Tbou: Hopebreaker

Prologue

The wind blew drifts as a boy slept soundly. His brown hair was wild and messy, matching his young, elegant face. His skin was smooth, and his face was untouched by injury, blessed by the grace of youth. His grey cotton shirt clutched to his chest, even more so to his arms, allowing people to see how refined his arms and torsos were. Black pants flapped in the wind, torn up from time and usage as a single bandage wrap on his right shin.

The wind picked up as pieces of his hair started to sway into his eye sockets, making him stir in his sleep. The wind blew louder and louder past his ears till his eyes shot open.

There, he sees himself floating in the air, surrounded by nothing but grey clouds that appear to be daylight, but flu clouds cover most of everything. He squirms, trying to see where to grab onto, and he starts to panic; there is nothing but clouds as far as he can see.

He finds himself suspended mid-air, enveloped by an expanse of grey clouds. It might have been daylight, yet the overabundance of thick, swirling mists obscured everything in sight.

He writhes, desperate to find something to anchor himself to, but to no avail. The endless sea of clouds stretches into infinity, leaving him adrift and isolated. He starts to panic as his feeble attempts to search for a semblance of solidity are not one existence.

With no reason, he is shot up straight, his body spinning wildly without restraint. His heart pounds in his chest, and breathing becomes difficult for him as he screams, but no noise comes. His arms and legs flailed around as he lost his sense of direction with each spin. His shirt thrashed wildly against the wind as his once messy hair became even more messier.

Nausea slowly crept up on him, and his stomach wanted to hurl up what it could as he started to flip upside down. He saw no ground beneath him—just him and the open sky.

He closes his eyes tight, begging for it all to stop, as fear crept into the back of his mind. But miraculously, his body straightens up, granting him comfort as he flies through the endless sky.

He covered his face as the moisture in the clouds started to brush against his body. He felt his clothes slowly get dampened each time he traveled through each cloud. The wind didn't help as it continued to roar.

Light began to infiltrate his closed eyelids, growing progressively brighter, insistently. A warmth, both gentle and pervasive, enveloped his consciousness, igniting a spark of curiosity that compelled him to open his eyes. As he did, the warm aura that had cradled his mind seemed to extend outward, wrapping his body in its soothing embrace, encouraging him to embrace the unknown vision before him fully.

Before him was a sun, an extraordinary spectacle that lights up the heavens as he approaches. Despite being so near, he cannot look away. The celestial giant, an orb of living flames, is wreathed in red and orange, but the ethereal ribbons of green and blue captivate him most. These colors swirl around the sun in a celestial dance, reminiscent of the aurora borealis, something he only saw in picture books, casting an otherworldly glow that enthralls him with hues beyond the reach of words.

Yet, a wave of confusion washes over him. He is acutely aware that such brilliance should render him blind, and the warmth it emits is peculiar—a curious tingling sensation against his skin. But instead of alarm, a profound sense of calm envelops him. Fear and worry dissolve into the ether; his body seems to embrace the sensation, basking in a warmth that nourishes his soul, akin to the cozy embrace of a fireside on a chilly winter evening.