Bran's eyes fluttered open as the sun's waves pounded into his skull. It was as if The Sun God, Ghrian, was impaling into his head with his divine spear, Acerba Lux.
With a sigh, Bran began to sit up before a heavy impact forced him back down, red hair flowing down his face. The scent of lavender overpowered the dreary room's foul stench. "Oh, gods, I'm so glad you're alive!"
Bran pulled his mother closer, tightening his hug. "W-what about Rag?"
Soft, smooth tears streamed down Bran's back as his mother clenched her arms tighter. "He's in critical condition. I-I don't know what happened, but the only reason he's alive is because of that dark power that enveloped the whole town!"
The emotion fell from Bran's face as he stared out the window, feeling his heart pound in his ears. It was hard to believe that not even 2 days ago, he had traveled back in time, yet still had managed to make another mistake. If only he hadn't given those vulgar rodents a chance for redemption and had just slain them when he should have…
A smooth hand rubbing against his cheek brought him from his stupor as blue, teary eyes stared into his soul. "Don't blame yourself for this! You haven't even awakened yet. You couldn't have done anything to stop it!"
Bran's lips curved a bit upward as solemn eyes emerged from the depths of his soul. "No, the fault lies solely on me. Even if we factor in me not awakening, I shouldn't have let Rag run off on his own. I should have stopped him when I had the chance."
The woman gently kissed the boy's forehead as she brought a hand to his. "When you're ready, come down and check in with the rest of the family. With you being knocked out and Rag being in critical condition, everyone is pacing back and forth."
Bran nodded as his mother left the room, entering into a completely dark corridor that seemed to call the darkness in the depths of his soul to the surface. He could feel the hate that had once kept him going to work against his will as a dark, red energy seeped from his eyes.
[Murderous Intent Lvl. 1]
Eyes widening, Bran brought up a hand. "Skills."
[Skills]
[Unic Skill: Fusion: The user can fuse 2 skills of the same rank to strengthen the chosen ability.
Skills: [Swordsmanship Lvl. 10], [Mana Empowerment Lvl. 5], [Murderous Intent Lvl. 1]...]
With wide eyes, Bran scrolled through his skills. "What's this? Why do I have ten skills already, and why is the system showing up in the first place? Wait, what's this? That wasn't here before. I've never seen anything like it before!"
[#!@# Lvl. #@#!]
Bran pushed himself from his bed. "A-are my skills broken? Is this because I've regressed?"
A platinum blond-haired girl burst through the bedroom door. "Why do you always have to be such a pain?!"
Bran watched as his sister strutted over to him. "Me? A pain? I think you have me confused for the wrong Bran."
Tears streamed down Kara's eyes as she wrapped her arms around her brother, the warmth in her body almost dubbing. "N-never do something so dangerous again! I-I don't care if I have to be the head of the family, so just don't put yourself into those situations again!"
Bran softly smiled down at her, her face resting on his chest. "You know I can't do that. I'm going to have to attend the academy and, later, fight in Turris Daemoniorum." Her scowl spoke greatly to her distaste. "BUT, I can promise to be more careful."
Signing into her brother's chest, Kara pushed away. "Fine, as long as you promise to not put yourself into those situations!"
Bran nodded as he walked past a few clothes littered on the hardwood floor. "Look at you, being all worried for me. Ya know? If I didn't know any better I would assume you cared about me."
Kara turned away, her eyebrows scrunched. "Shut up, we all care! It's just hard to want to, sometimes, with you being all… You, and all."
Bran grabbed a shirt from a rack. "I know I haven't been a good anything recently. I'm lazy and unmotivated, and I don't care for much of anything. I know I'm not worthy of any redemption, but I promise to do whatever it takes to grow stronger and show the world how great the Astoric family is."
A small tear slid down Kara's cheek as she grabbed the door handle. "You man not be the best brother, but no one here thinks any of that about you."
Bran turned back, sharply, as his eyes widened, yet it was too late. The door was closed before he could mutter a peep. He turned back towards the closet. "I wish I could believe that, but I'm not worth the sentiment."
Bran put on a blue shirt and white dress pants as he slowly crept out of his room. A familiar scent wafted through the air as a kind warmth spread throughout him, yet with that warmth came questioning darkness that threatened to envelop his soul. It caused tremors throughout his body that almost sent him writhing to the ground.
[Activating '#!@# Lvl. #@#!']
The dark hall twisted with madness as an encroaching evil seeped from Bran. It mangled everything it touched, turning to ash that of the living, Bran no exception. His skin began to rot and was replaced with something inhuman. No sound existed in that dark, for that would insinuate life, and in a place as dark and ancient as there.
The house reeling, unable to handle the dark pressure, a silver light engulfed everything. A hand took Bran's shoulder as furr warmed the boy's body. "You should settle down; after all, you don't wish to hurt these mortals, no?"
Bran's head snapped up to the deep, grumbling voice. "W-who are you?"
The wolf-like being didn't respond as existence flashed silver once again, morphing into a deep luscious forest. The air was rich with oxygen that filled the lungs of any with but a small sniff. The dark green that the forest exuded protected all within its grasp.
Bran's nose scrunched up as he saw the being standing in front of him. "Answer me: Who are you?."
The humanoid wolf flicked a wrist toward Bran. "Shut it. I have no time for leisurely speech, mortal, but I am here to gift you."
Bran's eyes turned to slits. "Why? As far as I know, the Gods don't take fondly to humans."
"I am a different God. I do not care for the realms of heaven or earth. It does not matter to me, a solitary wolf who was pushed away by the Gods and forgotten by the mortals, so human, I don't care who or what you are. That doesn't matter to me."
Bran glanced past the God. "Then what does? If you don't care about what goes on in the world around you, why bring me into your divine space? What sort of use do I have towards you?"
The God sighed. "First, I should tell you about me; that should help fill in the story. My name is Lucian: God of Hunting, Forests, and Patron God of Wolves."
Bran raised an eyebrow. "What would garner your interest in me? I haven't done anything that would relate to your domains."
The wolf held up a hand. "Let me finish my story before coming to conclusions, so anyway, a hundred years ago, when the world was at war with "The Dark Ones", I led the charge with my church. At that time, I was one of, if not the most powerful Gods in existence. It was there where this story starts."
***
A 10-foot-tall wolf-like man charged with a spear, his blue eyes piercing into those of his enemies, and upon letting out a war cry, the world erupted with a turquoise light, engulfing all that dared enter its divine rays.
Running past a legion of wolves and humans, a dark, vile amalgamation of animals jumped, colliding with the legion, and killing all in its path. "Lucian! Fight me, you disgusting God!"
Leaping into the air, imprinting a paw into the course, dead ground, Lucian spun, flourishing his spear. "Malum, How dare you infiltrate my domain! Your death is guaranteed by the heavens!"
Malum twisted in the air, kicking another portion of the legion. Blasting towards Lucian like a drill, the dark being extended his hand into that of a dagger. "My death? Worry about your followers before me!"
Lucian brought his spear down horizontally, blocking the hit, only for Malum to contort his body once more, kicking the wolf in the chest. "Agh!"
Barreling at the ground at insane speeds, almost as if air resistance didn't exist, Malum broke through the ground, creating a five-meter cylinder. "Lucian, your people are almost all dead! What are you to do when I finish off the rest of your people? What are you going to do when I shove my hand through your infantile son's throat?!"
Lucian, losing reason, charged Malum, a chasm appearing in his wake. "MALUM!"
Malum laughed, taking a bestial battle stance. "Oh, killing your followers for me, I see? This fight will be over before I can snap."
Lucian, in a barbaric rage, snapped his spear down destroying everything in its wake. "I'LL KILL YOU!"
***
Lucian glanced at Bran. "It was that strike that sent my son tumbling to the mortal realm, and because I couldn't lock on to his presence, I had assumed he had died in the fall. It seems that wasn't the case, though, as you are raising his great-grandchild."
Bran looked down. "How am I supposed to know if any of that is true? How would you have found him now of all times?"
Lucian chuckled. "It was actually that vile aura that led me to him. Granted, I didn't descend because I felt him, but because your aura felt like that of Malum's. I would have killed you if I hadn't seen my decedent's body clutched in your hands."
Bran nodded."I see." A sigh left his mouth. "What's your goal now? I assume you want your great-grandson back, but…"
Lucian smiled while looking off into the distance. "Us wolves, we're a prideful bunch. Even with blood bonds, most of us would rather die for someone who we love like a brother. I don't think that even if I were to bring him back, that boy wouldn't care. He would continue to follow you until the ends of the earth."
Bran smiled, tears collecting behind his eyes. "Yeah, Rag is pretty motivated. He would do anything to save the ones he loves…"
Lucian stood there, patting Bran on the shoulder in silence. It was just the two of them, looking off into the distance, forlorn looks on their faces, almost as if they truly understood each other. It was a budding connection that reverberated at the deepest portions of their soul.
The setting sun shined through the trees that overlooked the mountain they stood on, enveloping them in their entirety. It reached into the deepest depths of them and began to mend old wounds. What was left in place of the infected scabs were white streaks that resembled that of scars.
After what seemed like hours, Bran looked up at the despondent wolf. "If it makes you feel any better, I'd happily lay down my life for Rag. I won't let another thing harm him, even if it costs me my sanity. I owe him that much, at least."
The wolf smiled down at Bran. "You know, you remind me an awful lot of myself. I was brash and could never accept help. I was afraid that if I did, I might let someone I love die, but I learned: it's not letting your allies help you that kills them, it's bearing all that load on your shoulders that does."
Bran looked down in deep compilation. "But, if I let them help, I won't be able to do anything to save them, and if anything happened to those I love, I don't think I could keep the abyss, that threatens to take over, locked up."
Lucian took a deep breath. "You'll soon learn that the allies you try to protect are far stronger than you give them credit for. I'll leave you with this thought, though: It's not the inability to do anything that drives a man to the edge; it's his pride to protect that ultimately breaks him. If you keep holding everything back, bottled up inside you, there will be nothing to go back to. You'll be driven to insanity, never able to recover. Take it from me, not as a God, but as a man who held back that deep sea of resentment. I think I'd know the best out of anyone."
Bran looked up at the wolf. "It's not that I don't understand, but I don't think, no matter what I do, I can recover from the insanity that has already consumed a portion of my soul."
Lucian sighed as he turned away. "I can't give you the answers to any questions you seek, for you must find them on your own. I will continue to watch over you and… Rag, as you call him."
Bran grinned up at the wolf, tranquility resonating in his eyes. "Thanks, even though I can't use what you've said, I feel more at peace. It may not be much in the grand scheme of things-," the sun's orange rays settled on the horizon. "-but it helped."
Lucian smiled at Bran, placing a hand on his shoulder. "I hope you find your meaning, for your sake."
Without missing another beat, Lucian and Bran were enveloped in a silver flash of light, leaving nothing but small imprints in the dirt to acknowledge their existence.