KamiKowa: That Time I Got Transmigrated With A Broken Goddess

The morning brought no warmth, only the pale gray light that passed for dawn in Frostfall. Xavier crouched at the cave entrance, studying the valley spread below them. Snow had fallen during the night, covering their tracks and erasing any sign of the dimensional tear that had brought them here.

His breath misted in the air as he scanned the treeline for movement. No Vorthaks. No Thornbeasts. Nothing but endless white and the skeletal fingers of pine branches reaching toward an indifferent sky.

Xavier pushed to his feet, snow crunching under his boots. They needed to move soon. Ashley required proper healing, the kind that only came from temple priests or skilled medics. Their supplies wouldn't last another day.

Behind him, voices drifted from the cave—Naomi's practical tones mixing with the occasional soft response from Ashley. At least she was conscious now. That was progress.

Xavier took one last look at the valley, then turned back toward the—

What curious creatures these mortals are.

The thought slammed into his mind like a pickaxe through ice. Cold. Alien. Definitely not his own.

Xavier's hand flew to the back of his neck, fingers pressing against cloth and leather as if he could somehow touch the mark burning beneath. The foreign consciousness pressed deeper, examining his thoughts like a scholar dissecting a specimen.

So much fear. So much... attachment. How do they function with such limitations?

"No." Xavier spoke aloud, his voice sharp in the mountain air. He forced his thoughts inward, building walls around his mind. "Get out."

The presence recoiled slightly, surprised by his resistance. For a moment, Xavier felt something vast and ancient regard him with renewed interest. Then, mercifully, it withdrew.

Xavier sagged against the cave wall, staring at his own hands. They trembled with a life of their own, his fingers refusing to clench into a fist. The mark wasn't just tracking him. It was trying to understand him. To learn from him.

To change him.

"Xavier?" Naomi's voice came from deeper in the cave. "Everything alright out there?"

He straightened, forcing steadiness into his posture. "Fine. Just checking the weather."

But as he walked back into the cave, Xavier knew he was anything but fine. The mark was getting stronger. More invasive. How long before he couldn't push it out? How long before those alien thoughts became indistinguishable from his own?

The cave felt warm after the bitter cold outside. Their fire had burned down to embers, but the stone walls held heat well. Ashley sat propped against the far wall, wrapped in both their spare cloaks and what remained of their blankets. Her face was pale, dark circles under her eyes, but the golden fractures had faded to barely visible lines along her jawline.

Naomi knelt beside their scattered supplies, sorting items into neat piles. Her purple hair fell forward as she worked, hiding her expression.

"How bad is it?" Xavier asked, nodding toward the inventory.

"Bad." Naomi held up a small cloth bag. "Half a loaf of travel bread. Some dried meat, maybe two days' worth if we're careful. One water skin." She gestured to a smaller pile. "Medical supplies are basically gone. Used most of the bandages on Ashley."

Xavier crouched beside the fire, adding a few pieces of their dwindling firewood. "We need to move today."

"Ashley's not ready for hard travel."

"I know." Xavier glanced at their injured companion. Ashley's blue eye tracked his movement but she didn't speak. "But we can't stay here. The Knight knows where we are."

"The Knight dismissed us," Naomi said. "If it wanted us dead—"

"It doesn't want us dead." Xavier's voice came out harsher than intended. Both women looked at him sharply. "It wants something else."

Naomi set down the supply bag, her golden eyes narrowing. "What aren't you telling me?"

Xavier opened his mouth to deflect, to make some joke about paranoia, but the words died in his throat. The alien presence had retreated, but its echo still lingered. Cold curiosity. Clinical detachment. The way a researcher might study insects under glass.

"Xavier." Naomi's voice became softer. "You're not okay. Don't lie to me."

Ashley shifted against the cave wall, turning her attention toward them. Waiting.

Xavier ran a hand through his dark hair, buying time. These women had followed him into danger. Naomi had exhausted herself saving them. Ashley had nearly died trying to protect people who were already beyond help. They deserved the truth.

"The mark," Xavier said finally. "It's not just watching me. I think... I think it's trying to teach me."

"Teach you what?"

"How to think like it." Xavier touched the back of his neck again. "Just now, outside. I felt its thoughts in my head. Alien. Cold. It was studying my fear, my attachments, like they were fascinating specimens."

Naomi's expression hardened. "Psychic corruption."

"You've heard of it?"

"Warriors who came back from the deep north changed. Different. They'd sit in taverns, staring at people like they were puzzles to be solved instead of..." She gestured vaguely. "Instead of people."

Ashley made a soft sound—not quite a word, but enough to draw their attention. When they looked at her, she was pointing at herself with one trembling finger.

"What is it?" Xavier moved closer.

"Broken," Ashley whispered. Her voice was barely audible, each word an effort. "Like me. Covenant... shattered."

"That's different," Naomi said gently. "Your ability backfired. This is—"

"Same." Ashley's blue eyes met Xavier's. "Something... foreign. Trying to... reshape."

Ashley was right. Her Guardian Covenant had been corrupted by feedback, forcing alien patterns into her mind. The Soul Mark was doing something similar to him—slowly, insidiously introducing thoughts that weren't his own.

"Can it be fixed?" he asked.

Ashley closed her eyes, concentrating. When she spoke again, her voice was slightly stronger. "Hearthome. Efler... knew things. Fire Priests. Temple archives."

"You think they have answers?"

"Hope they do." Ashley touched one of the fading golden lines on her arm. "Can't stay broken. Can't protect... anyone like this."

The cave fell silent except for the crackling of the fire.

"Then we go to Hearthome," Xavier said finally.

"With what supplies?" Naomi gestured to their meager stores. "What transportation? We're three days from the city at best, probably more in this weather."

"We find a way." Xavier stood, decision crystallizing. "Let me scout for our horses. They might still be around here."

Outside, the morning air bit at his exposed skin. Xavier followed their tracks backward from the cave, looking for any sign of Smoke and Ember.

He found Smoke first, the gray gelding standing patiently beside a cluster of pine trees. The horse looked up as Xavier approached, ears pricked forward in recognition.

"Good boy." Xavier ran his hands along Smoke's neck, checking for injuries. The horse seemed unharmed, though his coat was dusted with snow. "Where's your friend?"

Smoke whickered softly and turned his head toward the deeper woods. Xavier followed his gaze and spotted tracks in the snow—hoofprints leading away from the cave and into the forest.

Ember's trail was easy to follow at first. The bay mare had wandered in a relatively straight line, probably looking for shelter or food. But as Xavier tracked deeper into the woods, the prints became erratic. Doubling back. Circling. The behavior of a frightened animal.

Xavier crouched beside a particularly clear print, studying the edges. Fresh. Maybe an hour old. Ember was close.

A soft nicker came from ahead, beyond a thick stand of pine trees. Xavier pushed through the branches, snow cascading from the disturbed boughs, and found Ember standing in a small clearing. She looked unharmed but skittish, ears swiveling at every sound.

"Easy, girl." Xavier approached slowly, hands visible. "Let's get you back to—"

The Soul Mark flared again, stronger this time. Xavier stumbled, one hand pressed to his head as foreign thoughts crashed through his mental defenses.

Interesting. The specimen shows attachment even to lesser creatures. How does such inefficiency evolve? Such... weakness?

The alien consciousness pushed deeper, examining Xavier's concern for the horse. Dissecting it. Trying to understand the emotional connection between human and animal.

Xavier gritted his teeth, fighting back. "My thoughts. My mind."

For now.

The presence withdrew, but not completely. Xavier could feel it lurking at the edges of his consciousness, patient and inexorable as winter itself.

Ember whinnied, sensing his distress. Xavier forced himself to calm down, approaching the mare with steady movements. She allowed him to take her reins, though her ears remained pinned back nervously.

"I know," Xavier murmured, stroking her neck. "Something's wrong with me. But we're going to fix it."

The trek back to the cave gave Xavier time to think. The Soul Mark was getting stronger, more aggressive. Soon he might not be able to fight it off. And if Ashley was right about the Fire Priests having answers, they needed to reach Hearthome quickly.

When he returned to the cave leading both horses, Naomi was already packing their remaining supplies. Ashley sat straighter, more alert than she'd been since the village.

"Any problems?" Naomi asked, tying their bundle to Smoke's saddle.

Nothing I can't handle."

It wasn't quite a lie. Not yet.

"Good." Naomi helped Ashley to her feet, supporting her weight. "Because we have a long ride ahead of us."

Ashley leaned heavily on Naomi but managed to stand. Her blue eyes found Xavier's. "Thank you for not leaving us."

"We stick together," Xavier said. "No matter what."

As they prepared to leave the cave, Xavier caught Naomi watching him with a concerned expression. She knew he wasn't telling them everything. But she also knew when to push and when to wait.

For now, she waited.

They mounted up carefully, Ashley riding double with Naomi while Xavier took point on Smoke. The horses were eager to move, sensing their riders' urgency.

As they rode away from the cave, Xavier felt the Soul Mark pulse once more. Not painful this time. Almost... approving. As if the alien consciousness was pleased with his decision to continue the journey.

That thought disturbed him more than the pain ever had.

Behind him, Ashley's voice was barely audible over the wind. "Hearthome has answers. Has to."

The horses carried them south through the snow, three riders bound together by necessity and something deeper. Behind them, the cave grew smaller until it disappeared entirely, just another shadow in the endless white of Frostfall.

Ahead lay Hearthome, answers, and hopefully salvation.

If they could reach it before Xavier lost himself entirely.