Jace's instincts screamed at him to move, but his body felt sluggish, weighed down by the lingering pain of his memories. Clawed hands reached for him, jagged mouths whispering in voices that were his and yet not. He willed himself to dodge—too slow. The creature's strike tore through his side, searing pain blooming in its wake. He hit the ground hard, breath ragged.
The shadows around him pulsed, shifting like liquid, as if the void itself was watching.
"You are not ready."
The voice echoed through his skull again, but something was different. It wasn't just speaking to him. It was testing him.
Jace pushed himself up, ignoring the pain lancing through his ribs. The Hollowed lunged again—this time, he met it head-on. He ducked under its clawed swipe and drove his fist into its chest. A shockwave of energy pulsed from the impact, sending the creature skidding back.
Jace froze. That… hadn't been normal.
Before he could process it, the air around him cracked. Lines of glowing blue code spiderwebbed through the void, reality itself glitching for a brief second. Then—
[System Awakening: Initiating…]
A sharp pain shot through his mind, different from anything he'd felt before. It was like something inside him was being rewritten, restructured. His vision blurred, and suddenly—
A translucent screen appeared before him.
[SYSTEM INITIALIZED]
Name: Jace Ardent
Level: 1
Class: Unassigned
HP: 62/100
MP: 10/10
Strength: 8
Agility: 10
Endurance: 7
Perception: 6
Stat Points Available: 5
Jace stared at the floating text, his breath hitching. What was this? Some kind of magic? A hallucination?
The Hollowed screeched, charging again. Jace didn't have time to question it. He focused on the screen—instinctively, his mind latched onto the stat points.
Distribute points?
Yes.
He poured all five points into Agility.
[Agility: 10 → 15]
The moment the change registered, he felt it. His muscles loosened, the sluggish weight on his limbs vanishing. Time seemed to slow—not for the world, but for him. He could see the Hollowed's movements, predict the arc of its attack.
Jace moved.
His body responded faster than ever before. He sidestepped the Hollowed's strike with ease, pivoting to its side. His dagger was in his hand before he even thought about it.
A clean slash.
The Hollowed shrieked as the blade tore through its form, golden light erupting from the wound. It staggered, its body flickering like a dying flame.
Jace exhaled. Whatever this was, it was his now.
He could win.
The Hollowed lashed out one last time—Jace dodged, twisted, and drove his dagger through its skull. The creature convulsed, then crumbled into dust.
Silence.
Jace's heart pounded as the void around him rippled. The System screen updated before his eyes.
A slow grin spread across Jace's face.
He had power now.
He wasn't the same person who had fallen into the void.
He wasn't afraid anymore.