Kazuki’s body crashes into a massive asteroid, embedding him deep in its surface. Cracks spread like spiderwebs beneath him as he lays there, chest rising slowly.

  His eyes flick to the side—fireballs arc through space, homing in on him.

  He doesn’t move.

  They explode harmlessly against his aura, unable to even bruise him.

  But he isn’t thinking about the fireballs.

  He’s thinking about…

  The Beginning.

  ---

  Flashback – Year 0 of Descent

  They were children. Not by age, but by experience.

  Wandering the vast wilderness, with eyes that once held galaxies, now filled with confusion.

  Birds. Trees. Wind. Hunger.

  So unfamiliar.

  So... fragile.

  Then it came.

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  A glistening slime, moving like liquid muscle. It lunged.

  A slash of pain. Kairyuuha’s arm bled. Kazuki stumbled back, his leg cut.

  > “What… is this sensation?”

  They froze. For the first time in eternity, they felt fear. Weakness. Pain.

  Kairyuuha’s breathing slowed. His mind worked faster.

  The slime lunged again—but this time, he stepped aside. His body moved without knowing why.

  A punch.

  Instinct.

  The slime jiggled and hissed.

  He struck again. Harder. And again.

  No technique. Just resolve.

  The slime splattered, defeated.

  > “That… was a punch,” Kairyuuha panted.

  “It’s a form of physical impact. You use it to hurt things.”

  > Kazuki blinked. “So what was the way you moved away? That part before it hit you?”

  > “Dodging. Avoiding damage. I didn’t know I could do it. But I can.”

  They trained.

  Day after day, in mud and rain, under sun and stars.

  Punches turned into patterns. Movement became fluid. They got stronger, faster—evolving through pain.

  Then came the goblin.

  One unlucky soul, wandering into their path.

  He didn’t last long.

  Punches rained. No mercy.

  Not even strategy—just wild, raw endurance. Kazuki paused, breathing hard.

  > “Was that… a living creature?”

  Kairyuuha noticed something shiny.

  A knife.

  He picked it up, inspecting the metallic gleam.

  He swung it—a shallow cut appeared on his own arm.

  > “So this object… can deal damage too. Not just fists.”

  They began carving their own. Rocks. Stones. Primitive blades.

  Soon, they learned to throw them—extending their range.

  The next time, it wasn’t one goblin.

  It was a pack.

  They were surrounded.

  Kazuki struggled. Exhaustion crept in. Kairyuuha too faltered, sweat dripping.

  > “Humans… they tire. They need food. Shelter. Weak… so weak.”

  He thought back to his celestial form—where energy bent to his will.

  That was it.

  He grabbed a goblin’s wrist—and burned it with raw energy, his instincts igniting once more.

  He punched through the goblin’s skull. Kicked another. Roared.

  Kazuki, inspired, rose, blade in hand, slicing through the remaining enemies.

  When it was over…

  The two boys collapsed against a rock.

  Laughing. Out of breath. Bloodied. Victorious.

  For the first time, they had a taste of something... real.

  Survival. Brotherhood.

  ---

  Present

  The fireballs fade.

  Kazuki, floating above the shattered asteroid, stares out into the dark cosmos.

  He lets out a slow breath.

  > “Even back then… when we knew nothing… you figured out how to survive.”

  > “You learned what pain was… and turned it into strength.”

  He clenches his fists.

  > “You were brilliant, brother.”

  His eyes glow faintly, a soft smile on his face as cosmic winds swirl around him.

  > “But so am I.”