A young boy with fiery red hair sat amidst a jeering crowd. The din of clattering voices and echoing shouts filled the air, reverberating through the vast circular arena like the rumble of distant thunder.
The crowd surrounded him on all sides, tightly packed into the enormous colosseum. Their voices rose in a cacophony, roaring in excitement as they watched the scene unfolding below, a fierce battle between two warriors. Their weapons shimmered under the light, clashing with a resounding intensity that filled the arena. Each strike carried the weight of desperation, as if their very lives depended on the outcome.
The boy's gaze rested on the combatants, his expression was one of quiet detachment. His tired eyes betrayed a hint of boredom, yet beneath the surface lingered an air of amusement and thoughtfulness. It was a strange contrast, this aura of maturity on a figure who looked no older than eight.
'Hmmm… The people of this world truly are amusing. No, mortals in general never fail to surprise me,' he mused, his thoughts cutting through the clamor as he surveyed the arena.
'The effort they put into these daily struggles, these endless battles, is remarkable. Despite being bound by their fragile, fleeting mortal shells, they press on with such determination. Their zeal to defy their limitations… it is both surprising and pitiful.'
His eyes drifted shut for a moment, lost in contemplation. 'It's strange… my perception of time feels so distorted. How long has it been since my last incarnation? A million years? Ten million? Perhaps even a billion…'
A quiet sigh escaped his lips. 'My memories… they're all fragmented. I can no longer grasp the passage of time clearly.'
Yet amidst the confusion, one thing stood certain.
The boy opened his eyes, turning his gaze toward the horizon. The sky above was a canvas of deep azure, but his eyes seemed to pierce beyond it, as if peering into the farthest reaches of existence. A faint squint crossed his face, his expression sharpening as he focused on something far beyond mortal perception.
'It's coming,' he thought, a note of gravity in his inner voice.
'It noticed me the moment my memories awakened. The force with which it approaches… does it not fear that this fragile world will shatter under its momentum?'
He lowered his gaze back to the arena, watching the battle below. The warriors still fought with unrelenting vigor, their movements swift and precise, while the crowd's fervor reached a fever pitch, their cheers and jeers growing louder by the second.
'I wonder… how would they react if they knew what was approaching? Death itself, swift and unstoppable. Of course, they are far too weak to survive it.'
A bitter smile tugged at the corners of his lips. 'How ironic, that the gods they revere see them as little more than ants. What pitiful beings…'
His thoughts were interrupted by a soft, lilting voice that managed to cut through the deafening crowd.
"Renly?"
The boy turned, his expression shifting as he saw the source of the voice, a teenage girl standing a short distance away. Her arms were crossed, her posture firm, and her face wore an unmistakable look of annoyance.
"So, you snuck out again?" she said, her tone scolding as she glared at him. "Why do you keep coming to this place? Didn't I tell you it's dangerous?"
Renly's demeanor changed instantly. The contemplative, piercing gaze he'd worn only moments ago was gone, replaced by an innocent, wide-eyed expression. His face now held a childlike purity, as though he were utterly oblivious to the harsh realities of the world.
The girl's glare faltered as she took in his look, his eyes were shimmering as if on the verge of tears. Her heart softened, and an involuntary gasp escaped her lips.
"So cute!"
Her cheeks flushed as she reached out, unable to resist the urge to tussle his crimson hair.
"Don't cry," she said gently, her tone softening despite herself. "You always make that face when you know you've done something wrong. But really, why do you keep coming here? You were always too scared to leave the house before… what's changed? Don't you realize how dangerous this place is?"
Renly nodded at her words, his gaze still brimming with pure innocence. The girl sighed, closing her eyes briefly as though suppressing the urge to ruffle his hair further.
"The Homewards are looking for you," she said firmly. "Come on, let's go quickly."
She took his hand and turned to leave, but before they could take a step, a deep vibration shook the air. The entire arena trembled violently, not just the structure but as if the very foundation of the world was quaking, like an earthquake of unimaginable magnitude.
Panic rippled through the crowd. The spectators who moments ago were cheering and jeering were now frozen, their faces painted with alarm. Even the fierce battle in the arena halted abruptly, the combatants lowering their weapons as they stood wide-eyed.
Chaos erupted as people began scrambling in every direction, tripping over one another in their desperate attempt to flee.
"Renly, hold on to me!"
The young girl pulled him into her arms, shielding his small frame against her body as the vibrations grew stronger. Around them, people shoved and stumbled, a wave of panic spreading through the tightly packed arena like wildfire.
Then, as the tremors intensified, a collective gasp rose from the crowd.
"Look at the sky! What is that?" someone cried out.
"Why… why are there two suns?" another voice stammered, trembling with fear.
All eyes turned upward. A second sun had appeared, blazing fiercely in the sky. Unlike the gentle radiance of the first, this one burned like an uncontrollable inferno, like a searing ball of flames.
"It's… it's coming down!"
"It's falling!"
The realization swept over the crowd like a chilling wave, though the heat from the descending orb was anything but cold. The second sun was hurtling toward them, its fiery surface radiated an oppressive heat that grew more unbearable with each passing second.
The arena turned into a frenzy. People screamed and scrambled, the sheer number of bodies creating a chaotic stampede. The ground trembled with their frantic movements as everyone fought to escape the incoming catastrophe.
Amid the chaos, the young girl clung tightly to Renly. She made no attempt to flee, her only thought to protect him from the crowd's crushing panic. She held him close, shielding him with her body against the swarming mass of bodies and the oppressive heat radiating from above.
Sweat poured down her face and soaked her clothes, the unbearable temperature and the jostling of panicked people taking a toll on her. Despite this, she refused to let go of Renly, her arms folded around him like an unyielding barrier.
Renly, cradled in her arms, remained still, his face unreadable amidst the pandemonium. The urgency of the situation seemed to have no effect on him, though a flicker of something, maybe surprise, or perhaps pity, passed briefly through his eyes.
He let out a quiet sigh, almost imperceptible amidst the noise.
'To think I'd feel even the faintest trace of emotion for a mortal,' he mused, his thoughts were strangely calm. 'It seems the damage to my perception runs deeper than I anticipated.'
For a moment, he fell into deep contemplation as the chaos around him continued to swell.
'My heart is unwilling to let this play out… but it cannot be helped.'
With that, Renly stirred, pulling away from the girl's tight embrace. She gasped, surprised by his sudden movement, her weary eyes meeting his. Her face was drenched in sweat, her expression etched with fatigue from the unbearable heat and the strain of the situation.
"Big Sis," Renly said softly, his voice calm and steady. "Behind you."
The girl turned sharply at his words, and her eyes widened in shock.
Just inches away, the fabric of reality itself seemed to shatter. Space cracked like fragile glass, shards breaking away to reveal a dark void. At its center, a portal had opened, displaying a different scene. It was a cold, mountainous region blanketed in snow. The icy landscape was a contrast to the sweltering heat that now blanketed the arena.
Just as she glanced back, before she could even react, Renly gently pushed her into the crack. Yet, the force behind his push far exceeded what one would expect from an eight year old.
Taken completely by surprise, her body was propelled through the crack, vanishing into the cold, mountainous region on the other side.
The moment she disappeared, Renly's expression shifted. The innocent, childlike facade melted away, replaced by an eerily blank, almost mechanical look, the same one he had worn before her arrival.
"Seal."
At his command, the crack in space, which had shimmered like the fractured surface of a broken mirror, instantly repaired itself. It vanished without a trace, as though it had never existed.
"That should suffice," Renly thought.
He straightened from his crouched position, brushing himself off, and turned his gaze to the massive ball of fire rapidly approaching the arena. Its speed was incomprehensible, defying all reason as it accelerated even further.
By now, most of the arena's spectators had managed to evacuate, fleeing in sheer terror. Those who remained stumbled and scrambled, their movements frantic as they tried to escape. The fiery orb hurtled closer, and in the span of a heartbeat, it struck the earth just beyond the arena with cataclysmic force.
The impact was apocalyptic. A massive shockwave of flames erupted outward, surging like a tidal wave. The heavens seemed to split as the ground cracked and splintered, charred black by the searing firestorm. A ferocious inferno spewed in every direction, covering over two kilometers in mere moments.
Cries of agony filled the air, only to be silenced almost as quickly as they began. Those caught in the flames, whether still within the arena or far beyond its perimeter, were obliterated. Flesh, bone, and even the ground beneath them were reduced to ash, wiped from existence by the all-consuming fire.
When the devastation subsided, the land within a two-kilometer radius had been transformed into a scorched wasteland, engulfed in a lingering sea of flames. Yet, at the epicenter of the destruction, amidst the churning fire and ash, stood a lone figure, Renly.
He remained unscathed. Not a single thread of his clothing, nor even a strand of his hair, bore any sign of the raging flames that had annihilated everything else.
His gaze swept across the desolate land, his expression unreadable as he observed the charred remains of the once-thriving arena and its countless occupants. His eyes finally settled on the point of impact, where the massive ball of fire had landed.
Through the haze of flames and smoke that still billowed from the crater, a faint silhouette began to emerge. Two piercing eyes, blazing with intense flames, cut through the obscurity. As the figure grew clearer, it revealed itself to be a towering giant, easily as tall as a mountain.
Its presence was overwhelming, its sheer size and fiery aura radiating an almost divine power. Though humanoid in form, it exuded an otherworldly majesty.
The giant's features were striking, it bore the face of a young, handsome man, his long hair tied with a golden hairpin. He was draped in flowing imperial robes of shimmering gold, and his skin, seemingly carved from flawless jade, radiated an otherworldly brilliance. Yet, his eyes burned fiercely, twin infernos that reflected the destructive power he wielded.
Renly's gaze remained steady as the colossal figure stepped forward. With each stride, the earth trembled and cracked beneath its weight, flames bursting forth with every footfall.
Renly scoffed softly, his tone laced with disdain.
"Tsk, what kind of god will you call yourself? I know mortal lives are insignificant, but can't you at least have some leniency towards those who worship you?"
The towering figure paused, its presence overwhelming as it gazed down at Renly.
"Azyran god, your kind, has no place in this great universe."
A voice echoed and permeated out as the massive figure approached. Although the figure hadn't opened its mouth to speak, the words that had just come out seemed beyond doubt to have emerged from it. It was as if the very air had acted according to its will, conveying it's intent.
Renly's face darkened.
"And what gives you, a punny little Divinity Realm deity, the audacity to say that?" he scoffed.
The colossal figure responded with a sound that mimicked laughter, deep, sinister, and commanding. The very air tightened before erupting outward, rippling with oppressive force.
"You ancient gods," it boomed, "the era of your kind ended alongside the old universe. You are no longer recognized by the will of this cosmos, stripped of the true Authority that once defined you. What is strength without Authority? It is meaningless. Today, you will fall at my hands, destined to become a supplement for my divine will, just as other Azyran gods before you."
Renly sank into contemplation, his sharp eyes narrowing as the weight of the figure's words bore down on him.
To some extent, he couldn't deny the truth. Ever since regaining his memories in this body, he had felt the universe itself resisting him, as if a cage encased his power, suppressing the might he once commanded.
The divine realm was a ruthless hierarchy where gods devoured each other to ascend. The stronger one became, the harder it was to climb higher, unless they consumed the energy of other gods as supplements to break this barrier. This unyielding competition explained why even a Divinity Realm god dared challenge him now.
But still, the being before him was gravely mistaken to think he would be easy prey. Constraints or not, a god of the Divinity Realm was but an ant before his might. He wasn't just any god, he had once been unparalleled, even in the old universe.
'I can defeat him, but these constraints mean I'll need to go all out. And if I do, the damage to my perception will worsen. I'll risk losing my memories entirely, and once they're gone, so am I.' Renly thought grimly.
He sighed, the weight of his predicament settling on him.
'I must take extreme measures. As one whose power resides in memory, losing them would erase me from existence. My only option now is to seal them. But how? How can I seal my memories without sacrificing my strength?'
The thought stirred a flicker of resolve within him, and a sinister smile crept across his face. He raised his gaze to meet the colossal figure.
"For a Divinity Realm, you've made a rookie mistake," he said, his tone chilling yet brimming with confidence. "Do you think all gods are the same? Do you know what they called me in the old universe?"
The atmosphere shifted as Renly's aura erupted like a tidal wave. A dark-red energy, thick as blood and shadow, coiled around him, churning with malevolence. His pupils elongated into vertical slits, and his once-human features twisted into something feral and terrifying.
"I am the Supreme Dragon God of Annihilation," he declared, his voice resonating with unearthly power. "I shall devour your Authority and claim my place in this universe."
With those words, he launched himself into the air, a streak of dark light. The ground beneath him cratered, shattering under the force of his ascent.
The colossal figure narrowed its glowing eyes, raising one massive arm toward the heavens.
"Sun's True Flame, Saber of the Heavens,"
A pillar of blinding flame erupted from its hand, stretching skyward before taking shape. The flames solidified into a massive saber, glowing with divine ferocity and burning with intent to destroy.
"Cleave all entities asunder," the figure commanded, swinging the flaming blade downward with devastating force.
Renly surged forward, undeterred. His grin widened, revealing sharp fangs where his teeth had been. The aura surrounding him cackled with energy, so intense that the air itself seemed to dissolve into nothingness. His expression twisted further into madness as he raised a bare hand to intercept the saber.
The two forces collided midair in a cataclysmic burst, one an unstoppable will, the other an unyielding force. The impact unleashed a shockwave of divine energy so powerful that it rippled through what was left of the entire city.