Chapter 1: Death Was Only the Beginning
Hayden's last memory of life was the screech of tires and the blinding crash. Then nothing.
At first, there was silence. No wind. No voices. No heartbeat. Just endless black, stretching farther than his mind could see.
A whisper floated through the void. "You… are the last god."
Hayden froze. "I… what?" His voice sounded foreign, echoing through nothingness.
Suddenly, the darkness shattered. Light and shadow twisted together, forming a figure that hovered before him. Its body flickered like galaxies colliding, and its eyes burned with infinite knowledge.
"Every universe has fallen," it said. "Every hero, every god… dead. You alone remain."
A surge of energy coursed through Hayden's body. He felt stronger than he had ever imagined. He flexed his hands, and the void beneath him responded, bending and warping at his slightest thought.
Golden flames erupted from his fingertips. Black lightning crackled around his arms. The air though there was none seemed to hum with power. Hayden could feel the heartbeat of creation itself, and it pulsed through him.
"I… I can control this?" he whispered, awe-struck.
"Yes," the figure replied. "But power always comes with a cost. They will come for you. Every being who fears you… will hunt you."
Hayden's lips curled into a grin. "Then let them try."
With a thought, entire worlds appeared around him. Mountains formed from thin air. Oceans spilled into valleys. Cities rose from nothingness, their towers gleaming under suns he had yet to create. The void was no longer emptiness it was his playground.
But even as he laughed, a chill ran down his spine. The whisper returned, colder than the darkest abyss:
"Remember… even gods bleed."
Hayden's eyes blazed. He would face anything. He would conquer everything. And nothing no being, no universe, no god would ever stand in his way.
The last god had awakened.