The last thing Kaelen remembered was the smell of ozone and the screech of tires. He had spent twelve hours staring at lines of Python code, his eyes bloodshot, his heart fueled by nothing but lukewarm espresso and the crushing pressure of a deadline. Then, a silent Tesla—a marvel of engineering he'd once admired—had glided through a red light and erased him from existence.
Death wasn't a tunnel of light. It was a cold, silent void.
Then, the voidspoke.
[Initialization Sequence Initiated.][Target Soul: Kaelen (Origin: Earth-Prime)[Destination: Aethelgard (Parallel Magitech Dimension)][Unique Passive Skill: 'The 1000x Multiplier' – Synchronizing...]
Kaelen tried to scream, but he had no lungs. He tried to think, but his thoughts felt like they were being stretched across the cosmos.
[Synchronization Complete. 1000x Multiplier is now permanent and irreversible.][Good luck, User.]
Sudden, violent warmth flooded his senses. He wasn't Kaelen anymore. He was small, wrapped in silk that felt like liquid light. He opened his eyes, and the world didn't just appear; it assaulted him.
The room was a cathedral of glass and humming metal. Hexagonal windows looked out over a city where skyscrapers weren't built of steel, but of obsidian-like stone etched with glowing neon-blue runes. Massive floating platforms drifted between the spires, carrying vehicles that looked like a cross between a fighter jet and a spiritual carriage.
"He's awake," a voice whispered.
Kaelen—no, his new body's instincts told him his name was Elian—looked up. A woman with hair the color of deep amethysts looked down at him. Her eyes weren't human; they had shifting geometric patterns in the iris. Beside her stood a man in a coat made of carbon-fiber weave, with a mechanical monocle that clicked and whirred as it scanned Elian.
"Loran, look at the readings," the woman said, her voice trembling.
The man, Loran, looked at a holographic screen projected from his wrist. His face went pale. "The mana density... it's off the charts. The scanner says it's at 1,000 units. But he's a newborn. The royal heirs barely hit 1.0.
"Elian felt it then. In his previous life, "energy" was something you got from a battery or a caffeine pill. Here, the very air felt thick, like he was submerged in a warm, electric ocean.
[System Notification: Passive Mana Absorption Active.][Base Absorption Rate: 1 unit/sec.][1000x Multiplier Applied: 1,000 units/sec.]
Elian felt a surge of heat in his chest. His tiny heart hammered. He could feel the magic in the walls, the electricity in the man's monocle, and the warmth of the woman's soul. It was too much. If a normal baby was a candle, he was a thermonuclear reactor.
"The room! Loran, the stabilizers are failing!
"The blue lines on the walls began to glow white. The glass groaned. Elian tried to hold it back—the instinct to pull more was overwhelming. He clenched his tiny fists.
Stop, he thought. I need to turn it down.
[Processing Request... Logic Error: 1000x Multiplier cannot be 'turned off'.][Solution: Applying 1000x Compression to Internal Mana Core.]
The pressure inside his chest solidified. The air in the room stopped vibrating. The white light receded back into the blue runes.
Loran gasped, slumped against a hovering crib. "He just... he just stabilized his own output. By the gods, he's not even an hour old and he has better mana-control than a High Inquisitor.
"The woman, Elian's new mother, picked him up. She smelled like ozone and lavender. "He's a miracle, Loran. Or a curse. If the Iron Core Corporation finds out his baseline..."
"They won't," Loran said, his voice hardening. "We'll mask his signature. We'll tell them he's a 'Null'—a child with no magic. It's the only way he stays free.
"Five Years Later: The Scrap-Yard
SageElian grew up in the "Rust Districts," the shadows beneath the glittering spires of the Upper City. His father, Loran, was a disgraced Magitech engineer, and his mother, Elara, was a weaver of mana-silk.
To the world, Elian was a "Dullard"—a kid who couldn't even light a match with magic. In reality, Elian was spending his nights rewriting the laws of physics in his backyard.
He sat now behind a pile of discarded "Aether-Cells"—the batteries of this world. They were spent, leaking a toxic purple sludge.
"System," Elian whispered. "Analyze the residue."
[Analyzing Aether-Cell Waste...][Standard Analysis Speed: 10 minutes.][1000x Multiplier Applied: 0.6 seconds.][Result: Waste contains 0.01% latent energy. 1000x Extraction possible.]
Elian placed his hand on the junk. A normal mage would get nothing from this trash. But as Elian focused, the "1000x" kicked in. The 0.01% energy didn't just come out; it was multiplied by the force of his draw.
The discarded cells didn't just glow; they screamed with light. A pillar of pure, refined mana shot into Elian's palm.
[Mana Capacity Increased: +1,000.][Current Level: 12 (Hidden).]
"Elian! Dinner!" his mother called.
He quickly closed his hand, the light vanishing instantly. He stood up, feeling his muscles coil with a strength he had to constantly suppress. Because of the multiplier, every time he ran a lap, he gained the fitness of a marathon runner. Every time he read a page, he memorized a library.
He walked into their small, cramped apartment. On the table sat a holographic news broadcast.
"...the Iron Core Corporation has announced a 20% increase in Mana-Tax for the Lower Districts. CEO Vane states this is necessary to maintain the Sky-Shields...
"Loran slammed his fist on the table. "Lies. They're just starving us to fuel their experimental war-mechs.
"Elian watched the screen. He saw the "Enforcers"—men in sleek, chrome armor with built-in flight thrusters and mana-cannons. They looked invincible.
"System," Elian thought, his eyes narrowing. "If I fought one of those Enforcers right now, what are the odds?"
[Calculating...][Enforcer Power Level: 450.][User Power Level: 450,000.][Conclusion: Collision would result in the structural disintegration of the Enforcer and the surrounding city block.]
Elian picked up his spoon and carefully—very carefully—ate his soup. He had to be careful. In a world of magic and machines, he was a god in a porcelain shell. He wasn't just stronger; he was a thousand times the man he used to be.
And the world was starting to notice.