"Where am—" Felix said, as he soon realized where he was and what had happened to him.
"What's up, Mr. Fearless. Loving the new hair color; that hair of yours was lacking personality, and the way the white blends with the black gives it just that," he confirmed. It was Felix's clone.
Felix was back in his subconscious, but this time, he didn't fall asleep to get here.
"I am dead, aren't I?" Felix asked his clone.
"Bingo! Right on the money," he said, answering his question. "But what did you expect? A mere human like you, killing a fiend? I think you overestimated yourself there, thinking you could kill it without any control over any form of Ether."
It was a pretty strong fiend as well. The clone began muttering to himself. "Could it have been from some new race or something?"
"What are you even talking about? A fiend? Ether? New race? What is any of that supposed to mean?!"
"Don't worry. Before today ends, you will know all of that and more. All you have to do is kill that thing!"
"What do you mean? How do I kill something when I am already dead? The same thing that killed me, even!"
"Don't worry. It will be easier than last time, because now you have the System. And the System will give you strength. All you have to do is listen to and follow the System, because the System is the light, and the light is life. So, till we meet again," the clone said, as he gently touched Felix's forehead like before, and Felix knew exactly what that meant.
"Don't you dare kick me out of my own head without giving me answers! You stupid clone!"
"You and I both know that's not possible right now, Felix. And I think we have gotten acquainted enough with each other for you to call me by a name. Okay, how about this? Next time we meet, you can call me X. How about that?"
"I want answers!"
"Till next time we meet, Felix, my friend."
"No— SHIT!" Felix yelled, frustrated.
"What is it, Felix?" Felix's mom, who was sitting right next to him, said in a gentle, slightly distressed voice.
"Mom... you haven't left for work yet?"
"What do you mean? I just got back from work. It's 7 p.m.," Felix's mom pointed out.
"You have been sleeping the entire day. When I finally came back, I still saw you on the couch, and you were running a fever. Felix, are you sure you're okay?"
Thanks for your concern, Mom, but I really can't tell you anything right now, Felix thought to himself.
"Yeah, Mom. I'm alright. Just had a lot of things on my mind recently."
"Okay. You sure, dear?"
"Yes, Mom. You should worry more about yourself. You just got back from work, and you are already stressing yourself out. You might get burned out if you keep worrying this much."
"Don't be bothered about me; it's a mother's job to worry. Oh, Felix, when did you dye your hair?"
"My hair?" Felix replied, baffled, as he processed the events properly.
Oh dear God,so my hair actually naturally dyed itself after I died. "Mom, it's not what you think—"
"It looks good on you, but next time ask me before you make such a decision."
"Okay, Mom."
"If you get hungry, there's plenty of food in the freezer; just microwave and enjoy. If you need anything else, I will be in my room, resting. Goodnight, Felix," she said, as she went upstairs to her room.
"Don't worry, Mom. Rest well. I won't bother you today; I have other things to deal with," he whispered, as he turned towards the small screen that had been hovering there since he woke up.
It didn't take a genius to know that the screen couldn't be seen by anyone else besides him. And it was made out of the same thing the threads from that night were made out of; it was solid to Felix's touch, even though it was invisible to everyone else.
[CONGRATULATIONS. YOU SURVIVED SAFETY PROTOCOL ONE: UNION WITH THE VOID.]
[YOUR SUCCESSFUL UNION HAS GRANTED YOU PARTIAL ACCESS TO THE VOID SYSTEM.]
[TO GAIN FULL ACCESS TO THE VOID SYSTEM, COMPLETE THE FIRST MISSION. WOULD YOU LIKE TO CONTINUE?]
Felix accepted without a doubt in his mind, even though he had no idea what he was doing.
The screen read one clear message:
[MISSION: A HEART FOR A HEART]...
...[MISSION OBJECTIVE: KILL THE AWAKENED CHICAGO RIVERWALK FIEND.]
...[RACE: ???]
...[CLASS: ???]
[CURRENT MISSION DIFFICULTY: HARD]
[REWARDS: UPON COMPLETING THE MISSION, RECEIVE; FULL ACCESS TO THE VOID SYSTEM, UNLOCK BASIC STATS, AND ONE INFO MANUSCRIPT.]
Felix could barely comprehend anything the System said, but all he needed to know was one word.
So he was telling the truth. Info is information. So if I complete this mission, then I will get rewarded with some of the answers I require, Felix thought to himself, pacing back and forth in his living room, trying to make sense of the rest of the messages on the screen.
"Oh, fuck it all! Time to go kill a monster." A grin spread across his face at the second chance given to him to end the fiend that killed him.
That's right. What do I kill it with?Last time, I had Mom's handgun on me because I was paranoid, and the lighter just happened to be in my jacket pockets. And they barely managed to kill it. And now it got all buffed up. Can bullets still pierce that thing? And fire couldn't even do anything to it!
What do I... What to do? Felix paced even faster, trying to think of a solution.
Should I go buy a hatchet? No! How about a chainsaw? He thought of a variety of weapons that he could obtain that could deal damage to that thing.
Fuck it! Anything I am buying, one thing remains the same: I am going to need cash. I guess it's time to lose some funds.
"798... 799... 800!" Eight hundred dollars. My life savings. I was planning to use it to get a laptop and start a small online business when I graduated. I guess it would be useless to save all this money if the whole world gets overrun by monsters. He dressed up like last night and gathered all the money on his bed, as he started to head out.
It was 9 PM, and he was still going from hardware store to hardware store, but he couldn't find one willing to sell him the equipment he needed because he was too young. Most stores began closing, as Felix began to lose hope. Suddenly, a System window appeared.
[SYSTEM SUB-MISSION: WEAPON RETRIEVAL] ...
[SUB-MISSION OBJECTIVE: RETRIEVE ONE HALF OF THE LEGENDARY ??? KATANAS.]
[MISSION DIFFICULTY: TIME LIMIT] ...
...[REWARDS: UPON RETRIEVAL, OBTAIN PARTIAL W MASTERY OVER THIS WEAPON, AND BOOSTED AGILITY AND ENDURANCE STATS WHEN WEAPON IS IN USE]
...[WOULD YOU LIKE TO ACCEPT THIS SUB-MISSION?]
Of course! Who would be stupid enough to miss out on this god-given opportunity? Felix grinned.
It's as if this thing can detect when I am in distress.
[ROUTING CLOSEST DISTANCE TO THE WEAPON. ROUTING COMPLETE.]...
...[TIP: FOLLOW THE ETHER WAVES.]
"What? These things are the same as the threads I saw last night. They feel so soothing to the touch," Felix said, as he followed the waves.
He ended up walking down to an antique shop just down the block.
Wait, is this thing for real? A legendary supernatural sword is at this dump?
"Hey, kid! Not all things are as they seem. Come inside if you're ready to talk serious business!"
"So, which piece of weaponry are you looking for? What do you need? We got it all! From Epic-tier weapons that boost Ether control, to one-on-one combat weapons that can deal some serious damage!"
"I am looking for a katana."
"Eh? Please, come again."