Ren loaded into the game and what he saw was endless light. Ren stood within it, calm despite the emptiness. He knew this was part of the game — a starting sequence, most likely.
Then softly a voice — not mechanical but warm.
"Please select a username."
A soft voice said; not mechanical but as the words drifted through the silence.
"...Ren?" he said, as his voice drifted through the vastness.
No confirmation tone.
No flashing window.
Just quiet acceptance, and then light stirred. From the endless glow, a figure emerged.
She looked human, almost. Tall, graceful, and skin soft as moonlight. Silver-white hair fell like silk over her shoulders, drifting in invisible currents. Her eyes glimmered faintly golden, and from her back extended wings — not feathered but woven from slow, shifting strands of light itself.
She wore simple robes of pale white and silver trim, moving without weight.
Ren stood silently as she approached.
"Welcome, traveler."
Her gaze met his.
"Your path begins now. May your journey be meaningful, no matter how harsh the road becomes."
Ren said nothing. He simply watched as her form began to fade, strands of light unraveling like mist.
And then the world broke open.
The light fell away like scattered dust, and the world of Ashes of Empyrea swallowed him.