The words echoed through Kael's mind.
"Remember what happened the first time you died."
Kael stared at the younger version of himself.
"What do you mean?"
The younger Kael didn't answer.
Instead, he pointed toward the center of the ruins.
A massive stone structure rose from the ground.
At its center was a circular chamber.
Kael felt the new Core inside his chest react immediately.
Eryx noticed.
"That's connected to you."
Kael nodded.
"I can feel it."
They entered the chamber.
The walls were covered in ancient symbols.
Some were written in languages Kael couldn't understand.
Others...
He could read perfectly.
One sentence stood above the entrance.
THE STAR EATER WAS NOT BORN.
Kael's eyes widened.
"Then how did I become one?"
The younger Kael finally spoke.
"You didn't."
"You became one because you chose to."
A deep vibration shook the chamber.
The symbols began glowing.
A projection appeared in the air.
Kael saw himself.
But this time, he was older.
He stood before an army of the Firstborn.
Behind him was a massive black creature.
The First Hunger.
The creature was consuming stars one by one.
Entire civilizations were disappearing.
Kael watched his older self raise the Last Core.
The Firstborn were screaming.
"Don't do it!"
Kael's older self looked at them.
"If I don't..."
"We all die."
He stepped toward the First Hunger.
Eryx appeared in the projection.
He grabbed Kael's arm.
"You can't defeat it."
Kael smiled.
"I don't need to."
Eryx looked confused.
"What are you going to do?"
Kael looked toward the dying stars.
"I'm going to become something it can't consume."
The projection changed.
Kael entered the heart of the First Hunger.
The creature swallowed him.
Eryx screamed.
"KAEL!"
Everything went dark.
Then—
The First Hunger exploded.
Billions of stars returned.
The Firstborn survived.
But Kael was gone.
Eryx fell to his knees.
The projection showed him standing alone.
Holding a fragment of the Last Core.
He whispered,
"You promised you'd come back."
The vision ended.
Kael stood frozen.
Eryx looked away.
Kael slowly turned toward him.
"You remember."
Eryx nodded.
"I remember everything."
"You watched me die."
"I watched you sacrifice yourself."
Kael's voice softened.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"Because you forgot."
Eryx looked at him.
"And because I wanted you to have a chance to live without carrying the weight of that choice."
Kael looked down.
The memories were becoming clearer.
The Star Eater wasn't a title.
It was a sacrifice.
He had consumed dying stars because their energy was the only thing keeping the First Hunger sealed.
But then—
The chamber shook violently.
The younger Kael stepped backward.
"It's coming."
Kael raised his head.
"What?"
The ground beneath them split open.
A massive black eye appeared beneath the ruins.
Eryx's expression changed.
"No."
The younger Kael whispered,
"The First Hunger."
The eye opened.
A voice echoed through the planet.
"You returned."
Kael stepped forward.
The new Core burned inside his chest.
"Yes."
The voice laughed.
"Then finish what you started."
Kael looked at Eryx.
His brother nodded.
Together, they walked toward the darkness.
But before they could reach it—
The younger Kael grabbed Kael's arm.
"Don't fight it."
Kael stopped.
"Why?"
The younger version stared at him.
"Because the First Hunger isn't trying to kill you."
Kael frowned.
"Then what does it want?"
The younger Kael looked terrified.
"It wants you to remember..."
"...why you created it."