The moment Kael touched the fragment—
The world disappeared.
Light swallowed everything.
Not the violent kind.
Not like the energy storms or shattered skies he had grown used to.
This was different.
Silent.
Endless.
White.
Kael stood alone in it, his hand still half-raised as if the fragment was there… but it wasn't.
"…Again?" he muttered.
His voice echoed strangely, like it didn't belong to him.
Then the white cracked.
Thin black lines spread across the empty space, like fractures in glass.
And through those cracks—
Memories began to leak.
---
He was no longer Kael.
He was standing high above the clouds.
Floating.
The sky wasn't broken here.
It was whole.
Beautiful.
Nine massive thrones hovered in the heavens, each radiating immense power. Figures sat upon them—shapes made of light and authority, their presence alone bending reality.
Gods.
In front of them stood someone else.
A man.
No… not just a man.
Something far more.
His figure was blurred, like the memory itself refused to show him clearly. But his presence—
It was overwhelming.
Even the gods were tense.
One of the thrones spoke, its voice echoing like thunder.
"You have gone too far."
The man laughed softly.
"And you have not gone far enough."
Another god rose.
"You would destroy everything."
The man tilted his head slightly.
"I would free it."
The sky trembled.
Chains appeared across the heavens.
Massive.
Endless.
Locking something beyond the sky itself.
The same chains Kael had seen before.
The gods raised their hands together.
Power gathered.
Not to attack the man—
But to reinforce the seal.
The man's voice dropped.
Cold now.
"So you choose fear."
The first god answered.
"We choose survival."
Silence.
Then—
The man moved.
The memory shattered into chaos.
---
Kael gasped as the white space fractured violently around him.
The scene changed again.
Now he stood on a battlefield.
The sky was broken.
Burning.
One of the nine thrones had fallen.
Shattered pieces of it lay across the ground like ruins.
And at the center of it all—
That same man.
Standing alone.
Covered in wounds.
Surrounded by the remaining gods.
One of them stepped forward.
"You cannot win."
The man laughed weakly.
"I already did."
He lifted his hand—
And the sky cracked.
Not from power.
From impact.
Like something from beyond was pressing against it.
Trying to get in.
The gods panicked.
"You've doomed us all!"
The man's voice echoed one last time.
"No…"
His gaze lifted toward the breaking heavens.
"…you did."
Then—
Darkness swallowed everything.
---
Kael dropped to one knee.
The white world collapsed around him, shattering like glass.
Reality rushed back.
The crater.
The broken valley.
The fragment in his hand.
He sucked in a sharp breath, his entire body trembling.
"…That wasn't just a memory," he whispered.
It felt real.
Too real.
Like he had been there.
Like he had seen the truth.
The fragment dimmed slightly in his grip, its energy now calmer… almost obedient.
Kael slowly stood.
The Broken Heaven Energy inside him had changed again.
It felt deeper now.
Heavier.
More… aware.
The voice returned.
But softer this time.
Closer.
"Now you see."
Kael's jaw tightened.
"You fought them," he said under his breath.
"They sealed me."
Kael shook his head.
"No. They sealed something else."
Silence.
Then—
"Does it matter?"
Kael didn't answer.
Because for the first time—
He wasn't sure.
---
A faint sound reached his ears.
Footsteps.
Kael's head snapped up.
He wasn't alone anymore.
At the edge of the crater, the fragment hunters who had fled earlier were slowly returning.
And they weren't alone this time.
More figures appeared behind them.
Stronger.
More organized.
Their robes were darker, marked with sharp, unfamiliar symbols.
One of them stepped forward, resting a curved blade on his shoulder.
His eyes locked onto Kael instantly.
"Well now," he said with a grin.
"Looks like we came back just in time."
Kael straightened slowly, still holding the fragment.
The man's gaze dropped to it.
And his smile widened.
"That belongs to us."
Kael let out a quiet breath.
"…Here we go again."
The Broken Heaven Energy stirred inside him.
Not wild.
Not out of control.
Focused.
Ready.
He tightened his grip on Skybreaker with his free hand.
"Come take it."
The man chuckled.
"Oh, we will."
Behind him, the group spread out, surrounding the crater.
Kael stood at the center.
Alone.
But this time—
Not unsure.
Not hesitant.
The sky above remained broken.
The world around him was already changing.
And whatever truth he had just seen…
It had only made one thing clear.
This path—
There was no turning back.
The man raised his hand.
"Kill him."
And they moved.