《Abyss Walker》 Chapter 1 Chapter 1 Yaz never believed in fate. Life was a sequence of calculated choices, risk assessments, and expected outcomes. That was as clear to him as any other fact. There was solace in predictability. While many sought the thrill of spontaneous decision-making, chasing careers filled with uncertainty or indulging in all that life had to offer, Yaz had no interest in such things. His world was structured, monotonous. Wake, work, relax, repeat. He preferred it that way. From an early age, he realized he was different. Not in a bad way¡ªjust different. The allure of parties, drinking, and casual flings never held the same appeal for him as they did for others. That didn¡¯t mean he lacked meaningful relationships, but maintaining a social presence always felt like an obligation rather than a desire. Something he endured, rather than enjoyed. After high school, he pursued a degree in accounting. It made sense. Numbers followed rules, patterns¡ªthere was no chaos, only logic. If the shoe fits, wear it. During college, he developed a passion for collecting trading cards. There was something therapeutic about it¡ªopening packs, sorting through the bulk, meticulously arranging them in binders, tracking the collection. It was a controlled hobby, one that offered both structure and satisfaction. He was materialistic in that way, despite his religious inclinations. But college came and went. He graduated, landed a position at the firm he had interned at, and settled into a rhythm that most would consider suffocating. Work, gym, games, collecting¡ªweek after week, month after month. To outsiders, it was a purposeless existence, devoid of excitement or ambition. To Yaz, it was perfection. No risk. No stress. He invested in retirement, paid his bills on time, saved diligently. His projected retirement age was 57, and that was without factoring in promotions or increased earnings. No needless spending, no unnecessary relationships. Life was simple. Life was good. He glanced over at the clock on his nightstand. 11:37 PM. He exhaled slowly, stretching his arms. His body ached from hours of poor posture, but the numbers were right. His reports balanced. Another day, another fraction of existence chipped away in the grand game of life. Yet, something gnawed at the back of his mind¡­ Was this it? He was secure, free from stress, filled with routine and stability. No attachments, no obligations beyond his work. By every metric he considered, he had won the lottery ¨C a life free of uncertainty, just as he had always wanted. So why did he feel like something was missing? The hum of his phone vibrating on the desk pulled him from his thoughts. He paid it no mind as he stood up and began packing his things. He closed his laptop, unplugged it and put both it and his mouse in his backpack. He grabbed his water bottle, and lunchbox, still full of food he had overpacked in the event that he decided to stay overnight at the office. He put on his coat and grabbed his gym duffle, then began to make his way out of the office. Laden with bags and accessories, he made his way to the elevator. Stepping out onto the bottom floor of his building, he walked toward the door and into the empty city streets, bathed in the cold glow of flickering streetlights. The clod night air bit at his skin as he walked toward the parking garage where he parked his truck. A distant siren wailed, then silence. Nothing unusual, especially considering where his office was located. Out of nowhere, Yaz was overcome with a sense of oddity. Something felt¡­off. Yaz quit walking, thinking that maybe someone was following him, he checked over his shoulder. The streets were empty, he was definitely there alone. Then, the sky shifted. It was subtle at first ¨C a flicker, a distortion at the edge of his vision. But as he stared upwards, the stars vanished, replaced by a vast, unknowable emptiness. He took one step back, all senses of urgency firing in his head at once. He was frozen with indecision. His phone was vibrating in his coat pocket, aggressively. He didn¡¯t know what possessed him to look at it given the situation, but this time, he looked. | System Initialization: Complete. Integration Commencing. Everything around him turned a blinding white, as if something ha detonated right in front of him. A loud piercing sound reverberated in his ears, he went to scream but nothing left his mouth. His fear was mounting, his senses were overwhelmed. Then nothingness took him. Yaz awoke to pain. Not the dull ache of exertion or the sting of fresh wounds ¨C this was much deeper, a fundamental pain was the only way that he could describe it. He felt as though his entire body had been unraveled and stitched back together again with a wiry thread and a rusted needle. He groaned, rolling on his side and opened his eyes, blinking furiously. Only then did he notice the notifications appearing in his vision. [System Integration Complete.] [Assigning Parameters¡­] His breath caught in his throat as he went to curse. It hadn¡¯t been a dream, it couldn¡¯t have been. Pain and visions were never this clear there. Unless he was ill. Was he hallucinating? Had he finally lost it? He looked up and despite the crystalline blackness that was there merely moments ago, it now split open, an unnatural red. A surge of strength flooded his veins ¨C it all felt too real to be a dream. [Welcome to the Genesis] Lines of text unfolded in front of his eyes, crisp and clear, carrying a weight that made no sense as they appeared to be apparitions. Yaz sat up, blinking away his dizziness as a series of windows popped into view. [Name: Yaz] [Race: Human] [Level: 1] [Class: Unassigned] [Attributes:] Strength: 10 Mind: 8 Dexterity: 7 Endurance: 7 Intelligence: 9 Arcane: 0 Vitality: 10 [Skills:] [Status Effects:] He froze as his mind raced. This made no sense and defied every conventional belief he¡¯d ever held. He rapidly brainstormed what could have possibly happened, there was simply no plausible explanation for everything that had happened up until this point. He was a religious man, sure, but even that could not explain away his experiences. Heaven didn¡¯t have a bright red sky. The scent of grass filled his nose. Grass? There was no grass outside his office. His fingers curled into the dirt beneath him, the sensation grounding him in reality. His eyes flicked back to the floating text. Stats. Attributes. Skills. It was a framework ripped straight from a game, something he had spent countless hours engaging with for fun ¨C but this wasn¡¯t fun. It was real. He had Strength, Dexterity, Intelligence, even skills. His mind struggled against it, trying to rationalize or disprove, but the evidence was right in front of him. And it was irrefutable. An Arcane attribute? As in, magic? There were so, so many questions. Yet, regardless of circumstance or reasoning, there was a single truth at the heart of the matter, that being a radical change had just occurred and he needed to adapt. He did not know the scale, or if he was the only one affected, but what he did know is that he needed to figure out what the **** was going on, and quickly. He sat up, ignoring the pain, and began to think. He was in an open plain, the grass around him reaching high enough to go maybe halfway up his thigh. There was a circle of hard, dirt ground that he appeared to have landed on after ¡°assimilating¡±, which is what he mentally called the event as he began determining what to do. He read his stat window again, making a mental note of the skill that he had. Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. [Skills:] ¡°Echo of the Abyss..?¡± he muttered under his breath, almost laughing at how ominous it sounded. Abyss? What? Abyss sounded so¡­ sinister. He had been a law abiding citizen his entire life and had no idea why the skill was titled that way, but he didn¡¯t meander on the details. He needed to figure out what it did. He reached his hand up and made to touch the screen, but his hand just phased through, and no explanation prompted. He sat, thinking. ¡°Echo of the Abyss!¡± he shouted. Still, nothing. The screen didn¡¯t budge. His face held a light red tinge from embarrassment, but it was quickly wiped away as clearly no one was around to hear him. Thinking a skill explanation would not drop down, he just sat there and began try to deduce the skill¡¯s effects based on its title, when suddenly, a window dropped down. [Echo of the Abyss (Mythic-Perfected)] The echoes of those defeated come to you. This skill tethers you to those who have lost, assimilating their remnants into your own being. Effects: Grants Echo Consumption. Grants resistance to mind-affecting skills and illusions. Enhances all skills with an absorption effect that belong to the user or are granted by weapons or armaments. Echo Consumption ¨C Enemies that you have killed will leave behind a Fragment, that when consumed grant stat boosts that allot pro rata according to the stat distribution of the enemy felled. Fractional points accumulate but do not provide a boost until they reach a full stat point. Current Absorption Rate ¨C 0.5% ¡°Holy word vomit,¡± Yaz said out loud. He didn¡¯t even know what to make of the text that was in front of him. It wasn¡¯t even that long, but he couldn¡¯t even begin to wrap his head what it meant. It was all simply too new to him. It seemed like the skill only worked if he killed someone. That was insanity, to kill? Throughout his entire life he had not even committed a traffic violation, and yet the system gave him a skill that expected him to kill people? He didn¡¯t even know what to think. It sounded insane. To kill? To take something from the aftermath? He was expected to - No. He wasn¡¯t a murderer. I need to worry about something else, that skill is just ridiculous, Yaz thought to himself, and he noticed that when he quit thinking about the skill, the popup went away. Interesting. He noticed that since he¡¯d arrived in this new location, all he¡¯d thought about were the weird stat window that had popped up in front of him. He intentionally let his mind wander, thinking about the work that he was doing right before he¡¯d been whisked away, and suddenly the stat window vanished too. Nifty. The window pop-ups were related to his focus on them, it seemed a little too intuitive for his tastes but it¡¯s all that he had to go on for now so he would work with it. He looked around and began to take stock of his surroundings. All he saw was grass, it wasn¡¯t very tall but because he had still yet to stand up he had no idea what was really around him. Maybe I should make sure something isn¡¯t going terribly wrong around me before I get to caught up in this, he thought to himself. He took his backpack off, noticing his lunch box and gym duffle were off to the side. Perfect, I have food too. God bless an over prepared workaholic. He put his bag between his legs and reached inside, pulling out his concealed carry. A Canik Mete MC9, his favorite carry. He didn¡¯t wear it on his person when he was in the office, but he was too paranoid to simply not carry protection at all times. He quickly checked and ensured the firearm was loaded, he had no reserve ammunition so he would need to be careful in situations that called him to use his firearm. He leaned forward into a crouch, pointing the muzzle of his firearm down as he slowly raised his head above the grass when he noticed that he was totally alone. The plains were wide, very wide. But not infinite. There was a tree line in the distance, to some forest. Although more concerning, and something that made a pit form in his stomach, were the wildlife surrounding him in the area. He had never seen anything like them before, and they definitely weren¡¯t from Earth. ¡°Holy ******* ****,¡± he said to himself. A massive creature wandered the plains. A towering beast with obsidian-plated limbs and a ridged spine of molten amber trudged across his vision, each step carving deep furrows into the untouched ground. It had six glowing eyes that swept over the land as it moved its head from side to side. Intense fear immediately washed over Yaz. A gun would not stop this behemoth. Not the one that he had anyway. He wasn¡¯t confident that he could kill an elephant pre-assimilation, much less the creature before him. He quickly ducked down as the fear took hold. He was careful not to make a sound. He quickly racked his head on what to do, the creature had to be around 7-8 feet tall, and he had no idea if it was hostile or not. And he had no intention of finding out. He needed shelter, he needed safety, and he needed it quickly. Yaz began rummaging through his two bags, condensing all of his necessities into his backpack and abandoning his gym duffle. He kept his laptop and phone, because although there was no reception, he still didn¡¯t have a full grasp of his current situation and wouldn¡¯t discard them until he was sure they were worthless. His immediate thought was a break into the forest. He didn¡¯t know how fast the thing was, and so despite having no clue what awaited him in the forest, he did a quick risk analysis before determining a break for the tree line was his best option. If he was facing the tree line straight on, the behemoth was at his 3 o¡¯clock. With his possessions in tow, he began creeping through the grass on his knees, hoping to stay just underneath their height as he made his way into the trees. After several painstaking minutes, he had finally made it to the trees. Thankfully, he did not have to face off with a giant within mere moments of being thrown into this new world. He noted no immediate threats and tried to make a plan of action. What was he supposed to do? Where was he supposed to go? He had no survival skills besides some camping trips in his teenage years. There was simply never a need in modern society, how he regretted that now. If his father had been here, he would have a much better bearing on what to do next. As he mulled over potential ideas, a sharp cry echoed in the distance. From what he could tell, it was not a creature, but a human. He thought of the potential dangers, but realized he needed to find a group. It was possible that some people had brought with them more supplies than Yaz had, or that maybe there were some with more experience in unreliable situations. Yaz sprinted toward the sound, weaving through the debris in the forest. He had yet to hear the scream again but kept running toward the direction he had heard earlier. He thought that maybe he went the wrong direction, when finally, he heard another scream. It was a woman, and she wasn¡¯t far. Palming his firearm, he began to hear rustling when he slowed down. He peered out from behind a tree, his stomach twisting. A wolfish creature was awkwardly surrounded by a group of men while some women were huddled off to the side, holding each other. The monster was issuing a low growl from its maw, blood dripping from its maw. After a quick assessment of the situation, he noticed someone leaning against a tree, blood dripping from his forearm and his face a pale white. Yaz clenched his fist. Turning away was an option, as far as he was aware no one knew that he was spectating this disaster. But he also recognized that he didn¡¯t know what to do next in this new world. He could brainstorm, sure. But his only real lead were the people in front of him. He took his backpack off and laid it against the tree, then leaned his shoulder against the tree as he gripped his gun with both hands. If this gets me killed, I¡¯m going to be seriously pissed, Yaz thought to himself. Chapter 2 Yaz steadied his breathing forcing himself to focus. The creature¡¯s low growl reverberated through the clearing, its hackles raised and its body coiled in tension. The men surrounding it were hesitant, and rightfully so. Several of them were unarmed, while the others had makeshift weapons like branches or pocket knives. They weren¡¯t warriors, they were fearful survivors. Just like him. Yaz gritted his teeth, he had no idea how durable these creatures were, nor how lethal his gun would be against them. His immediate fear was that the first shot wouldn¡¯t be lethal, and the monster would lash out at those surrounding it. But he threw that concern aside, anything he did for this group would be a net positive. They clearly had no gameplan. Lifting his firearm, Yaz exhaled slowly, centering his aim. The wolf¡¯s eyes flicked toward him, as if sensing the shift in tension. Before it could react, he squeezed the trigger. The gunshot cracked through the air, striking the creature in the skull, jerking its head back. For a moment, silence hung over the clearing, then the beast collapsed. The group flinched at the noise, everyone¡¯s eyes darting toward Yaz¡¯s position. He stepped out from behind the tree, gun at his side, attempting to look stoic. ¡°Everyone okay?¡± His voice came out shaky, betraying the adrenaline and nervousness running through his body. One of the men ¨C a broad shouldered man with a bruised face and torn button-up nodded slowly in response. He eyed Yaz warily, eyes darting between his face and the gun at his hip. ¡°We are now,¡± he muttered. ¡°Thanks for that¡±. A woman that had previously been hidden rushed forward, kneeling beside the injured man leaning against the tree. ¡°He¡¯s losing blood,¡± she said, fear evident. ¡°What are we going to do?¡± Yaz hesitated. He had no first aid supplies in his bag and knew next to nothing about what to do in these situations. The burly man from earlier stepped forward, pulling off his shirt and pressing it against the injured man¡¯s wound. ¡°We need to stop the bleeding, I¡¯m not sure if this¡¯ll work but it¡¯s the best I¡¯ve got right now.¡± The injured man groaned in pain. Yaz swallowed hard, ¡°Yeah¡­ pressure should help.¡± He scanned the surrounding area, they were surrounded by dense forest at every angle. ¡°Does anyone know where any water is?¡± A younger man with dirt-streaked cheeks spoke up. ¡°I don¡¯t but I can look for some while you guys handle this. Yaz nodded, and the young man took off. He stood up, exhaling sharply. ¡°That gunshot was loud, I don¡¯t know if that was the only one of those things in the area but if there are more, we need to move before they find us.¡± As he spoke, everyone that was in the clearing gathered toward them. Albeit timidly. Yaz noticed he still had his gun in his hand, which he abruptly shoved in his waistband. The burly man that seemed to be the self-appointed leader of the group spoke, agreeing with his sentiment. ¡°Agreed, once he¡¯s stable, we¡¯ll need to move.¡± While he understood why the man said that he couldn¡¯t disagree more. ¡°We seriously shouldn¡¯t wait that long, there could be more of those things on their way here now,¡± Yaz argued, ¡°and I¡¯m not going to have the drop on them. Not to mention, I don¡¯t have anymore ammo either. If I miss or there are more than I can shoot, we¡¯re gonna be so screwed.: ¡°Look at him. He¡¯s about to pass out from the pain, we can¡¯t just do that,¡± the man responded in kind. He proceeded to look at the group around them. It was clear they all knew each other, they had maybe been out to eat judging by the attire and had all experienced the system event at the same time that he did. While Yaz wanted to question them, he knew deep in his heart that he wanted to live this area. Immediately. ¡°I¡¯ll help you guys carry him, it¡¯s just a forearm wound. I think that we¡¯d be making a huge mistake to accommodate him,¡± Yaz pressed. As soon as he spoke, the man opened up the left side of his jacket to reveal a massive gash on the side of his abdomen. It looked extremely painful, and the sheer amount of blood adorning the inside of the jacket and the outside of his shirt confirmed to nearly everyone that he was not going to make it. ¡°Son of a bitch,¡± the man whispered, ¡°Jason, look at me. Jason, can you hear me? Jason!¡± He grew progressively louder as he tried to keep the dying man awake. Yaz was looking at the scene before him, and fear of the potential dangers and concern for the young dying man mounting in equal parts. He knew what had to be done, it was harsh, but it needed to happen. The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. ¡°He¡¯s not going to make it,¡± Yaz said, trying to sound as soft as he could. ¡°Please, you have to weigh the odds here. Look at him, he¡¯s not going to make it, even if he were in a hospital he probably wouldn¡¯t make it. He¡¯s lost buckets of blood and as far as I can tell, no one here is a medical professional.¡± After stating what he considered to be a clear fact based on the evidence, he received several glares from the people surrounding the young man. It was tragic, and it was sad. That didn¡¯t make it less true. The man¡¯s face twisted in anger. ¡°You think just because it¡¯s practical, it makes it right?¡± he growled. ¡°We don¡¯t leave our own behind.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not trying to be heartless. I¡¯m trying to keep everyone here alive. We have problems, I think it¡¯s clear to everyone here right now that a lot is happening and I¡¯m willing to bet you¡¯re just as confused as I am. Staying here means more of those things are coming, and if they do, we¡¯re sitting ducks.¡± Yaz took a step back, eyes scanning the group. ¡°If you all want to stay here and die with him, fine. But I won¡¯t.¡± He turned away and started walking. A few of the others shifted uncomfortably, torn on what to do. But the large man made their decision for them. ¡°Then go,¡± he said, his voice low and firm. ¡± We¡¯re staying with our friend.¡± No one followed Yaz. He didn¡¯t look back as he walked back toward the tree where he left his backpack, grabbing it then walking through the clearing again, deeper into the forest in hopes of a lead on what to do next. He passed the wolf-life creature, when his system window abruptly appeared and flashed a notification? [Absorb Fragment?] Y/N He didn¡¯t press anything. His mind was still a mess from his argument just moments ago, from walking away, from making a choice that he knew was right but left him completely alone. Now, standing besides the corpse of the wolf-like creature, the weight of his survival pressed on him like a vice. He was going to be hunted. He was not in a safe place. Absorbing a fragment? What did that even mean? While thinking, he immediately recalled his skill, Echo of the Abyss. He wasn¡¯t keen on experimenting with absorbing things into his body, but if he remembered right those fragments were a product of that skill. He thought intensely on his status window, pulling it up. [Name: Yaz] [Race: Human] [Level: 2] [Class: Unassigned] [Attributes:] Strength: 11 Mind: 8 Dexterity: 8 Endurance: 7 Intelligence: 9 Arcane: 0 Perception: 8 Vitality: 10 [Skills:] [Status Effects:] Allocatable Stat Points: 2 To the side, he saw something new, but something that he thankfully understood. His eyes locked onto the notification, watching as what he assumed to be his XP bar filled, overcapped, and then filled into the early stages of another bar. His gaze trailed downward as he noticed another notification: [Level Up! You have gained 1 stat point in Strength, 1 stat point in Dexterity, and 2 allocatable stat points!] A small surge of energy pulsed through him, subtle but not unnoticeable. While totally novel in their realism, their concept was not new. Stat gains were good, and the way he felt after leveling up also felt good. He was almost joyful, until he glanced back to the other window that made him pause in the first place. [Absorb Fragment?] Y/N He hesitated, staring down at the lifeless creature. To remind himself, he pulled up the stat window for his skill, Echo of the Abyss, and confirmed that the fragment he was absorbing was a part of his skill. He was fearful of what might happen, but he had no clue what may exist beyond these trees. He needed every advantage that he could get. His fingers were raised for a selection, uncertainty in the air. ¡°Screw it.¡± He selected Y. Ice coursed through his veins, it wasn¡¯t painful, but it wasn¡¯t right either. Something foreign was threading itself into his being, he could feel the presence integrating into what he was. He could feel his muscles tightening in fear, when it suddenly faded. He checked his status window and noticed a difference [Name: Yaz] [Race: Human] [Level: 2] [Class: Unassigned] [Attributes:] Strength: 11+ 0.015 Mind: 8 Dexterity: 8 + 0.008 Endurance: 7 + 0.009 Intelligence: 9 Arcane: 0 Perception: 8 Vitality: 10 + 0.015 [Skills:] [Status Effects:] Allocatable Stat Points: 2 Ah so that¡¯s how it works, Yaz thought. It was actually quite simple in practice, when he killed something he could absorb this ¡°fragment¡± thing and get a piece of their stats. He did feel slightly stronger from the stat gains from his level up, but based on the description of his skill he doesn¡¯t actually reap the benefits of the ¡°stat stealing¡± effect until he accumulated enough fractional stats to total a whole stat point. Yaz breathed a sigh of relief, his skill¡¯s MO was finally explained and the realization that he didn¡¯t have to kill a person for it to activate was also calming. He noticed the allocatable stat points, but turned away from the corpse electing to distribute them later as he noticed the group from before beginning to stare after him. That didn¡¯t keep a single thought from creeping into his mind though, what happens if I absorb something stronger? He pushed it aside, he had other things that he need to worry about. Namely, the bright beam of light coming from the sky and engulfing him in its brilliant radiance. Chapter 3 Chapter 3 Yaz¡¯s feet hit solid ground, though it was unlike anything he had felt before. He took stock of his surroundings, noting a dim light directly above him that revealed an endless dark expanse in all directions. Distant flashing symbols floated through the air, text and diagrams seemingly suspended in the air glowing like stars. The scene was totally bizarre, but after what he¡¯d just been through, he felt like he was numb to shock at this point. A voice resonated within his mind, and a notification appeared in his vision. [Welcome to the System.] He felt something pressing on his brain. It felt like the early beginnings of a headache, and its potential seemed to expand as he stared at the notification in front of him. [Your world has been assimilated. You are now part of the Greater Framework. Inhabitants of this sector will now undergo Imprinting] Yaz barely finished reading before he shouted in pain. A splitting headache overtook him in a moment. It was agony, his head felt like it was being forced through a blender, and his initial shout transformed into screams. A flood of knowledge was crashing into his mind like a tidal wave, not letting him think about anything else. Classes, Attributes, Titles, Ascensions, the Imprinting itself. He wasn¡¯t being taught, he was being force fed the knowledge. It wasn¡¯t perfect though, the information was vast yet impersonal, an outline with no detail. He understood what Strength and Endurance did, but not their nuances. He grasped the concept of Classes, but had no idea how to get one or improve it. It was a guide, nothing more. In just a few more moments, the headache receded, leaving no residual pain. Yaz lay on the floor, curled up in a ball, in fear that he would suffer the mental assault of the Imprinting once more. He steadied himself as time passed. 1 minute. 2 minutes. 5 minutes. He groaned as he slowly unfurled and opened his eyes, instantly noticing the single enormous window before him. [Imprint Complete. System Integration: 0.0003%] Another notification immediately followed. [Generating Avatar¡­] Yaz backpedaled quickly, he wasn¡¯t sure what an avatar was but he was not in fighting form right now. If it was hostile, he¡¯d be in a very, very tight spot. He turned to run when he hit something. He turned to see the air shimmer before him, and a humanoid figure took shape. It was featureless, save a pair of glowing blue eyes and a faint outline that curled into an unmistakable grin. ¡°Finally awake, huh?¡± the figure spoke, his voice carrying an unmistakable tone of amusement. ¡°You handled that about as well as a fish learning to walk.¡± Yaz blinked, staring silently at the newcomer, it was clear that he was overwhelmed by all that had transpired. ¡°Oh right! Introductions! You can call me Sage,¡± the figure said, gesturing to his body with grandeur. ¡°I¡¯m the system-generated guide assigned to answer your dumb ¨C uh, mhm, reasonable ¨C questions before you''re tossed back to the meat grinder. Congrats on completing your Imprinting, by the by. You looked way worse than nearly everyone else¡¯s.¡± Sage cackled. Yaz¡¯s eyes narrowed, frustration evident after hearing that he was one of few to go through such a painful experience. ¡°Why?¡± he said flatly. ¡°Because you, my friend, are special,¡± Sage said, mimicking air quotes. ¡°You have a special skill that I¡¯ll tell you about later, a one-in-a-billion kinda deal. So you get the deluxe Imprinting treatment. All the extra Essence that comes with an Echo has to be downloaded into that tiny little noggin of yours. Anyway, you¡¯d best start asking some questions. Not Echo related. I¡¯ll brief you on that right before I send you back.¡± Yaz was dumbfounded. Echo? He wasn¡¯t an idiot, it was clearly related to the only skill that he had, and what triggered the event with the monster he killed right before he was spirited away to this ¡°Imprinting¡± thing. To be totally honest, Yaz felt like he had a general grasp of the system just because he¡¯d played video games on Earth. The one thing that he wanted to know more than anything was about this skill, and why the hell he went through such a painful Imprinting because of it. Would it cause other problems down the line? ¡°Nuh uh, no sir,¡± Sage said, wagging a finger, ¡°I see those cogs turning. Slowly, but turning. I¡¯m not answering Echo related questions till the very end. So go ahead and think of some other things. You¡¯re behind the 8 ball fella, lots of other people are already chatting me up, taking notes and preparing to return back to Earth.¡± Yaz exhaled, he didn¡¯t know if he appreciated this happy-go-lucky attitude or if it made him really want to punch this guy in the face. He started mulling over some things that he wanted to know. ¡°Why are we being educated about the System after spending some time on Earth? Some of us have already seen and even used it. It doesn¡¯t make sense, shouldn¡¯t I get a warning before being dropped into butt-fuck Egypt with nothing but a backpack and lunchbox?¡± Sage tilted his head, amused. ¡°It may seem like a video game to you, but it isn¡¯t. You don¡¯t get a tutorial here, this is your life now. The Imprinting is a failsafe.¡± Yaz frowned. ¡°Failsafe?¡± Sage nodded. ¡°What do you think the System is? You enter your favorite game is dandelions and roses? Nah. The System is just a set of rules, pure and simple. This is your life now, don¡¯t think of the System as something to barter with. Treat it like you did gravity or inertia back home, it just is and will be. But what basically happens when you get dropped is you generally get let loose and the System analyzes how you adapt. Some of you picked up on how it worked naturally, some of you didn¡¯t. Let¡¯s be real, gamers had this stuff figured out before it was real.¡± This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. Yaz couldn¡¯t argue with that logic. He had to admit that a lot of the concept felt familiar. Sage continued, ¡°But not everyone had the same experience. I¡¯m not gonna lie, some of you got steamrolled,¡± he chuckled, ¡°Panic, not enough time to process what was happening. That¡¯s where the imprinting comes in. It crams enough baseline information into your heads so that even the dumbest of you have a fighting chance. Or at least know how to check your stats before dying horribly¡± Yaz didn¡¯t know what to think of the avatar¡¯s clearly morbid humor. When actual human lives were part of the discussion, he felt bad, but he had to admit that Sage was growing on him. A little dark humor never hurt anyone after all. ¡°So it¡¯s not really about teaching anyone anything, it¡¯s about preventing too many casualties.¡± ¡°Bingo¡± Sage pointed finger guns at him. ¡°The System doesn¡¯t give a flying fuck if you live or die, but it does need enough of you to survive long enough to actually contribute to whatever comes next. It¡¯s like a minimum viable product, gotta have some functionality before rolling out the full experience.¡± That was¡­ honestly kind of terrifying in its own way. That meant that enough people died in what short time he¡¯d spent in the post-Assimilation world to trigger a worldwide history class. ¡°How many people died to trigger the Imprinting? I mean this seems like a bit much.¡± Sage scratched his non-existent head, ¡° Well, you know, I can never really remember. There are so many different worlds, I haven¡¯t found the exact number or percentage yet, but from what I¡¯ve seen over several millennia¡­ the System seems to recognize a minimum baseline of 1 billion beings with autonoetic consciousness as the sweet spot for the Imprinting. I think that¡¯s about the best answer I can give.¡± Yaz¡¯s blood ran cold. 1 billion. That was a massive number, yet in the scope of the nearly 8 billion people that were alive not that long ago. His mind immediately went to his family and friends. They were few in number, but stats didn¡¯t lie. The odds that they survived appeared to be 1 in 8. Yaz believed in his father, he was a resourceful man, but he was also old fashioned. He wasn¡¯t sure if his dad would be able to cope with the radical transformation that came with the Assimilation. ¡°Holy shit,¡± he muttered under his breath. ¡°Ah don¡¯t sweat it man, you¡¯re gonna see a lot more of that where you¡¯re going next,¡± Sage said. ¡°Next? What¡¯s next then? What happens after this? Sage¡¯s grin widened. ¡°Aha! Probably your first good question all day. And the answer? You¡¯re about to find out soon. But let me give you a tease ¨C this was just onboarding. The real fun starts when you get back. You¡¯ve got about five minutes before you drop back into reality, and trust me, things are gonna be a little different.¡± ¡°Different how?¡± Sage wagged a finger. This guy, Yaz thought, can he say anything without doing some goofy-ass gesture. ¡°Nuh uh. No spoilers. But I will say this ¨C when you get back things aren¡¯t gonna be quite as ¡®Earth-like¡¯ as when you left.¡± Right, not ominous at all, Yaz thought. Sage clapped his hands together. ¡°Alright, enough chit-chat, you¡¯ve got about four minutes left according to the time keeping system you guys used back home. Time for your special education class on Echoes before I boot your ass back into reality.¡± Yaz straightened. He was curious. Who wouldn¡¯t be? Everyone wanted to be special, and despite his risk averse lifestyle, he was no exception. He¡¯d been inundated with mind boggling event after mind boggling event that shattered his worldview. ¡°Alright,¡± he said. ¡°Hit me.¡± ¡°Love a can-do attitude,¡± Sage grinned. He flicked his wrist and a serious of the glowing symbols that hung around the pitch blackness swung forward and appeared in the air between them. ¡°Echoes are something of a¡­ unique evolution. Every so often, in a newly assimilated world, some people have the capacity to manifest an Echo¡± ¡°Potential?¡± Yaz asked. Sage snapped his fingers, the symbols beginning to spin through the air. ¡°Precisely, the potential. They¡¯re typically tailor-made to the person that has one. Something you do a lot, or are passionate about, they usually relate. And yet, there are thousands upon thousands of unique people, so why do only some get the Echoes?¡± The symbols rotated at an even higher pace as Sage continued, ¡°Thanks for asking. I have no fucking clue. Thousands of assimilations, and yet I have found no consistent explanation. Yet, that¡¯s fairly irrelevant, isn¡¯t it? You have one. So act accordingly.¡± The symbols blurred through the air, their forms now indistinct, and they began to flash. ¡°Welp, that¡¯s my queue,¡± Sage said. His grin flickered in the dim glow as the rotating symbols became a flurry of color and light. They spun, each ring of glyphs now pulsing with energy. The space around them began to hum. Yaz squinted, shielding his eyes, ¡°Your queue?¡± he asked, half-annoyed that Sage was bailing before he could ask him anything else. ¡°Yup,¡± Sage answered. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you¡¯ll be fine.¡± He paused, tapping his chin. ¡°Well, maybe not fine, but at least not¡­ bored.¡± Without warning, the swirling lights converged into a single blinding flash. When his eyes cleared, Sage was gone, leaving behind the fading sound of the hum of the glyphs. ¡°Unbelievable,¡± Yaz muttered. Once more, he looked around, and noticed that the void-like space felt overwhelming without Sage¡¯s casual confidence and awful sense of humor. Yet, even after Sage had left and the glyphs stopped spinning, they now floated around aimlessly. He cautiously walked towards one that was hanging lower than the rest, and held out a hand. As the symbol brushed against his fingertips, it sparked at the contact, sending a jolt of energy up his arm. He quickly withdrew his hand, concerned. He braced himself, half expecting to be pulled into some other plane of existence. That seemed to be the common theme of the past several hours of his life anyway. The darkness around him rippled, the parted, revealing a faintly lit corridor of black stone archways. Yaz stared at the newly materialized corridor, before taking a few tentative steps forward. As he began walking through the passage, each footfall echoed in the silence. The corridor¡¯s began to take on a faint hue as he walked further down. Before long, the stone pathway began to shudder under his feet. With a sudden lurch, the corridor practically dissolved all around him. Yaz tumbled through the darkness ¨C letting out a frightened yelp at the top of his fall, and another loud grunt as he landed with a jarring impact. He groaned as he pushed himself up from the ground. This is some serious bullshit, he thought, I have been getting used and abused for the past 2 god damn hours. When will I catch a break. For the second time, he was in a new area that he did not recognize. Did the System scramble everyone around again? What the hell is going on¡­ Towering, ancient-looking trees loomed above him, their leaves filtering in twilight. The ground was soft under his feet, a comforting contrast to the hard dirt that was at his initial spawn point. As he scanned, he realized that he was once again alone. He noticed that once more, he had his backpack and his gun. While it seemed insignificant, it was a small comfort in this new world. He remembered Sage¡¯s cryptic parting words about things being ¡°different¡± when he retuned to Earth. Yet, he hadn¡¯t the faintest clue what that meant and would not dwell on it for now. Yaz gathered himself. The forest around him was silent, and his loneliness was beginning to weigh on him, for the simple reason that he wasn¡¯t sure if he could survive in these conditions alone. The few people that he had interacted with had shied away from his pragmatism. He never considered himself a person of unyielding resolve. Disciplined? Sure. But given the circumstances, he truly could not comprehend why everyone would jeopardize their own safety for a person that had no chance at survival. He knew that if he was to survive, he¡¯d need to come to terms with solitude. He sighed, taking everything in. The trees overhead created a natural cathedral of shadow and light, and he decided that he needed to setup a camp. He looked around, minding his surroundings to ensure some monster didn¡¯t creep up on him. There was a relatively flat clearing beneath a tree whose gnarled branches would offer him some cover. Unloading his backpack and checking his gun, he arranged a modest sleeping area. Per knowledge bestowed to him by the Imprinting, the System had stripped away the need for food and water, but sleep still remained a necessary anchor. Despite the potential vulnerability, he somewhat yearned for a moment of peace in the wake of the past several hours. Chapter 4 Yaz sat by a small makeshift fire, its warmth barely sufficient to combat the chill of the frost. He¡¯d spent the better part of an hour mulling over his next move. His only lead so far was progression within the system¡ªXP, levels, progression. He was delighted to discover that some relics from his home still worked¡ªnamely, that his gun still functioned against the monster he had encountered earlier. He pulled up his window: [Name: Yaz] [Race: Human] [Level: 2] [Class: Unassigned] [Attributes:] Strength: 11 + 0.015?Mind: 8?Dexterity: 8 + 0.008?Endurance: 7 + 0.009?Intelligence: 9?Arcane: 0?Perception: 8?Vitality: 10 + 0.015 [Skills:] Echo of the Abyss [Status Effects:] None Allocatable Stat Points: 2 He still had two stat points from earlier, and he figured he should allocate them to see what would happen. As he understood it, Strength would directly affect his physical power; Mind would impact his mana stores and his resistance to certain status effects; Endurance would influence his stamina and resilience; Intelligence his capacity for learning spells and comprehending complex systems; Arcane would determine his affinity with mystical forces; Perception his awareness and ability to detect hidden threats or objects; and Vitality his overall health and life force. To be honest, this was far more standard than he had expected. These systems were not novel in the slightest, and he felt they offered a clear trajectory forward. After some thought, he decided to invest his stat points in Strength and Vitality. While the nerd in him was intrigued by magic, he had no idea how to use or even learn a spell. And mana stores? How did he even check those? His status window only displayed XP and HP. Oh well, I¡¯ll worry about that later. After assigning his stats, a rush similar to leveling up surged through him. He flexed his hands, noting a slight increase in his strength. ¡°That¡¯s not too bad,¡± Yaz grinned. He knew he needed more XP, and the only way he knew to get it was by slaying beasts. He wasn¡¯t sure how XP was distributed or if he could earn it from killing docile creatures. The best way to find out was through trial and error. As the night wore on, sleep eventually overtook him. Although his sleep was restless, he felt better upon waking. He lay for a moment, gathering his determination. Today, he decided, he was going on a hunt. Was there really any other choice? He had no way to contact anyone, no leads, and he didn¡¯t even know if civilization still existed. Maybe he¡¯d been catapulted back to the Stone Age¡ªwho knew? One thing, however, was certain: killing monsters made him stronger. He packed up his makeshift camp, kicking at the ash before gathering his backpack and gun. Stepping into the forest, Yaz moved with clumsy purpose. He¡¯d used firearms his entire life¡ªsomething he knew well¡ªbut, oddly enough, he¡¯d never actually been on a hunt before. He wasn¡¯t entirely sure what to do, but what was there to do except try? As he walked through the forest, he remained on high alert¡ªchecking the trees above, the dirt below, and straining his ears for any sound of rustling in the underbrush. To his surprise, it wasn¡¯t long before he caught sight of movement between the trees. He slowly made his way in that direction, then froze. He was not a fan of the new wildlife the system had introduced. There, near a shallow pool, he saw something moving. The creature was grotesque¡ªa twisted mass of sinew and bone. Its skin was a patchwork of mottled grays and sickly greens, stretched overly tight over protrusions and scarred by decay. Jagged spines jutted along its back, and its limbs contorted at unnatural angles, ending in claws that scraped softly against the forest floor with each step. Yaz¡¯s heart pounded in his ears as he watched the beast move. It was something straight out of a nightmare, yet its small size oddly comforted him. It seemed somewhat meek despite its horrid form. Deciding to act rather than simply stare, he swallowed the saliva that had pooled in his mouth during his cautious approach and gripped his gun. He slowly raised it, each second stretching as he prayed the creature wouldn¡¯t notice him before he fired. Taking a deep breath, he squeezed the trigger¡ªbut suddenly, the beast whipped its head around and locked its eyes onto Yaz. The creature, once eerily meek, now roared with primal fury and charged straight at him. Adrenaline surged through his veins; his hand trembled, and the sudden noise prevented him from firing¡ªa mistake that would cost him. The beast barreled forward, and instinct took over. He ran. He spun on his heel and bolted, but the creature was far too fast. With a violent lurch, it slammed into him, sending him sprawling across the forest floor. Pain exploded as its jaws snapped down¡ªteeth grazing his arm and tearing into flesh. Gritting his teeth against the pain, desperation overtook him. He kicked the beast off, clutching his injured arm and scrambling to his feet. In the melee, his weapon was sent flying. He ran over, picked it up, and wheeled around. The beast was upon him again, knocking him to the ground once more. It had seemed small earlier, but now that it was on top of him, it appeared massive. Yet this time, he was not merely a victim. In one fluid motion, he swung the barrel of his gun around and aimed it straight at the monster¡¯s face. He pulled the trigger repeatedly, not thinking about what would come later¡ªhe just knew that, in that moment, he needed to survive. Bullets pounded the beast until it staggered. Finally, it faltered and collapsed to the side on the forest floor. Yaz¡¯s HUD flickered with notifications: [Rotfang slain!] [Level up! You have gained 1 stat point in Mind, 1 stat point in Intelligence, and 2 allocatable stat points!] [Level up! You have gained 1 stat point in Vitality, 1 stat point in Perception, and 2 allocatable stat points!] [Level up! You have gained 2 stat points in Arcane, and 2 allocatable stat points!] Yaz stared at the screen, trying to process the surge of progress he had just experienced. He couldn¡¯t believe it. Blood trickled from his injured arm, but he barely noticed; the adrenaline still pumped furiously, and the accomplishment of his feat overshadowed the pain. Then he noticed a new notification following his leveling up¡ªan absorption prompt. He mashed the Y key without thinking, and it was followed by something he had never seen before: [Toggle automatic Fragment absorption? Y/N (This can be changed later)] ¡°Wow, this is perfect.¡± He had considered it annoying to interact with that prompt every time he wanted to absorb a Fragment from a beast, but in this case, it provided a nice quality-of-life upgrade. The System really was growing on him. Despite having killed 6 billion in barely an hour, the System still seemed to care about its players, he thought grimly. Turning back to his immediate situation, he reflected: ¡°I leveled up, sure. But I¡¯ve managed to use every single bullet in my gun, and now I¡¯m bleeding out in the middle of nowhere,¡± Yaz mused. He sat down to inspect his wound and immediately noticed that it didn¡¯t look as bad as it had felt when he received it. Was he overreacting in the moment? Being attacked by a large, rotting beast could do that to someone, yet the injury looked much less severe than he expected¡ªalmost as if it had been hastily sewn back together. Haphazard as it was, it still looked far better than it should have. If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Looks like I¡¯m just going to count my blessings and chalk it up to some other feature of the System that I don¡¯t understand yet,¡± he thought. In all honesty, he would probably still be concerned if it weren¡¯t for another new notification that now appeared on his screen: [Congratulations on reaching Level 5! Choose a class.] Make your selection: Yaz puzzled over his selection. He had to admit that Swordsman and Rogue were off the table for him. Having wrestled for several years in middle school, he was well out of practice and had little confidence in close-quarters combat. That left him with Archer, Mage, Cleric, or Druid. Cleric was ruled out quickly; while healers were important¡ªand might even help him heal his arm¡ªit wasn¡¯t reasonable given his need for firepower. He wasn¡¯t a fan of the Druid class either, for reasons he couldn¡¯t quite explain. His choice was between Mage and Archer. He had to admit he wasn¡¯t fond of either option. He had never shot a bow in his life, and he still had no clue how to use magic. Moreover, his Arcane affinity was 0. Yet, he still preferred magic to archery. There was an allure to wielding mystical forces¡ªsomething entirely new. He wasn¡¯t sure where it would take him, but the more he thought about it, the more excited he grew. Following the path he had decided on, he picked Mage, hoping he wouldn¡¯t come to regret the decision later. [You have selected Mage. You cannot change your class later; however, it can evolve. Are you sure? Y/N] He pressed Y. A faint yellow aura shone over his skin, and his system window appeared by default. It looked similar to before, but now beneath his HP bar, there was an MP bar. In his skill menu, a new skill had appeared. [Name: Yaz] [Race: Human] [Level: 5] [Class: Mage] [Attributes:] Strength: 11 + 0.048?Mind: 9 + 0.028?Dexterity: 8 + 0.023?Endurance: 7 + 0.059?Intelligence: 10 + 0.021?Arcane: 2?+ 0.032 Perception: 9 + 0.017?Vitality: 11 + 0.045 [Skills:] Echo of the Abyss [Status Effects:] None Allocatable Stat Points: 6 Yaz stared at the new addition, unable to contain the excitement churning within him. The appearance of the MP bar and the new skill was tangible proof that something was changing, and he was determined to take full advantage of it. Having never used mana before, he was slightly concerned about how to cast the skill. Then he remembered checking the description for his Echo, and he focused intently on the new Arcane Shot that had appeared in his skill window. [Arcane Shot (Common) ¨C Fires a shot of mana at a target.] ¡°Hm, fires a shot. Can¡¯t be that complicated. But from where? Does it blast from my palm? Or does it materialize?¡± Instead of debating how to test the skill further, he decided to try it in practice. His initial instinct¡ªsimilar to the first time he navigated his stat window¡ªwas to shout the skill¡¯s name. However, he was almost certain that wouldn¡¯t work, as it hadn¡¯t when he tried to learn about his Echo. Instead, he did the only thing that had worked with the System so far: he thought about it. This time, nothing happened immediately. ¡°Hmm,¡± Yaz pondered. ¡°What is it now?¡± He spent several minutes experimenting before discovering the trigger. He wasn¡¯t far off with his original hypothesis¡ªthe caveat being that his skill required intent. In this case, a target. The prevailing theory was that it had worked with his Echo earlier because that ability was an abstract principle; there was nothing to direct it at¡ªit was just part of his being. The Arcane Shot, however, needed a destination. It wasn¡¯t cast arbitrarily; it was crafted with purpose and needed direction. As such, when he focused on a tree and thought intently about hitting it with Arcane Shot, a thin blue bolt materialized beside him before launching directly at the tree and leaving a mark. ¡°What impeccable timing. I don¡¯t have any more bullets, so this can serve as a substitute for my gun in the meantime. Although, it does seem to lack the same destructive power¡­¡± He tried to remain optimistic, even though he knew he wouldn¡¯t be able to pull off the same feats with Arcane Shot as he did with his gun. Its impact on the tree confirmed that it lacked the potency of his firearm¡ªbut it would do for now. He needed to keep gaining levels to ensure that another encounter with a Rotfang wouldn¡¯t spell his end. Finally, he addressed the final new addition to his status screen. Besides his class distinction, there was something else: Mortalborn. Only way is up. According to the imprinting, he had heard of Ascensions but did not know how to unlock or apply them. They were essentially a process by which the System measured your growth. He didn¡¯t know the specifics or what came next, but he did know that massive power spikes awaited him after every threshold. With all the new features accounted for, Yaz decided he should allocate his stat points before continuing his hunt. Possessing six total stat points to distribute, he decided to invest them all in Arcane. He wanted to maximize his new skill and figured that was the best approach. He did consider his diminishing vitality¡ªhis HP bar was a quarter short due to his wound¡ªbut as it was slowly regenerating, he assumed it would eventually fill up. With all system-related concerns momentarily addressed, he elected to continue farming. The feeling of growth was intoxicating¡ªso unlike real life, where progression was uncertain and depended on fortune and connections. Here, growth was tangible, consistent, and guaranteed based on the path he chose. And Yaz loved it. He grinned as the path before him opened up with opportunity. ¡°Let¡¯s do this,¡± he thought. Two weeks later, the forest had become like a second skin to Yaz. His wound had long since closed, and his body resonated with potential as he advanced in magic. To be candid, he had not grown as quickly as he had expected. Levels 1¨C5 had come extremely fast¡ªit had only taken two kills, after all¡ªbut despite killing tens of monsters over the following days, he had barely eclipsed level 9. In retrospect, this made sense; the growth curve was exponential, and it wasn¡¯t realistic to progress at the same pace as his earlier levels. Fortunately for him, the Rotfang he encountered on his first night in the forest was an anomaly. Most beasts he encountered were significantly weaker and posed far less threat. Using his Arcane Shot was becoming second nature, and even more comforting was the fact that it provided limitless ammunition. There was initial concern that his MP bar wouldn¡¯t naturally regenerate¡ªthat he might need a potion or consumable to renew it. But that worry was soon dispelled. On his first hunt after the Rotfang, he pelted a small beast comparable to a badger before the assimilation. Although it didn¡¯t die immediately¡ªconfirming that his Arcane Shot lacked the destructive power of his gun¡ªit did get the job done. After leveling up and absorbing the fragment, he noticed it granted significantly less experience than the Rotfang had. Undeterred, he continued the daily cycle of waking, hunting, and sleeping. It wasn¡¯t so different from the life he had known before. His skill remained of common rarity, and he wasn¡¯t sure if there was a specific requirement to upgrade it or even if it could be upgraded. For now, it was doing the job, and that was all that mattered. Though he did wonder when he would unlock another skill¡ªthere had to be more, after all. It was the natural progression of the game he played. He woke the next morning, ready for another hunt. His bag and gun lay at the foot of his makeshift bed¡ªif you could call a slightly softer patch of dirt a bed¡ªand he used his coat as a pillow. He had yet to discard anything from before, not even his empty handgun. Who was to say it wouldn¡¯t be useful later? After lying with his eyes closed for a moment, he prepared and set off on his usual trek through the forest. He always headed straight out from his campsite so that he could backtrack once he had gathered enough for the day, choosing a different direction each time in case he encountered something¡ªor someone¡ªthat might help him determine his next move. He was still interested in finding a group of people; he knew his abilities had limits, and that humans seriously lacked the genetic predisposition for combat. They were set apart only by their intelligence and their ability to collaborate and communicate. He killed monsters and absorbed their Fragments. Yet, he had yet to eclipse a full stat point from absorbed fragments, with all his potential stat bonuses still in decimal form. He had thought that his Echo might make him overly powerful by granting huge stat boons with each hunt, but as it stood, the rate of absorption was so slow that he was gaining stats only in thousandths. It wasn¡¯t impressive at the moment, but he remained optimistic. He went about his business as usual when he spotted a small clearing bathed in gentle sunlight. Although he had seen such breaks in the forest before, this one was different. Did he smell¡­ smoke? His nostrils scrunched as he inhaled deeply. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s definitely smoke.¡± He immediately dropped to one knee, lowering his head as he made his way toward the clearing. He was nearly at the tree line when a harsh, male voice spoke behind him. ¡°What the fuck do you think you¡¯re doing here?¡± Chapter 5 Yaz¡¯s heart sank. This looked really bad. He slowly turned around and found himself facing a grizzled man, eyes narrowed with distrust and a makeshift spear gripped in his calloused hand. The man¡¯s face was streaked with dirt and smoke. ¡°What the fuck do you think you¡¯re doing here?¡± the man repeated, his tone accusatory. Yaz slowly raised his hands in a gesture of peace. ¡°I¡¯m just¡­ passing through,¡± he said warily. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to intrude.¡± The man¡¯s gaze flickered over Yaz, ¡°I¡¯m just looking for a safe place to rest,¡± Yaz spoke again, somewhat disconcerted by the man¡¯s silence. That same silence stretched between them, when the man finally spoke. ¡°Follow me.¡± Without waiting for a response, the scout walked past Yaz and trudged through the underbrush. Yaz hesitated for a moment before trailing behind him. The man¡¯s demeanor brooked little argument. After a while they broke into the clearing that Yaz had been making his way towards prior. He took in the scene: a sprawling camp of shoddy tents, huddled figures, and hushed conversation. Everyone looked rough and worn. Survival had stripped away any pretense of elegance from this group. As he followed the scout, he noticed that they were walking towards the largest tent in the camp. He began to grow concerned about what could possibly happen to him. Maybe he had been too hasty to just follow the man? They had walked far enough into the camp that he was now surrounded on all sides. He realized that if he wanted to make a break for it, that time had long past. He wasn¡¯t capable of fending off this many people at once, and he began to silently regret following the man into their camp. They finally reached the tent, and the man picked up the edge of the tent flap before gesturing to Yaz to follow him inside. Inside, there was a rough-hewn interior filled with scattered belongings, maps, and quiet conversation. A few eyes lifted to meet Yaz¡¯s as he stepped in, each glance measured and cold. He was trying to steady his breathing when someone spoke. ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± a gruff voice demanded from the far side of the room. A large, heavily scarred man, sitting behind a makeshift table, fixed Yaz with a hard stare. ¡°Yaz.¡± The scarred man¡¯s gaze shifted back to the man that led him in, who nodded in acknowledgement before turning his attention back to Yaz. ¡°Why are you here?¡± the man asked. ¡°I was just looking for shelter,¡± he replied. He didn¡¯t want to reveal that he had been on a hunt, it would bring his combat ability into question and the might be less inclined to trust a more dangerous individual. ¡°You¡¯re not the first drifter we¡¯ve had. But out here, trust is scarce. We can take you in, but we can¡¯t take in everyone. You need to prove your worth.¡± Yaz nodded. Not an insane demand. If their ranks were inundated with people seeking asylum, it would be difficult to function and only make them a target of someone stronger. What also interested Yaz is that he hadn¡¯t mentioned combat. He only said he needed to prove his worth. Following that line of thought, he began to wonder how they had tents and furniture. Their must be some people in their party that specialized in productive activities rather than strictly combat. Yaz was so caught up in hunting and feeding his Echo that he hadn¡¯t even considered that may be a possibility. Without saying another word, the man motioned for Yaz to walk up to the empty spot near the table to take a seat. Several of the surrounding spectators cast wary glances as he moved to take them grizzled man up on his offer. The scarred man pulled his own chair closer and sat down, his eyes never leaving Yaz. ¡°Name¡¯s Roderick,¡± he said gruffly. ¡°Out here, I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve noticed, but we¡¯ve gotta do what it takes to survive. Now, what exactly is it that you can offer us?¡± Yaz shifted in his seat, careful not to reveal too much. Roderick gave him the creeps. He couldn¡¯t place it, but he did not want to overshare. And there was no way in hell he was telling Roderick about his Echo. ¡°I¡­ wander, and hunt when I can,¡± he replied evenly. Roderick¡¯s gaze hardened for a moment when he leaned forward. ¡°So you¡¯ve killed some of the monsters around here?¡± ¡°A few,¡± Yaz admitted. ¡°And your level? Your skills? What class are you?¡± Roderick pressed, clearly interested in Yaz. Although it was difficult to tell if he was checking for a potential ally ¨C a potential threat. ¡°Level 5,¡± Yaz lied. ¡°I¡¯m a Mage, I got the skill Arcane Shot when I chose my class.¡± A brief flicker of interest passed over Roderick¡¯s face¡­and, amusement? ¡°A mage huh?¡± he said to himself, ¡°We have a few of you. You¡¯re definitely on the weaker side but seeing as you¡¯ve made it this far alone, I¡¯m sure that we can do a lot with you.¡± On the weaker side? Yaz thought to himself. He¡¯d been hunting since the Imprinting, how could he be on the weaker side? Not to mention he¡¯d killed monsters he had no business killing considering that he had a gun at the time. What was this guy on about? ¡°So are you interested in joining us? I think you have what it takes. We have a patrol going out tomorrow, we can see what you¡¯re made of and go from there.¡± Yaz considered his proposal. He had left his backpack and his gun in the forest, he knew the direction that he¡¯d approached the camp from and so he was confident that he could make his way back there if he needed to. Moreover, it wasn¡¯t like he was actually using anything there, it was just a consistent place to return to after his hunts. His belongings had no value, his laptop and phone proving useless, food and drink was no longer necessary, and his gun had no ammo. ¡°I¡¯d like to join you. I think that I have a lot to offer.¡± The corners of Roderick¡¯s mouth turned upwards into a grin, clearly happy with how things played out. ¡°Stellar. We¡¯ll get you a place to stay and you can go with Jenson on patrol tomorrow,¡± he gestured to the man that had caught Yaz and escorted him to the tent. The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. There was a feeling of both relief and apprehension. He¡¯d already lied about his level and skills; he couldn¡¯t afford to be discovered as anything less than he claimed. Still, he was able to join a group, and secure a high degree of safety than he had before. His solitary nature would have preferred he made it alone, but Yaz acknowledged that there were too many unkowns to go about everything alone. He was led through the winding paths of the camp by Jenson .The night air was cool, carrying the scent of woodsmoke and damp earth. As they walked past clusters of figures and tents, they finally reached a modest tent set apart form the others. The flap was already open, and Jenson gestured for Yaz to step inside. The interior was sparse yet functional, a cot, bundle of blankets, and a small lap casting shadows against the walls. How?.. his thoughts trailed off. How did they get these things? He settled onto the cot and Jenson stepped away without a word. Stoic fella, eh? He laid himself down and let the tension of the day ebb away. He thought about his belongings out in the forest and despite their worthlessness, knew he wanted to reclaim them before they went missing. But that was for another time, for now he would rest. It sounded like he would be having a long, hopefully fruitful, day tomorrow. Yaz woke to the sound of low voices and the rustle of activity outside his tent. Quickly pulling himself together, he stepped out and found Jenson waiting near a small fire, surrounded by others that he could only assume were also members of the patrol. ¡°Everyone, this is Yaz,¡± Jenson said, as he approached. ¡°Yaz, Garrett, Mara, Paul and Austin.¡± He pointed with his thumb over his shoulder at each person in kind. Paul and Austin were, quite frankly, not much to look at. They were both extremely wiry and did not seem very imposing. Garrett looked as average as could be, and Mara was a small, cute girl carrying a stick. Or was that a wand? Yaz realized that these people were each carrying weapons either at their hand or on their hip. Jenson, Garett, and Austin carried swords at their hip, Paul had a bow strapped to his back, and Mara had her staff. ¡°He¡¯s new to this, so he¡¯s gonna watch us take down some beasts before helping us out.¡± ¡°Hey everyone,¡± Yaz said, hoping that he appeared welcoming. Several disjointed greetings rang out, when Jenson stood up. ¡°Alright everyone, let¡¯s go.¡± They made their way into the forest, clearly having done this before. Yaz hung back as everyone else moved through the terrain. Before long, a roar sounded out from behind a series of trees. Everyone tensed as a creature with rotted fur emerged from behind several trees. There it was. The first Rotfang he had seen since his first hunt. There was no sneaking up on this one though, it was clearly aware of their squad. Jenson wasted no time breaking into action. ¡°Now!¡± he barked. Garrett darted forward, drawing his blade from its scabbard and rushing forward. Austin and Jenson flanked it from either side, their blades gleaming, it was a perfectly coordinated assault. Paul kneeled and drew and nocked an arrow to his bow, while Mara backed away. The creature roared once more before Paul¡¯s drew back his arrow to hit the creature squarely in the snout. It was not enough, barely enough to be frank. It only seemed to irritate the Rotfang more. Yet shortly after, Jenson¡¯s sword bit deeply into the shoulder of the beast, staggering it. Again, not dealing near enough damage, as the creature whipped around and swept the three melee fighters back and off their feet. It was at this moment, that Mara revealed she was not a mage like Yaz had originally deduced. Upon seeing what he first assumed was a wand, his brain had just defaulted to Mage. Yet that was clearly not the case. A burst of white light surrounding the three men that had been hit, rejuvenating them. She was a cleric. The battle developed, with the three swordsman darting around and harassing the creature, with Paul launching arrow after arrow at the beast. It looked like a pincushion when finally, the beast lay sprawled, defeated. As everyone gathered around the monster, Yaz also walked up. ¡°Wow, that was incredible he said,¡± unable to keep his amazement to himself. ¡°Not really,¡± Austin said in response. This was the first time he had heard the man talk, and damn he sounded depressed. ¡°It was fine,¡± Jenson huffed. ¡°Could have been better, we definitely took more hits than we should have but it wasn¡¯t our worst performance.¡± As Yaz didn¡¯t deal a single point of damage, he had received no XP for the kill. However, he was curious how it worked for the members of the party. ¡°Is the XP divided among all of you? Or do you each get the full amount?¡± Yaz asked. ¡°It¡¯s divided evenly,¡± Jenson replied. ¡°I thought that it would be performance based, but that¡¯s not the case. It just takes the full amount and divides it by the number of people that contribute to the fight.¡± Interesting. That begs the question though, if experience is divided then why did Roderick call me weak? Is it because Level 5 is not a significant milestone, would he have been more impressed if I told him that I was level 9? ¡°What is everyone¡¯s level here?¡± Yaz asked. He get several stares in response. Was that the wrong thing to ask? The group shared some looks between them before answering. ¡°11.¡± ¡°12.¡± ¡°12.¡± ¡°9.¡± ¡°13.¡± What the¡­all higher than me? Everyone was a higher rank than him. Even with the XP distribution. That made absolutely no sense. However, his question was answered before the day was done. The group returned at dark. Yaz was in awe. He had joined them halfway through the hunt, helping kill the beasts and speeding up the process. He believed that his addition to the team was beneficial, as his range support vastly improved the kill time of the group from what he could tell. He knew that his firepower was higher than that of a Level 5, but given that no one in the group was a Mage he doubted that they would be able to tell that he was dishing out way more than he should have. He even managed to level up today, putting all of his additional stat points into Arcane for increased damage. He did notice that hunting in a group placed immense strain on his MP. As it stood, the requirements were not as high when he hunted alone because he was simply hunting slower. Kiting monsters around, ensuring that he wasn¡¯t injured because he had few ways to heal himself. Moreover, his Echo alluded to status affects, and if he were poisoned or something he was sure that would be his death bed. However, in a group, they were rapid. He killed nearly 5-6x as many monsters as he would have if he was by himself. It was incredible, and it answered the question of how everyone was stronger than them. Monster volume was the answer, that much was clear. Yaz was impressed though, that these people had managed to fight so well. But he wouldn¡¯t question it, 1/8th of the population had been wiped out within the first hour of the integration. It stood to reason that the survivors had to at least have some level of baseline confidence. Or were extremely lucky. Who knew. As they settled back down at the camp, Yaz noticed other groups of 4-6 people coming from the tree lines looking exhausted. So there¡¯s more than 1 patrol. Makes sense. After all, Roderick had alluded to having mages in his camp and there were none in his party, so they must all be part of different groups. And then, he noticed something else. A group was coming back, larger in size. Maybe 10-12 people, and they were wheeling several carts that appeared to be full of metal. Behind them was another group of people, walking with pelts and branches. That¡­makes so much sense. They have productivity teams. ¡°Hey, how many people do you guys send out that are capable of handling all of those productivity tasks? That has to be a game changer for you guys,¡± Yaz asked Paul, who was sitting besides him. ¡°I have no idea,¡± Paul responded. He didn¡¯t expand on it either, he was a quiet guy. Yaz could respect it. He had exchanged words with everyone from his party in passing but for some reason Paul was the most approachable of them all. He was the most withdrawn and yet Yaz still felt more comfortable talking to him than the rest of the group. Unprompted, Paul spoke again, ¡°It¡¯s not something we talk about much. We all do what we can.¡± Jenson, who¡¯d been silent all evening, merely grunted in acknowledgement as others discussed plans for tomorrow¡¯s patrol. That night, there were a few more murmured exchanges before everyone made their way back towards their personal tents to rest. Time passed, the camp grew quiet, and Yaz slipped into a gentle slumber. Chapter 6 Over the course of the following month, Yaz hunted alongside his new allies almost daily. The camp became a second home - and despite his loner inclinations, he had to admit the camaraderie made everyone¡¯s situation more bearable. This new way of life had been accepted by everyone. There were obviously some outliers but given the circumstances Yaz suspected there was some sort of system functionality that helped a lot of people cope with being transported away from their home and the life they knew. Yaz steadily advanced in levels. He reached level 10, and with it unlocked a new passive skill. [Depth of Understanding (Common) ¨C Increases MP reserve and regeneration rate.] That had been a while ago, and he was now level 19. He had also finally seen his Echo in action. He realized a specific caveat to its operation; a Fragment was only generated when he landed the final hit on a monster. Once he realized that, he was able to adapt his fighting style to ensure that he was absorbing a Fragment of almost every monster that his team fought. And recently, his stats actually spilled over the bucket and granted him a full stat point. His status window now showed the following: [Name: Yaz] [Race: Human] [Level: 19] [Class: Mage] [Attributes:] Strength: 11 + 0.134?Mind: 23 + 0.158?Dexterity: 8 + 0.197?Endurance: 7 + 0.175?Intelligence: 31 + 0.136?Arcane: 23 + 0.149 Perception: 9 + 0.196?Vitality: 11 + 0.165 [Skills:] Echo of the Abyss Arcane Shot Depth of Understanding [Status Effects:] None Allocatable Stat Points: 0 Stat points earned were fairly consistent, he got 4 per level. Two that he could allot freely and 2 that as far as he could tell, were assigned randomly. Every spare stat went into his mana related stats, Mind, Intelligence, and Arcane. He was becoming quite the glass cannon. He grew closer with his teammates as well. Close calls and hours spent together daily would make you either love or hate someone after all, thankfully as he grew close with everyone the atmosphere grew less tense. And it turned out that Yaz¡¯s inkling about Paul was correct, as they got along extremely well. But there was one person who remained a mystery: Jenson. Despite their daily interactions and his role as team leader, he was always distant and guarded. He was the strongest out of all of them as well, as they had all progressed at mostly the same pace and he was the strongest of them before they started hunting together. His proficiency with the sword made Yaz suspect that he¡¯d been in some combat related field before the assimilation. ¡°Hey man,¡± Yaz walked up to Paul after a hunt giving him a fist bump and sitting down beside him. ¡°What¡¯s up?¡± ¡°Nothing much,¡± Paul said. ¡°Have you hit level 20 yet? Jenson said that he got a class upgrade and a new set of skills. He said instead of being given one there¡¯s actually a selection of skills this time. I¡¯m so pumped.¡± Yaz said, clearly excited. ¡°Not yet, I¡¯m really close though. I¡¯ve only got maybe 10% of my XP bar remaining. I hope it¡¯s something strong too, I can tell I¡¯m starting to lag behind a little bit on damage,¡± Paul responded. Yaz could not disagree more, Paul was only second to Yaz himself in pure maximum damage potential, but where Yaz had higher peaks, he also had lower valleys. Paul could shoot arrows far longer than Yaz could blast Arcane Shots, and once he ran out of MP he was dead meat. He knew it, and it made him glad that he fought in a group and not solo. That would be¡­ problematic given how his class had shaped up. ¡°You¡¯re going to be the first level 20 mage here, do you think that you¡¯ll get a huge power spike like Jenson?¡± Paul asked. ¡°I freaking hope so. That Blade Dance skill is insane. If I get something half as good I¡¯d be satisfied.¡± ¡°Yeah, I hope so too,¡± Paul replied, tapping his chin as he eyed the air. He was probably looking at how close his XP bar was to tipping over into level 20. ¡°But you know, I wonder if Jenson is the exception. What if my upgrade is just a minor tweak?¡± Yaz half-chuckled, ¡°Come on Paul. You¡¯re the best marksmen we have, even if it isn¡¯t as flashy it will still be a good boost.¡± Paul shrugged, a small smile on his lips betraying his anticipation, ¡°I guess you¡¯re right. It¡¯s just hard to be patient when I¡¯m right there.¡± His eyes flickered towards Jenson who was silently sharpening his blade in the distance, ¡°You know, Jenson always seems to know something we don¡¯t. He¡¯s ahead of us and was a force to be reckoned with before that. Makes me wonder what he was before all this.¡± ¡°Yeah¡­¡± Yaz trailed off. ¡°But we need the guy, at least he¡¯s on our side. I wouldn¡¯t feel as comfortable on our hunts without him.¡± Paul and Yaz shared a moment of silent agreement. ¡°Alright man,¡± Paul said, standing up and clapping Yaz on the shoulder. ¡°Let¡¯s hope level 20 comes soon. Until then, I need some rest.¡± It had been a long day, and Yaz echoed the sentiment. ¡°Right on, I¡¯m just behind you. Catch you tomorrow.¡± Paul nodded and stalked off. Yaz reached into the leather satchel that he¡¯d been given and pulled out his wand. It turned out that the weapons everyone carried had been crafted by someone called an Artificer, after several successful hunts they had made him one. Not everyone had been posited the same class choices, some people received productivity related classes in addition to their combat classes. It left Yaz to wonder why he didn¡¯t have that option, although not enough to make him regret his decision. The thrill of battle was something that he had grown to enjoy, and he looked forward to their daily hunts. He made to stand up when he suddenly remembered his pack that he had left in the forest all that time ago. He had never gone back to get it. It was a small tether to someone that he no longer was, but a piece of him wanted to reclaim it. He decided that he would go grab it before he went to bed, after all it wasn¡¯t that far away. He stood up and instead of going to bed, went to make his way into the forest. The camp had grown since he joined, several people that had seemingly been tossed into the forest after the Imprinting making their way here and leading to rapid expansion. He navigated the maze of tents and makeshift shelters until he reached the edge of the camp that bordered the forest. His mind was fixed on retrieving his backpack, but as he passed one of the larger tents, the sound of hushed voices caught his attention. Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°¡­we¡¯ve been scouting them for several days¡­they have nowhere near our numbers¡­¡± ¡°¡­will the people support that? Many will be against needless bloodshed¡­¡± Yaz froze. He edged closer. The conversation was tensed and laced with urgency. He recognized the gravelly tone of one of the conspirators ¨C Roderick¡¯s ¨C no doubt. He couldn¡¯t make sense of what they were saying, but he definitely heard someone say ¡°bloodshed¡±. A chill slid down Yaz¡¯s spine, he tried to reason what was happening. Scouting? Was there another settlement? If that was true, why were they attacking them instead of initiating a merger, or even a mutually beneficial partnership? He went to get closer to the tent to hear more, but in the shadows, he missed a large rock that caused him to trip. All things considered; the fall was quite graceful. Instead of falling face first and sprawling across the ground, his knee slammed onto the ground. The fall itself was silent but that did not prevent him from making a sharp intake of breath from the pain. Instantly, the voices went silent. Yaz quickly rose to his feet and sprinted behind a thick tree in the dense forest, pressing himself into the darkness. He listened as the murmurs outside rose in alarm, then faded as footsteps approached. He held his breath, not daring to move. A pair of eyes, he could almost feel their scrutinizing gaze, swept across the clearing. After an agonizing several minutes and several loud footfalls, the clearing went silent. Believing the danger had passed, Yaz eased from his hiding place behind the thick tree. He crept away from the tent, his heart hammering, and resumed his trek into the forest for his backpack. The silence around him promise him safety ¨C or so he thought. Just as he rounded a gnarled trunk, a firm hand gripped his shoulder from behind. ¡°Where do you think you¡¯re going?¡± Jenson hissed. Yaz spun around, eyes widening as Jenson¡¯s fist connected with his jaw in a swift, brutal strike. He knew he was in trouble. He heard something he shouldn¡¯t have, and now the consequences had come crashing down. Pain flared across his face as his world spun. He staggered backward, Jenson¡¯s overwhelming strength evident. In that moment, Yaz regretted investing so many of his stat points into magic related pools. His body was already tired from a long day, and as Jenson advanced he realized that he was in a lot of trouble. Without speaking, he started striking at Yaz, his blows falling like a hammer. He tried to block and dodge, but it was without any success. The sound of flesh meeting flesh, the thud of a fist against bone, Yaz¡¯s vision blurred as he began to taste blood. He glanced over at his status window and noticed his HP bar plummeting faster than he had ever seen. I¡¯m going to die. He thought. Jenson was not just teaching him a lesson, he was teaching him the ultimate lesson. In a brief window of Jenson¡¯s attack, he launched an Arcane Shot at Jenson who stepped to the side as it whizzed by. He heard a light chuckle emanate from his attacker. ¡°A little in over your head huh?¡± A brief reprieve from the assault. Yaz eyed his HP that had essentially bottom out, he was barely holding on. He couldn¡¯t even muster the strength to respond, when a sudden sound ¨C a sharp twang ¨C cut through the night. Yaz¡¯s head snapped to the side as an arrow, loosed by someone unseen until now, whistled through the air. It collided with Jenson¡¯s shoulder with a resounding thud, causing his attacker to stagger. Jenson¡¯s eyes widened in shock and pain. He grimaced, the arrow¡¯s impact taking its toll. In desperation, Yaz seized the opening. To tired to even grip the wand from his satchel, he launched an Arcane Shot at Jenson. It connected with his abdomen, adding to the pain from the arrow. Now on the backfoot and surprised, Jenson was the one to stagger back. Instead of relenting, Yaz launched Arcane Shot after Arcane Shot, pelting Jenson until he fell to the ground. Even after he¡¯d fallen, Yaz dumped his entire MP bar into the corpse. Once his MP bar hit zero, only Yaz¡¯s ragged breathing filled the air. Blood trickled down his face, and he thought about how lucky he was to survive. The adrenaline faded, leaving behind a searing pain and overwhelming sense of dread. In the now silent forest, he knew he could not afford to be seen in this condition. Much less beside Jenson. With immense effort, he dragged himself up, pressing his back against the rough bark of a tree. As the minutes passed, his vision blurred further and his limbs grew numb. The pain was relentless, and exhaustion seeped into every fiber of his being. His eyes shut as he succumbed to the darkness. Hours later, Yaz¡¯s eyes snapped open. He slowly regained consciousness, as the memories of what had just happened flooded him like a tidal wave. His HP bar had regenerated to a quarter of its maximum in his forced slumber, he looked over and noticed that he could still make out the outline of Jenson¡¯s body despite the darkness of the night. He felt tears welling. He¡¯d never killed anyone before. Jenson was not his friend by any means, but they were comrades. The betrayal of the attack coupled with the grief of taking another life was a lot for Yaz to handle in this moment. He went to make his way over to the body. He couldn¡¯t let anyone find out about this. As he made his way over, he noticed something. The same animation that played when he absorbed the Fragment of a monster was playing now, only it surrounded Jenson¡¯s corpse. Blood trickled down his face as Yaz stared at the clear energy swirling around Jenson¡¯s lifeless body. However, he still hadn¡¯t received the prompt that came with his usual skill¡¯s activation. The pulsing energy coagulated in a small, shimmering orb that hovered over Jenson¡¯s chest. Then, the prompt finally came: [You have taken the life of some whose Essence ¨C memories, vital energy, weight of a lived life ¨C exceeds the maximum threshold of your Echo. You can absorb this Fragment, but in exchange the intrinsic value of all life will diminish, as its purpose is now mere fuel to your growing power. This sacrifice will forever consign you to the path of the Abyss. Do you accept this gift? Y/N] Reading the notification, Yaz trembled. The pulsing orb over Jenson¡¯s chest whispered of forbidden power. His thoughts turned inward, Am I ready to pay this price? He questioned whether this was power worth pursuing. He had loved the progress since integrating with the system, but he knew the meaning of life. The voices of his past seemed to cry out in protest, friends, family. What would he think of them if he chose yes? He wasn¡¯t sure. He was torn, yet amidst the turmoil, his desire to survive crawled its way to the forefront of his consciousness. Yaz closed his eyes and forced himself to face the truth. He would no longer be welcomed back at the settlement. It would not be difficult to put two and two together, and realize who had killed Jenson. While Yaz was strong, he wasn¡¯t the strongest. And even if he was, would he be able to face everyone alone? With a deep shuddering breath, he came to terms with what he needed to do, pragmatism overcoming his emotions. He pressed Yes. In the next moment, he felt a piece of himself tearing away ¨C sacrificing a part of his humanity for power. The decision was made in a moment of despair, maybe had he been in a better position he would have denied the opportunity. The orb flared brightly, and floating towards his chest as it seeped into his being. His status window forced itself open, his Echo flashed, and the skill description appeared once more before him, having changed. Effects: Grants Echo Consumption. Grants resistance to mind-affecting skills and illusions. Enhances all skills with an absorption effect that belong to the user or are granted by weapons or armaments. Limits emotional extremes. Echo Consumption ¨C Enemies that you have killed will leave behind a Fragment, that when consumed grant stat boosts that allot pro rata according to the stat distribution of the enemy felled. Fractional points accumulate but do not provide a boost until they reach a full stat point. Current Absorption Rate ¨C 0.5% He forced himself to rise, when he got a notification. [Level 20 Threshold Reached ¨C Trial of Unity Triggered]