Chapter 34 – The Name That Was Lost

Cain's body burned.

The golden city surrounded him, its towering structures pulsing with an energy that felt alive, as though the very stone and sky recognized him. Titans stood in the streets, unmoving, their golden eyes locked onto him with an intensity that unraveled his thoughts.

They weren't just watching.

They were waiting.

Cain gritted his teeth, trying to push himself up from the ground, but his limbs wouldn't obey. His Titan Core was roaring, golden flames flickering chaotically as if unsure whether to protect him or surrender to something greater.

"You have forgotten your name."

The Titans' voices pressed against him, weaving into his bones. It wasn't a question.

It was a fact.

Cain shook his head, forcing himself to breathe through the pain wracking his chest. "I don't—" He coughed, his breath heavy, uneven. "I don't know what you're talking about."

The lead Titan—the one closest to him—tilted its head slightly. Its form flickered between solid and flame, like it was barely holding onto reality.

"You do not remember."

Cain pushed against the weight crushing him, his fingers digging into the golden stone beneath him. "I don't have a name other than the one I was given."

Silence stretched over the city.

Then, the Titans moved.

Not physically.

But Cain felt them shift, their very presence bending reality around him.

The weight in his chest grew heavier.

"The one you were given."

The words weren't spoken with mockery or doubt.

They were spoken with sadness.

Cain's vision swam, his Titan Core flaring violently, fighting back against something buried deep inside him.

Something locked away.

Something that should have never been found.

He clenched his fists, his breath ragged. "I don't—"

"Let us show you."

The moment the words left the Titans' mouths, the city trembled.

Cain's body locked up, a sudden pulse of energy slamming through his core, twisting around his ribs like chains being torn away.

His vision fractured.

And then—he wasn't in the city anymore.

---

Cain stood in darkness.

Not the abyss. Not the golden wasteland.

Something else.

Something before.

The world around him was silent, but he could feel it—the presence of something vast, something watching, something waiting.

Then, a voice spoke from the void.

"What is his name?"

Cain froze.

He wasn't alone.

Two figures stood ahead of him, their forms blurred by shadow, but their voices were clear.

One was calm. Measured. Ancient.

The other was desperate.

"He cannot stay here."

Cain's stomach tightened.

He knew that voice.

Not from memories.

From his own mind.

"He is too young."

"It does not matter."

The first voice—**steady, unwavering—**spoke again.

"His name must be erased."

Cain's breath caught.

The second figure shook their head violently.

"No. If we erase him, there will be nothing left."

"Then let there be nothing."

Cain's pulse pounded.

The second figure's voice broke.

"And if he forgets?"

Silence.

Then, the first figure stepped forward.

"Then he will live."

Cain's vision blurred, his mind splitting apart at the edges, his Titan Core reacting violently—

And then—

The entire world shattered.

---

Cain gasped, his body slamming back into the golden city, the memory ripping away from him like tearing flesh.

His chest ached.

Not from injury.

From loss.

The Titans stood around him, watching. Waiting.

Cain staggered back, his breathing uneven, his hands trembling.

No.

No, that wasn't real.

That wasn't—

"Do you understand now?"

Cain's head snapped up. The lead Titan stood over him, golden light flickering in its gaze.

"You were not cast aside."

"You were hidden."

Cain's hands curled into fists. His Titan Core burned beneath his ribs, flickering with golden fire as if trying to hold onto something slipping away.

Something he wasn't supposed to remember.

He gritted his teeth. "If I was hidden…"

He exhaled sharply, steadying himself.

"Then who the hell hid me?"

The Titan's flames dimmed, as if in reverence.

And then—it spoke a name.

A name that made Cain's Titan Core erupt violently, searing golden fire coursing through his body like an unchained sun.

A name that shattered everything he thought he knew.

A name he had forgotten.

"Your name is—"

The city collapsed.

Cain's body was ripped away.

And then—everything went dark.