LEVEL EVERYTHING UP in my Eldritch Tribe

"Krisella…"

Lyerin muttered the name under his breath, almost as if testing the weight of it after all these years.

It felt strange to say it now, with the woman in question standing just a few yards away, unaware that he had spotted her.

The memories hit him in waves, unbidden, dragging him back to a time he had long buried in the recesses of his mind.

His heart thudded against his ribcage, the once cold and calculated Lyerin momentarily overtaken by emotions he thought had been extinguished.

It had been in the early days of the apocalypse, in his past life, that he first met Krisella.

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The world was already falling apart then, but amidst the chaos, their bond had formed.

She had been so full of life and energy, her laughter somehow capable of brightening the darkness that surrounded them.

Lyerin, who had never known what it felt like to be loved, had been drawn to her innocence and vitality.

He remembered the first time they had fought side by side, fending off a wave of twisted creatures that had emerged from the fissures in the earth.

Krisella had saved him that day. Her movements were swift and precise, her agility unmatched as she danced through the battlefield with effortless grace.

At first, Lyerin had been cautious around her.

His usual instincts, honed from years of solitude and betrayal, told him not to trust her. But she had been persistent, constantly breaking down the walls he had so carefully constructed.

She had a way of making him laugh, of getting him to talk about things he never thought he'd share with anyone.

They would sit under the stars, taking refuge in the brief moments of calm that came between the waves of monsters.

She would talk about her dreams, about the life she had before the apocalypse, and Lyerin would find himself opening up in ways that made him feel vulnerable.

He had told her things no one else knew—about his past, his struggles, and even his fears.

The two of them had become inseparable, always saving each other in the chaos of battle.

He had saved her from a horde of mutated creatures more than once, pulling her out of danger at the last moment. And she had saved him from the emptiness that had threatened to consume him.

For a while, Lyerin thought they could survive anything, as long as they were together.

He remembered the nights they spent huddled together in abandoned buildings, the heat of her body next to his providing comfort against the cold reality of their world.

It was in those moments that Lyerin had allowed himself to hope, to believe in something more than survival.

He had been innocent then, naïve even, when it came to love.

Krisella had taught him what it meant to care for someone, to trust someone with his heart.

It was so different from the sadistic thrill he got from hunting his enemies.

With her, there was no need to be on guard, no need to calculate every move.

For the first time in his life, he had felt at peace.

But one day, it all ended.

He had woken up in their makeshift shelter to find Krisella gone.

There was no note, no explanation, just an empty space where she had once slept.

Lyerin had waited for hours, days even, expecting her to return. But she never did.

He searched for her, scouring the wasteland, questioning anyone who might have seen her. But there was nothing.

She had disappeared from his life without a word, leaving him with nothing but the bitter taste of abandonment.

Why did she leave him?

Lyerin had asked himself that question a thousand times over.

Had he done something wrong?

Had he not been enough for her?

He couldn't understand it.

Everything had seemed perfect, so why had she left him behind?

The more he thought about it, the more the hurt festered into something darker, something that gnawed at him from the inside out.

Even after all these years, the memory of her leaving still haunted him.

It had shaped him, hardening the parts of him that Krisella had once softened.

He had become more ruthless, more detached, as if he had built new walls around his heart, taller and stronger than before.

The pain of her abandonment had been a lesson, a reminder that no one could be trusted.

Not truly.

And now, standing there, Lyerin felt a rush of realization wash over him.

He looked again at the woman standing near the edge of the group, her shoulders slumped, her hair dirty and tangled. But it was unmistakable.

It was Krisella. And next to her stood a man in a military uniform, his arm protectively around her shoulders, both of them looking weary and helpless.

Lyerin's lips twisted into a bitter smile.

So that was it.

That was why she had left him.

The memories came flooding back—one in particular.

He remembered seeing that same man before, back when he and Krisella had ventured to the second wall, a massive structure designed to protect a city from the monsters that roamed the world.

Lyerin had noticed the way Krisella had looked at that man, the way her eyes lingered on him, filled with something that Lyerin hadn't understood at the time.

He had brushed it off, thinking nothing of it. But now, it all made sense.

Krisella hadn't left because of something he had done. She had left because of him.

The man in the uniform.

The man she clearly had feelings for, even back then.

Lyerin's smile widened, the bitterness in his heart hardening into something colder, something more calculated.

He had an idea.

A malicious idea.

With confidence, he walked toward the group of refugees, his posture relaxed, his expression one of false friendliness.

He bowed his head slightly as he approached, a gesture of welcome.

"Welcome," he said, his voice calm and smooth, "to my tribe."

The people standing before him looked stunned. Whispers began to spread through the crowd, their eyes wide with confusion.

"His tribe?" one of them muttered. "What tribe?"

"Didn't he say it's his?" another questioned, disbelief clear in their voice.

A third person chimed in, "I've never heard of this place. What does he mean by his tribe?"

The murmurs continued, the crowd buzzing with uncertainty.

They looked at Lyerin with a mixture of suspicion and hope, unsure of what to make of him.

"Yes," Lyerin said, his smile never faltering. "My tribe. A sanctuary, of sorts, in this chaotic world. A place where you can be safe… if you follow the rules." He paused for dramatic effect, letting the weight of his words sink in.

"What rules?" someone from the crowd asked nervously.

Another voice piped up, "Are we really supposed to trust him? We don't know anything about this guy."

Lyerin let the murmurs continue for a moment longer before he raised his hand, signaling for silence.

The crowd fell quiet, all eyes on him. He could feel their fear, their desperation. It was palpable.

"You're all wondering what my rules are," Lyerin said, his voice low but carrying authority. "And whether or not you can trust me."

He let the silence hang in the air, watching as their expressions shifted between hope and uncertainty.

"Well," he said, a slow smile creeping across his face, "are you ready to hear them?"