The Inheritor
The dense forest enveloped Luke in its labyrinth of towering trees and tangled undergrowth. Every breath he took was ragged, his chest heaving with exhaustion. Fatigue clung to his muscles like a suffocating weight, threatening to pull him to the forest floor. But the pursuers were relentless, their footsteps echoing through the woods, driving Luke to push his weary body to its limits.
Branches whipped against his face as he sprinted, thorns clawing at his clothes, leaving scratches and tears in their wake. His senses were overwhelmed—the earthy scent of damp soil mingled with his sweat, the sounds of his own rapid breaths drowned out the symphony of nature around him.
Anger, sadness, and devastation battled within Luke, a torrent of conflicting emotions that threatened to consume him. His heart ached with the loss of his family, the pain of their absence a constant companion in his darkest moments. Tears streamed down his face, mingling with the sweat, as he questioned why such tragedy had befallen him.
"Why? Why is this happening?" Luke's voice wavered, his words carried away by the wind. "Is it my fault? Did my yearning for adventure bring this upon us?"
With each stride, his mind raced through the memories of a simpler life—a life in the village, where dreams were confined to the boundaries of the fields. Luke had longed for something more, something beyond the ordinary. He yearned to be part of grand adventures, to discover hidden treasures and vanquish formidable foes. But in his pursuit of a life less ordinary, he never fathomed the cost it would exact.
Fear gripped Luke's heart like icy tendrils. The relentless pursuit behind him intensified his panic. The voices of the assailants, laced with menace, echoed through the trees, demanding that he stop and face his imminent demise.
"Stop, boy! There's nowhere to run!" their voices bellowed, carrying a chilling threat that sent shivers down Luke's spine.
Tears streamed down his face, mingling with the sweat, as he kept questioning why such tragedy had befallen him. The weight of his family's loss crushed his spirit, and despair threatened to consume him. But amidst the turmoil of fear and sorrow, a flicker of determination burned within Luke's chest. He couldn't afford to give up. He couldn't let himself fall into despair.
Dodging a fallen tree trunk, Luke stumbled, his tired legs threatening to give way beneath him. His body ached, his muscles screaming for respite. Doubt crept into his mind, fueled by the relentless pursuit behind him. Perhaps his yearning for adventure had been foolish, selfish even. Maybe it had led to the destruction that now unfolded around him.
Unable to muster any strength to his legs to stand up and run, he started crawling on the ground, grasping at roots and soil. He couldn't see where he was going as due to the darkness that came with the evening and the stream of tears from his eyes.
"OVER HERE!" one of his pursuers cried, a chubby man with scars across his face and wielding a small axe. Luke quickly hurried into a hallow tree to hide his self.
"there is blood on these bushes here, and still warm, he must be hiding around here somewhere" Luke shuddered at the thought of being caught.
"Please Athol, I don't want to die" In the depths of his desperation, Luke found himself whispering fervent prayers to the god of the church of tranquility, as he stared into the darkness of the hallow tree, trying to be as still and as quiet as possible.
"AHA! FOUND HIM!" yelled one of the pursuers as he jumped in front of the hallow tree, startling Luke. He grabbed Luke by the hand and attempted to drag him out but Luke quickly grabbed a rock that was lying by the ground and tossed it at the man's face.
"ARGH! MY EYE! YOU BASTARD!" I will peel the flesh off your face!" the pursuer cried as Luke hurriedly started searching for another rock to hull at the man as he was too afraid to run out since the man was standing in front of the hallow.
"what's wrong?? Where is the boy?" the other pursuer shouted from a distance. "come here! He's here! I have him trapped!"
Luke has dug a small hole on the ground with his hands in an attempt to find something he could use as a weapon and while digging, he grabbed something metal and immediately everywhere around him became dead silent.
Luke looked up, startled at the sudden silence but he couldn't see anything around him, as if he was suddenly transported to a room of darkness. The ground below him still felt like dirt but around him was jet black darkness and then he heard a sound.
[DING !]
[THE ## INHERITOR HAS BEEN CHOSEN]
Luke got startled by the voice that echoed within his head, unsure about whose voice it was he decided to stay still and listen because he didn't fell hostility from it.
[PROCESSING INHERITOR'S IDENTITY----------DING!]
[NAME: LUKE GRAHAM]
[JOB: FARMER]
[CLASS: ...none]
[UPDATING CLASS--------DING!]
[CLASS UPDATED!]
[CLASS: SHADOW-MANCER]
[THE SYSTEM WELCOMES YOU, INHERITOR].
"w-what? Who are you? Where am I?" Luke asked after managing to compose himself enough to utter those few worlds.
[I AM THE SHADOW SYSTEM]
[AND WE ARE INSIDE YOUR MENTAL SPACE RIGHT NOW]
"the shadow system? What's that? And what do you mean by mental space?"
[I AM AN EGO-SYSTEM, CREATED BY A CERTAIN ENTITY THOUSAND OF YEARS AGO AS AN ASSITANT TO THOSE CAN HARBOR THE POWER OF A SHADOW MANCER]
[I OBSERVED THAT YOU ARE IN DANGER AND SO INSTEAD OF APPEARING TO YOU IN REAL-TIME, I FOUND IT MORE APPROPRIATE TO INTERACT WITH YOU IN YOUR MIND SPACE WHERE THE PERCEPTION OF TIME IS SKEWED]
"s-shadow mancer?? What's that?"
[…]
[THIS SPACE CANNOT BE MAINTAINED FOR LONG? PLEASE ELIMINATE THE ENEMIES BEFORE YOU SO WE CAN CONTINUE]
"e-eliminate?! I'm just farmer!" Luke cried out "no! I'm not even a farmer! I'm just the son of one! Those people massacred my whole village! If I could fight them you think I would be running??"
[…]
[UNDERSTOOD]
[PROCESSSING AVAILABLE INHERITED SKILLS--------ERROR!]
[THE INHERITOR DOES NOT HAVE ANY INITIAL INHERITED SKILL AT THE MOMENT]
[SEARCHING FOR OTHER MEANS------FOUND!]
[THE INHERITOR CAN USE ACCUMULATED ACHIEVEMENT POINTS TO INHERIT A SKILL]
''w-what? Accumulated what??"
[…]
[EXPLANATION WILL BE DELAYED]
[PROCCED WITH SKILL INHERITANCE]
[Y/N]?
"y-yes?"
[COMMAND RECEIVED!]
[ALL ACHIEVEMENT POINTS <<-50>> HAVE BEEN USED TO INHERIT A SKILL]
[SKILL INHERITED!]
[<<LV.1>> SHADOW REFLECTION HAS BEEN INHERITED]
[PLEASE USE THE SKILL AND DEFEAT YOUR ENEMIES]
"w-what?? h-how do I used it???"
[…]
[AUTOMATIC SKILL USAGE IN PROGRESS------]
[SHADOW REFLECTION!]