"Run!" I shouted, my throat tearing as the sky itself cracked open. A towering silhouette descended, its shadow sprawling across the ground like the hand of a god reaching down to crush us. Objects monstrous fragments of something unknown rained from above, each impact shaking the earth like the end of days.
I thought it would be my last breath. My body froze, but before the crushing weight reached me, my vision shifted. In an instant, I was standing inside a giant glowing square along with hundreds of others from my city the same people who had been near the tower's fall site.
Confusion spread like wildfire.
"What's happening?"
"The world is ending!"
"No, this can't be real!"
Their voices rose into chaos. Fear twisted into panic, some cried, some prayed, others simply screamed.
And then, silence.
A figure appeared above us, suspended in the sky. Beautiful so beautiful my mind failed to describe it. A presence not human, not divine, but something beyond both. The figure's lips parted, and their voice, neither male nor female, poured into us like honey laced with poison.
"Humans of Earth. Your planet has been chosen as one of the contenders for the Tower. From this moment, selected individuals among you will be recognized as Players. Through you, the Tower will stand to defend your world.
Gates will soon open rifts that connect to other dimensions. From them, monsters shall emerge. Should you fail to slay the Gate's boss, the rift will spread, devouring everything. Only the one who conquers it may choose to close it or leave it to fester.
You will be granted Class Cards. These will shape your abilities, fitted to who you are at the core. Survive… if you can. Because this is the beginning of your era's trial. The beginning of… The Apocalypse."
The last word dripped from their mouth with venom, tearing through the crowd's fragile hope. The figure vanished, leaving only dread.
And then, the sky lit up with a massive countdown.
5… 4… 3… 2… 1…
A voice whispered in my head.
[Congratulations. You have been chosen.]
[Please enter your Name or Alias. This will be your Player identity.]
[Warning: Confirmation will bind you permanently as a Player. Failure to confirm will exempt you from participation, but you will remain unchosen… powerless.]
My breath caught. A holographic screen floated before me, shimmering like light trapped in glass. I looked around. Not everyone had it. Only a few. Those chosen.
My mind screamed at me: Don't accept. Don't step into this hell. If I rejected it, I could live quietly, even if weak. Even if I had to cower behind others.
But then… the Gates appeared.
One after another, rips in space tore open across the city, spewing monsters into the streets. Their roars filled the air, a grotesque chorus of nightmares made flesh. Blood sprayed. Bones cracked. A man in front of me screamed as his body was shredded apart by claws before he even finished running.
I froze. My chest burned. My body trembled. And I realized if I stayed powerless, I wouldn't live long enough to regret it.
The countdown to confirm my alias was nearing zero. I clenched my teeth, panic swallowing me whole. And when the final second hit when I should have given my name my voice slipped, and a single word came out instead.
"Zero."
And that was how my fate, and my curse, began.