The night had long since settled over the ravaged countryside, and the stars bled faint silver across the torn earth. Liam stood at the edge of a small cliff overlooking a smoldering village below—once a stronghold of the Black Ash Cult. The acrid stench of charred wood and blood thickened the air, but Liam's gaze was cold, distant.
A week had passed since he stormed their outpost, his wrath leaving no soul behind. His followers called it divine judgment. Liam called it necessary.
His spirit companion, Rune, floated beside him, her spectral form flickering faintly with golden light. "You're growing stronger," she said, voice calm but heavy with undertones of concern. "But at what cost?"
Liam didn't look at her. "Whatever it takes."
Rune's form pulsed. "That's what they say, the monsters you hate."
His jaw clenched. "I am not them."
"No," she replied. "Not yet."
[STATS UPDATED]
Name: Liam Carson
Level: 12
Faith Points: 1,240
Followers: 218
Divine Rank: Lesser Divinity
Stats:
Strength: 38
Speed: 45
Endurance: 42
Intelligence: 49
Charisma: 31
Divine Energy: 620/620
Skills:
Creation (Lv. 2): Form basic divine structures or tools.
Enhance (Lv. 3): Temporarily boost stats or weapons.
Destruction (Lv. 2): Smite targets with divine judgment.
Summon Angelic Form (Locked)
Blessing of Fire (Active): Weapons deal bonus flame damage.
Divine Perception (Passive): See faith levels and hidden magic.
As dawn approached, the cries of the injured echoed from the foot of the hill. His camp—formed of a small but growing band of exiles, runaways, and faithful villagers—was recovering after their brutal march. Liam had grown into more than a boy seeking vengeance. He had become a warleader, a symbol of salvation... or fear.
One of his earliest followers, Talia, approached from behind, her crimson armor stained with ash. Her soft auburn curls were tied back, revealing a bruised cheek and tired eyes. "We lost seven yesterday," she murmured. "And people are starting to whisper."
Liam turned to her. "Whisper what?"
"That we're no better than the cult," she said. "They watched you burn prisoners alive."
Liam's voice was hollow. "Those weren't prisoners. They were summoners."
"They were screaming for mercy."
He flinched, just a twitch, but Talia caught it. He looked down at his hands, then out to the smoldering ruin again. "What would you have me do, Talia? Leave them alive to summon demons again?"
"No," she said quietly. "I just don't want to see you become something you can't come back from."
Rune floated between them, nodding. "She's right."
Liam turned sharply. "Why do you both keep questioning me?"
"Because you asked us to keep you human," Talia whispered.
The silence between them thickened.
That night, Liam sat alone by the divine flame he had conjured—a golden fire that burned without wood. He stared into it, and deep within its glow, a vision shimmered.
A girl.
No, the girl. The cultist who had spared him as a child. Long dark hair. Eyes like twilight. A whisper of pity in her gaze as she had turned from him in the burning wreckage of his family estate.
"I will see you again," she had said then.
Now, a whisper returned in the flames.
"You're walking the path I feared you would."
His heart skipped. He whispered aloud, "Who are you?"
The fire flickered violently. The girl's voice echoed again.
"You'll find me at the Temple of Shattered Echoes. If there's anything left of you."
Then silence.
The flame dimmed.
Liam stood up slowly, his eyes glowing faint gold. "We march at sunrise," he said to the flame, "to the Temple."
At the Temple of Shattered Echoes
Two days passed in silence as his group traveled west, past dying lands where cult rituals had drained the soil itself. The Temple stood like a relic of ancient times, towering obsidian spires cracked with age, runes etched deep into its stones.
They approached cautiously. Rune hovered lower than usual, visibly tense. "This place reeks of forgotten gods."
The gates opened before them with a groan. Inside, a single torch burned in the center chamber, and standing in its glow was her—the girl. Older now, but unmistakable.
She turned slowly, wearing dark robes adorned with red and gold. Her eyes—still twilight—met Liam's, but there was no fear. Only sorrow.
"Hello, Liam."
"Twelve years," he said, voice sharp. "Twelve years since you walked away while my family burned."
"I didn't kill them," she said. "I couldn't save them."
"You had the power."
She bowed her head. "I had doubt. And doubt is weakness in the cult. They would've burned me too."
Liam stepped forward, divine energy crackling at his fingertips. "Give me one reason not to destroy you."
She met his gaze, unwavering. "Because I know the truth about the God System. And I know who gave it to you."
Dialogue: The Truth
They sat beneath the torchlight. Talia watched from the shadows. Rune hovered silently.
"My name is Elira," she said. "And I was supposed to be the first."
Liam blinked. "What?"
"The God System… was meant for me. The cult tried to control it, create a god of their own. But I rejected it. It was unstable. Dangerous. So the Spirit—Rune—ripped it from me and fled."
Rune's light flickered. "I did what I had to. Liam was dying. He was the only one who wasn't… tainted."
Liam felt like the ground shifted beneath him. "So I wasn't chosen. I was… convenient?"
"No," Rune said softly. "You became worthy. That's the difference."
Elira continued. "The cult will never stop chasing you. And now, they know you're more than a threat. You're a symbol. They'll unleash their high demon soon."
Liam stood. "Then I'll destroy it."
"You can't," she said. "Not alone."
He stared at her. "Then come with me."
New System Update
[System Alert: Divine Union Possible]
You have encountered another former system bearer.
Faith Link available: [Elira]
Bonding will unlock new shared abilities.
Cost: 500 Faith Points
Proceed?
Liam hesitated. Rune hovered in silence. Talia watched with narrowed eyes.
He whispered: "Proceed."
Faith Points: -500
Bond Created: [Divine Link – Elira]
New Skill Unlocked: Twin Judgment – Unleash a dual divine attack with linked partner.
Elira blinked, a golden rune etching itself into her skin, matching the one on Liam's chest.
"We're connected now," she said. "For better or worse."
Back outside, Liam addressed his army. "We are no longer wandering. We have a purpose. We will break the spine of this cult and every dark god that holds this world captive. And for that, I need your faith. Not just in me—but in what we will become."
A wave of divine energy surged outward, and several followers dropped to their knees, overcome with reverence.
Talia watched with a shadowed expression.
Elira stood beside Liam, uncertain but resolute.
And high above them, in the clouds, something watched.
A massive eye, hidden in divine shadow.
And it blinked.
End of Chapter 25