Before he became Aries, before the world knew his name, Aelius was just a boy—one born into hardship, raised in fire, and destined for something greater.
But fate had never been kind to him.
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(1)The Son of Fire and Ash
The Family That Never Was
Aelius was born in the war-torn kingdom of Hesperia, a land where might ruled over mercy. It was a kingdom built on the blood of the weak and the victories of the strong.
His parents were no exceptions.
His father, Valerius, was a gladiator-turned-mercenary, feared for his strength and brutality. He was not a man of kindness or warmth, only respect for those who could fight.
His mother, Selenrie, had once been the daughter of a noble house—until she fell from grace, stripped of her title and forced into the slums. She was a woman of resilience, sharp wit, and quiet defiance.
Theirs was not a love story.
It was a story of survival.
Selenrie had been abandoned by her family. Valerius had been cast aside after breaking too many rules in the gladiator pits. They had found each other not through romance, but necessity.
And from that necessity, Aelius was born.
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A Child of Two Worlds
From the moment he could walk, Aelius was caught between two extremes.
His father believed in strength above all else.
"A weak man has no right to exist."
"Pain is a teacher. Learn from it, or die."
"Never rely on kindness. The world will not give it to you."
His mother, on the other hand, believed in wisdom and resilience.
"You don't have to be cruel to be strong."
"Power means nothing if you don't know how to use it."
"Survive, Aelius. But do it on your own terms."
These two conflicting beliefs shaped him.
His father taught him how to fight.
His mother taught him why to fight.
But neither of them could prepare him for what was coming.
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(2)The Fire That Burned Everything
By the time he was ten, Aelius could already hold his own in a street fight.
By twelve, he had survived his first mercenary raid, standing alongside his father.
By fourteen, he had lost everything.
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The Night His World Turned to Ash
The kingdom of Hesperia was always at war, but this time, the enemy was stronger.
An army from the east, ruthless and efficient, stormed the city, cutting through Hesperia's defenses like paper. The nobles fled first, abandoning the common people.
Aelius, barely a teenager, fought alongside his father. He held a sword that felt too heavy for his hands, swinging it with everything he had.
But it wasn't enough.
His father, Valerius, fell in battle, surrounded by enemies.
His mother, Selenrie, was executed in the streets for daring to defy the conquerors.
Aelius saw everything.
And something inside him broke.
Not in grief.
Not in fear.
But in rage.
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(3)The Boy Who Refused to Die
A normal boy would have run.
A smarter boy would have hid.
But Aelius wasn't normal. He wasn't smart. He was angry.
For three days, he fought through the ruined city, dodging soldiers, striking from the shadows. He had no food, no allies, no future.
But he kept moving.
Every time he fell, he got back up.
Every time he bled, he wiped the blood away.
And then, on the fourth day, when he was on the brink of collapse, a man in a black cloak found him.
"You should be dead."
Aelius spat blood and grinned.
"Then kill me. Otherwise, get out of my way."
The man chuckled.
"No, boy. You've already passed the test."
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(4)The Path to the Zodiac
That man was Lucian, a mysterious warrior who had seen something in Aelius—something beyond just stubbornness.
"You remind me of fire, boy. No matter how much the world tries to put you out, you just keep burning."
Lucian took him in, not as a savior, but as a mentor.
He didn't treat Aelius like a child.
He didn't treat him like a victim.
He treated him like a weapon that needed sharpening.
For the next three years, Aelius trained under Lucian's brutal guidance.
Every scar became a lesson.
Every loss became fuel for his fire.
By the time he was seventeen, he was no longer a boy.
He was a warrior.
And he was ready for his true test—the one that would decide if he was worthy of the power of Aries.
But that…
That was only the beginning.
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To Be Continued…