Dust spiraled in the wind as Raiga and Zapero stood across from the three strangers—Kamau, Josh, and Acro. The air buzzed with tension, the kind only born when fate twists its gaze upon mortals.
Acro stepped forward, eyes calculating, voice calm.
"We heard the names. Raiga. Zapero. Let's see if they're worth remembering."
The battle erupted with no warning—Acro barely moved, yet every step he took cut off options like a perfect trap. Kamau vanished into illusions, twisting the battlefield itself with his deceptions. Josh struck from the shadows, his Void Flow erasing presence like breath in the cold.
Zapero and Raiga fought side by side. Raiga's fists sparked with raw determination, but something was missing—his strikes had no edge, no awakening. Kamau's phantom misdirection sent him flying. Josh's silence became thunder in motion. Acro didn't even need to attack; he simply predicted, blocked, and let Raiga crumble under the weight of perfect foresight.
Raiga fell to one knee, bloodied and winded. His golden eyes flickered with disbelief.
"I'm... not enough."
But in that moment, Zapero stepped forward—not with rage, but resolve.
His body pulsed with heat—not from the outside, but from within.
His awakening had begun.
Void cracked around him as golden flames rippled through his limbs. The air around him warped.
Personality: Unbreakable.Heart: Boundless.Potential: Godlike.
With no divine blood, he still rose. Power from nothing but grit.
"Stay down, Raiga. I've got this."
His fists moved with fire that obeyed will, not origin. Every strike cracked illusions, disrupted predictions, and forced Kamau and Josh to retreat. Even Acro's eyes gleamed—not with threat, but interest.
But numbers wore even giants down. As Raiga tried to rise, Zapero grabbed him—slung him over his shoulder—and ran.
Not in shame, but survival. Because wars are not won in a single night.
Acro watched them disappear into the hills, a rare smirk playing at his lips.
"That one... he might just become a king."
From afar, behind a stone ridge, Shema stood alone. His cloak fluttered in the rising wind, eyes calm as twilight.
He had seen enough.
His gaze turned skyward, where clouds swirled like a crown around an ancient peak. There, hidden beyond the veil of mortal sight, stood the Gate—massive, solemn, and pulsing with celestial breath.
It was said to be the entrance to Heaven Ascend Tower.Each floor held three trials—tests of soul, spirit, and strength. Only those who conquered all three could ascend to the next, shedding their former self and stepping closer to godhood.
Shema's voice was a whisper laced with destiny.
"Then it's time I opened that gate… and proved I belong among the stars."
Elsewhere, Kamau leaned on a rock, smirking. Acro sat cross-legged, while Josh stood like a statue.
"They don't even know," Kamau said, chuckling. "About the Towers."
Acro nodded. "Two towers… one rises to heaven, one descends into madness."
"Heaven Ascend," Kamau added, "for those seeking godhood. Each floor, three brutal tests."
"And below…" Acro's voice darkened, "Demonic Ascend. A descent into chaos. Conquer enough floors, and you don't just become a Demon Lord… you become an Overlord—a god-slayer who rejects the divine rule."
Josh said nothing. But his eyes burned with quiet knowledge.
"There are only three ways to become a god," Acro finished. "Climb the tower. Be born of divine blood. Or…" he paused, eyes glinting, "Kill one."
And so, the world spun, shifting on hidden gears of war, gods, and fate.