I walk into a large white washed room completely devoid of life. I stare around. Then, a tube pops out of the ground. It contains a black leather suit. I quickly remove my black robe and put it on. I feel like I am being watched as I undress. I slide on the belt and clasp it.
As soon as I do that, a portal opens. I puff my cheeks and walk through it. Is this what the Grim System meant by the Nightmare? Is this the Blink? Am I dead?
The System pops up again.
It displays my statistics.
My energy level is at 100%.
My special abilities are necromancy and sorcery.
My combat skill is rated at 75%.
My special weapon is the demon sword.
My duration is two demonic seconds.
I find myself standing on a bar. The moment I step off the bar, the system starts displaying my timer. I run forward. There are just rocks and precious stones everywhere. There is no trace of sand. The sky is pitch black. My heart sinks as I realize where I am. I am in the demon realm.
Am I the only one here?
Then, a wind blade takes me unawares. I see Han running towards me. The System displays his level.
His level is Sword Viper 122.
I am at level zero. How long has Han been here? More importantly, what is a member of the Holy Peace Corps doing in the Demon Realm?
I dodge. I am still in my human female body, but all the human weakness is gone. My powers are no longer hindered.
He waves his sword at me again. I jump high into the air and land on a rock.
I hear incoming footsteps from behind. I turn just in time to dodge an attack from Arigana. Rage starts boiling in my chest as I stare at the person who had destroyed my peaceful existence.
They don't recognize me? Of course, they don't recognize me. I now have the form of a pretty woman instead of that of a handsome man with demon horns. Can I still manifest my true demon form? I no longer have any horns, how do I transform?
Arigana strikes again.
I stare into her blank eyes as I jump away.
I see blood gushing out of my hand but I can't feel a thing. Her blade had cut me.
My blood rolls into my palm and forms a weapon. It is a long sword with horns at the hilt. It even has eyes. It's eyes open.
The System appears again.
"Player 12095A, your weapon has been unleashed". The System says and disappears.
I look down at the black sword in my hands.
"Unleash my power". The sword says to me.
I jerk away from it. It seems to be part of my arm somehow.
Arigana takes advantage of my confusion and strikes me. The sword moves my hand and blocks the attack.
Arigana grunts in frustration and stops attacking me. She just stares blankly.
"You are the demon necromancer I transmigrated". She says and puts her sword away.
Han stands far off, resting on the hilt of his sword as he watches us.
I remain on my guard. The two of them must be working together.
"I can see from your level that you just got here".
I decide to hear what she has to say. She might have some valuable information to offer me about this strange place.
"How did you get here?"
I don't say anything.
She walks closer. I place the tip of my sword at her neck.
"I transmigrated you out of this world. How in heaven are you here?"
She does not even react to my weapon on her neck.
"What is this place?"
Han speeds up to where we are and stops.
"We are in your nightmare. This is my a hundred and twenty third nightmare."
My nightmare? Why are they in my nightmare?
"It seems we are people you dread. Your nightmare is conposed of the things you fear the most".
"What about you? Are you also in a nightmare?"
"Our nightmare is to die and survive. We keep killing people to survive. Peace Corps members swore not to kill innocent people. That is exactly what they are forcing us to do".
"What people? Are there any other people here?"
"All the gifted people from all the races are here somewhere. The Emperor made an alliance with the Demon Queen. He traded all the gifted people on the Continent in exchange for an army of demons. We have been here ever since". Han says.
I am utterly confused.
"Then how do survive this nightmare?"
"You have to kill us".
I look from one face to the other.
"Then what happens after?"
"We return to the Vault and await our next nightmare while you would be assigned your mentor, which is a demon, and would receive coins to buy more weapons from the system. The more people you kill, the more coins you earn. If you get killed, you lose twice the amount you earn for a kill".
I take a minute to process what they are telling me.
Is this all a game for the amusement of the demon queen?
"And if I don't kill you?" I ask.
"Once you start running out of time, the system will unleash Death Eaters and all forms of deadly devices. If you are still alive when your time runs out, you can procede to the next nightmare."
"Would I win? Is this a game?"
"Everything here is very real. You never forget the face of the people you have to kill. All the necromancers in the Realm are here. If you don't kill, you get killed. I believe the goal of bringing us all here is to wipe us out. No one is expected to survive".
"Then, how are you still alive? What happens when you are killed?"
Han laughs.
"Are we even alive? This is not life. If you die, you wake up in the Vault in a lower level and with less coins. Your nightmares keep getting more and more intense. No one has actually died a physical death. Some have been turned into demons because of dying more than five times in a row. There are no rules".
I withdraw my blade and it turns back to blood and enters my hand where I had been cut. The cut immediately heals.
I have just realized my own weapon. If I cut my hands, I don't know about the rest of my body, I unleash my demon sword.
---
"I am not killing any of you. We can survive this nightmare". I say.
Han says nothing.
Arigana nods and backs away.
"How much time do you have left?" Arigana asks.
I have no fucking idea.
"How do I know that?" I ask.
"Ask the Grim System."
I wonder if I should just call out to the system.
"How much time do I have left, Grim System?" I blurt out.
The screen suddenly appears and displays a count down.
My time is running out.
Suddenly, the ground starts shaking.
We all look at one another.
"Run!" Han yells.
The ground splits open and a large hand comes out of it.
I start sprinting as fast as my legs can carry me. Arigana is jumping between rocks. Han is flying on his sword. I seem to be the only one who is running on feet. Lame, right?
"System, how much time do I have left?" I ask again.
It displays my timer. The time is moving really slow. Time in the demon realm is longer than what I am used to. Two demon seconds is equivalent to two hours in normal time.
Another arm rises out of the ground in front of us. We start running east. Mystic creatures that look like tigers start running after us. I take back my words. I actually thought it would be easy to survive until my time runs out.
We keep running. Then, we reach a dead end. There is nowhere left to run. We stop.
We have no other option than to stay and fight.
I cut myself with a sharp rock.
As the blood flows down my arm, the demon sword forms. It opens its eyes.
"Unleash me". It says.
"How do I unleash you?" I ask it.
"Dip me in the blood of another".
That sounds very familiar. I had to dip my horns in the blood of another being to unleash my demon. Is this also a way to unleash my demon?
Arigana takes my blade and cuts her arm with it.
As soon as she does that, I start transforming into a demon. The process feels longer than I remember it.
The mystic creatures, Hyus, are closing in on us.
Everyone holds out their weapons in readiness for battle.
Then, it blips and I wake up back in the dark room I had found myself in earlier.
The System shows again.
"Player 12095A, you have advanced to your second nightmare. You have received 130 coins and are now able to upgrade your weapon".
It disappears again.
Is this the Vault? I walk towards the door I had seen earlier. It opens as I approach it.
I am back to wearing a black robe. To my amazement, I see many people scattered around.
Everyone is wearing black robes identical to mine. I swim into the sea of people. Large screens are displaying the top players of the Blink.
A so- called Xian Xi is number one.
I see Arigana and Han seated at a table with some other Peace Corps members. I can tell them apart because of the Peace Seal on their necks.
I see Chen and Venus alongside others that their names just never stuck.
I turn around after changing my mind about joining them.
Arigana calls out to me. Is she even really blind?
I start walking towards their table. I sit down quietly.
"This is the Vault. No one goes out or comes in". Han says.
"What do you mean?" I ask.
"It means that you can never leave this place, ever".