Part 1: The Swing That Should've Killed Me
The Fallen Guardian's blade came down with the force of a collapsing mountain.
I screamed something extremely heroic like:
"AAAAAH—WAIT—TIME OUT—"
And then—
BOOM.
The impact blasted dirt and leaves everywhere.
Gloop flew into a bush.Wolf Puppy rolled like a fluffy tumbleweed.The slimes splattered against a tree and re-formed like sticky pancakes.Forest Horror roared in panic.
When the dust settled, everyone stared at the crater.
I peeked over the edge.
"I'm alive! Haha! TAKE THAT, FATE!"
Guide blinked rapidly."Player… that should not have been survivable."
I looked down.
My foot had slipped on a root at the exact second the blade hit — causing the sword to miss me by maybe half an inch.
"Behold," I said, arms raised dramatically, "the power of Chaotic Luck!"
The Guardian slowly turned toward me.
"…Annoying," it growled.
"Hey! Rude!"
Round Two Begins
The Knight lifted its sword again.
"TARGET: MARKED."
"STATUS: TERMINATE."
Gloop yelled from the bush, "Try not dying!"
"GREAT TIP!" I shouted back.
The Guardian charged.
Forest Horror intercepted with a roar, slashing with massive claws.
CLANG!
The Guardian blocked without effort and shoved the gigantic monster aside like it weighed nothing.
Forest Horror whined.Wolf Puppy barked.Gloop hid deeper in the bush.The slimes trembled.
My turn.
I grabbed a stick.
Not a magical stick.Not a glowing stick.Just… a stick.
"BACK OFF!" I yelled, swinging it like a foam sword.
The Guardian grabbed it with two fingers and snapped it like a toothpick.
"REALLY?!" I sputtered. "THAT WAS MY STICK!"
The System Intervenes
Suddenly, a message flashed in front of me:
[CRITICAL THREAT DETECTED][CHAOTIC LUCK INSTABILITY: 98%][UNLOCKING EMERGENCY SKILL—]
"Oh no," Guide whispered. "Player, brace yourself!"
"What?! For wha—"
[NEW SKILL AWAKENED: CHAOTIC COUNTER (Lv. 1)]— Automatically activates when facing certain doom— Effect: Does something. Results unpredictable.— Warning: May cause reality distortion or social embarrassment
"'Something'?! That's not helpful!" I yelled.
But it was too late.
The Fallen Guardian swung—
—and my new skill activated.
Chaos Happens
My body jolted.
Mana surged through me.
A glowing aura burst outward.
I felt power…
…strength…
…destiny…
…AND THEN—
I sneezed.
LOUDLY.
The sneeze shot out a shockwave.
A literal shockwave of rainbow sparkles.
KA-POW!
It blasted the Fallen Guardian backward, slamming it into a tree so hard the branches shook.
Everyone froze.
Even the monstrous knight froze.
Gloop whispered, "Did… did you just sneeze magic?"
Guide sounded like she was reconsidering her entire existence."Player… your sneeze output registered as a tier-three mana burst."
"I HAVE TIER-THREE SNEEZES?!"
The Fallen Guardian stood slowly, armor cracked.
Then—
"…Impressive," it rumbled.
That was not the reaction I expected.
But Then— Something Worse
The Guardian raised its head to the sky.
Runes flickered across its armor.
"CONTACTING MASTER…"
Guide gasped."No. No no no. Player—this is bad. Very bad."
"What?! Why?!" I yelled.
"Fallen Guardians serve ancient powers… If it's calling for backup—"
The air split with a crack of thunder.
A ripple of energy rippled through the sky.
Far away, something awakened.
Something huge.
Something dangerous.
The Guardian pointed its broken sword at me.
"YOU. HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED."
"IDENTIFIED FOR WHAT?!"
The Knight's eyes glowed a deep, ominous red.
"FOR RETRIEVAL."
And then—
It vanished.
Just blinked out of existence like a corrupted file.
Leaving behind a forest full of trembling creatures…
…and one human who was very, very not okay.
I swallowed."Okay. Someone explain what 'retrieval' means before I panic."
Guide's voice was tiny."It means… Player… someone knows you exist now."
Gloop stepped forward."Someone powerful."
Forest Horror whined.
Wolf Puppy hid behind me.
The slimes stuck to my legs like scared jelly.
"Someone is coming for you," Guide whispered.
"And they're not friendly."
I stared at the sky, heart sinking.
"…I knew I should've picked a safer hobby. Like pottery."
Part 2: The Thing That Woke Up
The forest was too quiet.
No wind.No birds.No rustling leaves.
Just me… standing there… surrounded by trembling monsters who apparently trusted me more than their instincts. Which was honestly flattering and terrifying simultaneously.
I cleared my throat."Okay, team. Let's calmly—"
A giant rune lit up in the sky.
I did not stay calm.
"THAT IS NOT CALM!!!"
The others huddled closer. Even Forest Horror, who was basically the size of a truck, crouched behind me like I was supposed to protect him.
Guide spoke first, her voice shaky.
"Player… an Ancient Power just marked you."
"Cool cool cool," I muttered. "What does that mean in non-doom language?"
"It means…"She hesitated.
"…you're now considered an anomaly."
"Still not helping."
"An anomaly," she repeated, "is something that shouldn't exist. Something impossible. Something reality can't explain."
I blinked."That's harsh. I'm not that weird."
Gloop raised an eyebrow."You sneezed a Guardian into a tree."
"…Point taken."
The Sky Cracks Further
Lightning clawed across the clouds, forming a massive fractured sigil.The very air trembled.
And then—
A voice rolled through the forest.
A deep, distorted echo that made my bones feel like they were vibrating inside me:
"FOUND YOU."
I nearly screamed, but it came out more like:
"Hhhhhggh—NOPE—"
Wolf Puppy crawled into my hoodie.Forest Horror wrapped its spiky arms around my waist.The slimes stuck to me like terrified jelly armor.
Only Guide stayed calm-ish.
"The voice belongs to someone ancient," she said. "Someone that existed long before the system."
I gulped."Should I be worried?!"
"Yes."
"Guide—PLEASE stop doing that thing where you answer instantly with bad news."
The Lore Dump (The Important One)
Guide materialized beside me, floating.
"Player… you need to understand something. The System wasn't created to help you."
"Uh-huh. Great. Love that."
"It was created to monitor anomalies. To keep reality stable."
"Like… cosmic janitorial duty?"
"Yes," she said grimly. "But some anomalies aren't to be cleaned. They're to be claimed."
My stomach dropped.
"And I'm in which category?"
"You," Guide whispered, "are the kind of anomaly that Ancient Powers fight over."
Gloop sputtered."WHY?! He can't even hold a stick!"
I frowned. "HEY."
Guide continued:
"Your Chaotic Luck isn't just luck. It's reality-warping potential. Random, unpredictable, and dangerous. To you, it feels like accidents. But to an Ancient Power…"
She pointed at the sky sigil.
"…it looks like a weapon waiting to be stolen."
The First Appearance (Sort of)
The sky dimmed.
Shadows thickened, swirling into a vortex.
A silhouette formed.Massive.Crowned with twisting horns.Eyes like galaxies collapsing.
And then—
A hand — huge, pitch-black, and clawed — reached through the crack in the sky toward me.
Forest Horror screamed.(Not roared. Screamed. Like a squeaky door.)
Gloop fainted.The slimes puddled.Wolf Puppy climbed onto my head.
I backed up until I hit a tree."NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE—"
Guide snapped to full alarm mode.
"PLAYER RUN RUN RUN RUN RUN—"
But I Don't Run
Because suddenly—
[CHAOTIC COUNTER — ACTIVATED][Reason: Mortal panic][Effect: ???]
"Oh COME ON—"
A blinding flash shot out of my body.
But instead of attacking…
A random door appeared in front of me.
A normal wooden door.
In the middle of the forest.
The giant cosmic hand froze.
Guide stared at the door."…What is this."
I shrugged helplessly."My skill?"
The doorknob rattled.
Everyone tensed.
The Ancient Power leaned closer from the sky, clearly confused.
The door creaked open…
…and someone stepped out.
A figure in a tattered cloak, carrying a staff and a glowing mask.
They glanced at the giant hand.Then at me.Then at my terrified monster-friends.
"…Oh," the stranger said casually."It's you."
I blinked."…Do I know you?!"
The masked figure tilted their head.
"You don't yet. But you will."
They turned toward the sky and raised their staff.
"Back off," they told the Ancient Power.
The sky shuddered.
The clouds recoiled.
The hand retreated with a furious, cosmic roar:
"THIS IS NOT OVER."
The crack sealed shut.
Silence returned.
The masked stranger lowered their staff and sighed.
Then they looked at me again.
"Kid," they said, voice steady."You're in more danger than you can imagine."
I swallowed."Can I… go home?"
"No."
"Figures."
They stepped closer.
"Come on. We need to talk. There's a reason your luck works the way it does. And you deserve to know the truth."
Everyone stared.
Gloop whispered, dazed, "Is this… a new NPC?"
Forest Horror whined.Wolf Puppy wagged.The slimes glooped.
I took a deep breath, stepped forward…
…and said:
"Okay. Tell me everything."
The masked stranger didn't walk so much as glide across the forest floor, cloak brushing the leaves without making a sound. They moved like someone who wasn't fully… here.
Which didn't help my nerves.
"Stay close," they said.
"Trust you?" I asked, hugging Wolf Puppy. "You came out of a random door I spawned with panic."
The stranger shrugged. "You're lucky I was the one who answered. Could've been worse."
Gloop whispered to Guide, "Worse than a galaxy-handed sky creature??"
Guide shook her head nervously."Yes. Much worse."
I didn't want to know what "worse" meant.
The Clearing That Didn't Exist Yesterday
We followed the stranger to a circular clearing. Except… it wasn't a clearing.
It felt empty, but when I squinted, I saw layers of faint, rippling symbols—like reality was glitching.
Guide turned pale."This is an Isolation Field… but one far beyond system-level."
Forest Horror hid behind me again."It's scary," it muttered.
"You're a giant," I reminded it.
"I am delicate emotionally," it hissed.
Finally, Answers
The stranger leaned on their staff.
"Alright, kid. Let's start simple. Do you know what your title means?"
"My title is 'Sir TotallyNotAFailure.'""Correct," they said. "But that's the system's name for you. You have a natural title too."
I blinked."I have… two?"
Guide nodded. "Most players get one. Special ones get two. Anomalies… get more."
Gloop panicked. "HOW MANY DOES HE HAVE?!"
Guide hesitated."Uh… technically… infinite."
"Infinite??" I shrieked.
The stranger held up a hand."Not all at once. But you have the potential to hold infinite titles because you are what we call a Wild Thread."
"…like a sewing thing?"
"No," they sighed. "Like a thread in reality that refuses to stay woven. You interact with fate, probability, and causality without permission."
"Oh," I said. "So I'm a walking bug."
"A catastrophic one," Guide muttered.
"THANK YOU GUIDE VERY HELPFUL."
What the Ancient Power Wants
The stranger drew a glowing circle in the air. Inside it, I saw the giant hand from earlier, suspended like a paused video.
"That creature," they explained, "isn't from this world or the system. It exists outside the code. It can see Wild Threads like you, and it wants to pull you out of this reality to use you."
"Use me for what?"
"To cause chaos. To break worlds. To destabilize systems. Your power is unpredictable, which means it's valuable to beings who thrive on entropy."
"I don't thrive on entropy!" I protested."You sneezed a Guardian into a tree," Gloop reminded me.
"That was ONE time!"
Guide coughed. "It was actually four times."
Forest Horror whispered, "I saw two."
Wolf Puppy barked, confirming.
I groaned. "Okay, fine, I'm a walking disaster."
The Stranger's Identity
"So… who are you?" I asked.
The stranger hesitated.
Then raised their hands and slowly removed the glowing mask.
Underneath was—
A face that flickered.Sharp one second, blurry the next.As if reality couldn't decide what they looked like.
But the strangest part?
They looked… really familiar.
"You're—""Yes," they said before I could finish."I'm you. Or… I was."
The world tilted.
"NOPE. Nope nope nope. That's illegal. That's TIME TRAVEL or MULTIVERSE NONSENSE or—"
Guide slapped her face."I should've noticed the signature…"
Forest Horror fainted.Gloop screamed.Wolf Puppy wagged (traitor).
I pointed at the stranger-me."I grow up to be a creepy mask-wearing wizard glitch person?!"
"Not exactly," they said calmly."I'm one possible future. One that learned to control your Wild Thread powers before they spiraled out of control."
I swallowed hard."…Spiraled? How bad are we talking?"
The stranger looked away.
"Entire realms collapsed."
"…Oh."
A New Ability (Activated Accidentally)
The stranger stepped closer.
"I'm going to teach you how to stabilize your anomaly before the Ancient Powers reach you again."
I nodded quickly. "YES PLEASE TELL ME HOW TO NOT BREAK EXISTENCE."
"Good. First, you need to unlock your core ability: Thread Sense."
"That sounds cool."
"It is. And dangerous. Focus on your breathing, feel your connection to the world, and try to—"
But I didn't get to finish the instructions.
Because the moment I exhaled…
[CHAOTIC COUNTER — ACTIVATED][Reason: Attempting self-improvement][Effect: Wild Thread Awakening]
"Oh no," Guide whispered. "Oh no oh no—"
Threads of glowing energy exploded out of me like spaghetti noodles made of light.
They reached into the air—wrapped around reality—pulled—and tore a tiny rip in space.
Gloop screamed.Forest Horror screamed.I screamed.
The stranger just sighed.
"Well. That's… faster than my timeline."
I clutched my head. "HOW DO I STOP THIS?!"
"You don't," the stranger said.
"WHAT?!"
"You ride it out."
The threads twisted, wrapping around me, forming shapes, symbols, power I didn't understand—
And then—
Everything went white.
Everything went silent.
No trees.No ground.No sky.
Just… white.
Not bright white.Not empty white.A strange, soft white—like the world was erased but still thinking about what to draw next.
Wolf Puppy wasn't on my head.Gloop wasn't screaming.Forest Horror wasn't hugging me like an emotional support cactus.
It was only me… and the threads.
Glowing strings of light spiraled gently around my body, pulsing like they were breathing.
"Uh," I said. "Am I dead?"
A voice answered.
"Not yet."
I spun around.
The stranger—future me—stood beside me, mask back on, cloak drifting like smoke.
"Welcome," they said, "to the White Space."
I raised my hand."Okay, pause. What is this? Did I break reality? Again?"
Future Me shook their head.
"You didn't break it… you slipped between it. This place is a layer between timelines, where Wild Threads naturally gather. Think of it as a backstage for existence."
"Backstage?!"
"Yes. And right now, you're standing on the cables holding the universe together, so try not to trip."
I froze in place."WHY WOULD YOU SAY THAT?!"
The Possible Futures
Future Me walked forward, motioning for me to follow.
"Your awakening happened early. Usually, Wild Threads develop the sense slowly. But your Chaotic Counter bypassed that and forced the ability open."
"That sounds… bad."
"It is."
"GREAT! LOVE THAT FOR ME!"
We stopped in front of a transparent ripple in the air.It looked like a curtain made of glass.
Future Me tapped it.
The ripple expanded into a window—showing a different world.
A version of me stood in the center of a ruined kingdom, wearing a robe of threads and holding a staff taller than I was.
Lightning crackled around him as soldiers bowed in fear.
"Is that… me?"
"One version of you," Future Me said. "The Thread Tyrant. A timeline where you never learned control. Reality bends to your emotions, and kingdoms fall when you panic."
"Oh my gosh," I whispered. "I look cool—wait NO that's bad! Really bad!"
Future Me flicked their hand, and the window shattered into white mist.
Another appeared.
This time I saw nothing.Just an empty world.No buildings.No people.No monsters.
Just blankness.
"What happened to this one?" I asked quietly.
Future Me didn't answer immediately.
"This is a timeline where the Ancient Power claimed you. They used your anomaly to unravel every living thing."
I swallowed hard.
"I… did that?"
"No. They did. Through you."
The threads around my arms dimmed, curling inward like scared vines.
My voice came out small."…I don't want to be that."
"Good," Future Me said. "Your fear means you still care."
They waved their hand again.
A third window appeared.
This one was… different.
I saw myself… sitting under a giant tree, surrounded by weird monsters who looked like mutated pets.Wolf Puppy was huge and fluffy.Gloop was wearing a tiny wizard hat.Forest Horror was knitting.
I was laughing.Peaceful.Happy.
"What timeline is this?"
"One where you learn control. One where you keep your power small. Gentle. Where your anomaly becomes healing instead of destruction."
I stared at it."I want that one."
"You can't choose timelines," Future Me said gently. "But you can choose your actions."
Learning Thread Sense (Sort Of)
Future Me held out their staff.
"Take my hand."
"I feel like whenever someone says that, something insane happens."
"It will."
"I KNEW IT!"
But I took their hand anyway.
Instantly, the threads around me snapped to attention like startled fireflies.
"You feel that?" Future Me asked.
"Feel WHAT? EVERYTHING IS TINGLY—"
"That's your Thread Sense. It lets you see connections—paths—possibilities. Now focus. Don't grab anything, don't tug, just observe."
I tried.
The threads softened.
From the corner of my eye, I saw faint lines stretching from me to…
Wolf Puppy.Gloop.Forest Horror.Guide.The stranger.
Even the Ancient Power.
I gasped."I can see… connections. Like… fate lines?"
"Exactly."
One thread pulsed brighter than the others.
A red one.
"Uh… what's that one?"
Future Me's voice tightened.
"That's the thread connecting you to the Ancient Power."
The thread suddenly tugged.
Hard.
Like something on the other side pulled it.
"Uh—future me—why is it moving—"
Future Me spun sharply."No. Not here. Not NOW."
The thread yanked again, stronger.
The white space trembled.
Cracks of darkness split across the air.
A familiar, distorted voice seeped in:
"…FOUND YOU AGAIN…"
I screamed.Future Me grabbed my shoulders.
"Listen to me—DO NOT LET IT GRAB YOU—"
The crack widened—a clawed hand squeezing through—reaching for the glowing red thread tied to my chest—
Future Me slammed their staff into the ground.
"RUN!"
"THERE IS NO GROUND TO RUN ON!"
"THEN FALL!"
They shoved me backward.
I fell off the invisible edge of the White Space—
plunging into pure light—
as the Ancient Power roared:
"MINE."
Everything vanished.