The waypoint was far.
Kaelen stared at the glowing marker on his mental map—a golden arrow pointing northeast, deep into the wasteland. The distance indicator read: 12.3 kilometers.
Twelve kilometers through toxic terrain, mutated creatures, and gods-knew-what-else.
It would take hours. Maybe days.
"We should prepare," he muttered, sitting cross-legged on the shelter roof.
"Or you could just go now," Crust suggested. "The longer you wait, the more you'll overthink it."
"I'm not going alone."
"Then bring your friends. See how they handle the truth."
Kaelen frowned. Could he really bring Ryker and Lira to the ruins of his father's kingdom? To the place where he'd destroyed the world?
What would they think when they saw it?
What would he feel?
"Fear," Crust answered, reading his thoughts. "Guilt. Shame. All the emotions you've been burying since you woke up in this body. But you'll survive them. You always do."
The next morning, Kaelen gathered Ryker and Lira.
"I need to go somewhere," he said. "Somewhere far. And I need your help."
Ryker perked up immediately. "How far?"
"Twelve kilometers. Northeast."
Lira whistled. "That's deep wasteland. We've never gone that far before. What's out there?"
Kaelen hesitated. "Something important. Something I need to see."
"That's vague," Ryker said. "Are we hunting? Scavenging? What?"
"I don't know. But it's dangerous. More dangerous than anything we've done before." Kaelen looked at both of them. "If you want to sit this one out, I understand."
Ryker snorted. "And let you have all the fun? No way."
"I'm in," Lira said immediately. "My brother needs medicine. I need credits. And credits come from taking risks."
Kaelen nodded slowly. "Then we leave at dawn tomorrow. Bring food. Water. Anything you can carry. This isn't going to be a quick trip."
They left through the breach before sunrise.
The wasteland looked different in the pre-dawn darkness. The smog was thicker, the air colder. The ruins cast long, twisted shadows that seemed to reach for them like skeletal fingers.
Kaelen led the way, following the glowing waypoint only he could see. Ryker walked beside him, knife in hand, eyes scanning for threats. Lira brought up the rear, her pipe resting on her shoulder.
They didn't talk much. The wasteland had a way of swallowing sound, making even breathing feel too loud.
"Two hundred meters ahead," Crust warned. "Four mutated creatures. Wolves. Level 4 and 5."
Kaelen stopped, raising a fist. Ryker and Lira froze.
"Wolves," Kaelen whispered. "Four of them. Higher level than anything we've fought before."
"Can we avoid them?" Lira asked.
Kaelen activated Divine Sense and swept the area. The wolves were moving in a pack, patrolling a narrow passage between two collapsed buildings. The only other route would add hours to their journey.
"We fight," he decided.
Ryker grinned. "Now we're talking."
"Stay smart. Stay together. And if things go bad, we retreat." Kaelen looked at both of them. "Ready?"
They nodded.
The wolves were bigger than the hounds Kaelen had fought before.
Each one stood nearly four feet tall at the shoulder, their bodies covered in patchy fur and exposed muscle. Their eyes glowed yellow, and their teeth were like daggers.
The pack leader—a massive beast with a scarred muzzle—raised its head and howled.
The sound echoed across the wasteland, primal and terrifying.
And then they charged.
"Scatter!" Kaelen shouted.
They split up—Ryker darting left, Lira right, Kaelen staying center.
The pack leader came straight for him.
Kaelen didn't hesitate. He thrust both hands forward and shouted, "Divine Burst!"
Golden light exploded from his palms, slamming into the wolf and sending it tumbling backward. But it recovered quickly, shaking its head and snarling.
[Mutated Alpha Wolf - Level 5]
"Be careful," Crust warned. "That one's stronger than you."
"I noticed."
Two more wolves flanked him, jaws snapping. Kaelen rolled to the side, narrowly avoiding their attacks, and came up swinging.
His fist connected with one wolf's jaw—
And golden light erupted on impact.
The wolf yelped and staggered back, blood dripping from its mouth.
[Critical Hit!]
But the second wolf was already on him.
It lunged, jaws wide, aiming for his throat—
A metal pipe smashed into its skull.
Lira appeared beside him, breathing hard. "You okay?"
"Yeah. Thanks."
"Don't mention it. Now move!"
They separated again as the wolves regrouped. Across the battlefield, Ryker was locked in combat with the fourth wolf, his knife flashing as he dodged and weaved.
The alpha wolf charged Kaelen again, faster this time.
Kaelen raised his hand—
But the wolf was too quick.
It slammed into him, knocking him off his feet. He hit the ground hard, the wind driven from his lungs.
The wolf's jaws closed around his arm.
Pain exploded through him—white-hot and agonizing.
[Health: 85 / 120]
"Fight back, little god! Use your power!"
Kaelen screamed—not in pain, but in rage.
Golden light erupted from his entire body, blazing like the sun.
The wolf shrieked and released him, stumbling backward, its fur smoking.
Kaelen scrambled to his feet, clutching his bleeding arm. His vision blurred. His head spun.
But he wasn't done.
He raised his good hand and focused everything he had into one attack.
"Divine Burst!"
The light that shot from his palm was brighter than before. More concentrated. More powerful.
It struck the alpha wolf square in the chest.
The creature's howl turned into a scream as the divine energy burned through its body, cooking it from the inside out.
And then, with a final, pitiful whimper...
It collapsed.
[You have slain: Mutated Alpha Wolf - Level 5]
[Experience Gained: 150 XP]
[Level Up! You are now Level 5]
[New Skill Unlocked: Divine Shield (Rank F)]
Kaelen dropped to his knees, panting.
Around him, the other wolves were retreating, whimpering, their leader dead.
"Kaelen!" Ryker ran over, his face pale. "Your arm—"
"I'm fine." Kaelen gritted his teeth and looked down at the wound. The bite was deep, bleeding freely. But already, he could feel something happening.
His flesh was glowing faintly.
Healing.
Slowly, but healing.
"Divine regeneration," Crust explained. "A gift of your bloodline. You won't die from something like this. But it hurts, doesn't it?"
"Like hell."
Lira appeared, breathing hard. "We need to bandage that. Now."
She pulled out a strip of cloth and wrapped it around Kaelen's arm, tying it tight. The pain lessened, but didn't disappear.
"Can you keep going?" Ryker asked.
Kaelen nodded. "Yeah. Let's move before more show up."
They walked for hours.
The wasteland stretched endlessly, a graveyard of the old world. Kaelen's arm throbbed with every step, but he pushed through the pain.
The waypoint was getting closer.
And with every step, Kaelen felt something growing inside him.
A sense of... recognition.
"You remember this place," Crust said softly. "Don't you?"
Kaelen looked around. The ruins were different here. Older. More deliberate in their construction. These weren't the chaotic remains of the modern world.
These were ancient.
"What is this place?" Lira asked, staring at a massive pillar covered in strange symbols.
Kaelen's breath caught.
He recognized those symbols.
Divine script. The language of the gods.
"This was..." His voice was barely a whisper. "This was my father's kingdom."
Ryker and Lira exchanged confused glances.
"Your father?" Ryker asked. "Kaelen, your parents died when you were a baby. You don't remember—"
"Not these parents." Kaelen stepped forward, his hand reaching out to touch the pillar. The moment his fingers made contact, light flared.
And the world shifted.
Kaelen wasn't in the wasteland anymore.
He stood in the same place—but it was different. Whole. Beautiful.
The pillar was pristine, glowing with golden light. Around him, a city stretched out in all directions—white stone buildings, floating gardens, crystalline spires reaching toward the sky.
And people.
Humans. Gods. Beasts.
All living together. Laughing. Thriving.
"This is..." Kaelen's voice broke. "This is what it looked like. Before."
"Before you destroyed it," Crust finished.
A figure appeared in front of him—tall, silver-haired, wearing robes of starlight.
Zephrion.
His father.
"Aelion," Zephrion said, his voice warm. "You've finally returned."
Kaelen's eyes burned. "Father..."
"You carry a heavy burden, my son. The weight of two lives. Two worlds." Zephrion stepped forward and placed a hand on Kaelen's shoulder. "But you are stronger than you know. You always have been."
"I'm not strong. I'm a failure. I destroyed everything—"
"You made a mistake." Zephrion's grip tightened. "A terrible mistake. But you were given a second chance. Not many receive such a gift."
"A curse. You cursed me."
"I gave you purpose." Zephrion smiled sadly. "You are Aelion. You are Kaelen. And you are the only one who can fix what was broken."
"How? How do I fix this?"
"By becoming what you were meant to be. Not a destroyer. Not a weapon. But a protector. A builder. A god worthy of the title."
The vision began to fade, the city dissolving back into ruins.
"Wait!" Kaelen reached out. "Don't go—"
"I'm always with you, my son. In your heart. In your power. In every choice you make."
And then he was gone.
Kaelen gasped and stumbled backward.
Ryker caught him. "Kaelen! What happened? You just froze for like five minutes!"
"I saw..." Kaelen looked around at the ruins. "I saw what this place used to be."
"And?" Lira pressed.
Kaelen looked at them—these two people who'd chosen to follow him, to trust him, despite everything.
"This was the greatest kingdom in the world," he said quietly. "And I destroyed it."
Silence.
"What are you talking about?" Ryker asked.
Kaelen took a deep breath.
And then, finally, he told them the truth.
Everything.
Who he was. Who he'd been. The creature sealed inside him. The curse. The reincarnation.
All of it.
When he finished, neither of them spoke for a long moment.
Then Ryker punched him in the shoulder.
"Ow! What—"
"That's for keeping secrets, you idiot." But Ryker was grinning. "A reincarnated god, huh? That's actually kind of cool."
Lira crossed her arms. "So you're telling me you're thousands of years old?"
"Technically? Yes. But I'm also four."
"That's... confusing."
"Tell me about it."
Lira thought for a moment, then shrugged. "Okay. Fine. You're a god. Whatever. Does that mean you'll get strong enough to help me save my brother?"
Kaelen blinked. "That's... that's all you care about?"
"I care about results, Kaelen. You want redemption? I want medicine. Seems like we can help each other."
Despite everything, Kaelen smiled. "Yeah. We can."
[Quest Complete: The Ruins of Memory]
[Reward: Skill Upgrade Token, 500 XP]
[Level Up! You are now Level 6]
Kaelen felt power surge through him—stronger than before. Clearer.
He looked down at his hands, watching golden light dance across his fingers.
"I'm going to fix this world," he said quietly. "I'm going to make it better than it was before."
"Bold words, little god," Crust said. "Let's see if you can keep them."