1 Chapter 1

[A/N: Note that this is only a prologue to see whether or not the novel will continue or not based on the Reader's Reactions]

Greetings, my name is Rex Doyle, a young man at the age of 18 living alone in an apartment.

Currently, I was browsing the internet for anything that could distract me from my dreadful life.

BANG!

Thunder rang through my room as a Lightning Bolt struck nearby my home as the lightning storm continued to rage outside my apartment.

Just as I opened a page on Lovecraftian Lore, I felt my body go completely numb as an overpowering burning sensation crept through my body before my vision began going dark, and just before losing consciousness I heard one final sound.

BANG!

...

GASP!

Opening my eyes with a startle, I jumped off from the floor and...found myself in...some kind of ruined forest?

How did I get here?

I remember sitting in my chair looking over my computer before a...lightning bolt struck me...

Am I dead?

No...I cannot be dead, otherwise, I shouldn't even be able to have this discussion!

[A/N: MC is an Athiest, so he does not believe in the Afterlife, which is why he cannot agree with being Dead]

So...this must be some kind of dream and in the real world, I must be in a coma either in my apartment or in a hospital bed.

Suddenly something appeared before my eyes that only convinced me further that this was some sort of dream.

/===============\

Name: Rex Doyle

Race: Eldritch(Human Form)

Titles: Otherworlder

Abilities: Shapeshifting(Minor)

[System Shop]

Essence: 0

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[A/N: Ability Levels: Minor--->Basic--->Intermediate--->Advanced--->Expert--->Master]

What the hell?

Does this have to do with the Lovecraftian page I was looking at before I was struck?

Okay...calm down...calm...down.

Where...am I?

How do I wake up?

Without hesitation, I began looking around to see if I needed to find a way out to wake up from this dream.

I soon exited the forest and looked upon...a devastated and bare land with green skies, ruined forests, and roads in disrepair.

What is with this dream?

Why does it appear that I am in a post-apocalyptic landscape...?

GRRRRR...

Hearing that suddenly growl I felt my body freeze in place as I slowly turned around to find a couple of...hounds without fur, wrinkly skin, and many disgusting wounds spread across their bodies.

Wait for a second...mongrels? Am I dreaming about...the Fallout World owned by Bethesda?

[A/N: Yes, I know Bethesda is not the creator of the Fallout Universe, but they are the current owner]

BARK! BARK!

Suddenly the Mongrels charged at me causing me to reflexively raise my arms in defense.

I watched with wide eyes as my arms suddenly morphed into a dark ink-black color and grew sharp spikes which the Mongrels impaled themselves on, killing themselves.

Then to my horror, tentacles seemed to sprout from my arm and latched onto the mongrels before dragging them into the ink-black darkness of my arm...

[+1 Essence]

I then watched as my arms went back to their normal pale color, making it seem as if my arms did not just consume the entire CARCASSES of the THREE Mongrels before my eyes...

I shivered in disgust as I actually felt the carcasses fuse into my body, making me nearly throw up...

The most disturbing process was the fact that I actually 𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘵 them meld with my body and I doubt even my mind could imagine such a disturbing feeling as...that…

I sat down on the ground and tried to understand what I have just gone through and to my horror...it felt too real to be just a Dream or even a Lucid Dream for that matter…

Just what in the hell is going on...?

Before I even knew it what felt like hours passed by in the dream and I felt no closer to waking up or escaping this nightmare.

With nothing to do, I opened the System Shop for the first time.

/=================\

---[System Shop]---

[ Clean ] (100 Essence) [Misc Magic Domain] - Using your own Essence, you can clean an object or target of any and all filth that may have dirtied them.

[ Warm ] (100 Essence) [Misc Magic Domain] - Using your own Essence, you can warm an object or person with a touch over a period of time.

[ Odorless ] (100 Essence) [Misc Magic Domain] - Using your own Essence, you can remove the odor of yourself, others, and objects you touch.

[ Sleep ] (100 Essence) [Misc Magic Domain] - Using your own Essence, you can force an entity to sleep for a small amount of time.

[ Healing Touch ] (250 Essence) [Nature Magic Domain] - Using your own Essence, you can guide a person's body to heal faster at the cost of the body's nutrients.

[ Corrupted Essence Arrow ] (250 Essence) [Arcane Magic Domain] - Using your own Essence, you can summon forth an arrow of essence to attack your foe and possibly cause internal conflict with the being's inner essence, greatly increasing the difficulty in using their Essence.

[ Raise Lesser Undead ] (500 Essence) [Necromancy Magic Domain] - Using your own Essence, raise a recently deceased carcass or corpse into that of a Lesser Zombie for a limited amount of time.

[ Inspect ] (1,000 Essence) [Misc Magic Domain] - Using your essence you can inspect objects and beings and see their entries in the Akashic Records.

[ Soul Consume ] [Death Domain] (100,000 Essence) - Consume and reap the soul of your foe, possibly absorbing their technical skills, experiences, and memories.

[ Inner Dimension ] [500,000 Essence) - Using a large amount of essence, you form a dimension within your physical form.

Essence: 3

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What the hell is all of this?

Magic Domains?

Soul Consume?

Inner Dimension?

Just how crazy is this dream?

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