Broken Core [LitRPG • Cultivation • Post Apocalyptic • Romance]

James felt lost in a river of white light. He could feel the difference in his body, and he watched as his withered, near dead, systems and body started to rebuild itself. His bones hardened to levels that were insurmountable. Muscle thickened and replenished, giving him a sculpted look. Organs were tempered and his skin was nearly indestructible as he ventured into his soul, or lack thereof.

The usual flickering flame was no longer present and it took a moment of panic before he found it again. His flame was no longer in his stomach and chest because his whole body was the flame. Every cell in his body burned with power so strongly that it didn't have a color. The energy didn't make sense, and he knew he had reached the immortal soul.

The blazing white light faded around him, and he found himself standing in a forest as his eyes adjusted. All around him were passed out dragons, animals, and his two mates. Coral was curled into a ball, her broken shield and spear by her side. Priest had collapsed next to her, his energy completely drained.

Amber and Zenaria were holding each other as they shared expressions of peace, their bodies still bleeding and refusing to heal. With a small frown, he stepped up to his girls and touched their shoulders. He didn't know why it worked so easily, but healing energy washed over the ladies, repairing their bodies perfectly.

Zenaria was the first to snap her eyes open. "James?"

Amber followed a second later and looked up at him before breaking down. Tears streamed down her face, dripping from her chin as she reached out for him.

"Hey," he said softly. "I don't remember much, but I assume we reached the rent?"

Nodding, Zenaria wrapped her arms around Amber. "We thought we lost you. You were so weak at the end, and the energy was consuming your body." Closing her eyes, she started crying as well. "We did everything we could…"

Kneeling, he wiped their cheeks. "It's okay now. I'm better."

"Are you immortal?" Amber asked weakly.

"I am." Resting his hand between her ears, he smiled. "And you know what that means."

Both girls stopped crying as they took in their surroundings. "Where are we?" Zenaria asked.

"I don't know," he admitted. Standing, he panned his gaze over the forest with a frown. It all seemed very familiar, yet distant. Snow was lingering on the ground as all of the nearby souls were hibernating and resting.

For a brief moment, he spread out his soul and gasped. He had to quickly draw it back in as he reached for miles and thousands of souls flooded his vision, making him stagger.

Amber grabbed him in her panic. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," he said after a moment. "Spread out my soul too far. It felt like there was no limit on how far it could go, and I had to stop."

"How do we bring back the others," Zenaria questioned.

Rubbing his chin, James scanned their forest once again. Settling on a spot just outside the ring of dragons, he smiled. "We bring the temple to us."

"It's inside your body," Amber stated. "How does that work?"

Pulling up his character sheet, James paused.

Name: James Matson: God of Souls

Soul Strength: Immortal

"I don't know," he said with worry. "I don't have any skills anymore, yet I know I can do stuff with my soul."

"You're a god," Zenaria said with a chuckle. "Why would you need skills now?"

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With a weak smile, James focused on the area of his choice. If Zenaria was right, he'd simply be able to will his Soul Temple into existence, bringing back their loved ones.

It started off slowly as the ground rumbled and trees toppled over. He severely miscalculated how big the temple was. The dragons that were in the way quickly woke and hurried out of the area as an old gothic designed temple rose from the ground. What should have only been a city block sized building, turned into a quarter mile square of towering walls, sharp points, and decals that he would never be able to replicate.

The white marble was flecked with silver, gold, and violet. Dirt refused to cling to the temple as it settled into place, the entrance facing him. It only took a moment after the rumbling stopped for the front doors to open.

Zenaria and Amber gasped by his side as a snow white Fenrir stepped out, her soul matching James's. As for James, he didn't hesitate to rush forward and scoop Luna into his arms.

Burying his face into her neck, he started to cry. "You're back…"

"I am," she sniffled. Both of their shirts started to grow wet from each other, but it wasn't until a throat cleared near the temple doors that they pulled apart.

Jamie was the next one out, her bouncing steps carrying her over to him. "How much did you miss me?"

Letting luna go, he picked up his sister and spun her around, making her squeal in delight. Mender was out next, shaking his head as he embraced James and Jamie in a tight hug.

"Where are we?" Mender questioned.

"Beats me," James answered.

"Don't forget about us," a soft voice said from the door.

Turning, James found Grace walking over, her tail swaying happily behind her. The black and white fur and hair brought back so many memories that James let go of Jamie and opened his arms for skunk.

Grace didn't hesitate to throw herself at him, burying her face into his chest. "I missed you."

"I missed you too," he whispered.

Linda laughed as she came out, her hand was locked with Bronsons. The oni was beaming as his brothers followed, bringing the family back together. But it wasn't until flapping wings greeted them that they all looked up and found a flock of vultures settling on the spires of the temple.

"Strong Beak," James murmured. "He made it."

The giant vulture dropped to the ground, his gray feathers standing out as he bowed his head.

James didn't hesitate to walk over to the bird and rub his head. "I'm so happy to see you again. What you did…I can't thank you enough."

"He says he would do it again."

Whipping around at the new voice, James spotted Shadow Paw walking over.

"What's wrong, never seen a talking panther before?" Shadow Paw teased.

"You evolved," James stated.

"A month ago. You weren't exactly with us during that time."

Walking over to the panther, James dropped down and hugged him. "How are your children?"

"They are good. They are growing stronger every day. Nala will be excited to see you standing again. She's been nuzzling you more than your mates have."

Chuckling, James looked around his group. "I need to introduce you to a few people." Turning his attention to Coral, who was standing awkwardly a dozen feet away, James waved her over. "Coral, this is the rest of the family. Everyone, the pink haired woman is Coral. She's a master with her spear and shield."

Walking over, Coral bowed her head. "H-hello, everyone."

Luna straightened her stance and stepped up to the woman. "So, you're the one that made it possible for James to reach Australia?"

"Yes…"

The Fenrir wrapped Coral in a hug so tight that she stopped breathing. James could have sworn he heard bones creaking before Luna let her go. "I can't thank you enough! If you need anything, anything at all, just ask."

Coral sucked in a shaky breath. "N-no more hugs…"

Laughing, Luna touched the woman's shoulder and healed her, making Coral gasp.

"Are the rest of the dragons waking up?" James questioned. Priest was still passed out and it didn't look like Mother or Father were stirring yet.

"Only a few are awake," Shadow Paw answered. "Leave them to rest. They used all of their energy to ensure you could absorb the energy."

Nodding, James turned back to the temple. "We need to have a meeting. And after that, I want to explore this place and see how you all have been living."

Jamie skipped forward and took his hand. "I'll show you to the central room!"

Luna cleared her throat, making his sister freeze in place and start shivering. James cocked his brow as Luna stepped up to him and took his hand from Jamie's. "I'll be showing him."

"Yes, ma'am!" Jamie squeaked.

Rolling his eyes, James started walking. Luna kept his hand in hers while batting his back with her tail.

"This will be a short meeting, right?" she asked.

James nodded. "It better be. I feel the need to retire with my wife."

"One whole day," she stated. "We are not leaving our room for one whole day after we start."

"What about the rest of us?" Amber asked.

The air grew heavy, pressure descending on all of them as Luna slowly turned toward the nekorian. "This wasn't up for debate."

Amber gulped and forcefully kept standing. "Understood."

The pressure vanished and Luna started smiling again. "You can move in with us after I'm done with my first day. How does that sound?"

Zenaria was the first to run forward. "Do you mean it?"

"Yes. A few of us have plenty to talk about and rules to lay down. Just one day. That's all I'm taking before we have that talk."

"Do I get a choice?" James asked.

Luna turned toward him and laughed. "Oh, Honey, you don't have a choice over any of this. It's sweet of you to care though."

Grumbling, he started walking again.