He felt something shift inside him power tiny but real
|Stimulation asses unlocked ,entering internal combat grid |
The world flicked
Before he could understand what just happened something hit him with full force pushing him falling backwards
The ground beneath his feet shifted, pulsing with a low, vibrating hum. Mist coiled at the edges of the darkened arena artificial fog, heavy and cold. His breath came in ragged gasps, sweat clinging to his skin, pain stabbing at his ribs from where a claw had grazed too close.
Then, silence.
And then… the growl.
It was low, guttural like granite scraping against steel. A presence entered the simulation grid, stepping out from the fog like a shadow coalescing into matter.
A beast.
It stood almost eight feet tall at the shoulder, hunched like a predator with a panther's sleekness but none of its elegance. Its flesh looked like molten obsidian fused with bone-white plates of armor. One eye glowed crimson. The other… was gone, replaced by a deep, pulsing scar.
[F-Rank Boss: One-Eyed Ravager]
It didn't roar. It didn't posture. It launched.
Arion barely had time to react.
The monster blurred forward too fast for something its size. Its claw swung in a wide arc, aimed at his throat. Arion ducked low, rolling to the side. The air split where the claws passed, cutting deep grooves into the stone.
He came up into a stance, feet spread, breathing steady. Every muscle screamed, but he forced the pain down.
Adapt. Move. Counter.
The Ravager spun, tail whipping around like a battering ram. Arion barely blocked it with crossed arms. The impact sent him skidding backward, heels tearing grooves in the artificial earth.
"Too strong…" he muttered, blood already pooling in his mouth.
The beast didn't wait.
It charged again, this time with a brutal pounce. Arion planted one foot back and moved, diving beneath its lunge. The beast crashed behind him, and Arion twisted, launching a kick into its exposed flank.
A sickening crunch.
The monster howled in rage, not pain.
It spun with savage grace, slamming into him with its shoulder. Arion flew.
He hit the simulation wall with bone-jarring force, the illusion matrix humming angrily as his back cracked against it. Something popped in his side ,maybe a rib. He fell to one knee, coughing, vision blurring.
> WARNING: Vital Threshold Breached. Nerve Feedback Limit Approaching.
But he was not done.
He could not be done.
Gritting his teeth, Arion tapped into the system's rhythm pulsing faintly in his body. The training, the strengthening ,it wasn't enough, but it had started. His limbs felt heavier… but also more awake. More responsive.
The Ravager lunged once more. This time, Arion met it halfway.
He ducked the first swipe and slammed a palm into its extended elbow joint, forcing its arm up and exposing its core. He pivoted, delivering three swift punches into its ribs left, right, spin-kick.
The beast grunted, staggering. That armor was thick, but not invincible.
Arion pressed forward, launching a flurry of strikes his style a crude mix of instinct, old-world martial memory, and sheer desperation. Every hit echoed. Every dodge was a breath from death.
The Ravager reeled back and then its eye glowed brighter.
A pulse of mutated energy burst from it in a concussive wave, flinging Arion across the battlefield like a rag doll.
He hit hard. Tumbled. Skidded across stone.
> Simulation Pain Dampener: 80% Integrity System Correction Shock Imminent
His vision pulsed red.
Blood. Noise. The beast approaching.
Still…
Still, he got up.
Arion stood, legs trembling, arms limp.
"This is pain?" he hissed to the air. "I've known worse."
He tapped his foot. Shifted his stance. Drew in a deep, ragged breath.
"Come on, then."
The Ravager roared, finally, and charged again.
Arion moved. Not to dodge but to draw it in.
He stepped into the charge, ducked beneath the swipe, and drove his elbow upward right into the creature's jaw. It stumbled. Arion climbed its hunched frame with reckless speed, grabbing onto the armored spine with blood-slick fingers.
The Ravager bucked, twisted trying to throw him off.
Arion found a seam just behind the shoulder blade, a patch of softer, pulsing flesh.
He didn't hesitate.
He punched.
Again.
And again.
Flesh tore. Bone cracked. The beast shrieked in rage and agony.
Arion's vision dimmed, but he kept punching. Kept breathing.
One final strike and the beast collapsed beneath him with a guttural hiss of static.
> [Boss Defeated] Simulation Clear. Vital Signs Stabilizing… Pain Feedback Ceasing…
He lay there on the simulation floor, gasping, trembling, chest heaving.
A silence fell over the grid. The fog faded.
And then
> Mutation Awakening Threshold: 100% Initiating Next Protocol…
A light surrounded him. Warm, golden. Energy spiraled through his body like a new fire being lit in ancient bones.
Arion smiled through the blood and bruises.
"I'm still here," he whispered. "And I'm only getting started."