YiXing sighed and closed his book. It had been hours since he was immersed in dozens of books of all kinds on these famous Thaumaturges and Children of the Apocalypse. As he was fascinated by these supernatural beings - much more fascinated than frightened unlike the vast majority of people he knew - he had decided to do his thesis on these living legends, to make a synthesis of everything which was listed on these extraordinary beings. To do this, he spent all his time in libraries, rummaging through the archives, browsing all day long in dusty books as thick as he was, examining every piece in museums about the Children of the Apocalypse. He had seen stones pass by, supposedly created by a Master of super-strength and earth, he had seen relics from all the eras that belonged to these Masters, trinkets of all kinds to appease their anger or on the contrary to venerate them, what to hurt them, to capture them, and so on.

But it was enough for today. To tell the truth, it's been a long time since YiXing had taken a break. He was working on his thesis and hadn't taken a real break for months. He wanted to finish his job as soon as possible to graduate and finally be able to embark on his research career. Come on, a break! A few days away from it all will do him some good. Therefore, he put the book back in the archive room, then exited the library after greeting the owner, who knew him almost as well as his own mother and considered him as her son after seeing him every day for several hours and this for a good pair of years.

He put on his coat, put all his things in his bag and left the building. Outside, black clouds covered the city and the wind was blowing hard. It was going to rain. YiXing started to hurry, wanting to go back before the rain started to fall and soaked his documents. Sadly, as soon as he started walking faster, the first drops fell on his face. He started to trot to reach his house faster, like many other people on the street. As the downpour hit the city and YiXing ran as fast as he could, slaloming among the other people fleeing the rain, but he slowed down when he noticed blood on the ground. Well, he assumed it was blood because he did not have time to bend down to make sure it was really hemoglobin, the red spots being washed out by the pouring rain. He continued his way before coming across other red spots. So he made up his mind to follow them, not minding if he was soaked, he just hoped that his research would not be soaked; but maybe someone’s life depended on it!

YiXing continued to follow the path of blood before turning into an alley where he saw someone leaning against a wall, struggling not to fall. He approached slowly so as not to frighten this person. It was a young woman, her hand pressed against her arm to prevent blood from flowing from a gaping wound.

• Miss, is everything all right? he asked in a soft voice as he reached her.
• Help me! Have pity! I will pay you if necessary but hide me! Please! She exclaimed between two heartbreaking sobs. This young girl was very pretty, but the multiple cuts that dotted her face and her neck tarnished her beauty.
• Oh yes I will help you but no need for money don't worry! YiXing replied, shaking his head. I don't live very far, come with me, I'll take care of you. He took off his coat and wrapped the girl in it before taking her hand and driving her home.

He pointed her the couch and she sat down, still shaking. She looked terrorized. What could have happened to this young woman? Who could have hurt her and why? Especially also wildly! Her arm was gashed on its full length and a lot of blood leaked out. And for the multiple cuts she had on the visible skin of hers, YiXing assumed that there was some more everywhere on her body. One would have imagined that she had jumped through a window ... So many questions were jostling in the young man's head, but he did not want to rush the injured woman. While he was treating her, he put his thumb over one of the micro cuts on her collarbone and the wound disappeared as if by magic in a flash of green light. YiXing stared at the point where the wound had disappeared. Had he hallucinated? He couldn't think long about what happened, the girl fainting in his arms.

Having no other choice, he carried the girl to his car and headed for the hospital. YiXing did have some notions of medicine but did not know really how to care for someone who was losing a lot of blood and passed out from his injuries. He dropped the girl off at the hospital, where he explained that he did not know her but that he had tried to help her after finding her in the street completely panicked. Finally, he left her in the expert hands of the doctors and went home, the question of the wound disappearing by a miracle still in his mind.

He preferred to forget this question when he finally reached his apartment, telling himself that the stress of finding an injured person must have altered his perception and that he had just stupidly hallucinated. Exhausted from his somewhat more hectic day of research than usual, he ate quickly before reaching the dreamland. In the days that followed, he returned to his routine even though he was going to hear from the injured girl who was already much better. Her name was Sasha and she thanked him more times than YiXing could count. However, when he went to visit her as usual several days after finding her, he was surprised to find the room empty. Sasha had disappeared, leaving no trace of her passage. YiXing therefore went back to his research, although a little disappointed not to have been able to say goodbye to Sasha.

When he got to the library, he was surprised a second time this day. It was closed. During the week it was not normal. He called the owner to find out if she was around, but only silence answered. He leaned against the glass trying to look inside and stepped back suddenly when he discovered the owner's massacred body not far from the door. He took a few steps back before being blocked by another body. He turned around and saw a man in the uniform of the Ash Warriors, brandishing a bloody knife far too close to him for his taste.

• You! You know Sasha, right?! The man spit out.
• What do you want with this poor girl? Are you responsible for her injuries?
• It is none of your business! Tell me where she is!
• I have no idea! YiXing said, full of anger, who was already getting tired of this intrusive. Hey wait a minute! Did you kill the owner of the library too?!
• Yes, she didn't want to tell me where YiXing was ... Do you know where he could be? We saw him with Sasha, and we suspect that he is an accomplice of the Thauma, if he is not one of them too ... YiXing suddenly turns pale. Are you all right my boy? You are very pale… The man replied, placing the blade of his knife on the cheek of the brunet, a Machiavellian smile on his face. He knew who YiXing was, he knew he was standing in front of him. So, the magician, have we lost our tongue?

YiXing did not think, he just reacted, following his instinct, and put his hands on the Warrior in front of him to keep him away. To his surprise, the warrior turned pale before collapsing dead on the stairs. Stunned by what had just happened, YiXing looked at his trembling hands before going back to reality and running towards his house. He realized that he was being followed by an army of Ash Warriors and feared the worst. Was he one of these supernatural beings? Was Sasha also a Thauma? Was he going to get killed?! He quickened his pace. Not far from him, opposite the guards, hidden in the shadows, stood a man under a brown hood, smiling, watching the scene. As soon as he had raised his arm toward the sky that a wall of water fell on the Ash Warriors, preventing them from seeing in which direction the fugitive escaped ...

When he got home, YiXing closed the door, drew the curtains, and caught his breath. What mess had he fallen into?! If the Ash Warriors attacked him, it was because he had something to do with the Thaumas. He opened his file and looked for anything that was related to the power to care. His eyes went madly through the pages one after the other until they came across a particularly interesting description depending on the circumstances ...

“Fifth child: Caregiver, carries a symbol in the shape of a unicorn head on the left of their neck. Emits a green glow. Can heal, can give life as well as take it back. Fear acids and poisons. Needs sunlight or magical light to recover some energy” he read. He ran his hand unconsciously across his neck before rushing to a mirror. Where he had put his hand, a green unicorn head shone.

• That's impossible... he murmured, realizing that he had studied for years what he was today: A Child of the Apocalypse, the 5th of them.