Chapter 2: A Long Road to Aerisfall — Power Awakening

Kaiden waded through the dense wilderness, every step taking him further away from the ruins of Rynhill. The village where he had once grown up was vanished — consumed by gold fire and the hand of God. His own heart felt heavy with sorrow, but he kept going forward, his mother's last words echoing in his ears.

*Aerisfall. Survive. Find the answers. *

The woods behind him had no beginning or end, an uncharted maze of twisted trees and undergrowth. Moonlight filtered through the canopy, creating long, shifting shadows. Every sound — every rustle of leaves or distant howl — set him on edge. He wasn't safe. The gods had stolen his mother. They would kill to have him, too.

Gripping the satchel his mother had shoved into his hands, Kaiden shoved through a tangle of branches that scratched his arms. His breaths were short and sharp and his legs ached after hours of walking, but he didn't dare stop. Not yet.

The pale light of dawn was just starting to creep into the sky when the pain began.

At first, it was subtle — an ache in his chest. Kaiden paused, (he placed a hand to his heart, it was frowning). The feeling spread, an ember running through his blood. He sank to his knees, dropping the satchel and clutching his middle.

"W-What's happening?" he said, his voice ragged with strain.

The translucent screen from earlier flickered to life before him.

System Activated.

The words were the same, but now there was also a flood of text that he could barely process:

*Bloodline conflict detected. *

Celestial-Demonic Hybrid parameters loading…

*Balance destabilizing. Immediate action required. *

The fiery agony ripped through him and Kaiden yelled. His eyesight blurred and his body shook violently. His very being felt as if it were being yanked in two directions — light, dark. Visions of his mother's last stand flared through his mind, her force both stubborn and sorrowful.

And then, he saw them.

Dim, ethereal personages — one encircled in radiance, the other cloaked in darkness — appeared before him. They were silent, yet their presence was unmistakable. He could feel their essences racing through him, colliding brutally in his centre. It was unbearable.

"Stop…!" he wheezed, scrambling at the dirt. "Stop it!"

The figures melted away as abruptly as they materialized, leaving Kaiden breathing heavy and soaked with sweat. His flesh screamed still, evidence of a slow and agonizing gruel that now smoldered low and hot. The screen flickered again.

*Instability of bloodline conflict has been standardized. *

*Powers available: [Basic Celestial Manipulation], [Infernal Surge]. More parameters unlocked as you progressed. *

Kaiden's breathing became slow as he was staring at the floating text. His bloodline… The thing that cast him out, that made him a target — it was also his source of power. But to use it felt like walking a razor's edge: a slip, and he would be ripped to bits.

A rustle in the bushes jolted him out of his thoughts. Kaiden's head snapped up, his eyes had moved in the direction of the sound. Something was watching him.

His low growl reverberated through the woods. Emerging from the shadows was a beast that Kaiden never quite seen before. It had four legs and its mangy coat was stained with splotches of black and crimson. Its glowing red eyes fixed on him as drool hung from its jagged mouth.

Kaiden jumped up, instinctively reaching for a nonexistent weapon. The creature growled and crouched low to the ground, poised to attack. He could feel his heart beat like a drum, stepped back, his mind scrambling for a plan.

The screen flickered again.

*Alert: Threat incoming detected. *

*Combat potential: Moderate. Recs: Give abilities a thumbs up. *

"Abilities…?" Kaiden gasped, his heart racing. He made fists, remembering the text earlier. *Basic Control Over Astral Forces. Infernal Surge. *

The beast lunged.

Kaiden held his hands up without thinking and blinding light burst from his palms. The creature yelped in midair and hit the ground, claws dragging into the earth. Kaiden watched his hands shake, thin tendrils of light floating from his fingertips.

"That… That was me?" he muttered, his voice shaky.

The beast wasn't finished. It shrugged off the impact and came at them again, its movements more rapid and unpredictable. Kaiden scampered to the side, but the creature's claws scratched his arm, creating a shallow gash. He shouted as blood soaked through his sleeve.

At that moment, the tremendous hurt lit a fire deep inside him—one of raw, elemental anger. His vision dimmed at the edges, a surge of heat flooding his veins. The screen quivered again.

Infernal Surge was activated.

Kaiden let out a bellow as black flames flared on his palms, engulfing the beast in a whirlwind of heat and shadow. The beast bucked and screamed, its fur aflame as the fire ravaged it. In mere seconds, it fell to the ground, its body melting to smoldering ash.

The flames retreated, and Kaiden fell to his knees, his chest laboring. His arms shook as the adrenaline rush faded, leaving him with a suffocating tiredness. The glowing screen glowed to life again.

*Combat result: Success.*

*Experience gained. System development revised.*

Kaiden wasn't sure if he should laugh or weep. He had made it through, just. The energy inside him was blessing and curse—a two-edged sword he didn't yet comprehend.

As the sun rose higher, Kaiden ripped a portion from his shirt and wrapped it around his injured arm. He took his satchel and pushed on, the close call with the beast almost fresh in his mind. He had to get better at using his abilities. Without them, he had no hope of reaching Aerisfall.

---

Days turned to hours as Kaiden trudged through the wasteland. The forest continued on and on, its winding paths intersecting one another indistinguishably. He had more beasts to fight—some of them smaller, some of them larger—and each fight pushed him further back. The celestial and demonic powers within him were unstable, spilling out at the worst moments. Each win leached away his strength and left him battered.

With each fight, though, he became stronger.

He perfected the skill of harnessing the power of his divine heritage, creating shields of radiant energy to deflect attacks. The hellish energy of his demon heritage, if unstable, gave him the ability to attack with ruinous force. Nonetheless, the equilibrium between the two was precarious, and each false step sent shocks of agony surging through his frame.

One day Kaiden strayed into a clearing. A small stream cut the middle of it, and its crystal water reflected the orange hue of the sun in the west. He was thirsty, and he let his satchel fall on the ground and knelt beside the stream, drinking with cupped hands.

The water was cool and refreshing, easing his dry throat. For a moment, he let himself unwind, the noises of the forest receding into the distance.

The relief, however, was short-lived.

A blood-curdling scream pierced the calm, and Kaiden's head jerked up. From the fringes of the clearing came a colossal beast—completely twice as big as the last one he had encountered. Its fur was a solid coal black, its eyes shining with liquid lava color. Two curved horns upon its head and its claws ripping deep ruts in the ground with each move.

Kaiden's blood froze. This was no ordinary monster. This was a predator, and he was prey.

The monster attacked, its huge body hurtling toward him like a runaway freight train. Kaiden dodged out of the way just in time, jumping to the side to escape being flattened. He sprang to his feet, his palms shooting forth a mixture of light and shadow.

"Come on, then," he muttered, his voice steady despite the fear coursing through him. "Let's see what you've got."

The battle was brutal. The beast was relentless, its sheer strength overwhelming. Kaiden's attacks, though powerful, barely seemed to faze it. Every dodge and counter drained his stamina, and his body screamed in protest with every movement.

But Kaiden refused to back down.

As the battle raged on, he could feel the energies within him building to a peak. The holy light in his right hand blazed, and the hellfire in his left howled like a firestorm. He clenched his fists together, the conflicting energies colliding in a powerful crash.

"Celestial Fury!" he bellowed, releasing the combined force in a blinding flash.

The clearing was ablaze and dark, the shockwave laying flat the grass and trees. Once the dust had settled, the creature did not stir, its burned body steaming.

Kaiden fell to his knees, his eyes blurring. He had triumphed, but at a terrible price. His body burned, each muscle screaming in pain. He fell onto the grass, the night sky whirling above him.

As his brain faded away, the screen jerking into view one last time.

*System progression updated. Skills unlocked: [Energy Stabilization]*.

Kaiden could raise a weak smile before blackness consumed him. The ride to Aerisfall had been tedious, and had only just begun.