His eyes snapped open, but only nothingness greeted him, as though he were blind.
"Huh?"
"Am I dream—"
"Welcome, Challenger. I am an immortal spirit in charge of this abyss."
An ancient voice echoed within the nothingness, frightening him.
'Challenger? Immortal Spirit? Abyss?'
'What a weird lucid dream.'
Though confused, he brushed it off, assuming it was just part of a dream. Just as he closed his eyes and steadied his breathing to try to wake up, the voice continued.
"For now, since you are a Consequenceless and your desired Kin might be unavailable in this abyss, I will first state the available ones for hunting."
It added:
"Wraith, Blight, Vex, Shroud, Echo, Weaver, Crawler, Leech…"
Bombarded with unfamiliar terms, he was forced to pay attention. And when he did, he finally noticed the peculiarities of the voice.
It reminded him of those pre-recorded voices, empty and monotonous. He couldn't even discern whether it came from a man or a woman.
At the same time, the voice sounded odd, resonating as if it were inside and outside his mind simultaneously.
'Consequenceless? Kin? What the hell?'
The voice interrupted his reverie again.
"If your desired Kin is unavailable, you may leave and explore the other abysses instead."
It added:
"May I know your decision?"
"..."
He didn't reply. He couldn't. Instead, he tightly closed his eyes and hurriedly concentrated.
'I want to wake up…'
"Challenger?"
'Wake up…'
'Wake up…'
'Wake–'
"Boy!"
The boy opened his eyes in fright.
The ancient voice sounded different, now containing a hint of anger. It no longer sounded artificial.
"Boy… If you've come here to jest, then be gone! If you're frightened at your wit's end already, you're not suited to become a Fallen. Go back where you come from and remain as a mortal until you inevitably die in your twenties!"
For a moment, he was stunned.
Though he couldn't see anything at all, he realized that he could feel his limbs moving. So he made sure to pinch his thigh tightly, only to feel the pain he expected.
Perhaps, he wasn't dreaming at all…
'Fallen? Die in your twenties?'
'What the fuck is this?'
Disbelief and unease settled in.
The boy finally talked.
"Where… am I? Why can't I see anything?"
"Are you stupid? You're at the chamber of the abyss, of course, you wouldn't see anything at all."
"Didn't you come here?"
"Huh? No… no, I didn't. I was with my friends when my vision suddenly darkened."
"Then you're here?"
"Yeah. Yeah"
"Are you expecting me to laugh, boy!? No one can enter an abyss unconscious. You must personally touch the rune outside before you can even enter!"
"Now, where have you come from?"
"The country?"
"What country? Just state your sanctuary, boy!"
"Uhm… What is a sanctuary?"
"..."
"Child… I don't know why you're so clueless. Perhaps you're an Abysswalker and have no permanent sanctuary. Or you're simply just an idiot. If the latter, be damned. And if the former, you're more damned! And since we're at this point already, I might as well say it early."
The angry voice added:
"Listen well… you're at an abyss, a trial for mortals aspiring to become a Fallen. Here, you can safely hunt abyssalspawns–vile, cruel, and bloodthirsty creatures of utter abomination. Simply put, incomprehensible demonic entities."
The voice lingered and then continued.
"These are categorized by their traits and mystical powers, called Kin. For now, all you need to know is to become a Fallen, you must kill an abyssalspawn, absorb its essence, and gain whatever it was."
"Their traits, mystical powers and…"
It paused, but this time, longer.
"As well as their corrupted, wretched nature."
Hearing this, the boy fell silent.
At this point, he was utterly bewildered.
"Now boy, choose! Don't waste my essence!"
"You could leave now and remain a mortal. But you have to remember, in this world, there's no other way to survive and live longer—Calamities, corruption, perilous environments, magical beasts… and rogue abyssalspawns."
"Must I say more?"
"Could you give me time to think?"
He heard the voice scoff at him.
"The life of a Fallen at Ninth Consequence is infinitely better than a mortal's, remember that. You have thirty-six hours to think about this decision."
The boy fell into contemplation.
With each that moment passed, he had tried waking up several times to no avail. Every technique he knew to wake up from a lucid dream proved futile.
Somehow, he had been transported to a bizarre world. As impossible as that might seem, this strange reality said otherwise.
He wanted to refute this fact, but he couldn't.
Eventually, clarity returned.
The boy suddenly recalled he was with his friends a while ago.
"Hello?"
"What?"
"Do you know where my friends are?"
"Oh, they're currently in the abyss as well. Just in a different area."
Hearing this, he sighed in relief. He began to focus on the matter at hand. By what the voice had repeatedly said, this world was dangerous. Very much so.
'Survival…'
When he thought of survival, memories suddenly flashed in his mind. He remembered that on Earth, he did whatever he could just to survive. Well, because he had no choice.
At the same time, his thoughts drifted to his family.
In his mind, he saw a narrow alleyway, the ground dirt instead of concrete, littered with trash. The smell turned putrid. A nauseating mix of rot, urine, and decay hit his nose.
His thoughts stopped at a small, dilapidated house. It was built from tarps, scrap wood, and rusty metal sheets. Outside were wooden carts, junked appliances, and heaps of garbage.
'Home…'
Inside, the space was suffocatingly small and crowded with old, recycled items. The ceiling was cracked wood and decayed. The floor was made of cheap wallpaper. And the neon blue walls were obnoxious to look at.
On the bed, he saw his grandmother and little brother, sleeping peacefully.
His grandmother was frail, her back bent with age and her face etched with deep wrinkles.
The sight stabbed at his heart.
He remembered how she had worked relentlessly, just to earn money for a far below minimum wage. Begging on the streets or scavenging recycled items, all together just for a single meal.
Sometimes it wasn't enough. They had to survive on leftover food from garbage sites, then cleaned and recooked for consumption.
His gaze turned to his younger brother, lying naked on the bed. The heat was unbearable, and the electric fan barely worked.
All he ever wanted was to help his family escape this hellish life…
A life of living.
"I've decided."
"Very well."
"About the Weaver Kin."
Suddenly, bits of information flooded his mind regarding the Weaver Kin. Their characteristics, mystical powers, and nature.
'Isn't this magic…'
Indeed, he was in another world.
"One thing I forgot to mention. Listen carefully, this part is very important. In the future, to climb the Hierarchy, you must integrate the exact Kin. Understand?"
"Why?"
"You'll understand later once you're successful."
"Uhh… Is there a chance that I could… die?"
"No. Unless you're persistently stubborn and stupid, no. Abysses are trials, not burial grounds. I'll save you if things ever go wrong."
The boy let loose a deep exhale.
"Now, what's your name?"
"Kaelos."
"..."
"Kaelos Illogan."
"Sanctuary?"
"Earth?"
"What Earth, boy? As far as I know, there's no sanctuary named Earth around here."
"I'm sure… yeah."
"..."
The voice turned silent for a while, contemplating. To it, everything had been strange. If this boy was telling the truth, how could he be so clueless about everything and enter an abyss unconscious?
"So be it. Weapon of choice?"
Kaelos thought of a bow. But then knowing he was untrained and coupled with his frail physique, a longer weapon seemed wiser.
"Spear."
After a moment, the voice replied, returning back to its earlier cadence:
"Kaelos Illogan: challenger number six-hundred-sixty-six has been recorded."
"Bone age: nineteen has been recorded."
"Race: human has been recorded."
"Consequence: Consequenceless."
"Sanctuary: Earth, potentially an Abysswalker."
"Weapon: spear."
"Kin: Weaver."
With that, his vision shifted.
Light replaced darkness.