Planet Lushterra (Nusantara Kingdom – Year 2023)
"Gavin, what's the status at Watchpoint 4?"
The stillness of the tropical rainforest was broken by the low voice of a young man in a white mountain jacket, crouched alone in the undergrowth on surveillance duty.
A burst of static crackled in his earpiece before a reply came from another young man. "All clear here, Kairav. Still no heat signatures besides small animals. Even our night drones haven't picked up anything..."
Kairav gave a short nod. Behind his infrared goggles, amber eyes scanned the surroundings. "Got it. Keep watching with Baron."
The young cryptozoologist was about to press the button on his walkie-talkie to end the call when Gavin's voice came again.
"We've been scouting for months and haven't seen a single trace of the short man of Enchanted. Are you sure we're in the right place?"
"I'm sure," Kairav replied confidently. "Ever since stories of the short man of Enchanted or Uhang Pandak first showed up in Marco Polo's journals centuries ago..."
"One of the places most often linked to sightings of this cryptid is right here. Mount Seven's rainforest—"
His words cut off. His ears picked up something unusual, a sound other than the insects buzzing in the dark.
"Movement…" he whispered to Gavin.
His head turned toward a thick patch of bushes a few meters away. The leaves there rustled faintly, the sound growing louder in his ears.
"Should I bring the others to your position?" Gavin asked, his tone suddenly serious.
The 5'9" young man began creeping toward the bushes, which appeared as a dull blue mass through his infrared goggles.
His hand slid to the tranquilizer rifle holstered at his waist. He readied it. "I'll check first... could just be a boar or something else."
"Alright. Be careful," Gavin replied.
Kairav gently pushed aside the leaves.
He froze. Through his thermal optics, an orange heat signature emerged from the dense foliage.
The thermal camera integrated into his goggles confirmed it. A primate, about four to five feet tall, its body completely covered in thick, dark hair.
It was crouched, using its long, muscular arms to dig tubers from the soil.
Then it turned. Its glowing yellow eyes locked on the barrel of the rifle pointed at it.
The tranquilizer dart fired.
But the creature dodged with startling speed, the dart burying itself in the dirt.
It bolted, sprinting with unnatural swiftness, its backward-facing heels pounding the ground.
Kairav switched on the shoulder-mounted floodlight and gave chase.
"Uhang Pandak spotted at Watchpoint 7! It's heading toward Watchpoint 6—coordinates 221 degrees southwest!" he reported.
The team's radios lit up in response.
"Copy!"
"Watchpoint 4 team moving to assist!"
"Watchpoint 6 team holding position—prepare for containment!"
"We're on the move!"
Kairav's boots pounded the forest floor, but after several minutes the creature vanished from sight.
He stopped at the edge of a shallow ravine, frowning.
Tall trees and dense shrubs surrounded him. No sign of the cryptid.
"I've lost visual... Watchpoint 6, any signs?" he asked, panting.
"Negative. No heat signatures detected. Are you sure it was headed this way?" a woman's voice replied.
"I'm sure—"
Static suddenly flooded his earpiece.
"Hey, can you hear me? Rosa?" he tried again.
Only garbled fragments of her voice came through, buried in the hiss of interference.
"Damn it…" he muttered.
Then the atmosphere shifted.
A dense fog rolled in from nowhere, swallowing the forest.
A strange, unnatural chill seeped into his bones, as if he'd stepped onto a frozen lake.
The leaves stilled. No wind. No movement.
It was as if time itself had stopped.
"What the hell? How did the weather change so fast?" he whispered, his breath fogging in the cold.
A deep, biting cold crawled through his body, raising goosebumps. He began to shiver.
Then the headache struck. A crushing, nauseating pain that made his ears ring.
"Arghhh!"
Clutching his head, he winced in agony.
Through the pain, his goggles caught a sudden heat signature. Moving fast, darting from tree to tree in seconds.
His eyes followed it. It vanished, reappeared, then vanished again, like a shadow flickering between worlds.
His breathing quickened.
The heat source stopped behind the trunk of an ancient tree.
"Guys... I need backup. Do you copy?" he whispered, never taking his eyes off the tree.
Static answered him.
"Shit."
He stepped forward cautiously, heart pounding, the headache intensifying.
Crack!
A branch snapped behind him.
He turned.
Grawll…
The furious face of the short man of Enchanted lunged into view.
"Whoaaa!!!"
Its glowing yellow eyes blazed as it slammed into him, sending him crashing to the ground.
The stench of its breath hit him like a wave. Panicking, Kairav kicked it square in the face.
Grawlll!!!
The creature staggered back.
Kairav scrambled to his feet, reaching for the tranquilizer rifle that had landed several meters away.
But the cryptid charged again, faster, angrier.
Claws like black daggers dug into his shoulder.
With terrifying strength, it hurled him into the ravine below.
Whump!
He landed hard on a bed of tall grass. His goggles flew off. Pain shot through his back, his shoulder burning.
Groaning, vision swimming, he muttered, "Am I… already in the afterlife?"
Somewhere between consciousness and darkness, a sound chimed in his ears.
Ping!
[System: Activation Initiated...]
Synchronizing with user...
[User Information]
Name: Kairav Pikatan
Race: Human
Age: 18
Title: Astral Conjurer (Host of Unicorn Spirit)
Element: Ice
Clan: Purehearted (Descendant of the Eternalush Royal Line)
[System: Analyzing User's Body...]
Synchronization: 85%... 92%... 100% Complete!
Kairav winced, clutching his throbbing head. "Ugh… what the hell?"
Another chime.
[Locked Attributes:]
Stellar Essence – Locked
User Energy – 0%
Crimson Sphere Essence – 0%
Spirit Animal – Locked
[Available Skill:]
- Radiant Soulforge Awakening – Locked → Complete the upcoming mission to unlock.
[Fate Gauge:]
- Good Karma: 0 / 10 (Reward)
- Bad Karma: 0 / 10 (Consequence)
[Balance:]
- Unicorn Blood Blessing – Locked
[Memory Fragments: 0%]
Still dazed, he scowled. "Great… so angels in the afterlife sound like Spongebob now?"
[System: …?]
[Ugh! Did you just insult me, you brat?!]
Wincing and gripping his injured shoulder, Kairav pushed himself upright.
His gaze drifted back to the strange blue holographic screen hovering in the air. "Argh... damn it. What is this thing? Am I hallucinating?"
Before he could gather his thoughts, sounds stirred in the ravine.
Grass crunching underfoot.
A low, all-too-familiar growl.
Grawlll…