Chicago, 2008. Kai and Mark are now 10 years old.
Time passed like leaves carried by the wind. Kai and Mark were now ten years old.
Life at the Grayson house seemed ordinary at first glance. Debbie cooked while humming softly, Mark cracked jokes in the middle of his homework, and Nolan pretended to read the newspaper while watching the boys out of the corner of his eye. He had lowered his guard a bit with Kai, but still felt that something was off. Without realizing it, that calculating side of his had been dulled by life on Earth, trying to convince himself that Kai was just a strange kid.
For Kai, every small gesture was a piece in a much more complex game, since he knew Nolan's true intentions. He also still remembered that night, three years earlier, when he did nothing to save that child in the accident. The omission burned silently inside him — a conflict between not wanting to interfere… and not having done anything.
Since then, his secret training had become more serious.
Not to become a hero.
Not yet.
But to survive.
Saturday Morning — Garage
The garage had become his temple. Debbie believed he used the space to draw or fix things. Sometimes that was even true.
But when he was alone in there, Kai allowed himself something more.
That Saturday, he locked the door and moved boxes to cover the side window. He took a deep breath. Felt the Viltrumite blood pulsing. The energy of the void — that strange thing that had always been inside him — stirred along his spine.
He placed a small stone on the ground and focused.
— "Just a push…" — he murmured, concentrating.
Nothing happened. After minutes of trying, he gave up. But as he turned his back, he heard a soft ploc. The stone had been dented… not fallen, but as if the air around it had compressed.
Kai furrowed his brow. That wasn't physical force.
It was void.
But so subtle that it might not even have been real.
Or maybe… it was all he could manage for now.
He ran his fingers along his own arm. No white hairs. No collapse. None of the side effects of intense use.
It was a spark. Not yet a flame.
Sunday — Family Dinner
— "School's going to have a camping trip next month," said Mark between bites of mashed potatoes. "It's going to be awesome! We're going to Rock Cliff forest and sleep in tents! You're going too, right, Kai?"
Kai nodded, distracted. He was focused on Nolan. His father watched Mark with a slight smile. When his gaze fell on Kai, it hardened — just for a second. But for someone with the Six Eyes activated for just a few discreet seconds, that was more than enough.
Tension. Caution. Curiosity.
Nolan knew something was different.
And Kai knew that Nolan knew.
— "Rock Cliff, huh?" — Nolan finally said. "Stay alert. I've heard of landslides in that area."
— "It's safe, Dad," Mark replied. "The school's taking chaperones and everything."
The two weeks that followed the dinner passed like any other normal week in the Grayson household.
With one exception: Kai.
— "Mark, your backpack! Kai, cereal in your hair — again?!"
— "If you let them wake up on their own, Debbie, maybe this wouldn't happen."
— "Oh, sure, Nolan, I'll make a note of that amazing parenting advice."
The same daily ritual. Shouts, muffled laughter, rushing through the house. The clinking of spoons against bowls, the smell of coffee, the morning breeze coming through the window.
To Kai, it all sounded… distant. Almost like a rerun of an episode he'd watched a hundred times.
The familiar voices were like background music.
Nothing bothered him.
But also, nothing interested him.
Since the day he let that child die, Kai carried a coldness heavier than any disguise. It was hard to say whether he was punishing himself or simply accepting the truth that, even with power, sometimes… he was still useless.
"If I couldn't save someone even with all this power, why do I even exist here?"
It was a question that never left him.
But there was no answer.
Only silence — and boredom.
A boredom that ate away at him slowly.
And it was precisely that boredom that pushed him into training routines.
Not out of ambition. Not out of hope.
But just… to keep moving.
Standing still hurt more.
During school breaks, Kai would isolate himself in the library or the far end of the courtyard. When no one was watching, he activated the Six Eyes for three, sometimes four seconds.
With each activation, something changed.
The world slowed down.
Layers of reality peeled away like veils before his eyes. He saw the vibration of the air, the heat escaping people's skin, the structure behind objects. He watched his classmates like scattered pieces on a disassembled board.
In one of these tests, he noticed the biology teacher pretending to grade papers while actually looking at her phone under the desk. In the other classroom, two students exchanged answers using coded gestures that would go unnoticed by anyone — except him.
But none of it excited him.
It just kept him occupied.
He deactivated the eyes with a tired sigh.
— "That was… interesting," he thought, allowing himself a slight laugh.
Almost imperceptible. Almost out of place.
But it was genuine.
In the afternoon, on the days Mark went to hang out with Becky or watch TV with Nolan, Kai would slip away to the old park. A forgotten area in the neighborhood, with broken fences and rusted structures.
There, in the silence between dry trees and moss-covered rocks, he would run.
Not like an athlete.
Not like a warrior.
He ran like someone trying to escape his own mind.
And as the days went by, he ran faster.
Jumped farther.
Endured longer.
At first, his muscles complained. But in no time, fatigue became less frequent. Scratches healed quickly. His breathing stabilized.
Little by little, between one sprint and another, Kai began to test the limits of his body.
The instinct was there. Cold and precise, like a blade forgotten deep inside him.
He remembered the sensation he had as a baby, that afternoon when Debbie tried to pick him up from the crib and her hand simply… didn't reach.
As if something had bent the space between them.
Could that be some kind of Mugen, altered by the deities who sent him here? — he knew that now.
Or at least, something that mimicked that untouchable feeling of distance.
He couldn't reproduce the effect entirely, but from time to time, during his solitary training, he tried to feel that invisible fold. A tension in the air. A presence that pushed everything away from around him.
Nothing solid yet.
Only echoes.
But echoes with weight.
As for the Blue technique... it was like trying to push the world with a single finger.
On the quietest days, he would stand in front of a rock or a fallen tree and focus on the internal flow. The energy of the void was unstable — like an animal trapped in a cracked cage.
But there was something deeper.
Something physical.
Viltrumite.
When he tried to force the manipulation of the energy inside him — even without success — he could feel his body instinctively align.
The muscles adjusted.
The eyes focused more sharply.
It was as if his entire body responded, trying to compensate for the lack of technique with pure function.
It wasn't evolution.
It was survival.
And he was starting to understand that.
No rush.
No plans.
Until, one cloudy afternoon, something unexpected happened.
Kai was returning from the park, his clothes dirty with dry earth and leaves stuck to his sneakers. He cut through the side of the house, passing near the backyard. He didn't expect to see anyone there.
But Nolan was there.
Leaning against the porch railing, arms crossed, eyes fixed on the horizon.
Kai stopped for a second.
His father was watching him in silence.
It was Nolan who spoke first:
— "Do you do that often?"
Kai raised an eyebrow, confused.
— "Do what?"
— "Go out running. Training. You were coming from the park, weren't you?"
Kai hesitated. For a moment, he almost lied.
But it wasn't worth the effort.
— "Sometimes."
Nolan nodded slowly, like someone quietly noting something important.
— "First time I've seen you coming back like that."
He said it with a forced naturalness.
Like someone testing his own words.
Kai just shrugged.
— "Helps pass the time."
Nolan arched one corner of his mouth slightly.
An almost imperceptible gesture — skeptical, perhaps.
— "Keeping the body in motion is good. Especially… considering the genetics you and your brother inherited."
Kai remained silent.
Nolan let the phrase hang in the air before continuing, in a tone too casual to be sincere:
— "Sometimes, Viltrumites develop certain… predispositions. Nothing serious. But it happens."
The silence between them grew.
Kai looked at the ground, pretending to be uninterested, but he felt the weight of his father's gaze on him.
— "Just tired," he muttered, as if answering a question that hadn't been asked.
Nolan crossed his arms and took a deep breath, looking away for a second.
— "I won't tell your mother you've been sneaking out," he said, as if casually throwing the statement into the air, yet still closely watching the reaction. "But be careful where you go."
Kai looked up for a moment. There was no fear there, no surprise — just a vague curiosity.
— "...Thanks," he replied, hesitantly.
He didn't usually say thank you. And Nolan noticed.
Kai then looked away, as if pondering what it meant. Did his father know? Was he testing him? Or was he just... concerned?
Nolan relaxed his shoulders slightly, but his gaze remained firm.
— "Just... don't do anything you're not ready to understand."
Kai didn't answer. He just nodded, almost imperceptibly, and turned back toward the house.
But Nolan followed him with his eyes until he entered through the back door and disappeared inside.
He stayed there, still.
Thoughtful.
It wasn't the dirt on his clothes.
Nor the fact that Kai had gone out running in secret.
It was his posture.
The control.
The look.
Kai didn't seem like a kid testing boundaries.
He seemed like someone... waiting for something.
And that idea bothered Nolan more than he was willing to admit.
The week leading up to the camp...
On Wednesday morning, the Grayson house began to fill with the aroma of breakfast and the sound of Debbie's footsteps moving through the kitchen. The twins, still half-asleep, dragged themselves to the table, exchanging groans and yawns.
— "Did you sleep well?" Debbie asked, placing a plate of pancakes in front of the two.
— "Yeah... I think so," Mark answered, rubbing his eyes.
Kai only nodded with a soft murmur. He was still thinking about the secret training session from the night before. He was exhausted, but he would never admit it.
— "Oh, by the way," Debbie said casually as she poured syrup over the pancakes. — "Remember the school camp I mentioned last week?"
Mark looked up, excited.
— "The weekend one? Of course! It's gonna be awesome!"
Debbie smiled.
— "Well… I need you to bring the signed forms tomorrow. I already filled them out. Kai, you're going too, okay?"
Kai raised an eyebrow, confused.
— "Wait… did I say I was going?"
— "Well, you said 'sure' while I was showing you the flyer on Monday. I figured you had agreed."
Kai blinked slowly, trying to remember. On Monday… oh. He had said "sure" while watching TV, barely paying attention.
"Classic trap," he thought, sighing internally.
— "Sounds fun," Mark commented with a full mouth. — "There'll be a bonfire, a hike… maybe even a test of courage!"
— "I hope they test your limits with soap and water too," Debbie shot back with a firm motherly look. — "And don't get into trouble, okay?"
She stepped closer and placed her hands on both their shoulders.
— "Mark, try not to lose anything this year, please. And Kai…" — she looked at him with that subtle smile of someone who sees much more than they let on — "…take care of your brother, okay? You always know when he's about to do something dumb. And you're the responsible one in this duo."
— "I am responsible!" — protested Mark, feigning indignation.
— "Of course you are, sweetie," Debbie replied, kissing his forehead. "But Kai's the type who notices every little detail… and doesn't let his brother fall into the river. Unlike you last year."
— "That was a technical stumble!" Mark shot back.
Kai hid his smile behind his juice glass.
Deep down, he knew this was going to be a headache.
An entire weekend surrounded by noisy classmates, bored teachers, and infinite opportunities for something to go wrong.
But there was a part of him — a quiet and almost forgotten part — that didn't think it was all that bad.
"Maybe… it'll be interesting to observe."
The afternoon came quickly, and with it, the hustle in the school halls. The buzz about the camp began to spread among the students like a rising tide.
In science class, Becky nudged Kai with her elbow.
— "So, you're really going?"
— "Looks like it," he answered, keeping a neutral tone.
— "I heard they're grouping dorms by affinity… so maybe you, Mark, and Derick will be together."
— "That's affinity?" Kai asked, not hiding the irony.
She laughed.
— "He's not that bad. At least not with you."
— "Yet."
The teacher entered the room, cutting the conversation short. But even as the students turned their attention back to the lesson, the thought of the camp kept knocking quietly at Kai's mind.
That afternoon, the sky painted the backyard golden when the twins got home from school. Debbie hadn't returned from work yet, so Nolan — who was home earlier that day — was waiting, leaning against the backyard fence, holding a baseball bat.
— "Hey, want to play?" he asked with a smile.
Mark immediately dropped his backpack and ran toward his father, excited. Kai hesitated for a moment but followed behind with slow steps — more curious than excited.
— "Baseball, really?" Kai asked, raising an eyebrow.
— "It's an American tradition," Nolan said with a half-smile. "And a good excuse to move a little."
They spent the next few minutes hitting and throwing the ball. Mark was all enthusiasm, running and laughing. Kai kept his energy more restrained, but his reflexes and strength were clearly sharper than normal for his age.
It was in the middle of one of Mark's successful hits that Debbie arrived, pulling into the driveway.
— "Looks like someone's having fun," she said, stepping out with a smile.
Mark, breathless and happy, turned to his father:
— "Did you see that? I bet if I try again, I could beat you!"
Nolan crossed his arms, raising an eyebrow.
— "Really? How about this: if you can hit the next pitch and send the ball over the fence… I owe you a request."
Mark's eyes lit up.
— "Any request?"
— "Within reason, of course," Nolan replied, laughing.
— "Deal!" said Mark, overflowing with excitement. "If I make it, I want to go to the amusement park — the one with the giant Roller Coaster!"
Kai watched from afar, already anticipating that his father wouldn't make it easy.
Nolan threw the ball with precision, with more strength than a child could hit. Mark ran, twisted his body, but missed... the ball landed just inches away, rolling back onto the grass.
— "Not this time," Nolan said with a wink.
Mark sighed, visibly frustrated, looking down.
That's when Kai, without thinking, stepped forward, still holding the bat.
— "Can I try?"
Nolan raised an eyebrow, curious.
— "You gonna challenge me too?"
— "Just for fun," Kai said casually.
The ball came — Nolan threw it with the same strength as before.
Kai calculated every movement. The muscles — which had slowly grown stronger beyond what was normal for his age — moved in sync. He swung.
He just didn't expect that his strength wasn't the same as yesterday.
The ball flew in a high arc, very high, clearing the fence effortlessly — even surprising him.
Nolan stood still for a moment, eyes following the trajectory. Debbie, by the car, clapped enthusiastically.
— "Very nice!" said Nolan, half surprised, half amused. "So… what do you want?"
Kai hesitated. He only meant to cheer up his brother. But without thinking too much, he said:
— "I want to take Mark to the park."
Debbie chuckled and crossed her arms.
— "Now you've committed, huh? You'll have to take both, Nolan. Better start preparing!"
Kai blinked, realizing too late that the phrase had come out wrong. He meant for his father to take Mark. Now it sounded like he was included in the trip.
Mark was already jumping beside him, excited.
— "It's gonna be awesome! We're all going! Ferris wheel, roller coasters…!"
Kai forced a smile. Once again, he had gotten himself into a situation he wanted to avoid. But also… he couldn't bring himself to say no.
The afternoon went by without any further incidents, and by the end of the day, Debbie was waiting for them with dinner almost ready. While Mark ran upstairs to change clothes, Kai lingered a bit longer in the backyard. His gaze was fixed on the darkening sky, as if searching for something beyond the clouds.
That's when Nolan appeared on the back porch, with a calm expression — a bit too calm to be casual.
— "I was waiting for you," he said, his voice firm, but not accusatory.
Kai slowly turned his face. He was prepared for this kind of conversation, even without knowing exactly what tone it would take. His father's presence lately seemed too heavy to ignore.
— "Just thinking," Kai replied, evasively.
Nolan stepped down the last two steps of the porch and approached slowly, stopping just a few feet from him.
— "You've been... different."
Kai raised an eyebrow, trying to appear merely curious.
— "Different how?"
Nolan stared at him for a moment. Not with hostility, but with that meticulous intensity — like someone trying to fit together puzzle pieces that refused to align.
— "I'd say… more alert. More distant, sometimes. And other times, more present than anyone else."
Kai kept a neutral expression, but inside, his pulse quickened slightly.
This wasn't an ordinary conversation.
— "I guess I'm just growing up," he said with a slight shrug.
Nolan let out a faint smile. But it wasn't exactly amused.
— "Yeah. Maybe."
He looked out at the horizon, where the sky was starting to turn orange, and added:
— "It took me a while to figure out where to look for you. You're never in the same place for long... but always somewhere no one else is watching."
Kai said nothing. Silence hung between them for a few seconds.
— "And that day when you ran," Nolan continued, now more serious, though still without accusation in his tone, "you ran like someone who'd done it before. Like you knew exactly how far you could go."
Kai looked down, pretending to scratch his foot with the tip of the other.
That memory was clearer than he wanted. The secret training. The scare. The return home. And Nolan's gaze waiting for him.
— "Just wanted to get some fresh air," he said, not looking directly at his father.
— "Sure," Nolan replied.
The word lingered in the air longer than necessary.
Then he turned and walked back toward the porch.
— "The camp might be good for you. A bit of normalcy. Might even help me understand better who you're becoming."
Kai kept his eyes on the ground, even after Nolan disappeared from view.
"He knows something's off."
Up on the porch, Nolan watched through the window, arms crossed.
His thoughts echoed — calm, but precise.
"It's not just growth. There are patterns. Repeating behaviors… And that day he came back running… something felt off. As if the ground had trembled for an instant."
He knew it wouldn't help to push him. Not yet.
But it was clear: Kai wasn't like Mark.
"It's not a matter of power. It's the way he looks at the world. Like he's always one step ahead… or behind. Like he's always hiding who he really is."
Dinner went by without any apparent surprises. Debbie told a funny story about a client at the real estate agency, Mark burst into laughter, and Kai pretended to be entertained while twirling his fork in his hand.
But that night, while everyone slept, Nolan stayed awake longer than usual, sitting alone on the roof of the house. The early morning breeze was soft, and the clear sky made every star visible — every distant point of light.
His eyes were fixed on nowhere, and everywhere at the same time.
That scene in the backyard — the subtle movement, the controlled impulse, the strength at the moment of impact — played over and over in his mind. The bat wasn't heavy. The distance was considerable. And yet, Kai hadn't just hit the ball… he had controlled the hit.
"He didn't even seem surprised."
"Mark would've jumped, screamed, bragged for days. But Kai... just stood there."
Nolan closed his eyes for a moment.
— Could it be?
If Kai was already awakening Viltrumite powers... even if still developing, it would be far too early. Besides, he had a twin brother, with the same genetics. So Mark should also be awakening.
If that were the case... why hadn't Mark manifested anything yet?
And why would Kai hide it?
Or worse… what else could he be hiding?
It was at that moment that a cry for help cut through the stillness of the night, coming from somewhere to the east.
Nolan rose in a smooth motion and vanished into the sky like a shadow.
Minutes later, a van engulfed in flames on the side of the road had been extinguished, and two children were safe in the arms of firefighters who had just arrived.
No one saw exactly who had pulled them out.
He watched from above, in silence. Mission accomplished. Another night where tragedy was avoided.
But his mind wouldn't rest.
"It's too early. But… what if it isn't?"
"If it's true… then our blood is compatible with humans."
The Viltrumite mission demanded precision.
There could be no variables.
And Kai...
Kai was becoming one.
The following days dragged on with monotony. Mark was excited about the camp, and Nolan's tension seemed more evident. Kai knew that the approaching trip meant more surveillance. He just needed to keep staying hidden. Or at least, keep up the impression.
The fact that Nolan was beginning to suspect was inevitable.
And still, what did Kai even know about his own powers?
He only felt the energy pulsing inside him, stronger with each passing day.
Sometimes, he wondered if all of this wasn't just a game — a great lie he still hadn't unraveled.
Then came the morning Mark had been so eagerly waiting for...
The sky was still wrapped in pale shades of blue when Debbie rushed through the garage, adjusting her sunglasses on her face and her purse slipping from her shoulder. The camp bus was already honking on the street, and the twins — backpacks ready, expressions split between boredom and excitement — waited near the curb along with other children.
— "Sorry, I'm late!" she said, breathless, approaching and adjusting the collar of Mark's jacket. "Do you have everything? Toothbrush, extra clothes, snacks?"
— "We've got it all, Mom," Mark replied, smiling, excited about the adventure.
Debbie then turned to Kai. He kept his hands in his jacket pockets, neutral expression, but eyes alert to everything. She approached him more gently, as if she knew that the boy, though quiet, absorbed every gesture.
— "And you, Mister Responsible..." she said with a playful smile, lightly tousling Kai's hair. "Take care of your brother, okay? I know you're always watching."
Kai didn't answer right away. He just looked away for a second, as if the words had touched a part of him he preferred to keep asleep. But then he nodded, almost imperceptibly.
— "Okay. I'll take care of him."
Mark rolled his eyes.
— "Mom, he doesn't even want to go!" he complained, laughing. "If you let him, he'd become a professional bodyguard."
— "That's why you're lucky to have a twin brother, young man," she said, cupping Mark's face in her hands and planting a loud kiss on his forehead.
The driver honked again. The other children were beginning to board.
— "Behave yourselves. No getting into trouble. And call me if anything happens. I love you."
— "We love you too, Mom!" Mark shouted as he climbed onto the bus.
Kai was the last to get in. Before crossing the door, he looked one last time at Debbie, who waved with that look only mothers knew how to give. A wave full of trust — but also of care. A look that said: I trust you. Even if you don't trust yourself yet.
And so the journey began…
The old school bus rattled at every turn of the winding road, as the trees grew denser and the urban landscape gave way to a green and mountainous setting. The engine groaned in a tired rhythm, and the seats, covered in faded blue fabric, creaked with each jolt.
In the back, Mark, as always, led a small noisy crowd.
— "Okay, okay, listen to this!" he said, kneeling on the seat to face his classmates. "What's the name of the superhero who never takes a vacation?"
— "Here we go again…" Becky muttered, smiling.
— "Tired-Man!" Mark announced with his arms raised, receiving a mix of laughs and boos.
— "That was awful!" Derick said through laughter, tossing a peanut at Mark.
Kai, sitting by one of the windows, watched the world pass by with a neutral expression, but his ears were tuned to everything. Even without turning his head, he kept track of his friends' movements.
July, who was in the seat ahead, turned around and leaned her arms on the backrest.
— "Hey, Kai, self-imposed punishment again?" she teased with a little smirk.
He replied only with a side glance and a slight raise of his eyebrow, as if to say: Not worth the energy for that conversation. But July recognized that look and giggled quietly.
— "Leave him be, he's just charging up to crush us all on the trails," Becky commented. "I bet he's already memorized the camp map."
— "Or he's secretly planning to take over the world," Derick added. "Step by step. First the camp, then the city…"
Mark leaned toward his brother, speaking more softly:
— "Are you really going to stay like this the whole way? Doesn't even seem like there'll be a bonfire tonight. Maybe even marshmallows…"
Kai let out a quiet huff, trying to look bored — but deep down, he appreciated the moment. It wasn't often that he was surrounded by carefree voices, natural laughter... and safety. Even if only for a little while.
The driver yelled something about buckling up before the final descent, and the bus began to groan more intensely, as if bracing itself for the steep mountain terrain ahead.
Outside, the forest thickened. Tall trunks, branches interwoven like they were guarding an ancient secret. The sky began to cloud over with grayish tones, and a cold breeze brushed the windows, announcing the unstable weather awaiting them at camp.
Becky pulled a handful of candies from a small bag and handed them out naturally. When she held one out to Kai, he hesitated for a moment — then took it, silently.
— "Friendship protocol confirmed," she said with a smirk.
Kai looked back out the window, but this time with a faint, involuntary smile on his lips.
Two hours into the trip, the bus pulled into a small clearing of packed dirt, surrounded by towering trees that cast long shadows under the gray light of the sky. An aged sign, with chipped letters, read:
"Camp Trailwind - Rock Cliff."
— "Everyone off the bus slowly and grab your backpack!" shouted the teacher in charge, a short woman with her hair tied up in a bun, visibly already regretting having volunteered for this.
— "Backpack! Backpack! Backpa— wait, is this mine?" Mark fumbled with the straps while Becky tried to help and Derick pretended to film everything with his phone turned off.
Kai got off right after, unhurried. The air there felt different — purer, denser, full of life. The tall trees seemed to observe them in silence, like ancient sentinels. He took a deep breath, letting the air fill his lungs. There was something unsettling about that place… or maybe it was just his Viltrumite instinct sensing subtle changes in the environment.
— "Blue tent with me!" one of the camp counselors shouted, pointing to the sides where colored canvas tents were already set up. "Blue with blue, green with green — mixed groups only if you're siblings!"
— "That means Kai and I are sharing. Again," Mark commented with a grin. "I don't mind, but he sleeps like a mummy."
— "And you grumble like you're fighting aliens," Kai replied naturally, drawing laughter from the group.
Derick and Mark ran toward the adjacent blue tent, while Becky and July settled farther ahead. The mood among them was light. Even if each one carried their own fears, worries, and secrets — there, in that moment, life felt simpler.
Shortly after setting up, the counselors gathered the groups in the main clearing for a series of ice-breaking activities. The games were lighthearted, designed to break the ice: sack races, funny rounds of "never have I ever," guessing games in pairs, and even a symbolic hunt for "treasures" hidden beneath leaves.
— "This team is cheating!" Becky yelled, running with a colored ribbon in her hand while July laughed behind her.
— "I'd rather play a nice game of chess..." Derick muttered, subtly distancing himself from the more energetic boys.
Kai watched everything from a slight distance. He participated only as much as necessary, never drawing attention — but staying alert. Every expression, every push disguised as a joke. Kids were cruel without realizing it.
By late afternoon, everyone headed to the dining hall — a wooden pavilion with long tables, the smell of soup and baked bread in the air. The food was simple but served generously.
Mark, Kai, Derick, Becky, and July managed to grab a corner table where they could all sit together. Mark was telling a story about the time he tried to set up a tent by himself and almost slept inside the sleeping bag rolled up like a burrito.
— "And when I tried to get out, I rolled downhill!" Mark laughed so hard he could barely eat.
Derick seemed quieter now.
And Kai noticed.
— "Hey… you okay?" Mark asked, concerned.
Before he could answer, a group of boys from another school walked past their table. One of them, a skinny blonde, shot a look directly at Derick.
— "Well, well, the silent cameraman. Still pretending you've got friends?"
The tone was mocking — but with a hint of malice.
The others laughed.
Kai felt his muscles tense.
His eyes nearly flared — a spark of the void trying to rise.
But he didn't move.
He pretended he hadn't heard.
Pretended nothing had happened.
Because it was still too soon.
Derick lowered his eyes and kept stirring his food, forcing a smile.
— "It's okay, man," he murmured. "They're just... like that."
Kai finished his soup in silence.
Later that evening, with the sky tinged orange and stars peeking through thin clouds, the students returned to their tents after a quick guessing game around the campfire. Laughter echoed, muffled by the forest's cool breeze.
Mark lay down first, facing the roof of the blue tent. Kai remained seated for a while, looking outside.
— "Did you see what they did to Derick?" Mark asked, breaking the silence.
— "I saw." Kai replied.
— "Didn't you think… it was wrong?"
Kai didn't answer immediately.
— "I wanted to punch them in the face," Mark continued.
Kai took a deep breath, avoiding eye contact.
— "And what if helping means exposing yourself?"
— "Then it's even more worth it," Mark said simply. "Because it shows we really care."
Kai didn't respond. He simply lay down, facing the other way.
But his eyes remained open.
Inside him, a crack began to form.
Not because of the bullying.
But because of the choice to do nothing.
Silence, with the occasional sound of cicadas and leaves swaying in the wind. Most tents were already dark, save for the occasional flicker of a flashlight being hastily turned off by the last kids still awake.
Kai couldn't sleep.
He quietly stepped out of the tent, pulling a thin jacket over his pajamas. He sat on a rock near the grassy field, where a patch of sky was visible through the tree canopy. The stars were out, even with the faint mountain mist. There was something comforting in that starry void — vast, indifferent, eternal.
Soon after, he heard slow footsteps approaching.
— "Couldn't sleep," Mark said, sitting beside him and hugging his knees. "Too much noise in my head."
Kai smirked slightly, eyes still on the sky.
— "I thought you passed out after the soup and memory game."
— "Almost. But... I don't know, when I laid down, sleep didn't come..."
Kai didn't reply. He just kept watching.
— "You know…" Mark continued, looking up too. "I like it when you come with me to these things."
Kai turned his face slightly.
— "Why?"
Mark shrugged, thoughtful.
— "I feel stronger. Even if you don't do anything."
Silence settled between them like a heavy blanket.
Kai felt something inside him shift. A piece moving — subtle, but definitive.
He didn't do anything. Or when he did, it was in secret. And still, that was enough for someone.
And because of that… the choice to do nothing hurt more.
Mark went on:
— "Like… when you're around, I… feel like I can take on anything."
Kai wanted to reply. Say something.
But nothing seemed right.
He just looked at his brother for a long moment, seeing not only the boy he had silently sworn to protect…
But a child who truly trusted him.
Who felt stronger simply by having him nearby.
And that, of all things, made him reflect even more.
— "Wanna go back to the tent?" Mark asked, standing up.
Kai nodded slowly.
But before standing, he looked up at the sky once more, his eyes heavy with thought.
Maybe… just maybe… he was beginning to understand that simply being was already a choice.
And that choosing silence… was also a weight someone would have to carry.
The next morning...
Morning mist rose lazily between the tall tree trunks. It was the second day of camp, and the scent of damp pine, wet soil, and burnt cereal filled the air. The first rays of sunlight danced across the leaves, and the field where they had slept now looked like a stage waiting for the next act.
Kai opened his eyes slowly, already awake long before he pretended to be. His arm folded beneath his head, the blanket pulled up to his waist. He could feel Mark stirring on the other side of the tent — the familiar sound of his brother's breathing was a silent constant, a reminder that despite everything, he was still there. Still just a child.
— "Kai..." Mark whispered, his voice sluggish with sleep. "Are we really going on this hike?"
— "It's gonna be fun," Kai replied simply, like someone trying to convince himself.
Outside, the others were already stirring. Becky and July's tent was open, and the two were finishing brushing their teeth using a little plastic cup. Derick appeared in a gray hoodie, struggling with his jacket zipper while balancing a slice of toast with jam in his mouth.
— "I heard there's a secret waterfall at the end of the trail!" Becky said excitedly. "And you can see the whole city from the top of a rock called Echo Rock."
— "That's just camp talk to make it sound cooler," Derick replied, though his eyes said he wanted to believe.
— "Or maybe you just don't have any imagination," July shot back, bumping his shoulder.
Soon the group gathered with the morning counselor, Miss Clarice — a tall woman with a military posture, dark sunglasses, and a clipboard that seemed almost magical from how often she checked it.
— "Today's hike is just over three kilometers, so go at your own pace. No running, no pushing, and don't leave the group. Water is mandatory. Backpacks on. And, please, for the sake of my sanity, don't start singing '99 bottles of juice on the wall.'"
— "Ninety-nine bottles of juice on the wall…" Mark began, and earned an elbow from Kai to the ribs.
— "Just a little?" Mark asked, laughing.
The hike began.
A group of about twenty kids wound their way through the trees like a colorful, noisy centipede. Laughter, jokes, synchronized steps, and dramatic pauses to remove leaves from hair filled the trail.
Kai walked in the middle of the group, eyes attentive to everything, though never seeming overly alert. He listened, observed, memorized — not just the path, but his classmates' behavior, how the sounds shifted as they climbed or descended, how the branches moved with the wind.
It was a quiet form of control. An old habit, even in youth.
— "Becky's way too fast," Derick complained, out of breath behind him. "She should be banned from having that much energy."
— "Maybe you should stop carrying so much junk in your backpack," Kai suggested, half serious, half teasing.
— "This is survival gear! You never know when we'll need duct tape, a lighter, and a bag of marshmallows."
— "Sounds like a crazy guy's kit to roast marshmallows with a lighter," July chimed in, bursting into laughter.
— "A well-prepared crazy guy, that's what — and you'll want my lighter-toasted marshmallows."
The climb was long, but manageable. The trail narrowed in places, with small improvised wooden bridges and dirt-carved steps, opening occasionally into clearings where the sun painted the ground with golden patterns.
Until, at a steeper curve, a small group of kids up ahead stopped to rest.
And that's when it happened.
— "Move it, string bean!" shouted one of the older boys, laughing.
Derick stumbled hard, nearly tumbling down the slope, and was only saved because Becky grabbed his backpack. The counselor was far off, chatting with an older group.
Kai saw it all.
Frozen, distant, his eyes fixed on the scene a second longer than necessary.
He didn't intervene, but in that moment, the event snapped him back to reality...
The bully walked off, satisfied, and Derick lowered his head, red with embarrassment. Becky shot a venomous glare at the aggressor, then turned back to her friend, carefully helping fix his backpack.
— "You okay?" she asked gently.
— "Yeah. I just wish…" he started, but didn't finish.
Kai closed his eyes for a second, feeling the same weight from before. The same one stirred by Mark's words the night before.
Was his presence enough?
Or was his silence an omission that hurt more?
A decision was made in him right then.
He wouldn't let that happen again.
The group moved on, and around them, the natural world transformed.
They didn't know it, but not far from there, Nolan Grayson was watching them. Hidden among the clouds, suspended in the skies like a silent shadow, the Viltrumite hovered above a nearby clearing.
He had just completed a minor mission — rescuing a truck that had overturned on a nearby road — and took the opportunity to spy on his sons. Not out of affection. But out of... necessity.
There, among the trees, there was more truth than in any dinner conversation.
If Kai was truly different — more than he appeared to be... that would be the place where it would reveal itself.
And then it happened.
The trail narrowed into a stretch that had been worn away by a landslide — unreported and unexpected, even by the counselor leading them. Then, a portion of the slope gave way under the accumulated weight. Becky slipped first, pulling Derick and Mark, who tried to catch her. July was dragged in as she tried to help, and Kai — whether by impulse or by choice — jumped right after, instinctively activating the Six Eyes.
— "Careful!" the counselor yelled, but it was too late.
The ground smelled of moisture and roots, and the fall was short but intense. They tumbled down a tunnel of mud and leaves until the earth beneath them gave way — revealing the hidden mouth of an ancient cave, concealed for centuries.
Kai twisted in midair at the last second, grabbing Mark and Becky with one hand and pulling them in with superhuman precision. With the other hand, he grabbed July, using the minimal force possible not to raise suspicion.
Nolan, in the skies, didn't help.
He simply waited.
He wanted to see. To test.
And when he saw Kai acting with calm and instinct... he knew.
That was the proof.
That boy was more than he pretended to be.
But Nolan wanted more. He wanted certainty.
The cave they had fallen into was vast, but a fissure in the ceiling — caused by the landslide — ran through it. The sound of water dripping onto rocks created a constant echo, as if the place was breathing — damp, cold, and pulsing. The light filtering through the crack above was already faint and would soon be swallowed by the night falling outside.
— "Is everyone okay?" Mark asked, coughing up dust. His clothes were covered in mud, hair stuck to his forehead.
— "I... I think I twisted my ankle," July murmured, sitting and rubbing her leg, eyes brimming with tears.
— "Derick, Becky?" Kai looked around with calm eyes — though the Six Eyes were still active, hidden behind his relaxed expression. He deactivated them, the blue glow vanishing, but the spatial awareness remained vivid in his mind.
— "I'm good!" Derick replied, standing up and wiping his dirty face with his sleeve.
— "Me too... thanks to you," Becky said, looking at Kai with an expression somewhere between awe and suspicion. "That midair grab... was that you?"
Kai forced a slightly embarrassed smile, looking away.
— "Just luck."
But it wasn't.
From above, hidden among thick trees and the shadows offered by twilight, Nolan Grayson watched.
When he saw the twins separate from the group, the way Kai reacted — too fast, too precise — something inside Nolan lit up. A kind of instinctive alert, a natural suspicion. An untrained Viltrumite, without powers, shouldn't react like that. That wasn't luck. It was calculation. Technique. It was... control.
He couldn't ignore it anymore.
"I want to see it with my own eyes," he had told himself.
That's when he decided to test him.
The cave's structure was unstable — he had already noticed that while flying over. The trees' roots grew over loose stones, and there was a deeper section, right beneath where the kids were now gathered.
With pinpoint accuracy, Nolan channeled a small amount of strength into the base of a thick tree. He struck the ground with an open palm, sending a shockwave through the earth that subtly cracked the underground formation.
It was enough to loosen some stones — nothing more.
Just enough to see if Kai would react again.
But he hadn't accounted for the water.
A spring, under pressure from the earlier movement, broke free with the rocks. A stream of accumulated water burst through hidden cracks, soaking a much larger portion of the cave floor. The combination caused a far more severe partial collapse.
CRRRRRRAAAAAAASH!
The ceiling above them gave way.
— "RUN!" Derick screamed.
— "NO!" Kai shouted, arms extended in an automatic gesture.
Stones began to fall like projectiles.
Kai had already activated the Six Eyes seconds before, when he sensed the subterranean vibration — and in that instant, he saw everything...
— he saw Nolan.
It wasn't a guess. It wasn't a theory.
He saw.
The figure hidden among the trees.
The precise movement of the hand.
The subtle shockwave.
And then, the look... that cold, tactical stare — as icy as a tombstone.
That's when something inside Kai shook.
— "You... it was you." he thought — and for the first time since he was reborn into that world, he felt true rage.
Right after deciding he wouldn't stay still anymore.
But the falling rocks didn't wait for feelings.
It was action or death.
In that moment, as everything around collapsed into a single point, Kai dove forward — his eyes lighting up in blue, more intensely than ever before. He felt something beyond the perception of the Six Eyes — it was the Void.
As if a crack had opened in his chest.
As if the world had taken a breath… and stopped.
The void's energy coiled within him as if finally recognizing its master. Silent. Infinite. Hungry. Blue.
Kai moved his arm to the side with a precise twist of his wrist.
A boulder weighing hundreds of kilos was pulled sideways, as if sucked by an invisible force. Another was yanked upward in an unnatural arc, clearing space. A third… shattered before hitting the ground.
The Blue Technique.
But it wasn't just power.
It was surgical precision.
It was art.
A perfect use. Instinctive. Intuitive.
He caught July in his arms, stretched to pull Becky back, and dragged Derick to the side with a burst of compressed blue energy on the ground, creating a small wall of displacement.
Only Mark remained.
A final stone — larger than all the others — was falling straight toward his brother. A fraction of a second, and it would be over.
Kai didn't hesitate.
He kicked Mark aside — with moderate, controlled force — and took his place.
The impact landed with a dry crash.
The ground shook.
A scream echoed in the darkness.
— "KAI!!" Mark ran back, desperate.
But Kai was there, on his knees, panting, his right arm hanging at an impossible angle. The bone clearly broken.
He was bloodied, but alive.
— "H-How…?" — Becky stammered, trying to understand. July was crying. Derick looked at everyone, unsure of what to do.
Kai simply lowered his head.
He felt pain — but more than that, he felt rage.
Contained, bitter, deep rage — and as silent as the Void he had just released.
"You tried to kill us."
From the top of the hill, Nolan observed with narrowed eyes. The confusion was clear. Kai's instinctive power amidst the chaos was precise — and far enough away that Nolan couldn't fully grasp it.
— "He... didn't use anything? No flight, no super strength… was it just luck?"
The Viltrumite clenched his fists.
— "They... they're alive. But… he didn't react."
He tried to understand — confused enough not to notice Kai had broken his arm at that very moment.
Tried to rationalize it.
Tried, with all his military pride, to tell himself that it was all… coincidence.
That the collapse wasn't caused by him.
That their survival was just luck.
But deep down, something twisted inside him.
A new weight. A strange feeling, like a hand squeezing the inside of his chest.
Guilt.
— "Maybe… I was wrong," he whispered, more to the wind than to himself.
And there, in the silence that followed the cave's collapse, Nolan Grayson gave up his suspicion.
Not for lack of evidence.
But out of fear… of being too wrong.
And Kai, lying among the friends he had just saved, with his arm broken and his breath labored, understood something fundamental:
Nolan is not a hero.
But what irritated him most… was realizing that his father hadn't hesitated to put them all — and Mark — in danger.
The sound of the falling rocks still echoed off the cave walls, a distant memory of what had just occurred.
But now… only silence remained.
The air was dense, as if split in half by the explosion of energy Kai had released seconds earlier. A heavy silence, suffocating, full of dust and fear.
Kai was on his knees, his arm still dangling lifelessly at his side. The jacket sleeve covered the injury, but the pain was constant, throbbing, deep — almost as if the bone was trying to tear itself free.
But it wasn't just his arm.
He felt… everything.
The exhaustion was unlike anything he'd ever felt.
Not even in his secret midnight training, nor in the simulations with his Viltrumite body.
This… this came from somewhere else.
From the Void.
It was as if the energy he had released had drained him to the soul.
His body ached, his muscles trembled, and his mind wavered between clarity and haze.
He fought not to pass out right there in front of the others — he had to guide them. After all, they were just kids... and he was an adult in the body of one.
And then he felt it.
A thread.
Soft. Slipping down his forehead.
With effort, he brought his left hand — the one that still worked — to his head.
Touched his hair and thought: "Oh no, is it white again… like when I used too much Void before?"
Kai shut his eyes tight, cursing mentally. "Damn it. Not now…"
He knew he had pushed far past his limit.
Even with a Viltrumite body to sustain the energy, the fusion of the Six Eyes with the new technique he used to pull space — under the emotional stress of that moment — had triggered a partial awakening of the Void.
And that came with a price.
He fumbled for his jacket and slowly pulled the hood up, hiding his hair under the fabric with a discreet motion.
— "Kai?" — The voice came soft, trembling. Becky.
He took a deep breath. Smiled — or tried to.
— "I'm fine," he said, voice shaky, but firm enough to sound convincing.
July was still beside him and looked dazed. Derick helped Mark, who was limping from pain in his arm. A sprain — nothing serious, but enough to scare any kid their age.
Mark. With his absurdly large heart, now looked at him with a mixture of pain and gratitude in his eyes.
— "Dude… you saved me." — Mark tried to laugh, but it came out almost like a sob. "You… pulled everyone out."
— "Easy," Kai cut in quietly. "Don't talk too much. That arm's not right."
Mark blinked.
— "You saw?"
— "Saw the way you fell. Don't have to be a genius."
The Six Eyes had seen it all. Recorded it all in his mind.
— "What about yours?" — Mark nodded toward Kai's arm.
Kai lowered his eyes, gave a brief sigh.
— "It's nothing. Maybe a sprain."
— Hiding the visibly broken arm inside the jacket. "I'll make it until rescue gets here."
But deep down... he knew the damage was far worse.
If not for the faintly awakened Viltrumite healing factor — and the sheer willpower born from all the moments he had failed to act echoing in his mind just before the incident — he likely would've passed out from exhaustion.
The group settled into a dry corner of the cave, on damp leaves and smooth rocks.
Kai guided the decisions calmly, even as his consciousness flickered.
— "Stay near the wall. Less chance of more cave-ins…" he murmured. "Breathe slowly… Becky, take care of July… Derick, hold the flashlight."
— "But what about you?" — Becky asked, worried.
Kai hesitated. The world seemed to spin for a moment.
He forced a smile.
— "I'm just… resting."
The flashlight trembled in Derick's hands, but it was enough to illuminate their dirt-streaked, tear-streaked faces — and the feeling that something... greater had just happened there.
Mark approached in silence, leaning against his brother.
— "You make everything look easy, bro… you're not normal, are you?"
Kai almost laughed.
— "And you are?"
They were quiet for a while.
Then Mark spoke again:
— "Thanks."
Kai swallowed hard. Didn't reply.
He knew that if he opened his mouth now, he might say something he could never take back.
Something about who he was.
About what he had done.
About what he had seen.
About Nolan.
But not yet.
Not now.
There was still a wall between them and the world.
And he still needed more time.
More strength.
And now… more control.
Not long after...
Nolan, believing they hadn't been seriously hurt, chose not to go rescue them himself. Instead, he stepped away and made a call to the fire department, giving the exact location — speeding up the entire process.
The sound of helicopters came first, muffled by the stone walls and the buzzing still echoing in everyone's ears. Then came the voices — firm, urgent, adult. And finally, the light.
A stronger beam than the others projected through the upper opening of the cave, illuminating the five dirty, silent faces at the bottom of the abyss. One firefighter descended quickly with the help of ropes, while others prepared stretchers and rescue gear.
Mark was the first to be pulled up.
He was conscious, though visibly shaken. As he was lifted, he tried to look back, eyes searching for his brother.
— "He's still down there... watching over us," he murmured, almost inaudibly.
July came next — unconscious, but stable. Becky and Derick followed, one at a time, their expressions wavering between fear and a quiet admiration directed at Kai.
And Kai...
Kai remained still until the very last moment.
Still hooded, still gasping for air, still battling the body that threatened to shut down at any second. The white hairs, hidden beneath the jacket's fabric, felt as heavy as lead.
He said nothing.
Didn't respond to the rescuers' calls.
He just watched — his half-lidded, clouded eyes fixed on Mark being taken to safety.
"He's out of danger..." he thought.
And then, as if the invisible thread holding him up had finally snapped, his body gave out.
Kai fainted.
No drama, no sound, no resistance. He simply collapsed sideways, like a shadow losing its shape when the light shifts.
The firefighters rushed to him.
— "We've got another one!" one of the rescuers shouted. "Weak breathing! Unstable pulse! Likely severe exhaustion!"
As he was slowly lifted by the rope, his body hung limp, the hood still covering his head. One firefighter moved to remove it as a precaution, but another stopped him:
— "He's injured, leave it for now. We'll check at the hospital."
Up above, among curious onlookers, teachers, and police, Nolan Grayson watched in silence, standing behind a tree.
He had returned just minutes earlier, pretending he had rushed over after hearing about the accident. His expression was hard, restrained. His heart, racing. But his eyes... his eyes searched for only one thing: Kai.
When he saw his son being lifted unconscious, he noticed the way his body hung, the lack of any active strength. The heartbeat, the sweat, the state of collapse.
— "He... doesn't have powers," he murmured to himself. "He couldn't be faking this."
The guilt bit deep, viciously. For a moment, Nolan closed his eyes and swallowed hard.
"I almost... caused his death..."
But doubt still gnawed at him.
What if... what if it was just another way to deceive?
What if Kai had acted earlier and was just pretending now?
But it didn't make sense.
No human child could have done that.
No Viltrumite with active powers would collapse like that.
"If he really had power... that wouldn't have hurt him."
Nolan took a deep breath, eyes locked on Kai being placed onto a stretcher. The medics wrapped his left arm — completely dislocated — and checked for trauma signs.
Mark, on a stretcher beside him, clutched a blanket with his one good hand, eyes fixed on his brother.
— "He's amazing, right?" he said to a paramedic. "Even hurt, he didn't leave anyone behind."
The paramedic nodded, looking at the unconscious boy with respect.
And Nolan, standing at a distance, couldn't help it.
A thought pierced through his mind — cruel and sharp, like a splinter buried deep:
"I nearly caused his death… for nothing."
Nolan watched in silence.
His eyes followed the stretcher being carried away.
"This can't happen again."
No visible reaction.
But inside… something was grinding.