The night should have been ordinary.
Aryan remembered thinking that as he leaned against the rusted railing of his apartment rooftop, the city stretching endlessly below him. Neon lights flickered. Cars moved like glowing insects. Somewhere, people laughed—unaware.
Unprepared.
The wind suddenly died.
Not slowed. Not weakened.
Died.
The air grew heavy, pressing against Aryan's skin like invisible hands. His instincts screamed, and he straightened, heart thudding.
Then the moon blinked.
One moment it was there—bright and whole.
The next, it darkened, as if swallowed by an unseen eclipse. A low hum spread through the sky, vibrating through concrete, bones, and blood.
Aryan staggered back.
"What the hell…?"
The city lights below flickered once.
Twice.
And then—
"ECLIPSE PROTOCOL INITIATED."
The voice didn't come from the sky.
It came from inside his head.
Aryan screamed and collapsed to the ground, clutching his skull as pain exploded behind his eyes. Images flooded his mind—
Black deserts littered with corpses.
Creatures stitched together from shadows.
A throne made of broken stars.
He tasted blood.
"Candidate Identified."
"Compatibility: INSUFFICIENT."
The pressure increased.
Aryan felt like something was peeling him apart layer by layer—testing, judging, preparing to discard him.
"So… this is it?" he gasped. "I just die?"
The darkness beneath him rippled.
His shadow trembled unnaturally, stretching longer than it should, twisting against the rooftop lights.
"ERROR."
"Alternate Authority Detected."
The shadow stood up.
Not a trick of light.
Not imagination.
It rose like a living thing, separating itself from his feet, forming a tall, humanoid figure made of pure darkness. No eyes. No face.
Yet Aryan knew—
It was watching him.
Cold fear crawled up his spine. "S-stay back…"
The shadow tilted its head.
Then a second voice echoed, deeper, older.
"He is flawed."
"But he is empty enough to endure."
Aryan's heart nearly stopped.
"Unique Bond Accepted."
"Role Assigned: ECLIPSE-BOUND."
Pain vanished.
Silence followed.
Aryan gasped as strength flooded his limbs—but it wasn't warm. It was cold, sharp, and heavy, like wearing chains made of night.
"What… am I?" he whispered.
The shadow moved closer.
For the first time, it smiled.
"TRIAL NIGHT COMMENCING."
"Objective: SURVIVE UNTIL DAWN."
The city screamed.
Sirens wailed. Glass shattered. From the streets below, shadows detached from walls and began to crawl.
Creatures formed—wrong, twisted, hungry.
Aryan trembled… then clenched his fists.
Fear was there.
But something darker stirred beneath it.
"If the world wants monsters," he said quietly,
"then I'll become.The shadow merged with him.
Cold flooded Aryan's veins—not pain, not fear—but control. The night wrapped around his senses, sharp and clear. Every scream in the city below felt closer. Every movement in the dark felt visible.
He stood.
Calm.
Ready.
"So this is my path," he whispered.
The eclipsed moon hung above him, unmoving. Watching.
Then—
"WARNING."
The system voice returned.
But this time, it sounded… uneasy.
"Eclipse-Bound detected beyond acceptable parameters."
"Power source: UNREGISTERED."
Aryan's heart skipped.
Unregistered?
His shadow inside him stirred—restless.
"Correction attempt initiated."
The air split open.
A massive eye opened in the sky, far larger than the moon itself, glowing with cold authority. Its gaze locked onto Aryan.
Not curious.
Not angry.
Afraid.
"He should not exist," the voice thundered.
"Erase the anomaly."
Below, every shadow-creature froze.
Then—slowly—
They turned.
Not toward the city.
Toward him.
A new message burned into Aryan's vision.
"TRIAL CONDITIONS UPDATED."
"Target: ECLIPSE-BOUND."
"Survive not until dawn…"
"…but until THEY stop hunting you."
The shadow inside him laughed.
For the first time, Aryan smiled wider.
"Erase me?" he said softly.
Darkness poured from his feet, swallowing the rooftop.
"Try."
Far beyond the sky, something ancient shifted uneasily.
The game had not just gained a player.
It had gained a mistake.
-- THIS IS THE END OF CHAPTER 1--