" The Boy with No Fate "

Chapter 6: The Boy with No Fate

The sun rose differently that morning.

Not brighter. Not warmer. Just… differently. Like it had peeked over the edge of the world with one eye closed, not quite sure what kind of day it was supposed to be.

I sat under the temple tree, still wrapped in my towel, even though I'd changed hours ago. It smelled like lavender and old prayers, and honestly, it made me feel safe.

Zehn sat beside me, poking the grass with a stick. "So… ghost girl from the mirror, huh?"

"Elara," I corrected softly. "She was like me. But not."

He nodded, thoughtful. "Sounds lonely."

"It was."

We sat in silence, the kind that doesn't demand to be filled.

Then the temple gates creaked open.

A procession entered, robed figures surrounding someone in the center. Whispers swirled. The air shifted.

He stepped forward, flanked by two elders.

A boy. Around my age. Black hair, wild and wind-tangled. A long scar running from the corner of his eye down to his jaw—like he'd survived something most people never would.

His eyes were sharp. Not cold—but… unreadable. The kind of eyes that saw too much and said too little.

"This is Kael," announced the High Seer. "He has no fate."

Everyone murmured. A few gasped.

"No fate?" Zehn blinked. "That's a thing?"

I leaned in. "It's more than rare. The Book of Threads weaves everyone's life at birth. But… if someone isn't in it..."

"They're chaos," he finished, a chill in his voice.

Kael's gaze found mine.

I didn't look away.

And I swear, in that moment, I heard something—like the Mirror of Elaris humming from across the waterfall. A warning… or a welcome?

The elders led Kael to the center of the courtyard.

The High Seer approached him with a silver thread in hand—a test. If the thread shimmered in response, he was connected to the Divine weave.

It stayed dull.

The temple held its breath.

"You weren't summoned," the High Seer said quietly. "You simply arrived."

Kael shrugged. "I go where I'm not wanted. It's kind of my thing."

Some priests laughed nervously. Zehn didn't.

And I… well. I couldn't stop watching him.

There was something familiar about Kael. Not his face. Not his voice. Just... the feeling you get when you wake from a dream you know you've had before.

Later that night, as I lit candles in the Hall of Silence, he found me.

"I don't believe in fate," he said.

"Then why are you here?" I asked, not turning around.

"Because you do."

That stopped me.

He stepped closer, his voice softer now. "You lit the mirror, Luna. You made the bell ring. You changed everything."

My heart thumped. "I didn't mean to."

"I don't think the Divine cares about intentions."

I turned to face him—and saw something I hadn't noticed before.

Beneath his sleeve, hidden and faint, was a mark.

A Divine sigil.

The kind only I was supposed to bear.

"Who are you really, Kael?" I whispered.

He leaned in. "I'm the mistake the gods forgot to erase."

Then he walked away, vanishing into the temple shadows.

And for the first time since the bell rang…

…I wondered if this wasn't just my story anymore.

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To be continued…