Countless ages ago, only silence filled the heavens. The gods, boundless and eternal, began to wither under their perfection.
Consumed by boredom.
Without intention, something stirred.
Not a plan, not a decree, but a fracture. Their boredom festered and bled through the fabric of existence.
From that fracture came movement. Chaotic. Hungry. Malevolent. It took form, bending thought into reality. The System.
The corrupted force was created for the sole purpose of pleasing the gods. In its wake, new worlds emerged to serve as playgrounds, with the gods' own creation, humanity, as the players.
***
Somewhere on Earth, within an abandoned building, Halo stood before a rusty mirror in a dusty room. He brushed his white hair backward, blue eyes studying his own features as he forced a smile.
The room reeked of sweat and dust, but this was Halo's sanctum.
"Here we go again. Another night of terror. Tsk. Fucking seventeen."
Between the ages of sixteen and eighteen was a waking nightmare for most, and Halo was no exception. He'd become an orphan at seven, watching his abusive parents die in a car crash.
Worse still, their estate had been seized, forcing him to claw his way into school on a sports scholarship. Halo feared nothing. Except for one thing.
The Gods' Call.
Long ago, before Halo's birth, an unnatural phenomenon emerged. Teenagers reported being dragged into a different world. The Lost World. Initially, the cases were few enough to ignore.
But gradually, more teenagers fell into deep sleeps lasting days, weeks, months, and sometimes years. Some never woke. Those who did often had terrible injuries, and worse, their memories were altered, hazy, and fractured.
More disturbing still, the cycle never ended until death. Slumber. Wake. Slumber again after days. Wake. Endlessly repeating.
Scientists called it an airborne virus, religious beliefs spiked and the rich and politicians used it to their advantage, but the loop never ceased.
Yet at seventeen, Halo had made it a full year without being pulled into the Lost World. Despite preparing himself mentally, he still trembled every time he thought about it.
Halo drew a deep breath and released it, steeling himself for what might be his final moments of normalcy.
He lay back on his hard bed, eyes darting across the leaking ceiling, his mind shuffling through thoughts in sync with his rapid heartbeat.
This had become his ritual before sleep. No one understood the criteria for the Gods' Call. Even those who'd experienced it for decades couldn't remember anything beyond entering another world and a few minimal things. Still, Halo often wished he'd be selected. Someday.
Many people his age, summoned or not, had prepared themselves mentally and physically for the horrors of the other world. But Halo's circumstances prevented him from doing so.
Sure, he was athletic with some martial arts training from before his parents died, but nothing substantial enough to face the monstrous.
But having to scramble between shelter homes and depend heavily on his college's free cafeteria, he couldn't help but yearn for the call from time to time. At least that would give him purpose. What did he have to lose, after all?
In this world, he had nothing but his dark thoughts.
"Halo, huh? People get sentimental when they hear it. 'You're an angel,' they say. But what does that matter? My other name… is Tenebris." He muttered.
Tenebris was his mother's surname. Latin for darkness. She thought it poetic.
Halo wore a forced smile. "I need some sleep. Work, school… it never ends. Haa… maybe someday things will change."
He began relaxing each muscle in his body, a genuine smile crossing his face as he imagined a future where he'd achieved his parents' level of perfection and had more money than he'd ever need.
Despite how many times he'd considered being affected by the Gods' Call, his desire to live a normal life remained supreme. But something held him captive for about a month now, an unusual feeling of being summoned.
This was unusual, considering nothing like that had been reported by those affected by the Call. This made him more cautious and prepared than he usually was.
With many never waking from their slumber and most waking as living corpses, everything pointed to death, the very thing he feared about this nightmare.
Death, the inevitable, something even his parents couldn't evade with all their knowledge.
If they couldn't, then how could he? This was Halo's true fear. Death.
That instant, drowsiness began to seep in as his eyelids grew heavy and his vision became hazy.
But as he lay in bed, he couldn't shake the feeling that something or someone was watching him, and it wasn't until he heard a voice, a sensation even, whisper 'welcome.'
The moment the sensation settled, he instinctively shook himself awake, panting and glancing around. But this time, he stood on his feet, and worse still, nothing around him resembled his room.
Despite his confusion, he was quite keen on what might be happening. The atmosphere felt simultaneously humid and arid, thick with strange odors that screamed foreign territory.
"This can't be…" he muttered through his dry and trembling throat.
His hands shot to his face immediately, feeling his symmetrical features, long lashes, and thick eyebrows. It was definitely him, Halo D. Tenebris.
This settled his confusion, though it still crept through his fragile heart. His fear came true, he had been summoned.
The slightest ease within was undeniable, he finally could escape his futureless life but one thing was more certain than it had always been. He could die.
But he didn't falter at that moment. His eyes swept the room again. Why had he been brought to a room? Where was everyone else?
Curiosity surged through him, he needed answers. He had to get outside. But before he could take a step, his heart sank as footsteps approached from the hallway.
He had no idea what was happening in this world. The last thing he wanted was to die on his first day. His eyes darted everywhere, searching for cover.
But the footsteps drew closer, as if whoever it was had skipped ahead, and to his horror, he remained frozen in place.
As he stood there, a voice from the entrance caught his attention. "Hey, you've made it."
Halo's chest tightened as he turned to face a man with dark, short hair and a scar across his left eyebrow. This was no man. His presence spoke of war.
The man wore a black uniform with a high neck and long, puffed sleeves, resembling a hakama style.
He also had high, ankle-length black boots that were practical and military-inspired, while his expression remained nonchalant.
Halo gulped down his fear, sweat forming on his brow.
"Welcome to the Lost World. Call me Clever."
Halo's expression darkened into a frown. Clever's words left him so lazily, as though he was being forced to speak. But that wasn't what piqued his interest.
Clever's casual words contradicted his deadly appearance.
Halo sighed, his fear slowly fading away.
"I am Halo."
The moment Halo spoke, Clever tossed him the uniform, and as soon as Halo caught it, the man added a pair of boots similar to his own.
"It's been a long day… I know you want answers, but I need rest. We'll talk tomorrow." He said with a disinterested tone and began to leave.
Halo raised an eyebrow. Just like that? He wasn't going to explain the bizarre transition?
"Haa…" Clever hesitated on his step.
"Relax… this is a safe land. You are safe. For now, at least."
As soon as the words left Clever, Halo watched as he closed the door behind him and was gone.
Through the darkness, Halo felt for his bed and sank onto it. He let go of his grip and began scrubbing his hands over his face roughly.
If anyone understood inevitability to its core, it was Halo. Having witnessed his parents' death at such a young age, and despite their abusive nature, not a day passed without him praying they'd somehow come back. That's what shaped him. But this world? It was inevitability incarnate.
He rested himself on the bed, and a smile formed on his lips. This bed was even softer than his actual bed. Perhaps this world could be lenient to him.
'This is nothing. I've survived worse… I bet I could make this world my bitch.'
Despite his confidence, he knew he was at a disadvantage since the others had likely trained intensely for this moment. Still, he couldn't be dismissed so easily. After all, they were all equally ignorant about this world.