"Milla Ravewood… wake up."
The voice was soft, cold, and it crawled under her skin like icy fingers.
Milla's eyes shot open. She blinked rapidly, trying to see.
But there was nothing.
No ceiling. No floor. No walls.
Just… darkness. Endless, darkness that felt alive.
She swallowed hard. "Where… am I?"
A soft, low voice answered from everywhere.
"Welcome… to my Wonderland."
Milla took a step back.
Her foot sank slightly into the ground, but it held her weight like solid air.
She hugged her arms around herself. "What is this? Is this some dream?"
The voice chuckled—a sound like glass cracking.
"No. You were chosen."
"Chosen? For what?!" Milla shouted. Her voice trembled.
"To survive."
Milla froze. "Survive… what?"
Nothing answered. Only the faint sound of her heartbeat, echoing louder than normal.
Then a glow appeared in front of her eyes, like someone had pressed a switch.
It was a floating blue screen. Hovering in midair, blinking slowly.
Milla stepped closer, squinting.
---
[SYSTEM INITIALIZING…]
User: Milla Ravewood
Age: 20
Ability: OMNI-ABILITY (All powers accessible. Warning: Ability drains LIFE-FORCE.)
World: WONDERLAND
Status: Trial One Beginning
---
Milla stared at the screen for a long moment.
Her breath caught in her throat.
"All powers…? That can't be real," she whispered.
"Here, anything is real," the voice replied softly.
She shook her head. "This has to be a dream. I want to wake up now."
The darkness laughed, soft and cruel.
"You cannot wake up. Not yet."
Suddenly, the ground beneath her feet began to glow.
Thin lines of golden light spread like veins, forming small glowing tiles that connected into a path.
It stretched forward, cutting through the darkness toward something enormous.
Milla squinted. Her eyes widened in shock.
It was a door.
A massive, ancient door. Dark wood carved with swirling vines. Eyes etched into the frame that slowly opened and closed, blinking as if alive.
Milla stepped back. "Nope. Not happening. I'm not going near that thing."
"You must," the voice whispered.
"Why?!"
"This is your first trial. To survive Wonderland, you must enter."
Milla took a deep breath. "Why me? Why now?"
Silence.
"Because you were chosen."
Milla's stomach twisted. "Chosen for what?"
"To live… or to die."
The golden path flickered. One tile cracked. Then another. Then another.
Milla froze. The path behind her was breaking.
"No choice," she whispered. "I have to run."
She sprinted forward.
Tile after tile shattered beneath her feet.
Her lungs burned. Her legs screamed, but she couldn't stop.
The huge door loomed closer, almost like it was breathing.
She jumped, landing on the last intact tile.
Her hands hit the door.
It opened with a loud creak.
She stumbled inside.
---
Milla found herself in a forest, but not a normal one.
The trees were tall and twisted. Purple mist curled around their glowing roots.
Branches floated in the air. Leaves shimmered like shards of glass.
The forest felt alive—watching her.
A glowing text appeared in front of her.
---
[Welcome to the Forest of First Trials]
Warning: You are not alone.
---
Milla's heart raced. "Not alone? Great. That's reassuring."
A faint static noise came from behind a tree.
A flicker of white light.
Then a figure stepped out.
Milla froze.
It was a girl. But… not human.
Pale skin, hair flickering like broken pixels. Half her body solid, half glitching in and out.
Her eyes were blank, white, with black squares shifting inside.
Milla's mouth went dry.
"Who… are you?" she asked.
The glitching girl tilted her head unnaturally.
"Hel… lo… Milla… You… should… not… be… here…"
Milla stepped back slowly. Her pulse raced.
"Oh no. No, no. Not already. I just got here."
A new text appeared.
---
[ULTIMATE ENTITY DETECTED]
Name: Eve.exe
Rank: One of the Ten Ultimates
Status: Extremely Dangerous
Advice: RUN.
---
Milla's eyes widened.
"One of the Ten Ultimates… Already?!"
Eve.exe flickered closer, her glitching movements jerky and unnatural.
"You… must… leave… now…"
Her long fingers stretched unnaturally, as if they were not made for a human body.
The System popped up again.
---
[OMNI-ABILITY: Activate?]
Choose Ability:
Fire
Wind
Teleport
Shield
Light
Shadow
Freeze
Lightning
Time Slow
…and more
Warning: Every ability drains Life-Force.
---
Milla swallowed hard. Her hands shook.
She was scared. She had never fought anyone in her life.
But she had no choice.
Eve.exe flickered closer.
"Mi… lla… come… with me…"
Milla jabbed at the screen and chose one ability.
---
[Selected: Light Burst]
---
A ball of white light formed in her hands. It grew brighter and brighter.
Pain shot through her chest.
Her life-force was being pulled out—but she ignored it.
Eve.exe lunged.
Milla threw the Light Burst.
A blinding explosion filled the forest.
When the light faded, Eve.exe was gone.
Milla collapsed, clutching her chest.
Her legs felt weak. Her body trembled.
The System flickered.
---
[Life-Force Drain: 23%]
Warning: Overuse may cause death.
---
Milla groaned. "Great… I survive, but I almost killed myself."
She leaned against a glowing tree and tried to calm down.
She looked around. The forest stretched far and wide. Purple mist everywhere. Twisting, glowing trees. Strange noises.
She shivered.
"Okay… first rule: don't die."
"Second rule: avoid the Ultimates."
A deep, echoing bell rang somewhere far away.
The mist thickened.
The voice returned. Soft, calm, almost happy.
"Good job, Milla. You passed the first part."
Milla glared into the trees. "Show yourself! Stop hiding! What do you want from me?"
A pause. Then one word.
"Everything."
The forest seemed to hold its breath.
Purple mist swirled. Shadows stretched unnaturally.
And somewhere far away, a door clicked open.
Milla knew this was only the beginning.
Wonderland wanted her alive…
But not for a good reason.
---
Milla tightened her fists. She started walking deeper into the forest, eyes sharp, senses alert.
No one could know what would come next.
No one could know how dangerous this place was.
But Milla Ravewood had one thought in her mind:
"I will survive… no matter what."
To be continued.....
End of Chapter One