Chapter 1 Through the Rift

Kaelan Voss trudged through the wasteland, his boots kicking up thin clouds of dust with every heavy step. His daughter’s small hand fit neatly in his own, her tiny fingers wrapped around his, while behind him, his parents followed in silence. The wasteland stretched endlessly in every direction—a desolate, cracked earth with only the skeletal remains of long-abandoned structures breaking up the bleak horizon.

The wind was harsh here, relentless, howling like a beast starved for flesh. It whipped at their faces, but they pushed forward, their steps heavy with fatigue. Kaelan glanced down at his daughter, her grip on the small, tattered doll in her other hand unyielding, as though the fragile toy was her lifeline. He tightened his hold on her hand, trying to offer some semblance of comfort in a world that had long forgotten it.

His parents shuffled behind them, their shoulders sagging under the weight of years and the exhaustion of this endless journey. They had been walking for what felt like days, but in the wasteland, time had lost all meaning. It was just them now—Kaelan, his daughter, and his aging parents—moving through a world that offered nothing but endless decay.

A distant rumble broke the silence. Kaelan stopped, pulling his daughter close as he turned his head to the sky. The horizon rippled, and a cold shiver ran down his spine. He had heard stories of these rifts, but never imagined he would see one in person. A distortion in the air, like a tear in reality itself, began to open before them—a rift, swirling with otherworldly energy.

“Dad?” His daughter’s voice was soft, laced with fear. “What is that?”

“I don’t know,” Kaelan muttered, pulling her closer to his side.

The rift grew wider, faster than Kaelan could react, and in a blink, the world changed. The swirling energy expanded in a blinding flash, its pull sudden and violent. The ground beneath them cracked as the force of the rift yanked everything toward it like a hungry maw. Kaelan felt his daughter’s hand slip from his grip, and in that terrifying moment, he reached for her—desperate—but her small figure was already being pulled into the void.

“No!” he shouted, stumbling forward, but the pull was too strong. He watched helplessly as his parents, too, were lifted from the earth, their faces frozen in a mixture of confusion and terror. His mother’s outstretched hand reached toward him, but the light swallowed them whole, and they were gone.

The world blurred as Kaelan felt himself being dragged toward the rift, his body twisting and contorting as it was pulled into the swirling chaos. He fought, clawing at the ground, but the force was too much. The light enveloped him, and everything went black.

When Kaelan awoke, he was somewhere else. The rift spat him out violently, throwing him onto the hard ground. He coughed, rolling onto his back as the world spun around him, his vision still blurred from the blinding light. The air here was thick with the stench of ash, and as his senses slowly returned, he realized he was alone.

Gone were the familiar voices of his daughter and parents. His hands were empty, save for the rough dirt he clutched. He sat up, gasping for breath, and scanned the wasteland around him, but there was nothing—just the same desolation, stretching out forever. His heart hammered in his chest, the crushing weight of realization pressing down on him. They were gone. The rift had taken them.

Kaelan staggered to his feet, his legs shaky from the ordeal. His hands trembled as he wiped the dust from his worn clothes, now torn and frayed from whatever hell he had been through. His mind raced, replaying the moment his daughter’s hand slipped from his own, over and over again. How long had he been in that place? Hours? Days? There was no way to tell.

His reflection on the nearby shards of broken glass showed a man hardened by the passage of time, and the battle scars etched into his face told the story of the relentless search that had come after. The Kaelan who had entered the rift had been a desperate father. The Kaelan who emerged was something else entirely.

His armor was scarred and battle-worn, marked by the many creatures and foes he had faced during his relentless search for his family. Weeks—months, perhaps—had passed as he fought his way through rift after rift, battling unknown horrors, only to emerge on the other side of each empty-handed. But still, he kept going. Each fight, each scar, was another step closer to them. He had to believe that.

As Kaelan glanced down at his chest, something caught his eye. Tied to his armor, swaying gently in the cold wind, was the small, ragged doll. His daughter’s doll. The only thing that had survived the rift alongside him. It hung there like a reminder—of what had been lost, and what he was still fighting for.

He reached out, fingers brushing against the worn fabric, the memories of his daughter flooding back. Her laugh, her smile, her innocent wonder in a world that offered none. He could still see her clutching the doll as the rift tore them apart.

“I’ll find you,” he whispered, his voice rough from disuse.

Kaelan turned his eyes toward the horizon, where the faint shimmer of another rift flickered in the distance, beckoning him forward. The winds howled as he set his jaw and began to walk again, his every step a vow. He would tear through every dimension, every rift, until he found them. Until his family was whole again.

The wasteland stretched on, but Kaelan Voss was no longer just a man wandering aimlessly. He was a warrior now, forged by the rift’s cruel hand, and nothing would stand in his way.