Noah's heart slammed against his ribs as the words echoed through his mind 'Who… are you?'
His breath hitched and instincts screamed at him to move, to react, but he couldn't. He was trapped in the gaze of something beyond comprehension. The creature's golden eyes bored into him, unblinking. Noah knew beasts didn't do that. Hatchlings, fresh from the egg, were supposed to be confused, instinct-driven but his thing wasn't confused.
Noah's fingers twitched, 'A beast with an unstable form? No… this was something else. What… the hell… did I just hatch?'
Noah's blood ran cold, before he could even react, the System's familiar chime rang in his head, nearly making him flinch.
Ding!
[Identifying Unknown Beast Signature…]
[Analyzing…]
[WARNING!ERROR…ERROR…Beast classification… unknown.]
Noah blinked, 'Wait, what…?'
From his first encounter with the System, he believed that the System always knew everything about beasts. Strengths, weaknesses, abilities, evolution potential and that it would never but now it was confused, that wasn't good, it was really not good.
Suddenly, another prompt appeared.
[Scan Complete!]
[Beast lineage detected…]
[Name: Abyssal Raven (Juvenile)]
[Warning! This species is recorded as EXTINCT.]
[Status: Last recorded sighting…over 1,000 years ago.]
[Rarity: ???? (Unclassified)]
[Potential: LIMITLESS]
Noah's entire body stiffened. 'Extinct?... Unclassified?...Limitless?' His pulse thundered in his ears. Beasts had classifications that ranged from common, rare, epic, legendary. But this? It wasn't even classified. 'This isn't just some rare mutation? Some undocumented beast? This is something that wasn't supposed to exist?'
His mouth felt dry as he processed the information, he had just hatched a powerful creature. A beast that was so powerful, so dangerous, that it had been wiped from history.
The Abyssal Raven hatchling blinked once then it tilted its head, still watching him, its golden eyes narrowing slightly.
Noah exhaled slowly, 'Stay calm, think Noah.'
He instinctively tensed, his muscles coiling like springs. He had no idea what it could do, and that made it dangerous, he needed to act carefully. This thing looked powerful, maybe even more powerful than anything he had ever seen, but right now… It was just a newborn and that meant it was still in its most vulnerable stage. If he bonded with it now, before it fully matured, he could secure an unbreakable contract.
A broad smile curved on his cheeks. 'This is it, this is the chance of a lifetime.'
He had tamed a beast already and expected this to be simple, he thought that he just needed to reach out, establish a contract.
He took a step forward, lowering his voice, keeping it steady. "You're a little different from what I expected," he said. "But that's fine. I don't like normal things anyway."
The Raven blinked once, then ruffled its feathers. The air around it rippled slightly, distorting for a brief moment before returning to normal.
Noah's stomach twisted, that wasn't a natural movement but he had already committed. He raised a hand, summoning a thin thread of spiritual energy, his breath hitched, something was wrong, the thread that connected beast to tamer was missing. He wasn't feeling any response from the creature, it wasn't rejecting him he felt that it was ignoring him and wasn't normal.
'Every beast, no matter how powerful, was born incomplete. They needed a tamer, someone to guide their growth, strengthen their bond. That was the law of beast taming. 'so why is this thing not acknowledging me?'
He steeled his nerves. 'Fine,' he raised a hand, summoning a thin thread of spiritual energy again reaching out toward the hatchling, the first step in forming a beast contract. The energy stretched forward, a soft, glowing tether between them but the Raven stared at it. Then it shattered the contract attempt instantly.
Noah's eyes widened in disbelief, 'What?!'
The hatchling let out a low, rumbling click, almost like laughter, its golden gaze filled with something dangerously close to amusement.
Noah. Clicked, almost losing temper, then the system have a prompt immediately.
Ding!
[Contract Attempt Failed.]
[This beast does not acknowledge your authority.]
Noah gritted his teeth. "Oh, so that's how it is, huh?"
The Raven tilted its head again, the flickering ember-like patterns on its feathers glowing faintly. It wasn't rejecting him out of fear or hostility, it was rejecting him because…It didn't see him as worthy.
Noah's eye twitched. 'Fine. If you are not responding to a passive bond, I would just have to do it the old-fashioned way.'
He took a step forward, the Abyssal Raven tilted its head slightly, its golden eyes unblinking. Noah assumed that, then he raised his hand, focusing his energy, willing the bond to form, but the moment his fingers got close, the beast's fur bristled and a burst of energy exploded outward, shoving Noah backward like a forceful gust of wind. He stumbled, barely managing to keep his stability.
The pile of fallen books and scattered scrolls fluttered from the impact. 'Did it just… push me away?'
Noah gritted his teeth, the beast wasn't just resisting the bond. It was rejecting the concept of a master altogether. His fingers twitched and meant one thing, he had to establish dominance. He moved forward "You little…" He cut himself off, inhaling sharply.
The System, as if reading his thoughts, chimed again almost as if it was enjoying this.
Ding!
[Alternative Method Available: Fusion Override.]
Noah froze, 'fusion Override?'
The text flashed again,
Ding!
[Fusion Override is a temporary fusion, does the host like to establish dominance through temporary fusion?]
Noah blinked. ' Wait, what?'
He had never seen a bond with an uncontracted beast before. Normally, fusion required an established bond. This… this was something else.
The System continued,
[This beast possesses limitless evolution potential.]
[Directly fusing with the Abyssal Raven will allow for a temporary synchronization, proving dominance over the beast's will.]
[Note: This method is unstable. The beast may resist.]
[Warning: This process may trigger unknown side effects.]
[Chance of side effects: 42%.]
[Proceed?]
Noah's jaw tightened. 'Side effects? Forty-two percent?' That was basically a coin toss between success and disaster and he risk was obvious. If he fused with an unbonded beast, its energy could clash violently, leading to backlash, damage, or worse a complete rejection. If that happened mid-fusion…
He didn't even want to imagine the consequences. But did he have a choice? The beast wouldn't accept him through normal means. And now he could already hear approaching footsteps from the distant hallways. If he couldn't bond with it normally, and if the Academy found out about this creature before he had full control… He didn't even want to think about what would happen. They'd take it and he'd never see it again.
Noah's fists clenched, ' I would settle it.' he took a slow, deliberate breath then he selected the prompt.
The moment he confirmed {proceed} ,the Abyssal Raven lunged. Not in attack, but in response. A massive surge of energy erupted from the hatchling, slamming into his chest. He gasped, staggering as heat, power, and something indescribable poured into him, twisting through his veins, flooding his senses.
His vision blurred, gold, black and red colors swirling violently. His breath came in ragged bursts as his muscles locked up, his entire body straining under the sheer force of the connection.
The Raven shrieked, its cry vibrating through the air, through his bones, The Abyssal Raven was fighting him, and the fusion wasn't working.
Noah clenched his jaw. " Damn it! stay under control!"
A crushing pressure weighed down on his mind, like someone had shoved another presence inside his skull. His breath came in sharp gasps as his vision blurred. His own energy was being swallowed, consumed by the beast's overwhelming presence.
"No. No. This wasn't how it was supposed to go." He screamed as the edges of his mind dimmed, darkness creeping in. His limbs felt foreign, his own power spiraling out of his control.
Images flashed before his eyes, a sky filled with swirling abyssal storms, a world bathed in darkness, a beast looking down from above, wings stretched across the horizon.
Noah's heartbeat slowed, his breathing ragged. "What…what … is this?"
The pressure increased and his muscles locked up entirely, his vision darkening at the edges. Something was wrong and the fusion was unstable.
The Raven screeched again, and Noah felt his body being pulled apart, as if the energy within him was about to rip him in two.
Then the system gave him a prompt again.
Ding!
[Warning: Fusion is exceeding safe limits!]
[Immediate action required!]
Noah's thoughts scrambled, his entire body trembling from the sheer force of the backlash.
Then he heard a voice not from the system but from the Abyssal Raven, it was louder than before and was no longer questioning. This time, it commanded. "Unworthy."
Noah's knees buckled as his consciousness slipped, then everything exploded as darkness swallowed him whole.