a place for us. They might not let you come back."
Kael stood tall, his eyes dead serious as he adjusted the straps of a worn leather pack. "We're sure. He can't grow up in the dirt." Beside him, Elara looked reluctant, her hands trembling as she smoothed Aether's hair, but she forced a nod. "We're sure," she echoed, though the words felt like ash in her mouth.
On the early dawn of the following day, the air was crisp and thick with mist.
Kael packed bags and rations—dried meat and hard tubers—for the three-day trek.
The villagers gathered at the edge of the grove to whisper their goodbyes, many of them touching Aether's shoulder as if to gift him their own fading luck. "Return safely," they whispered.
As they started their walk, the village began to get farther and farther away, the small hovels swallowed by the aggressive greenery until the only home Aether had ever known couldn't be seen anymore.
"Papa? Mama?" Aether looked up, his small boots splashing through a shallow puddle. "Where are we going? Are we going to find the big Spire?"
Elara felt a pang in her chest, a mixture of guilt and terror.
She reached down to take his hand, her grip a little too tight. "We're going somewhere... special, Aether. Somewhere you can learn."
"Are you coming too?" Aether asked, his hazel eyes wide with innocence.
Elara swallowed hard, looking toward the horizon where the sky began to turn a mocking, vibrant gold. "We're going to take you to the gates, my love. But... we can't go inside. Only children can pass."
The journey was grueling. They spent the next three days navigating treacherous terrain that seemed designed to keep humans out.
On the first day, they waded through dense swamps where the mud threatened to suck the boots right off their feet.
Kael led the way, hacking through vines with a rusted machete, his muscles aching with every swing.
He was haunted by the thought that he was delivering his son to a world that might try to erase his humanity.
By the second day, they were scaling rough terrain, climbing jagged limestone cliffs where the wind whipped around them like the laughter of the gods.
Elara barely slept, her eyes darting toward every rustle in the brush. Every time she looked at Aether—who was tired but remarkably brave—she wondered if she was being a good mother or a cruel one.
Finally, on the dawn of the third day, the forest gave way.
The trees thinned out, revealing a sight that made all three of them stop in their tracks. Before them stood the Golden Gates of the Utopia.
The walls were made of a white stone that seemed to glow from within, humming with the power of the Magical Spectrum.
The gates themselves were massive, etched with the symbols of the Elves, Dragons, and Daemons, shimmering with an iridescent sheen that no human hand could ever produce.
"It's... it's beautiful," Aether whispered, his jaw dropping.
Kael and Elara shared a look of profound sorrow. To Aether, it was a wonderland. To them, it was a monument to their own extinction.
"That's it, Aether," Kael said, his voice thick. "That's where your new life begins."