245–225 B.C. | Childhood
It didn't begin with a scream.Not with pain.Not even with a clear thought.
But with… silence. An endless, vast silence.
Marc didn't know if he was standing, floating, or simply… existing. There was no ground beneath his feet, no sky above him—only an infinite expanse of softly pulsing light, as if the universe itself was breathing.
Colors bled into one another like ink in water. Blue became gold. Gold turned violet. And somewhere in between… there was him.
"…interesting." The voice came from everywhere at once.
Calm. Ancient. And… amused.
Marc blinked. Or at least, he thought he did. "I was hoping for something a bit more exciting than existential confusion," he muttered dryly.
A low, quiet chuckle echoed through the void. "Oh, I have that."
The colors began to pull inward. Condensing. Forming something.
A figure.
Vast. Unimaginably vast. And yet… it didn't feel overwhelming. More like a thought too large to fully grasp.
Marc tilted his head slightly. "So… God? Or something close enough?"
"Labels are… limiting," the being replied calmly. "But for your understanding—yes."
Marc exhaled. "Great. So I'm dead."
"Not quite."
A pause.
"Not yet."
Marc didn't flinch. "That sounds like a pretty bad deal."
The being laughed again—softer this time. Almost… pleased. "You are unusually calm for someone in your position."
"What's the point of panicking?" Marc shrugged. "If you're a god, I can't do anything about it anyway. Might as well save the energy."
Silence lingered.
Then the being nodded slowly. "Efficient. I see why the two of you became connected."
Marc's eyes narrowed slightly. "The two of us?"
The space around them grew heavier.
"Your mother."
Silver light.Gentle warmth.A voice… familiar, despite never having heard it before.
"Explain."
"Your soul collided with hers. A cosmic coincidence. When it happened, you became bound… and she was pulled into this realm from her own world."
Marc frowned. "So I accidentally saved a goddess?"
"Unintentionally."
A crooked grin spread across his face. "Not bad."
"Indeed." The light pulsed again. "You will be given a second life."
"With bonuses?"
"…Yes."
"Good. Now we're talking."
"You will be reborn in a world you already know."
A name echoed through him. "Planetos." Marc blinked. "Game of Thrones? Seriously?"
"If that is what you prefer to call it."
"Dragons, politics, people dying left and right… sounds fun."
"You underestimate that world."
"I just don't overestimate it."
Silence.
Then— "You will not be alone."
Silver. Stars.
"Your mother will be there." Marc let out a slow breath. "…Good."
"But she will leave you. After twenty years."
Silence.
"Why?"
"This world cannot sustain a goddess of her power indefinitely. She is too much for it."
Marc nodded. "Got it."
"You will be given tools."
"Magic—from your mother."
A pulse.
"Power—from the essence of an Archdragon… and her blood."
Another pulse.
Marc raised an eyebrow.
"So… half dragon god, half elf god."
"A simplification."
Then—
"Now tell me—what do you want? But nothing absurd. No death rays, no omniscience, no gacha nonsense, and definitely no system that turns you into some overpowered monstrosity."
Marc thought for a moment.
Then he smiled.
Slowly. Dangerously.
"I want music."
Silence.
"…What?"
"Music. Always available. Like Spotify or Amazon Music. I want to be able to choose what I hear."
The being blinked. "You do not ask for power over life and death… and instead choose music?"
Marc shrugged. "Not just music. Like I've got headphones in my head. Only for me. Clear, clean… like before."
"…An isolated mental sphere."
"If you want to make it complicated, sure. I just call it a better soundtrack."
His grin widened.
"Think about it: epic battle, perfect music in the background. Or a last stand… and you've got exactly the right song."
A flicker passed through the void.
Then—
Music.
Soft.Perfect.
Marc grinned. "Okay… now we're talking."
The being laughed.
"We will meet again… Kael Embershade."
Darkness.
A first breath. Warm. Alive.
Years later…
Sunlight rested on white sand. A boy sat by the water.
Kael.
Beside him—Lileath. "Patience," she said.
"I have patience. The fish doesn't."
A soft smile.
Days became years.
Forests. Laughter. Learning.
Magic. Water moved at his will. Wind danced around him. Fire obeyed.
And one day—
it changed.
A sharp pain. Heat. Too much.
Kael gasped and dropped to his knees.
His skin burned—
and shifted. Scales broke through. His fingers became claws. Flames rose deep within his chest—
and burst free.
He fell—
But something caught him. Lileath. "Slowly," she whispered. Her hand against his cheek.
Calm. "Breathe." He did.
The heat didn't disappear—
but it softened.
"Don't fight it," she said gently."This is you."
A moment passed. Then he understood. He stopped resisting. The power flowed. And obeyed. The scales faded. The flames died down. He was… himself again.
"Again," she said.
This time without fear. Slow. Controlled. A shift. Elf. Dragon. Elf. A grin spread across his face.
"Okay… that's actually pretty cool."
Friends.
Children of Naath laughing with him.
Magic as play.Light as a trick.
And at night—
Stars. And music. Always.