Darkness. It was not the simple dark of a room with no light. This was deeper, an emptiness where nothing existed, not even the idea of space. At first, he felt nothing. No body, no sound, just a faint thought, or the possibility of one. Then, a feeling arrived. A surface under him. It felt hard and cold, not like a real thing, but like a thought that his mind was clinging to. It was as if his consciousness was being put back together piece by piece. Time meant nothing. He had no heartbeat. Nothing moved. There was only a slow, steady pull, like a river current, drawing him toward being.
Then, a single thought formed.
"Senses... what was that again?"
The thought had meaning. Words. Identity. But where did it come from? That one spark lit others. His senses began to wake up, one after another, rising from a deep and silent sea. He felt his chest move with a breath. He felt stillness. He realized he had limbs, a body. He was lying down. He was human... or at least, he thought he was. Then came the first real sounds. Leaves rustling softly. The quiet trickle of water somewhere close. A cool breeze moved over his skin.
"Huh... it's so calming," he thought. "That's what this is. It feels... good to hear again."
And with that, a wave of questions crashed over him.
"Who am I?"
"Why was I in the dark?"
"What is this place?"
He had no answers. Not a single one. But somehow, he knew one thing for sure. He was going to wake up. And so he did. His eyes opened slowly. The first thing he saw was light. It hurt. He winced and turned his head, blinking until his sight got used to it.
"Ugh... so bright," he muttered, his voice rough and strange to his own ears. "Whe... where am I?"
What he saw was a forest, lush and a deep shade of purple, so vivid it almost did not seem real. He was caught off guard by it for a moment. The place was peaceful. Small, glowing creatures, like fireflies, floated over the purple grass. He pushed himself up slowly, his knees aching, and rubbed his neck as he looked at the sky. It was tinged a soft lavender, and two moons hung there. It was still daytime, with the sun's light hanging on.
'Or is it? seems kinda dark to me...'
Everything felt alien. He walked for a bit, drawn by the sound of the river he thought he had heard before. Soon, he found it and fell to his knees. He plunged his head under the water and drank fast and deep. He pulled his head back, gasping for air, his thirst finally gone. He splashed water on his face and ran his fingers through his hair. Everything felt normal... until his fingers touched something on his forehead. Something hard.
'What is this?'
He traced the shape gently. It was a smooth, hard surface, like polished stone, covering his face from his jaw to his forehead. He cursed silently, his heart jumping. He crawled closer to the river to get a better look. What he saw was his face, but it was surrounded by a hazy mist that clung to the hard surface he had felt.
"This can't be right," he said quietly, stepping back as he stood up. He looked at his hands, then made a careful movement toward his face. His fingers found the edge of the mask. It was a foolish thing to do, but it made a kind of sense to him. He gripped it and pulled hard.
"Hnnggh!"
A sharp pain exploded in his head, and a chorus of loud, distant voices shouted inside his mind. He fell to his knees, clutching his skull. It hurt so much he could not form a thought. It took him a minute to pull himself together and stand back up.
"What is this?" he said, his voice tight.
He tried to think about what had happened, where he was, what he had become. First, his memories were there. He remembered everything, at least everything up to the betrayal. That part was very clear. Second, he was in a strange world. Looking down at himself, he saw he wore only a torn shirt and old trousers. I need to figure this out, he thought. But then something else hit him. A memory of a black void. A deep, endless blackness. A voice in the emptiness, telling him to try again. His mind had gone blank, but he had stayed aware, drifting in that nothing. His memories of Earth were fresh. How could he forget? He had a duty, working with people who had power far beyond any normal human. He was still thinking about this, staring into the moving water, his reflection looking lost and troubled, when a voice spoke in his mind.
"Oh, fated one... why would you refuse my gift?"
The voice was clear, snapping him out of his thoughts. It sounded like it was both right next to him and also far away.
Startled, Lucid called out, "Huh? Who's there?"
There was no answer. Only the soft sound of the wind in the purple trees.
"Who...? You ask?... I am not sure if I am a 'person,' fated one."
Lucid went still. The voice was not coming from around him. It was coming from inside him.
'Great. I have lost my mind.' He thought, the taste of bitterness in his mind.
"Why would you think that, oh fated one?" the voice came again, soft and calm.
"Who are you? What are you?" Lucid shot back.
"I do not know... I am the one who brought your soul here. That much I remember... my fated."
"Fated? My name is Lucid. Do not call me anything else."
"Understood, Lucid. It is a delightful name... My own name is Alice."
'Alice? This thing is being too nice. I need to be careful, he thought.'
The sun was starting to set now. The two moons hung in the sky, their pale light mixing with the orange and pink colors spreading across the world.
"Alice, right? Then tell me, why did you bring me here? And what is wrong with my face?" His voice got louder, frustration rising.
"That, Lucid, I am afraid I do not know. I am as lost as you are."
His mood turned grim as the truth set in. He really was in another world. His face was covered by something he did not understand. And now he had a voice in his head. It was a bad situation, but it was also a second chance, even if it looked like a disaster.
"Lucid... your heart is beating too fast. You should rest. I can feel a source of fate essence not far from here. Maybe we should go there and find shelter."
Lucid hesitated. The voice was giving him advice, leading him. Maybe it really did mean well. But his mind flashed back to the moment before he died, lying helpless, betrayed by someone he had trusted more than anyone.
'No. I cannot trust this thing.'
'Whatever it is.'
A twig snapped behind him. Lucid spun around right away. He was in a clearing surrounded by thick trees. Of course something would find him. It was surprising he had not been attacked sooner.
"Lucid, be careful—"
"Tch! I know that," he cut in.
He stared ahead and saw it. Something not human at all was moving out from between the trees. It had twisted limbs attached to a body shaped like a huge spider. It moved in a jerky way, making broken, distorted sounds.
'What is that?'
'It is a Fallen... Let me see... what grade...'
Lucid narrowed his eyes, studying it. Its coating, its feeling, its color. On Earth, he had learned that creatures from the rifts were graded by those things. Most of the time, Lucid fought low-grade Fallens. Anything above A-tier was rare, and it was deadly. His leader usually handled those.
'Why is this one... purple? B+ grade?! No. There is no way. I cannot fight that. I will die.'
"Lucid, run!"
Fear took over. Lucid turned and ran the other way. A huge limb shot out and stabbed into his side. Pain ripped through him, sharp and raw, and a scream was torn from his throat. He stumbled to the left, holding his stomach. It was not a killing blow, but it would be if he did not treat it. Two more limbs came at him from the creature. Lucid bit his tongue and rolled to the side, landing hard on his injury. He scrambled to his feet and saw the spider-like Fallen was only five meters away. Turning his back on it was a bad mistake, but he ran anyway. The creature followed, swinging through the trees on sticky webs. He could not outrun it. He could not kill it. It had tasted his blood.
'No... no... no...'
"Lucid, look out!"
Something wrapped around his ankle and pulled tight. He was yanked down to one knee, the air forced from his lungs. Now the creature was above him in the branches. He was trapped.
"No... No, this cannot be how it ends. Lucid, get up! Please!"
The voice was pleading, like it was watching a friend about to be killed. Lucid sank to one knee, his eyes closing. He breathed slowly. He was barely responding.
'Maybe her betrayal... had not been about hate.'
'Maybe this was just how things were meant to be.' he thought bitterly.
A limb shot down, aimed right at the center of his back.
"Now!"
Lucid suddenly spun and caught the sharp limb with one hand. It stabbed straight through his palm, tearing through flesh, but he held on. With a yell, he grabbed it with his other hand.
"AHHHHHHHH!"
He pulled, dragging the beast down out of the trees. It was not light, but it was not too heavy either. Lucid, even though he was just a high schooler, was not weak. As someone who was not Enlightened, he had trained his body hard to make up for it. He roared, his muscles burning with pain and adrenaline, and slammed the Fallen into the ground. The impact shook the earth.
"Lucid, be careful!"
He clenched his jaw so hard it shook, throwing himself to the side to dodge another swinging limb. His hand shot out and closed around a big rock half buried in the dirt. Without thinking, without letting the fear take hold, he lunged forward and climbed onto the creature's bristly back. The spider screeched, thrashing under him, but he raised the rock high and brought it down hard on its cluster of eyes.
Once.
A sharp crack sounded under the blow.
Again.
Black liquid splashed up, warm against his cheek.
And again, this time he was screaming with rage.
"I am a rift hunter!!!"
The creature shook violently, its legs curling in.
And again.
He did not stop until the twitching stopped, until the only sound in the forest was his own rough breathing. Until the creature was finally still. Its legs gave one last shake, then fell limp. Dark blood pooled under its body, soaking into the roots and dark violet leaves. He stayed there for a moment, crouched on its back, his chest heaving, the rock still shaking in his hand. Only when the quiet settled did he understand the fight was truly over.
Lucid had won.
He collapsed next to the creature, gasping, covered in blood, his whole body trembling. He had lost too much.
"Lucid, stay awake. Do not fall asleep. Please... do not die."
"Hah... too late. Guess this is it. At least I went out fighting..."
"Then I will use the last of my strength to heal you."
The voice was soft and gentle, like a quiet breath. As the words faded, a soft green light began to spread over his skin, wrapping his body. It pulsed, warm and alive, until he was covered in its glow. Slowly, the heavy weight on his chest faded. The burning pain that had been eating at his bones faded away, disappearing like fog in the sun. Then, all at once, his body felt light, as if the world had let him go.
"Shhh. Rest. You fought well, Lucid... let me do this for you."