Lucian blinked, staring at the faintly glowing glyph hovering just above his palm. It pulsed like a heartbeat—steady, insistent, impossible to ignore. His fingers trembled, brushing against the air as if he could grasp it like a tangible object. The forest around him—the twisted trees, the creeping fog, the distant echoes—felt unreal, like a stage set crafted to trap him inside a waking dream. And yet, the pulse beneath his skin said otherwise.
He hesitated, taking a slow, deliberate breath. Okay… think. The words he'd read in the dream-like tutorial whispered through his mind: "Embrace the system. It is your guide. Learn, adapt, survive." Adapt. That word lodged in his chest, mingling with his fear, his disbelief, and a spark of curiosity he hadn't felt in years.
A flicker of light traced across the glyph, and a small panel appeared before him, translucent and shimmering. It hovered in midair like liquid glass, listing a handful of stats:
Name: Lucian Grey
Level: 1
HP: 100/100
Mana: 50/50
XP: 0/100
Status: Normal
Beneath it, an empty skill slot blinked with a faint blue light. The interface felt alive, almost aware of his gaze. Lucian leaned closer, squinting. "This… this is insane," he muttered. He flexed his fingers experimentally, and the panel responded, sliding slightly as if acknowledging his movement.
"Icarus…" His voice was barely a whisper. The AI's image flickered into view, projecting from the same glyph. It was a semi-transparent form, humanoid but with features softened, almost ethereal.
"You are seeing it correctly," Icarus said, voice calm, almost soothing, but carrying a strange weight. "This interface is your bridge to the Preternatural System. Every action, every decision, will be quantified. Every skill learned, every challenge faced, is an opportunity to evolve. You must learn quickly, Lucian. The Shadow Lurker will not wait."
Lucian swallowed hard, his throat dry. "Right… evolve. Okay. Um… how?"
Icarus's form shifted slightly, the air around it shimmering. "Try interacting with your first skill: the Aetheric Barrier. Concentrate. Visualize its shape and boundary. The system will respond to your intent."
Lucian exhaled sharply, closing his eyes for a moment. He imagined a sphere of light expanding around him, protective and solid, yet flexible. A faint hum resonated from the glyph in his palm. Slowly, a translucent shield coalesced around him, glowing faintly with an azure light. It wavered slightly, almost unstable, but it held.
He opened his eyes, his heart thudding. "I… did it," he whispered, awe mingled with disbelief. The shield pulsed once, then stabilized.
"Good," Icarus said. "Your first successful skill deployment. You have gained 5 XP."
The number blinked in his interface, and Lucian felt a strange thrill. It was like a score, a tangible acknowledgment of progress, and yet… it also felt dangerous. The forest seemed to lean in closer, shadows stretching unnaturally, waiting.
"Lucian, movement," Icarus warned, voice sharper now. "Something approaches."
He barely had time to glance toward the source before a figure emerged from the fog. Shadowed, twisted, moving with an unnatural fluidity—the first Shadow Wraith. Its form flickered like smoke caught in light, and the chill it radiated pressed against Lucian's chest, making each breath feel heavy.
Adrenaline surged. He instinctively raised the Aetheric Barrier, which shimmered as the wraith struck, rending the edge with a hiss of displaced air. The force jolted him backward, and for a moment, panic clouded his mind. He had no weapon, no training, only this fledgling interface and a nascent understanding of a system that still felt foreign.
"Focus," Icarus prompted. "Use the environment. Your skill isn't limited to static deployment. Shape it, expand it, adapt."
Lucian forced himself to breathe, analyzing the threat. He remembered the system prompt: "Aetheric Barrier integrity 80%." The barrier would not hold indefinitely. He needed to act.
He clenched his fists, channeling his intent. The barrier extended outward, enveloping a nearby tree as well. The wraith collided with it, the impact sending splintered bark flying. Lucian winced as a chill of triumph and terror mingled in his chest. This was the system. This was survival. And it was only the beginning.
The interface pulsed again: "XP +10 for evasive action." Lucian's eyes widened. Every movement, every choice mattered, quantified in real time. The concept was intoxicating, yet frightening.
The wraith recoiled and lunged again, faster this time. Lucian reacted instinctively, diving sideways, barely avoiding the snapping tendrils of shadow. His mind raced, calculating risk, estimating the barrier's durability. The forest itself seemed complicit, the fog thickening to obscure paths, twisting branches into potential hazards.
A flash of silver caught his eye—Mia. She was struggling nearby, ensnared by the creeping darkness of the Shadow Lord's influence. Her scream pierced the air, distant but urgent, echoing through the trees.
"No!" Lucian's chest tightened. "Mia!"
He realized, with a sinking horror, that this wasn't just about survival anymore. It was about protecting someone else. Every second he delayed could cost her life.
"Lucian, assess!" Icarus prompted urgently. "Skill points are available. You must allocate them wisely. Choose offense or defense."
He hesitated, the interface splitting his focus: a prompt to enhance his Aetheric Barrier or to channel energy into an offensive skill, the Aetheric Blast he had only glimpsed in tutorials. The numbers blinked mockingly, urging immediate decision.
"I…" He ground his teeth, recalling his earlier experiments. The Aetheric Blast had been unstable, but perhaps this was the moment. He focused, gathering energy into his palm. Light condensed into a sharp shard, vibrating with power, and he hurled it at the advancing wraith.
It struck, colliding with the creature, dispersing into fragments of shadow and smoke. The wraith hissed, shrieking in unnatural tones, before recoiling into the fog. Lucian staggered, chest heaving, exhilaration and fear mingling like fire and ice. The interface flashed: "XP +20. Skill mastery increased."
But there was no time to revel. The Shadow Lord's presence pressed heavier, twisting the forest around Mia into a cage of blackened branches. She struggled, shouting for him, her voice tinged with panic.
Lucian's mind raced. He could enhance the barrier to reach her, but the Shadow Lord's aura was… oppressive, almost intelligent, probing for weakness. Every step toward her felt like moving through thick tar. The interface prompted warnings: "Skill cooldown 60 seconds. HP 85/100. Mana 40/50."
He took a deep breath, focusing every ounce of will. Aetheric Barrier expanded, reshaping into a protective path toward Mia. Branches splintered and fell away as he advanced, but the Shadow Lord struck, sending waves of dark energy against his shield. The barrier shimmered, threatening to collapse, and Lucian felt a jolt of panic.
"Mia, hold on!" he shouted. But his voice felt small, swallowed by the oppressive darkness.
She flailed, caught in the Shadow Lord's grasp. Her eyes met his, wide with fear but defiant. Lucian's chest tightened, the system interface flashing a relentless countdown: "Decision required. Consequences imminent."
He clenched his fists, willing his skills to respond faster than thought. The interface pulsed, almost impatiently, as if aware of the peril. And then, in a moment that felt like eternity, the Shadow Lord's tendrils tightened, dragging Mia into a vortex of darkness, leaving only the echo of her scream behind.
Lucian froze, chest heaving, heart pounding like a war drum. The forest seemed to exhale around him, shadows pulsing and receding as if satisfied. The interface pulsed with cold clarity: "Quest failed: Companion captured. XP +50 for surviving encounter. Skill mastery progress recorded."
He sank to one knee, the taste of copper in his mouth. Every instinct screamed to follow, to strike, to reclaim her—but he knew the system was watching, calculating, recording. Every choice would ripple forward, shaping what he could and could not do next.
Icarus's voice was calm, almost clinical, cutting through the storm of fear and adrenaline. "You survived. That is your first lesson. The system does not reward hesitation, Lucian. It does not forgive indecision. Your path has begun. Prepare. The Shadow Lord will not relent."
Lucian's hands clenched, the pulse beneath his skin echoing the rhythm of his fury. The system interface hovered above him, waiting. XP ticked upward. Skills shimmered, promising growth. But the weight of failure, the echo of Mia's cry, pressed down like stone.
The forest seemed alive with shadows, whispering threats. And yet, amidst the fear, one thought burned brighter than the rest: he would save her.
He would learn. He would grow. And he would face the Shadow Lord again.
The glyph pulsed, insistent. The Preternatural System had awakened. And there was no turning back.