The hatch fought him like a living thing.
Every pull drew out another shriek of metal, another flicker of dying runes. At last, the seals gave way with a sigh that sounded too much like breath, and the slab of metal shifted outward.
Light poured in—raw, searing, real.
Eion fell to his knees on rough stone, lungs straining against air that tasted of rain and ash and wild things. He coughed until the last of the lab's chemical stink burned out of his throat. The silence that followed was immense.
When his eyes adjusted, the world unfurled before him like revelation.
The forest spread in waves of green and gold, dew glittering across leaves larger than his hands. Mana motes floated through the air like drifting embers, catching sunlight in soft halos. The sky arched endlessly, a blue so deep it made him dizzy.
Wind touched him, warm and alive. For a long time he simply stood there, letting it wash through the cracks in his skin and the metal seams along his shoulders. For the first time since waking, he felt outside.
[Environment Scan: Complete]
[Zone: Forest of Whispers]
[Mana Density: High – Sustaining]
[Hazard Rating: Moderate]
He laughed once—short, breathless. "Tutorial level cleared."
The humor steadied him. He moved down the rocky slope on careful feet, the ground soft with moss that pulsed faintly when he stepped. Roots the width of his torso twisted through the soil, humming with slow magic. Tiny insects made of crystal wings and light hovered between flowers that bled color into the air like smoke.
It was beautiful, and it was wrong. Every living thing here carried the same resonance as his own Core—mana so dense it felt sentient.
He crouched beside a pond ringed in glowing reeds. The water reflected his mismatched body, but the light softened him. In the ripples, his monstrous shape blurred into something almost human.
[New Quest Objective: Gather Resources – 0 / 5]
"Of course," he muttered. "Survival 101."
He broke off a branch—Basic Wood (Grade F) flashed in pale text—and began carving it into a crude spear. The System chimed softly with each motion.
[Improvised Weapon Proficiency +1]
[Strength +0.2]
The tiny numbers were absurdly comforting. Progress meant order. Order meant sanity.
A distant sound shattered it—rustling leaves, then a low growl that vibrated through the soil.
Eion froze. His new senses stretched outward, tasting movement in the mana around him. Something large circled through the underbrush, the air thick with animal instinct and hunger.
He shifted into a crouch, spear angled forward.
The bushes parted.
A wolf—no, a parody of one—emerged. Bark armored its hide; vines pulsed beneath like veins. Eyes burned green as swampfire. Its breath steamed with raw mana, carrying the scent of sap and iron.
[Enemy Detected: Verdant Wolf (Lv. 2)]
[Estimated Threat: Moderate]
"So much for sightseeing."
The beast leapt. Eion dove sideways, the motion instinctive. The wolf hit where he'd been, claws gouging furrows into stone. He rolled to his feet, every movement a data point: speed 1.2× mine … trajectory predictable … neck when it lunges.
He waited.
The wolf circled, muscles bunching under bark-like skin. When it pounced again, he moved—one step back, one upward thrust. The crude spear slid under the ribcage, breaking wood and vine. The beast howled, twisting free, green light spilling like liquid chlorophyll.
Eion pressed. His claws unfolded with a metallic whisper. A slash across the throat, a second through the core—and the wolf burst into motes of light that scattered on the wind.
[Verdant Wolf Defeated]
[EXP +45]
[Item Obtained: Wolf Core (Plant Affinity)]
[Assimilation Available]
The notification hovered, patient.
He hesitated. The memory of the Guardian's agony lingered: lightning in his bones, flesh rewriting itself. But curiosity won.
"Yes."
Warmth spread through him—slow, grounding. Not fire this time but sunlight.
[Skill Acquired: Photosynthetic Regen (Basic)]
A green shimmer rippled across his skin. The scratches on his arm closed, leaving faint silver scars that vanished a moment later.
He stared, half in disbelief, half in awe. "I heal by sunbathing. That's actually kind of awesome."
He looked upward. Between the canopy gaps, streams of light poured down. When one touched him, the System responded:
[Passive Effect: Regen +2% / min in Direct Sunlight]
He let the light soak into him for a while. The warmth filled the hollow places that fear had carved.
Then, the wind changed. The air grew heavy—thicker, electric. Motes of mana slowed, clumping together into small orbs of unstable energy. The System's quiet tone returned, now edged with warning.
[Atmospheric Fluctuation Detected]
[Mana Concentration Rising – Abnormal]
"Because peace never lasts," he said softly.
The sky darkened—not from clouds but from color itself draining out of the world. The treetops shivered as though something vast inhaled. Between the branches, spirals of light condensed into a churning mass.
A storm. Not of weather, but of mana.
Lightning flickered—blue and soundless. Each bolt left trails of glowing dust that rained sideways. Where it touched the ground, grass turned to crystal. Small animals froze mid-step, their bodies petrified in shimmering glass.
[Warning: Mana Storm Approaching]
[Recommendation: Seek Shelter Immediately]
Eion ran.
The forest erupted behind him—trees warping, roots twisting into shapes that screamed without mouths. He sprinted downhill, following instinct more than reason, until the System flashed another prompt in his vision.
[Safe Zone Detected: Subterranean Cavern – 40 m Ahead]
He dove through a curtain of vines just as the storm hit.
The world outside went silent.
Inside, the cavern glowed faintly from veins of luminous stone. Mana rippled along the walls in soft waves, lighting his face in green and blue. For the first time since the lab, the fear receded, leaving only exhaustion.
He sat by the entrance, watching the storm's glow flicker through the leaves. Each flash revealed the forest's transformation—beautiful, terrible, alive in ways it shouldn't be.
He whispered to the air, "If this world was made by the same hands that made me… what the hell happened to it?"
The System didn't answer. But somewhere deep within his Core, something stirred—an echo, faint but growing. A pulse that wasn't his.
[Signal Resonance Detected]
[Source: Unknown – Distance Unmeasured]
[Sub-Quest Unlocked: Trace the Signal]
Eion stared at the message until it faded, then leaned back against the cool stone. His reflection shimmered in a puddle beside him—inhuman eyes, mismatched skin, and yet a spark of stubborn life that refused to die.
He smiled faintly. "Fine. Let's see where the signal leads."
Outside, the storm raged on.
Inside, the experiment dreamed of light.