[Your World has been selected. Initialising synchronisation with 'Ascension.']
[From this point on, your world is no longer yours. Your world has been overtaken by the game—'Ascension'—and it will transform this world into a place where only the fittest survive. And please do keep trying to survive so our Lord may enjoy your vain attempts to preserve your pathetic lives.]
[In the first phase of the game, please select your attributes, which will decide which class you will receive.]
[Of course, a few of you may have unique attributes that will allow you to receive a better class with more possibilities for the future. But be warned that the attributes chosen will alter said person on a fundamental level, and there is no going back. However, if one is able to harness the power at your fingertips, all your desires can be fulfilled, be it fame, glory, or fortune.]
[Now then, this is it for the time being. I will be able to see those that have adapted to the new world again, but for those that are not able to do so, only death awaits.]
After regurgitating what the ethereal being had already said a million times, it opened a portal and swiftly disappeared just as it had arrived.
"Hey, what the f*** is going on?"
"No, this can't be for real."
"Holy s***!"
"I don't believe this; it's got to be a stupid prank or some BS!"
Mass hysteria and panic washed over the populace as that ethereal figure was witnessed, heard, and feared by everyone, without fail, as he announced the end of their peaceful lives...
...for some, what would soon become the end of their lives.
Every single social media platform was being flooded with images and news of what had happened. But the panic soon turned into dread as the question of what would happen next began to arise.
News broadcasters covered the news and gave their opinions on what would happen to the world, but it was nothing like what they could've ever imagined, even in their wildest dreams.
They didn't have to wait long to find out either.
Unbeknownst to everyone, an unfamiliar energy, mana, had started to spread around the globe, and it only took 24 hours or so to show its effects.
Most could feel it by now, something had, beyond a shadow of a doubt, changed.
The incident first came to the public's attention when a U.S. senator fell unconscious during a press conference, and the cause was reported as unknown.
This was only the beginning, as cases of people suddenly passing out and falling into a coma were reported worldwide, and the rate of this happening only increased with every day that passed.
Nonetheless, falling into a coma was the better option when the alternative was death.
A week after the incident, there were over a billion diseased and almost 700 million people in comas, now lying in hospitals, for what most assumed would be the rest of their lives.
This misery, which had overcome the world as many had lost family members and loved ones, was only the prelude to hell.
And hell, it truly was…
At least it was predictable, for a day that would be known as the Cataclysm in the foreseen future.
When the world had finished acclimating to the mana that now infested it, the earth itself started to crack open.
The shaking alone was enough to cause massive damage to human settlements and claim millions of lives. Yet the situation degenerated further, as lava spewed out in jets, covering the sky in a blanket of dark ash and other toxic gases.
The ground itself fell apart, and an earthquake spanning the globe took place. But soon most people realised that it wasn't a normal earthquake at all.
The sound was as if something—something of ginormous proportions was emerging from the depths, something that they couldn't comprehend.
They emerged from the ruptured ground in all their majestic glory. Even so, none were able to indulge themselves in this magical phenomenon as the world was still falling apart around them.
Helplessly, many watched and waited for what seemed to be God's wrath to finally subside.
Soon, the wait was over and all around the globe, massive structures had finished surging up from the depths.
There were 12 in total. They were of too many different varieties to be addressed by one name, but among them were medieval castles, mountains, volcanoes, lush fields of flowers, as well as mystical forests and even floating islands. But the thing that stood out the most was the massive tower in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.
It was like nothing ever seen before, well, you could say that none of this was like anything ever seen before, but the tower was something else altogether.
Standing majestically at what most would now refer to as the centre of the world, its brilliance couldn't be escaped from.
It towered so tall that it seemed to be unending, and its height would remain unconfirmed since humanity had lost contact with many of their satellites, at least all those near the tower, as the dense mana leaking from it had disrupted the connection between them.
Though it was surrounded by vast oceans, at the base was a large platform around the same size as England, in the shape of a circle.
Finally, at the very bottom of the tower was the ancient gateway, which stood intimidatingly in all its glory. It was framed by colossal columns adorned with intricate carvings of mythological creatures and symbols that did not originate from any language that existed on Earth.
The entire structure exuded an aura of mystery and power, a relic of a civilisation far beyond their own.
For most people, the weirdest thing about it all was that this massive object, which covered most of the horizon, didn't produce a shadow at all. Most were, of course, grateful for this, as it was large enough to cover 10% of the world's surface with just its shadow.
After this process of transformation was over, the earth calmed down, and even the cracks slowly closed up.
But the damage done was already irreversible.
Everyone was naturally on guard; however, after that incident, nothing happened.
Everyone expected some monstrosity to walk out of those doors, except, surprisingly, nothing did.
It was as if God had given humanity a grace period, an intermission before the reckoning