Ben's consciousness emerges from the fog of sleep. His divine body is unchanged, but the same can not be said for his realm.

"How much time has passed?!"

Ben's realm is not as he left it. The trees have spread to cover more of the grassland, and many dead trees litter the forest floor. Glowing mushrooms have sprouted in the dense parts of the forest, and centipedes compete with snakes for prey.

The lake area is similarly altered, but instead of trees it is plagued by eroded banks which create miniature coves. Sedimentary buildup has changed the lake's bottom and formed a variety of fossils.

"Doesn't it take thousands of years for a fossil to form?"

Ben observes the caves of his world with interest; He quickly regrets his decision upon seeing several massive piles of bat guano which have fertilized huge colonies of bioluminescent mushrooms.

The strange thing is the animals and plants themselves haven't changed much at all. Ben hadn't thought twice about it until he considered how long the fossils took to form.

"Why do the organisms all look the same?"

Ben reconsiders his creatures before realizing that they are all exact replicas. There is not a single difference between two specimens of the same sex and age. Ben's solution is to immediately create a divine law which slightly alters each newly conceived organism.

"That fixes the variation problem."

Now that the world's immediate problems have been amended Ben moves his focus to himself.

"Why did I lose consciousness?"

Ben has two theories on why he went into hibernation. Either there is a time limit on him being awake, or he is limited by the amount of divine power he uses. Both clearly limit his freedom as a god, but it sounds reasonably balanced to Ben.

"Before I forget I'll make something to keep track of time, that way I'll know how long I've slept."

Divine power flows into the void beneath Ben to alter the blackness beneath him. The bottom of the void lights up with an array of white lines and symbols. The white light takes shape into a massive clockwork machine which displays the time, and the date. The huge time keeping mechanism is meshed into the border of reality, and emits a deep rumbling sound with each tick of its ethereal hands.

"It's a bit over the top, but fitting for a deity."

Ben moves his attention back up to the surface of his realm. The sights and sounds of his world fill him with a sense of pride and accomplishment. Envy gradually rises in Ben's heart as he watches his creatures go about their lives. While they may suffer, they also live.

"I want to challenge myself. I want to live."

With an idea forming in his mind, Ben creates several metallic cubes which have toughness beyond even bedrock. He scatters them throughout his little world. The first cube balances on a mountaintop. The second cube waits in the deepest cavern. The third cube rests at the bottom of the lake. The fourth cube is nestled in a grove of trees. Ben inscribes a simple poem on each cube, the poem fitting for its location.

Flesh and bone manifest gradually into the shape of a person. Ben carefully knits together a human body, and instead of an actual brain he pushes a small chunk of his own power into the skull. The golden glow gives the body life, and Ben finds himself peeking through human eyes.

"Now for the scary part..."

Ben's golden power spreads out from his body, and in a rather spectacular explosion his presence is split into four pieces. Each of these golden fragments fly into the four metal cubes, lighting them up with a soft golden glow. Ben's consciousness shatters in the process; His human body falls face first into the grass.

~

The pressure of several small objects on Ben's back gradually disturb his slumber. The sensation causes him to slap at his back reflexively; Sharp hot pain meets his hand.

"Ah- Shit!" Ben curses loudly.

 The dark reddish brown body of a foot long centipede falls off his bare back before skittering into the grass. Ben shivers as he inspects his reddened hand. The shock wears off as he realizes he's both lost and naked.

"Where am I?"

Ben takes a few deep breaths while looking around. The forest is dappled with moonlight which filters in through a thick canopy of leaves. Chirping insects provide subtle ambiance. He can't quite recall what he was doing before he woke up here, but he certainly wasn't naked or in the wilderness.

"I should get to higher ground, and look for a road."

Ben squints into the darkness while using meager moonlight to guide his feet. His feet move above thick tree roots and crunch dead brown leaves as he walks. He shivers as a cool breeze brushes over his exposed body, and glances down at his bare flesh.

"This isn't my body."

It looks very similar to his original body, but the flesh he occupies is slightly different. The inconsistencies are subtle, but to Ben they are obvious. He raises his hand into the moonlight before clenching it into a fist.

Ben steels himself and unclenches his fist. Panic and paranoia will only lead to danger in a situation like this. He surprises himself with his resolve, but he chalks it up to adrenaline or survival instincts kicking in.

"Is that light?"

Ben was just about to start climbing a sturdy looking tree when he noticed a yellow glow a ways deeper into the forest. The thick trees hide the source of the golden light, but not completely. He walks toward the unnatural light source in trepidation.

Each step is unsteady at first, but he finds his footing as the light gives him a familiar feeling he can't ignore. Tree roots and branches scrape at his feet and legs as he breaks into a sprint. The minor injuries are ignored in favor of reaching the nostalgic light source.

His fervor is rewarded when he comes face to face with a huge metallic cube. The object looks downright otherworldly with its supernatural glow, yet Ben only feels a sense of belonging as he nears it. Each step fills him with energy and joy as he nears the object's smooth surface.

Ben reaches his hand out and touches the cube.