I kicked the sand, splattering it everywhere. I was angry, scared, confused… I was… I don’t know. I was feeling way too much, way too many things at the moment. A part of me blamed my teenager body but I wasn’t sure it was it.

William.

That fucker.

Who brought him here? Demons? Some other deity I didn’t know? Or maybe it was fate.

I knew that I had to discuss his existence with others. We should put our heads together and come up with a plan to counter his abilities and find what his plan was.

“Yet you are here alone in the dark.”

A voice rang in my head. Yes, I was at the beach I trained regularly alone, walking in the darkness. I wasn’t sure how I got here. I took off after learning about William and I was here. Everything between was a blur.

I kicked the sand again, watching it scatter into the darkness. The beach, usually a place of solace for me, felt oppressive tonight. The waves crashed against the shore, their rhythmic sound doing little to calm the storm inside me.

Was I angry because he was here and hurt my comrades? Or was I angry that one of my failures came back to hunt me?

“I was so close…”

Just before the invasion started I thought of letting the burdens I carried from Earth go. Earth was finished, the last person alive there was me and I died and reincarnated here. I thought that only reminders of my failures, responsibilities, and burdens were my memories, I could let it all go and focus on saving this world.

But he was here. The person who was one of the reasons why human resistance failed. The reason for my best friend’s death. I stomped the ground. The voice in my head, the one that had been my constant companion since I was the last survivor on the Earth, whispered again, "You cannot escape your past. It follows you, even here."

It was tiring. To move forward while carrying all of it. I sat down, though it may be more accurate to say I threw myself to the ground.

“Poyraz.”

A voice called out to me. When I turned to it I saw two golden eyes glaring at me through the darkness.

“Morrigan.”

She took several steps to me, allowing me to see her clearly with the help of my Night Vision.

“Are you okay?”

She approached with a mixture of concern and determination etched on her face. I let out a small chuckle.

“Do you want the automatic reply or the truth?”

She sat down beside me.

“The truth.”

I slowly blinked and took a deep breath.

“I am old, Morrigan. I am not sure how much I or Lily talked to you about it but I was in my 70s when I died. More than 50 years of it was wasted fighting for a war I have lost. Humans, we are not meant to lose as much as me, feel as much as me. I get up every morning and it takes everything have to just get up. Every time I see a strong enemy I wonder if that’s it. But it never ends. Fight after fight, enemy after enemy, day after day.”

I stopped and took a deep breath. I looked at Morrigan’s face. She was listening very carefully.

“What do you think about the future, Morrigan? Can you see a future where Whifur is a prosperous city? Can you see beastkin being respected by other races? Can you see yourself happy, surrounded by your family and friends?”

The waves continued to crash against the shore, their sound a backdrop to the heavy silence that followed my question. Morrigan looked thoughtful, her golden eyes reflecting the moonlight as she considered her response.

"I... I don't know," she admitted finally. "I want to believe in that future. I want to think that one day, we can live in peace and be respected. But right now, it's hard to see past the next battle, the next threat.”

I nodded, understanding her hesitation.

“But you can see the possibility. That’s a good thing. I…”

I paused and sighed once again.

“I can no longer imagine a future where I am happy. It doesn’t matter what I do, or which path I take. I just cannot see myself as happy. Hell, I can’t even see myself in a neutral state. Only misery.”

I looked at her eyes. She must be very disappointed with me considering she put a lot of trust in me.

“Pretty pathetic, huh?”

I murmured.

Morrigan's golden eyes softened, and she reached out, placing a comforting hand on my shoulder.

“You are not pathetic at all, Poyraz. I… I also thought that I was weak, and not fit to lead. I felt that way because of many things but the main reason was because I thought that I couldn’t fix everything by myself. Every time I showed any weakness I told myself that I wasn’t enough. But I was wrong. It is normal for mortals like us to show weakness. Even when I showed weakness you, Ama, Börü, and all others helped me, just like how I would help you if you…”

She shook her head, her face reddening.

“I am not good at talking. Or showing emotions. But what I want to say is if it wasn’t for you, I don’t know where I would be. You helped me to change for the better and saved many beastkin. Because of that as long as you move forward, I will support you.”

We stood in silence after that. I didn’t speak because I couldn’t come up with a meaningful response and I think Morrigan was too embarrassed to speak.

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“Thank you, Morrigan.”

I managed to say. I stood up and extended my hand to her. She took it and I helped her to get up.

“I… I actually have something else to say.”

She said while still avoiding looking at my face.

“What is it?”

She took a deep breath as if she was gathering power for what she was about to say.

“Ancestors wants to speak with you.”

…

Ancestors.

Gods of Beastkin.

Despite living among beastkin for some time now, I didn’t know too much about them. That was because beastkin wasn’t religious or worshipped them like other believers. Ancestors were seen as what their name implied, they were the origins of the beastkin. Every distinct type of beastkin had an Ancestor but beastkin respected all of them. They were seen as elder family members every beastkin had to respect and make proud, instead of worshipping them.

“What do they want?” I asked, feeling a mix of curiosity and apprehension. I knew that they were watching me while I purified the souls of 666 beastkin so they shouldn’t be antagonistic towards me. But knowing how powerful a deity can be, I would be stupid to just go to them.

“I don’t know,” Morrigan admitted.

“But I am sure that it is not something malicious. Ancestors are honorable beings and never forget their debts.”

I trusted Morrigan.

“Aliera. Should I go?”

I manifested my holy sword and asked. She was still my boss after all. Morrigan watched me silently. I waited for something to happen but nothing happened. Of course, she wouldn’t answer when I called her.

“I take this as a yes. So, when and how?”

I predicted that the conversation would take place in a mindspace.

“We can do it here now. But will it be okay? Ancestors can be very… intense.”

I stretched my body.

“It is okay. Not the first time I will be in the presence of a deity anyways.”

Morrigan nodded and sat down in a lotus position. She gestured for me to sit in front of her. I mimicked her movements. She extended her hand towards me and I grabbed it. I closed my eyes after she closed hers. We stood still, eyes closed for some time and I wondered when we would be transported to mindspace but then I realized something. The sound of the waves was gone. The ground beneath me also felt different. It was no longer sand that had been cooling off after a hot day, it was softer and damper. The smell of leaves and grass tickled my nose.

“You can open your eyes, Poyraz.”

I opened my eyes, and the beach was gone. In its place was a lush forest, the canopy above thick and vibrant with life. The air was cool and fresh, a stark contrast to the salty breeze of the beach. The soft, damp earth beneath me was covered in a thick layer of leaves and grass.

"Welcome to the domain of the Ancestors," she said, her voice hushed.

It felt ancient and sacred, a place where time moved differently. I looked around, taking in the sheer majesty of the place. Massive trees with gnarled roots and thick trunks stood like sentinels, their branches reaching high into the sky. The atmosphere was charged with mana and a different type of divine power.

“Where are they?”

I asked. When I met with Aliera, she would appear after some time. But it was possible for Ancestors to behave differently.

"Follow me," Morrigan said, leading the way through the dense foliage.

We walked for what felt like hours, though it could have been minutes. Time seemed to be messed up in this place, not surprising considering it took place in our minds. Eventually, we arrived at a clearing, bathed in soft, ethereal light.

Two beastkin looked at us. Morrigan knelt before them, falling to one knee. Before I could follow her lead, the male beastkin sighed.

“I said that you don’t have to bow, child.”

As soon as he opened his mouth something heavy pressed down on every inch of my body. My knees shook and I gritted my teeth.

“Saying that while releasing your presence is contradictory.”

Female one complained and I felt the pressure lift off my body.

“Upss. Sorry about that. Got too excited. You can lift your head, child. You too, human. Step closer, both of you.”

I followed Morrigan while examining the Ancestors. The first one was a male with a robust build. He was naked from the waist up, revealing several scars and tribal markings. He was the same type of beastkin as Morrigan, a jaguar. His feet and hands ended with sharp claws. His black hair was long and wild, resembling a mane. His golden eyes felt like they were piercing right through me. He was smiling but seeing his sharp teeth I remembered that smiling was just another way of flashing teeth. His tail swayed side to side playfully.

“Don’t look away. Don’t show weakness. You will die if you do so.”

He was sitting on top of a rock rather causally yet my mind and instincts shouted warnings at me. The being in front of me was a predator and I shouldn’t do anything to start his prey drive.

Yet, despite the danger I felt from him, his presence couldn’t even hold a candle to female Ancestor. He was the strongest between them but she was more dangerous. She was a fox type with flame-red hair and eyes. Unlike her half-naked companion, she wore an elegant Eastern type of dress that her nine tails poked under. Her hair was tightly made into a stylish bun. But honestly, despite the hairs on my neck standing up, I had to admit that she was gorgeous.

Weirdly enough, she also felt familiar. Where did I… Oh.

The forest. When Ama was casting her magic. The presence I felt was her.