[Soul Assimilation will Commence in 3… 2… 1…]
Ren's entire body convulsed as if lightning surged through every nerve. His chest arched upward, mouth wide open in a silent scream. The water around him rippled violently, darkening with a strange shimmer of gold and black light. His own reflection fractured—his face splitting into shifting forms, none of them his, all of them alien.
[Assimilation Progress: 5%]
A claw-like pain tore through his spine. He felt his bones grinding, reshaping, his muscles screaming as if they were being torn apart and rewoven into something else. Ren wanted to fight it, to thrash and reject the invasion, but he couldn't even move.
[10%]His heartbeat thundered louder than the waves.
[20%]His vision blurred, and suddenly he was no longer in the water—he was in a vast abyss. An infinite darkness stretching in all directions, with a throne of obsidian far in the distance. Something sat upon it; a colossal figure made of shadow and gold fire.
"Struggle not," the voice echoed directly inside his skull. "Your soul is weak, but your body is enough."
Ren tried to speak, but his throat produced only static, his words devoured by the void.
[40%]The abyssal throne fractured into shards of light, crashing into his chest. He gagged as energy burned its way into him, rewriting the very fabric of his being. Memories that weren't his flooded his mind—wars fought under blood-red skies, armies kneeling before a horned figure, the roar of beasts shaking the earth.
[60%]Ren clutched at his head, but his hands no longer looked human—they warped, elongated, coated in faint glowing etchings like living tattoos.
[80%]"Who… am I becoming?" he whispered, voice trembling.
[Replying…][You are no longer Ren. You are the Beginning of the BEAST.]
[100% – Soul Assimilation Complete]
His scream tore through both the abyss and the real world. The water erupted around his body, shooting upward in a violent geyser. When the spray settled, Ren's figure was still, suspended just above the surface. His eyes snapped open, glowing with dark-gold fire.
Something inhuman now breathed through his chest.
Slowly the fiery appearance of his eyes died down, replaced grey, like how it normally was, blind. He slowly stood up from the water, butt naked. His body was still thin and frail, but it held a kind of hidden power. On his shoulder, stood a small blue wisp. Ren's soul.
"I thought I would get a new body or something?!" Ren, now just a blue wisp shouted at the being now occupying his body.
"I'm working on it," his body replied. It was funny seeing your own body replying to you. It he had a face; he would've been grinding his teeth from anger.
"If you have the power to create a body, why didn't you create one for yourself?" Ren asked, his tone taking an almost mocking turn.
"Believe me, I'm as confused as you," his body replied again.
"Huh? What do you mean?" Ren stated in confusion.
"I will tell you everything once we resolve this issue."
"Sure."
"System or whoever you are, how do you plan to resolve this?" the body asked the system. "And I'm blind!"
[Replying Host...]
[Ren can stay in the system space until we find a suitable body for him. As for your blindness, it's part of the body and isn't something that can be resolved with just assimilation. I also see it as an advantage for you. You will understand once you learn of what you are.]
"Mm... We will make do with this for now. What do you think, Ren?" he asked the blue wisp on his shoulder.
"I'm okay with it... for now!" Ren answered rather harshly.
"I get it, no need to shout."
"You realize you are naked, right?" Ren stated.
"How quick of you to accept the reality."
"It's not like I can do anything about it."
"You're right."
[Path of the BEAST Initialized!]
[You Lack a Name]
[Create One or Get Named by the System]
These notifications popped as he made his way out of the water, grabbing the last bit of his clothes that floated atop the water to cover his private parts.
"Can I first know what the beast stands for? And what exactly it implies?"
[BEAST is an abbreviation for concepts you embody, but also links to beasts, just like what you're thinking of. Your path is of a beast, a monster, but of the highest order.
B - Brutal
E - Elemental
A - Ancient
S - Savage
T - Terrifying]
"Although it didn't help much, it helped clarify some things. Thankfully, in this life, I have the power to change my destiny."
[I'm sorry that I couldn't be of assistance. I'm also learning more about this power]
"I understand. Now let's find a name." The person in Ren's body said as he sat on a rocky edge of the water, his feet dangling in the pool. The sound of waterfall was loud and soothing, giving him a sense of calm and peace, that in that moment, the hunger he felt was nonexistent.
"A name for myself, huh. Ren any suggestion?" He asked the blue wisp on his shoulder.
"Hmm... Fewu?"
"Dude, what the fuck!"