Chapter 2 – Bound by Darkness, Touched by Something Else
Ren was falling.
There was no wind this time. No sensation of speed. Just an endless descent through blinding white, his body stretched thin between awareness and oblivion. Pain still lingered—dull, echoing—like something had carved itself into him and then gone quiet.
Something foreign.
That was the only way he could describe it.
His consciousness flickered, fragments of the goddess's chamber bleeding into the light. Chains. Darkness. Violet eyes widened in shock.
Nyxara had not expected what happened.
That thought grounded him.
If even a goddess hadn't anticipated it, then whatever had touched him wasn't part of the deal.
The light collapsed inward.
Ren hit the ground..
Hard.
His body slammed against earth and roots, the impact knocking the breath from his lungs. He rolled instinctively, bare skin scraping against rough soil, until momentum finally died and he lay still, gasping.
Cold.
That was the first clear sensation.
Cold air pressed against his skin from every direction. Ren sucked in a sharp breath and groaned, forcing his eyes open.
Above him stretched a canopy of towering trees, their branches interwoven so densely that only thin spears of sunlight pierced through. Leaves rustled softly, stirred by a breeze that carried the scent of damp earth and unfamiliar greenery.
A forest.
"I'm… alive?" he muttered.
His voice sounded hoarse, unused.
Ren pushed himself upright slowly, every movement cautious. His body felt… strange. Not weak—if anything, it felt lighter, more responsive. Like tension he hadn't known he carried was simply gone.
Then he noticed it.
He was naked.
Completely.
His face heated instantly, and he folded his arms over himself out of pure reflex, despite the fact that no one else seemed to be around. The embarrassment was sharp and absurd, clashing violently with the fact that he had just died and been reborn.
"O-Okay," he said quietly. "Okay. Think."
He scanned his surroundings, heart beating faster now—not from panic, but from uncertainty. The forest was vast. Ancient. Trees thicker than any he had seen before rose like pillars, their bark dark and scarred, roots twisting over the ground like exposed veins.
No roads. No buildings. No sign of civilization.
A soft chime echoed faintly in his mind.
Ren stiffened.
No… not a system, he thought immediately, dread flaring.
But no screen appeared. No floating text. Instead, it felt like something deep within him had stirred—acknowledging his awareness, then sinking back down.
He swallowed.
"That wasn't magic," he whispered. "Was it?"
There was no answer.
Nyxara's presence was gone. No chains. No voice. No guidance.
For the first time since waking, fear crept in properly.
He stood up slowly, wincing as cold air brushed against sensitive skin, and immediately began tearing broad leaves from nearby bushes. They were thick, waxy, and unpleasantly moist, but they were better than nothing. He wrapped them clumsily around his waist, securing them with long strands of fibrous plant material he tore free with shaking hands.
The result was crude. Embarrassing.
But functional.
"Survive first," Ren told himself softly. "Panic later."
His stomach growled as if on cue.
He froze, then let out a small, humorless laugh. "Right. Priorities."
Food.
Water.
Shelter.
Those words felt heavy. Final.
Ren crouched near the ground, eyes scanning for anything recognizable. Berries. Mushrooms. Fruit. He remembered survival videos he'd half-watched online, most of which boiled down to don't eat what you don't recognize.
Unfortunately, he recognized none of this.
After nearly an hour of cautious wandering, he found a shallow stream cutting through the forest floor. Clear water flowed over smooth stones, and relief washed through him so strongly his knees nearly buckled.
He knelt and drank carefully, cupping the water in his hands. It was cold and clean, easing the dryness in his throat.
Nearby, he spotted small, apple-sized fruits hanging low from a shrub. They were pale blue, faintly luminescent.
That's suspicious, his mind warned.
But hunger gnawed at him mercilessly.
Ren plucked one and sniffed it. It smelled faintly sweet, with no hint of rot. He hesitated, then took a small bite.
Juice burst across his tongue—cool, refreshing, with a mild sweetness that made his eyes widen in surprise.
"…Oh."
He ate slowly at first, waiting for nausea or dizziness.
Nothing happened.
Relief surged, and soon restraint vanished. He devoured three more fruits, his hunger finally easing.
That was when the forest went quiet.
Too quiet.
Ren noticed it slowly. The birds had stopped calling. The insects had gone silent. Even the wind seemed to hold its breath.
A low growl rippled through the trees.
His body stiffened instantly.
Ren turned toward the sound just in time to see it emerge from the underbrush.
The creature was massive—easily twice the size of a wolf, with a lean, muscular body covered in dark, bristling fur. Its eyes glowed a dull amber, locked onto him with predatory focus. Long fangs protruded from its snarling jaws, saliva dripping onto the forest floor.
A beast.
A real one.
Ren's heart slammed against his ribs.
Run.
His body moved before his thoughts could catch up. He spun and sprinted through the trees, bare feet pounding against dirt and roots. Branches tore at his skin, leaves whipped against his face, but he didn't slow.
The growl followed.
Closer.
Faster.
"Why is it so fast—?" Ren gasped.
His lungs burned. Panic clawed up his spine. He darted around a thick tree, nearly slipping, and barely avoided slamming headfirst into a rock outcropping.
The beast burst through the foliage behind him, its weight shaking the ground.
Ren stumbled.
The creature lunged.
He turned desperately, arms raised in instinctive defense.
"I—! I don't—!" His voice cracked. "I don't know how to use magic!"
Its jaws closed around his arm.
Pain exploded.
Ren screamed, collapsing to the ground as sharp fangs pierced flesh. Warm blood spilled freely, the sensation so vivid it robbed him of breath. Tears blurred his vision as terror overwhelmed him completely.
"I don't want to die again," he sobbed.
"Please—!"
His heart raced wildly, each beat louder than the last. The world narrowed to pain, fear, and the crushing certainty of helplessness.
Then—
Something answered.
A pulse.
Deep within his chest, a pressure swelled, hot and heavy, as if a sealed door had been struck from the inside. Energy surged outward, flooding his veins with a violent warmth.
The beast snarled and bit down harder—
Crack.
The sound was sharp and unmistakable.
Its fangs snapped.
Ren froze.
The pain vanished.
The creature recoiled with a startled yelp, staring at Ren's arm in disbelief. His skin glowed faintly, veins traced with dim, radiant light.
Ren stared too.
"I—what…?"
His entire body began to hum.
Energy poured out of him uncontrollably, reinforcing muscle, bone, skin—everything. Strength unlike anything he had known surged through his limbs, drowning out fear with something far more dangerous.
Power.
The glow intensified.
Ren's eyes widened. "S-Stop—!"
The energy detonated.
Light consumed the forest in a violent expansion, a shockwave ripping outward with deafening force. Trees were uprooted, stone shattered, and the earth itself screamed as the blast erased everything in its path.
For miles.
When the light finally faded, a vast crater remained where the forest once stood—charred earth smoldering under a silent sky.
Thirty percent of the forest was gone.
At its center, Ren collapsed unconscious.
Days later, he would awaken amid the ruins, unaware that history had already begun rewriting itself.
And somewhere far away, chained in darkness, a goddess whispered a single, shaken word:
"…Impossible."
End of Chapter 2