It die...
That was the first thing he was sure of. The flash is not of light, but of something else that has consumed consciousness, body and soul.
Recent images: night road, rain, gloomy headlights, a girl's voice in headphones… Then a blow. And everything.
Now there's silence. No body, no eyes, no skin. There is only emptiness and I am inside it. An imperceptible "I". Devoid of form, devoid even of thoughts.
Until something inside me quivered.
[System is awake.]
Welcome, Host.
Form of existence: Astral flame (Origin).
Passive mode: Idle evolution is activated.
Current status: Critically unstable.
Habitat: Category III — Shaded forest, Northern lands.
He didn't understand a word. And yet... it made sense. Not a voice, not a sound, but as if knowledge had immediately penetrated into the depths of consciousness.
He was. There is one.
He's... a flame.
Not metaphorically. In the truest sense of the word. He felt like a burning spark, a tiny ball of light floating in the icy air.
There's a forest all around. But not the one he's used to. The trees are tall, twisted, black with ancient resin, as if burned. The snow crunched, settling slowly, as if it did not want to touch the ground. The air was thick, saturated with something ancient, gloomy.
It was Scandinavia, but not the one he knew. It's a different world here.
He was shaking. Not from fear, but from instability. He could feel the energy particles flowing through him, as if he couldn't hold himself back.
[Warning: Fade out after 47 minutes.]
The absorption of ambient energy is required for stabilization.
Energy source nearby: mineral remains / corpse vapors / magical creatures.
He didn't know how to move—he had no legs, no arms. But his body, a ball of blue flame— obediently drifted forward, obeying his desires.
He slid through the roots and rocks until he felt a faint tremor—there was warmth somewhere ahead. Not heat, but an energy akin to it.
A dead man lay among the trees. Human remains? Or not? Cracked armor, crumbling helmet. The face had long since rotted away, but a faint blue glow was still oozing out of the eye sockets.
He instinctively reached out and... touched.
[Consumed: 46 units. residual mana.]
Status updated: Fading has been canceled.
Progress to the next stage: 0.7%.
Pleasure. It was the first time he felt growth. It was as if a second spark had been ignited inside him. He became a little bigger, a little denser.
He was not a living being—not in the usual sense. He was a form of nascent spirit, a naked existence, and his nature yearned for... development.
There was a roar in the forest. It was quiet, long-drawn out, as if someone had yawned among the shadows.
He froze. New signal:
[Predator nearby. [...]
Creature: The creature of the forest is a "Fenrir Puppy".
Threat level: medium.
Potential energy: 82 units.
He didn't understand how to fight. But the system inside told him that it was enough to touch, just to be around long enough, and he would begin to absorb. It was his curse... and his gift.
He swam forward, stealthily, as stealthily as a flame could creep.
Fenrir's puppy, a beast created by darkness that looked more like a rotting wolf— bent over the remains of small game.
He darted forward. The blow was blind—no fangs, no claws. But his very flame burned, pierced, sucked.
The beast howled and jumped back, but it was too late. The flames spread, as if sated by the enemy's power.
[Absorbed: 79 energy units.]
Progress: 2.5%
New ability unlocked:
He realized that in order to survive, he had to grow up. To grow, he must absorb.
Death in this world is fodder. Everything alive, everything dead is fuel. And he is a flame that burns in the darkness.
The world offered him no choice. He was not born a hero, not a man, not even a monster.
He was born with a Spark.