ch 87

The air hummed with anticipation as Raelen stood upon the battlefield, his form casting a long shadow in the setting sun. The ground was littered with the remnants of battle, the broken bodies of Zaros’s generals strewn like fallen leaves in the wake of a storm. Raelen’s eyes, cold and calculating, scanned the wreckage of the skirmish as his fingers twitched with the urge to unleash further power, but the fight had already ended. It had ended before it had even begun.

The generals had come with fire in their eyes, their armies swarming to overwhelm him. But they had underestimated not only his power but his control. Each of them had thought they could challenge him, that their strength could rival the awakened might of Raelen’s lineage. How foolish they were.

He had heard them shout their commands, seen their futile attempts to rally their troops, but he had not moved—at least not in the way they expected. Raelen had watched them form strategies and posture as if they were the ones in charge of the battlefield. But before they could even step into position, Raelen had already won. His powers, awakened by his lineage, had surged with a force he could not entirely comprehend, yet instinctively knew how to wield.

In the blink of an eye, the generals had been wiped from existence, their bodies disintegrating as their very essence was erased from the fabric of reality itself. Their screams had been cut short, their forms vanishing into nothingness like shadows fleeing from the light. Raelen had merely raised his hand, muttered a phrase he had not understood fully but felt deep within his bones, and the rest had been… history.

He had used his new ability to erase existence—an ability tied to his ancient bloodline. It was raw, untapped power, something that had been dormant for far too long. Now, as Raelen surveyed the aftermath of the battle, the thrill of victory began to fade, and the weight of his thoughts pressed upon him.

This wasn’t over. This was just a prelude.

The winds shifted, carrying the scent of destruction with them, but Raelen barely noticed. His mind was elsewhere, swirling in the complexity of what had just occurred. His lineage… His powers… How much more potential did he have? And where had it come from?

Raelen had always known that there was something different about him. In his previous life, his master had told him of a hidden power, one that coursed through his veins like a river of flame, waiting to be unlocked. But he hadn’t known it would feel like this—this overwhelming surge of energy, the sense of the cosmos bending to his will. It was not just strength; it was the ability to manipulate the very essence of existence itself.

“I can feel it,” Raelen muttered under his breath. “This power—this is more than what I’ve seen in my previous life. It’s something else.”

As his gaze fell on the remains of the battlefield, he could hear the echoes of his master's words in his mind. *Your bloodline is special, Raelen. It holds the key to powers beyond your understanding. One day, you will awaken them all. But be careful, for such power is a double-edged sword.*

Raelen clenched his fist. His bloodline. It was the key. But how could he unlock the full extent of it? He had only scratched the surface, and already, he had erased enemies from existence as though they were nothing more than fleeting thoughts. But there was so much more—he could feel it in his core, thrumming like the pulse of an ancient god.

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But how? How would he awaken the full potential of his powers?

His thoughts were interrupted by a presence—a slight shifting in the air behind him. He turned, his hand already reaching for his blade, but it was unnecessary. It was just Nephthys, appearing before him like a wraith, her regal form standing tall against the darkening sky. She had appeared out of nowhere, as if she had always been there, her cosmic energy surrounding her like an ethereal halo.

“Raelen,” she said softly, her voice cutting through the silence. “You’ve done well.”

Raelen didn’t immediately respond, his eyes narrowing as he took her in. He could sense the weight of her gaze, the way her cosmic power clung to the very air around them. There was something about her that was almost suffocating, an omnipresence that threatened to swallow him whole. Yet, despite the vastness of her power, Raelen did not feel fear. Instead, there was curiosity, a desire to understand what he was truly capable of.

“I don’t feel like I’ve done enough,” Raelen replied slowly, his voice low, as though testing the words as much as speaking them. “There’s so much more within me—so much power I can’t yet control. I can feel it, deep within my bloodline. But I don’t know how to unlock it.”

Nephthys stepped closer, her presence commanding yet somehow comforting. “That is because your powers are not of this world, Raelen. They are born from a bloodline older than time itself, and the key to awakening them lies not in force, but in understanding.”

Raelen listened carefully, his focus entirely on her. “Understanding?”

“Yes,” Nephthys continued, her voice laced with the kind of wisdom that only an eternal being could possess. “Your bloodline was forged in the primordial fires of creation, and it is infinite in potential. The powers you have unlocked—the erasure of existence itself—are merely a glimpse of what lies within you. But to awaken the rest, you must first understand your purpose. You must understand the true nature of your being.”

Raelen frowned, stepping back slightly. “My purpose? I thought I was simply meant to stop Zaros and protect your multiverse.”

Nephthys shook her head, her eyes gleaming like twin stars. “That is a part of your purpose, yes. But you are more than that. You are the bridge between the realms—the thread that holds the fabric of existence together. Your bloodline is a remnant of the primordial beings who shaped the cosmos. You carry the weight of all creation within you.”

Raelen closed his eyes, trying to absorb her words. The weight of what she said was staggering. To be the bridge between realms… To be a remnant of primordial beings. It was a burden he had not asked for, but one that now lay on his shoulders, nonetheless.

“I see,” he murmured, though he still felt lost. “But how do I unlock this power? How do I awaken the rest of my abilities?”

Nephthys placed a hand on his shoulder, her touch sending a ripple of energy through him. “You must trust in yourself, Raelen. The power lies within you. You have always known it, even in your past life. Now, you must allow it to come forth. The first step is acceptance. Accept that you are not just a mage. You are a vessel for powers beyond understanding. And only by embracing that truth will you awaken the rest.”

Raelen nodded slowly, though his mind was still racing. There was so much he didn’t understand, so much he had to learn. But one thing was clear—he was no longer just a warrior in a world of mortals. He was a force of nature, a being whose very existence could alter the fabric of reality itself.

And he had to learn how to wield it.

Nephthys stepped back, her eyes gleaming with an otherworldly light. “The time will come, Raelen. You will face trials—great challenges that will test the limits of your power. But when the time is right, you will know. Trust in the bloodline that runs through you.”

Raelen watched her disappear into the ether, her figure fading into the darkening sky. He was alone once more, but now, he knew what he had to do. The path ahead was uncertain, but he would walk it, step by step, until he unlocked the full extent of his power.

The war was far from over. In fact, it had only just begun.