The darkness was suffocating, thick and endless. I didn't know if I was alive or dead. There was no light, no sound, no ground beneath my feet—only an infinite void that swallowed everything.
Maybe this is what death feels like.
I walked. Or maybe I didn't. Time had no meaning here. There was no sense of movement, no direction. All I had were my thoughts—circling like vultures. Hiromi's lifeless body. Uzah, broken. My men, torn apart. The memories tore at me, feeding the storm of grief and rage until it was all I could feel.
I can't break now. Not yet. Not until they're avenged.
The weight of my loss pressed on me, but I buried it deep, hardening my heart. I would hold on to this fury. I would burn the world with it if I had to.
I kept walking, waiting for something—anything—to happen.
---
Eventually, it did.
A voice broke through the void, deep and ancient, vibrating through the very air around me.
"Nasien," it said, low and powerful. "Your blood calls out to me. You are not done yet."
I stopped. My heart pounded in my chest. I clenched my fists, my body tensing.
"What do you want?" I demanded. "Who are you?"
The voice chuckled, a sound that reverberated through the darkness. "You already know. I am the answer to your grief. The key to your revenge."
I narrowed my eyes, even though I couldn't see anything. "And what does that mean? Are you some kind of spirit here to mock me?"
"No," the voice said, softer now. "I am not a spirit. I am the blood that flows through your veins—the power that you have never known. A power that has slept for generations, hidden from the world."
I blinked. "What are you talking about?"
There was a shift in the air, and from the darkness, a figure began to emerge—a towering, shadowed form with glowing molten gold eyes. His skin was dark red, his horns spiraling upward, and his massive frame exuded both power and ancient wisdom. He was not a demon, not a spirit. He was something else. Something primal.
"I am the forgotten," he said, stepping forward. "I am what the world has chosen to forget. Your blood... comes from me."
I stared at him, feeling my breath catch. "What do you mean? My blood?"
The figure smiled, though there was no warmth in it. "You are descended from a line that was once feared and worshipped. A lineage that carries the power of the gods themselves—specifically, a deity whose name has been erased from history. You are the last of this line, Nasien. And I am the key to awakening that power."
My heart pounded in my chest. "A god?" I shook my head, trying to make sense of it. "That's impossible. I would have known. My family—"
"Your family didn't know," he interrupted. "No one knows. Only the elites of this world have heard whispers of this forgotten bloodline, and those who learn too much are hunted down and destroyed before the truth can spread. The world does not want you to awaken, Nasien. But your blood demands it."
A chill ran down my spine. I had always known there was something different about me, but this... a deity's bloodline? Hidden from the world? Hunted by the elites? It made no sense, and yet... somehow, it did.
"What do you want from me?" I asked, my voice tight.
The figure's smile widened. "I am here to awaken the power that has been lying dormant inside you. But know this—it is a power unlike anything you have known. Once awakened, you will become more than you are. Your magic, your strength, your very being will change. You will be feared. And once you set foot on this path, there is no going back."
I felt a pulse deep within me, like something inside was waking up for the first time. It was raw, wild, untamable. The power surged through me, and with it, an overwhelming sense of destiny. This wasn't just a deal—it was the unlocking of something I was always meant to be.
"What do I have to do?" I asked, feeling the weight of his words settle on my shoulders.
The figure stepped closer, his eyes glowing brighter. "You must accept what you are, Nasien. The blood of the forgotten deity flows through you. Accept it, and I will awaken that power. You will have the strength to destroy your enemies, to make them suffer as you wish. But know this—the world will fear you, and those who know the truth will come for you."
I clenched my fists. "I don't care what the world thinks of me. All I care about is killing the ones who took everything from me."
The figure nodded. "Then let the blood awaken."
---
I felt it immediately.
The power surged through me, like fire beneath my skin, scorching everything in its path. My body convulsed as the energy tore through me, reshaping me from the inside out. I screamed, but I didn't stop it. I couldn't. The power was too strong, too overwhelming.
I collapsed to my knees, the force of it all but ripping me apart. My skin felt like it was being seared, my bones breaking and reforming as the power of the forgotten deity inside me awakened. My horns grew longer, sharper, and my vision blurred as my eyes burned with molten gold.
The transformation was violent, brutal, but I knew—I knew this was what I had been waiting for.
Images flashed before my eyes—visions of myself, standing on a battlefield, summoning weapons from the air, wielding magic beyond comprehension. The stances I had mastered were nothing compared to what I was now capable of. The elements bent to my will, the very air crackling with power. This was no mere strength. This was divinity.
And I was its vessel.
---
When the pain finally subsided, I was left panting on the ground, my hands trembling as I pushed myself up. I looked at my reflection in the void—a reflection of something that was no longer quite me. My skin was darker, my horns longer, my eyes burning gold. But it wasn't fear I felt. It was power.
"What does it matter what I've become?" I said, my voice hoarse but steady. "All that matters is what I can do now."
The figure stood over me, watching with approval. "You have embraced your destiny. But know this, Nasien—the elites who know of your bloodline will hunt you. They will try to destroy you. And you will find that the power you've awakened carries a history far darker than you can imagine."
I stood, the power still humming beneath my skin. "Let them come. It doesn't matter. All I want is revenge."
The figure's smile was cold. "Then the world will burn with you."