Kael's eyes snapped open. His throat burned with panic, his words tumbling out before he could stop them as he awoke.
"No. This isn't real. It can't be real."
The voice that answered was not his own.
[Echo] [Negative. Nexus is real. You have been selected.]
Kael froze, blood pounding in his ears. "Selected? For what?!"
[Echo] [Survival. Ascension. Judgment.]
The words echoed like a verdict.
Then came the sound.
A low, guttural growl slid from the shadows, vibrating through the still air like stone grinding against stone. Kael turned, his stomach dropping.
It stood at the crater's edge—a monster that shouldn't exist.
An eight-limbed nightmare, its movements disturbingly graceful. Its body glistened like black metal slicked in oil, every surface reflecting broken fragments of the fractured sun. Where a face should have been was only smooth emptiness, yet Kael felt its focus on him all the same. Wrong. Perfectly wrong.
[Nexus Beast: Class E — "Glass Widow"]
[Host survival rate: 3%.]
His breath froze in his chest. "Three percent… Are you kidding me? I just woke up!"
[Echo] [Recommendation: Run.]
He didn't hesitate.
The world lurched into motion, glass shards cracking underfoot as Kael sprinted. Ash seared his lungs, every breath shallow and ragged. The ground betrayed him with each stride—gravity twisting, tugging him sideways, then shoving him downward like the world itself wanted to see him fall.
The horizon split open into a forest of crystalline trees, their branches jagged and sharp like weapons raised against the sky. Their black surfaces shimmered faintly, humming with energy. Kael dove beneath a fallen trunk, heart pounding, chest burning.
The beast followed.
Its limbs scythed through the crystalline wood, sparks cascading in its wake. The crash of shattering crystal echoed like thunder. Kael rolled desperately aside as claws raked where he had lain. Splinters of obsidian rained down, tearing at his arms.
Scrambling up a jagged slope, he screamed into the emptiness. "Echo! Help me survive!"
[Echo] [Initializing combat interface…]
[Resonant Potential: Detected.]
[WARNING: User has no weapon.]
[WARNING: User has no combat experience.]
[WARNING: Fear levels peaking. Neural overload imminent.]
Kael stumbled, his knees giving way as gravel ripped across his skin. His lungs burned, his vision blurred.
The beast lunged.
There was no escape.
And yet—something deep within him rebelled.
It wasn't fear. It wasn't surrender. It was older. Primal. Instinct.
A surge ripped through his body like wildfire, burning in his veins until they glowed white-blue beneath his skin. The ground trembled. The air fractured with a soundless thunderclap as a pulse of energy erupted from his core.
The shockwave blasted outward, hurling the Glass Widow off its feet and smashing it into a cluster of crystalline trees. The forest shook, shards exploding in every direction.
Kael collapsed to his knees, chest heaving. His skin burned, his vision swam, his body trembling like it had been drained of everything. For a heartbeat, he thought it was over.
It wasn't.
The Glass Widow rose.
Its body screeched against the crystal as it dragged itself upright, black limbs splintered but not broken. The smooth, faceless surface of its head turned toward him, and Kael felt the weight of its focus like knives digging into his skin.
"…No way…" His voice cracked.
The beast moved again, faster this time.
Kael staggered to his feet, his legs screaming with exhaustion. Instinct screamed louder. He raised his trembling hand without knowing why—and another pulse of energy sputtered out, weaker, ragged, barely enough to knock the creature sideways.
The effort nearly tore him apart.
The Glass Widow recovered instantly, slicing down at him with a limb sharp enough to split stone. Kael rolled, shards cutting into his arms and back, blood soaking his Earth clothes. Every breath was agony. Every movement felt like it might be his last.
"Echo!" he shouted, his throat raw. "What the hell do I do?!"
[Warning: Resonant Potential unstable.]
[Combat efficiency: 12%.]
[Recommendation: Continue engagement. Adapt or die.]
The words hammered into his head as the Glass Widow lunged again.
Kael barely dodged. His body was breaking, but something in him refused to stop. Clutching at the strange fire in his veins, he forced another surge—this one wild, uncontrolled. The blast shattered a tree into fragments that cut the beast like a hail of knives.
The Glass Widow shrieked, staggering at last.
And Kael, gasping, bleeding, stood trembling against the broken glass, realizing with horror and awe—
This wasn't a victory. This was survival. As he once again collapsed unconscious.