Chapter 11: Whispers in the Wind

It was darkening too quickly, as if the sky itself had laid an ill omen glow over the little village. Kael stood in front of a small cottage where he had spent as long as he could remember. His senses reached into what the naked eye did not see, feeling the dismay that brought shivers crawling down his spine. He knew that the Harbingers of Dissonance hadn't finished their subtle attacks yet. The air was thick with unnatural stillness, and, yes, they could feel it-the undertow of tension quietly building within the peaceful lives they'd constructed.

Erasa was inside brewing tea. She was humming a soft tune with her voice so soft that it belied the tension that had been building in her. Kael hadn't told her what he suspected and even though she felt something was off, still, she didn't pry. It wasn't her way. He admired that about her-the quiet understanding, the unspoken trust. But now, he felt maybe he shouldn't have.

In his case, he was not being threatened against himself-he could have resisted the Harbingers if they had arrived straight at him. Their game was not to beat but to break the balance that he had achieved through this quiet village. They were bringing discord without any force but instead through fear, suspicion, and chaos. That was the true power of the Harbingers, and something Kael knew he was to be more than just brawn to stop.

As he gazed out over rolling fields and the darker shadow of forest enfolding the village, Kael's head jerked toward the commotion, a subtle but definite ripple in the air. He turned his head in time to catch the end of something emerging out of the edge of the forest, muffled in shadows. Unlike the vanished echo he had seen earlier, this was something more substantial.

He was nervous. His heart was running wild with that crazy rhythm of fear, but he wasn't afraid. He was too far beyond. He's afraid of anticipation. The Harbingers are revealing themselves.

He stepped forward, measuring each movement, his power thrumming below but locked down tight. He didn't want to raise the alarm in the village yet. The figure watched him, eyes glowing with unnatural light, its form obscured by a swirling cloak of darkness. Chaos auras pressed outward from the figure, but Kael remained calm, his own energy countering the element that disrupted the air.

"You've come at last," Kael said, his voice steady, though his eyes narrowed in focus.

The figure's lips curled up into a cold and mocking smile. "Did you think we would simply let you exist here in peace forever, oh Infinite Ascendant? You must know that harmony is a fragile thing. It cannot last."

Kael's eyes had hardened. "You underestimate the strength of this village. It's not as fragile as you think."

The warrior inclined his head. Obsidian eyes moved with amusement. "Perhaps. But it is not a question of the power of the village. It is a question of the very essence of reality itself. Even you, with all your power, cannot afford to deny the principle of dissonance."

Kael stepped forward, his bearing exponentially more threatening. The Harbinger's aura wavered, but they did not back down.

"You appear remarkably sure of yourself for one who has never witnessed a strong overlord," Kael said, his voice silky smooth but with an edge that made me think he had played far too many games.

For a moment, the smile with a smirk of the Harbinger wavered. Then it was back again, seeming all the stronger for that flicker of the glance. "You don't know, do you? We don't need to fight you. You are not our target. The village is."

With a swift motion, the Harbinger extended his arm. The air around him shimmered, and then a wave of dark energy shot out into the distance-his true target-not Kael but the village directly behind him.

Kael didn't blink. He raised his hand, and a wave of energy disappeared into nothingness just like it had never been there. The sneer from the Harbinger's face melted away and was replaced by one of amazement. Kael's power was absolute and their attempt to disrupt the village had been effortlessly neutralized.

"You will not touch this place," Kael said low and firm,.

The Harbinger paused as if weighing that, then laughed, a sound more unnerving than joyful. "You are powerful, Infinite Ascendant, but strength is part of unification; you can't be in all places at the same time. We are legion. You cannot stop all of us.".

And so the figure dissolved into shadows, disappeared into the forest from which they had emerged. Kael stood there for a moment, the wheel spinning within his head. The Harbingers didn't cave in. They changed their tactic instead. Since he was too powerful to go up against head-on, then they would stab him in the dark, causing as much damage as they can without actually engaging him. Kael clenched his fists. He cannot let them win.

It seemed like something at peace, as if it didn't know what hazard waited at its gates. But Kael knew better. Throughout the day he had experienced several disturbances-fleeting moments in which the very fabric of reality trembled unnaturally. The Harbingers were probing at him, testing his limits, probing for weaknesses.

Kael returned to the cottage to find Erasa waiting with a smile and a steaming cup of tea.

She turned to him, a tiny smile playing on her lips, but with something behind it too. "Everything all right?" she asked lightly.

"For now," he said, taking the cup from her and putting it aside. He paused before speaking again. "Erasa, do you ever." He thought about it for a minute before finally making himself say it. "Feel like something is watching us?"

She looked as if she had been stunned by the question. "Watching us?" she echoed. "Watching the village?

Kael nodded, taking a sip of the tea to give himself some thinking time. He hadn't told her about the Harbingers or the danger they posed. He hadn't wanted to worry her or the villagers. Yet now he wondered if that had been the wrong thing to do. Maybe they deserved to know, to prepare for what might come.

"Sometimes," said Erasa thoughtfully. "There's been this weird feeling lately, like something is not right. But I do not know what it is. Do you think something's going on?"

Kael put down the cup as he met her eyes. "There is this group—that bad group. They feed on chaos, on shattering harmony in a peaceful place like this one. They've been watching the village, trying to disrupt it."

Do you think they'll attack?

"They already have. At least, that is what I plan to do," Kael said grimly but resolutely, "But for now, they're just probing. They will again, though. You should prepare yourself."

Erasa furrows her brow, concern etching her eyebrows. "What can we do? What do we have to protect ourselves?

You don't need to do anything," Kael said softly, his hand settling on her shoulder. "I'll watch over the village. I just need you to keep your wits about you. If you see something or hear something odd, something that just doesn't feel right, let me know right away."

She nodded firmly. "I'll keep my eyes open.".

Sunset claimed the day for the dark, and Kael stood at the edge of the village one last time, his senses straining further into the sight world. He felt the Harbingers lurking in the darkness, out of reach, like predators waiting to snatch their prey from a well-guarded lair. They were not strong enough to stand against him straight on, but his goose bumps rose with tenacity. They'd stop at nothing until they found some way to seed chaos within the village.

Kael closed his eyes, and the awareness opened up. All of that, the village had to live with: thoughts, fears, hopes, an undertow that drowned him. He could feel the gentle pulse of the earth beneath, almost non-existent. And above that, he could feel the Harbingers—abominations in the otherwise peaceful flow of reality.

They were patient. But it was Kael who was the most patient of them all. He could stand watch over that village as long as it took for them to come there and try to disrupt the peace. He would let them fail. Because in this place, the village had come to mean much, much more than mere residence-it had become a symbol he was fighting to protect. Harmony. Balance.

And if they really wanted to prove that, then they had to take him down.

The hours ticked by and the village returned to its tranquility. But Kael didn't. The Harbingers were clever but he was almighty. And no matter how many times they tried, they would not win. Not when he stood between them and the peace they sought to destroy.

A soft rustle of leaves whispers a soft trade, low and malignant but far away. The Harbingers will not be so lucky again.

And Kael will not wait.