Chapter One: The Morning Everything Changed
The first thing Kairo Vale noticed that morning was the silence.
It was too quiet.
Usually, the house was already awake before he was. There would be footsteps moving through the hallway, the clatter of dishes from the kitchen, and his mother's voice calling him to get ready for school.
But that morning, there was nothing.
Kairo opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling.
For a few seconds, he simply lay there, listening.
Nothing.
He reached for his phone.
6:17 a.m.
“I'm going to be late,” he muttered.
He pushed the blanket aside and sat up.
Then he heard it.
Knock.
Kairo froze.
A few seconds passed.
Knock.
He looked toward his bedroom door.
Then came the third knock.
Knock.
Three knocks.
Slow.
Precise.
Kairo climbed out of bed.
“Who is it?”
There was no answer.
He walked toward the door, but before he reached it, something on his desk caught his attention.
An envelope.
It hadn't been there the night before.
Kairo stopped.
The envelope was made from thick, cream-coloured paper. A golden line ran around its edges, and a dark-red wax seal held it closed.
Pressed into the wax was a symbol.
A crown.
But beneath the crown were three strange stars.
Kairo stared at it.
“How did this get here?”
He picked it up.
It was warm.
That was impossible.
His room was cold.
Kairo turned the envelope over.
His name was written across the front.
KAIRO VALE
The handwriting was elegant and unfamiliar.
He broke the seal.
Inside was a single sheet of paper.
There were only a few words.
He read them.
Then read them again.
YOU HAVE BEEN FOUND.
Kairo frowned.
“What does that even mean?”
He turned the paper around.
Nothing.
He looked at the envelope.
Nothing.
Then he noticed another sentence written underneath.
His smile disappeared.
THE LOST KINGDOM HAS AWAKENED.
Kairo's heart began beating faster.
“This isn't funny.”
A loud crash came from downstairs.
Kairo jumped.
“Mom?”
No answer.
He hurried toward his bedroom door.
Another crash.
Then a man's voice echoed through the house.
“Where is the boy?”
Kairo stopped breathing for a moment.
He had never heard that voice before.
He slowly stepped away from the door.
His phone suddenly vibrated.
An unknown number was calling.
Kairo stared at the screen.
He answered.
“Hello?”
For several seconds, there was only static.
Then a deep voice spoke.
“Kairo Vale.”
Kairo's eyes widened.
“Who is this?”
“You need to listen carefully.”
“Who are you?”
“Do not leave your room.”
Kairo looked toward the door.
“What is happening?”
The voice became quieter.
“They have found you.”
“Who?”
Before the stranger could answer, the lights went out.
Kairo stood completely still.
The room became dark.
Outside his window, the morning sky had turned an unnatural shade of black.
Then the voice on the phone whispered:
“Your kingdom is calling.”
The line went dead.
Kairo lowered the phone slowly.
A strange sound came from beneath his feet.
A deep vibration.
The floor trembled.
He looked down.
The silver crown symbol from the envelope was glowing on the palm of his right hand.
Kairo stared at it in disbelief.
Then his bedroom door opened.
A tall man stood on the other side.
He wore a long black coat decorated with silver symbols.
Behind him stood three guards.
The man looked directly at Kairo.
Then he lowered his head.
He bowed.
“Your Majesty.”
Kairo couldn't move.
The stranger raised his eyes.
“We have been searching for you for sixteen years.”
Kairo looked at the glowing mark on his hand.
Then at the mysterious man.
Then at the envelope.
Suddenly, the words on the paper made sense.
THE LOST KINGDOM HAS AWAKENED.
And somewhere far beneath the world he knew, ancient bells began to ring.
The kingdom had found its king.
And Kairo Vale had no idea that by midnight, his entire life would be changed forever.
