Ten minutes remained until the apocalypse.
"Endel, hurry up and hack that damn box already!" Endel 3 urged him.
"I know…" he muttered, fiddling with the lock.
Inside was the weapon his father had handed him and others in the second regression. Back then, it hadn't been needed, but now it was better to have something than to be left empty-handed.
"Oh, finally!" Endel exhaled when he heard the click of the lock.
He immediately began changing: he pulled on the elastic suit he hadn't used before, strapped pistols to his sides, attached a couple of grenades, and grabbed a laser rifle.
"Honestly? Weapons are good. But your own strength is still better," smirked Endel 3.
"Agreed," Endel nodded, "except [Berserk] and [Healing] are sealed. I don't know how to unseal them, and there's no information."
"Can't argue with that," the third sighed.
Finally, he was relatively ready. At that moment, his phone vibrated — it was Carlos calling. Endel didn't even pick up and headed upstairs from the basement.
…
Meanwhile, Carlos and Leyna had been waiting at the door for several minutes: knocking, ringing — no answer.
Carlos, unable to wait, dialed his friend again, but there was still no response.
"Strange…" he frowned. "He called us himself urgently, and now he's ignoring us."
"Yeah, he's acting weird," Leyna nodded. "Skipped school, suddenly called us over…"
As they discussed this, the door finally opened. They expected a lot, but the sight surpassed all their thoughts.
On the threshold stood not their friend, but someone like a soldier ready for war.
And the strangest part — the eyes. Endel's eyes had always been green, but now they were icy blue, cold, alien. Weapon in hand, focused expression on his face.
They froze, unsure of what was happening. Leyna was the first to speak, cautiously suppressing the shivers running across her skin:
"Endel… is that you?"
He just nodded and calmly said:
"Follow me. There's no time."
He turned and walked away, not adding a word.
Carlos and Leyna exchanged glances: doubt and fear in their eyes… but they followed. It was their friend, after all. And that meant they needed to help, or at least understand what was happening.
…
"You could've pointed the weapons at them too, idiot," Endel 3 laughed. He found it funny, though he understood the seriousness of the moment.
"I just reacted too strongly… I wanted to get them to a safe place quickly," Endel admitted, a little embarrassed, then pulled himself together. Now was no time for mistakes.
They descended to the basement — the same place where, in the previous regression, they had spent several days.
Carlos and Leyna followed silently. Finally, Carlos couldn't hold back.
"Endel, what's going on? What are you doing? Explain!"
He seemed to remember something.
"Oh, right… they don't know anything," he muttered. "Our mistake."
Then, calmly, almost indifferently, he said:
"In short, the apocalypse starts in three minutes."
He said it as if he was simply waiting.
"Yeah, sure, scare your friends even more," sighed Endel 3, observing his cold straightforwardness.
Carlos and Leyna exchanged glances. Normally, they would have joked or not taken it seriously, but not now. Their friend looked far too strange and serious.
"What apocalypse? How do you even know?" Carlos frowned.
"Monsters, portals, magic, skills, and other nonsense," Endel said dryly, continuing to organize supplies and weapons into boxes.
"Am I really explaining it like this…? Yeah, seeing myself from the outside isn't great," the third muttered in confusion.
Endel ignored his second personality — or Alt-Ego, or whatever it was.
Carlos began to get angry. It all sounded like madness. He could believe in war or an alien invasion, but… monsters? Portals? That was just fairy tales.
Although he also read fantasy, this felt like sheer madness.
He opened his mouth to object when Endel activated the holographic television. On the screen, live news played: the host was cheerfully reporting on the opening of a new hospital…
And suddenly, behind her, space tore open.
From a blue portal, creatures emerged. Almost human in height, but everything else was horrifyingly abnormal.
Their heads were writhing masses of tentacles, constantly twisting, intertwining, and emitting soft hissing, like a living organ, continuously breathing and sensing the world.
The tentacles trembled, reacting to movement and sound, each like a separate weapon.
Instead of arms, they had long, heavy braids. Metallic or bony — impossible to tell.
They twisted and struck anything in their path, tearing flesh and breaking technology. Every movement of the braids was simultaneously graceful and deadly — as if they were dancing and hunting at the same time.
Their bodies were covered in rough, almost scaly dark skin, sometimes shiny like a wet surface. They seemed incredibly strong, precise and fast despite the massiveness of their limbs.
Their eyes… or rather, the absence of them, only intensified the horror. Nothing human, nothing familiar. Only tentacles moved with intent, and the braids waited to rip and destroy everything in their path.
Even standing several meters away, people felt the world around them shrink from fear and chaos. Each creature looked like a living instrument of death, perfectly designed to tear everything apart.
The host didn't even have time to turn — she was sliced in half live on air. Her sweet smile seemed frozen along with the blood spraying the camera.
Screams erupted, panic ensued, but everyone was mercilessly killed. The camera fell, showing only running legs, piercing screams, and gushing blood.
Carlos froze, Leyna went pale, unable to move. Tremors ran through their bodies.
"Hope my parents are alright…" Exhaled Endel 3, understanding the odds were slim, but trying to stay positive.
Endel took a deep breath, suppressing his own fear.
Carlos ran to him, grabbed his shoulders, shaking him, face full of terror.
"What was that?! What's happening?!"
"Sit down," Endel said calmly. "And you too, Leyna."
"How can you be calm?! You saw that?!" Carlos exploded.
"Calm down."
"How am I supposed to calm down?!" he shouted, almost breaking.
Endel opened his mouth to reply, but Leyna unexpectedly stepped on Carlos's foot with full force. He howled like a child, and then received a sharp slap.
Carlos froze, stunned, feeling betrayed. Leyna completely ignored him and turned to Endel.
"So that's why you dressed like that? That's why you called us?"
Endel nodded.
"And you know why all this started?"
"No…" he answered honestly. "I only know the apocalypse is coming. And that there's a system. That's all."
"A system?" Carlos repeated, surprised to hear that.
And then, before his eyes, the status screen appeared. It stunned him.
Carlos struggled to look away from his status, still dumbfounded:
"A system…"
Before him, a semi-transparent window opened.
[System Status]
Name: Carlos Lucas
Arcana: Ordinary Arcana: Earth Woni
Body covered with earth and metal. Strength, defense, and endurance increased. Damage taken reduced by 90%.
Title: none
Sponsor: none (Several higher beings are interested in this avatar)
Lineage: none
User Rank: E
Talent: SS
Strength: E+
Agility: F+
Speed: F+
Endurance: E
Magic: F-
Aura: none
Spiritual Power: F
Mental Power: F
Innate Ability: none
Skills: none
Quest: First Scenario: Survive 30 days.
Countdown: 29 days, 24 hours, 50 minutes.
Note: If you survive, you'll become quite a strong tank, but it still won't be enough, so try your best, human.
Carlos read aloud everything that appeared. The more words he spoke, the grimmer Endel's face became.
"System status completely changed…" he muttered. "Not like it was two attempts ago."
Now there were more details: a full description of the Arcana, a supportive note instead of contempt, as Endel had had. Even the stats looked better.
"Several higher beings are interested in this avatar…" the third repeated thoughtfully, his voice growling.
"That means gods, right? Someone gave us this power… and made me/us suffer. But… without it, I/we wouldn't have survived."
Endel clenched his teeth but remained silent.
He turned to Leyna. She also opened her status.
[System Status]
Name: Leyna Sugaring
Arcana: Higher Arcana: Forest Elf
You gain the power of your ancestors by offering something valuable in return — the more expensive the sacrifice, the stronger the power. You can also summon ancestors, paying a reasonable price, and control the wind at will while the Arcana is active.
Title: none
Sponsor: none (Ever-young Elf, Southern Elf Princess, Dark Elf Loran, Eternal Elf Queen, and many others want to sponsor you)
Lineage: New Elf (Unawakened)
Heritage: ??? (Sealed)
User Rank: F
Talent: SSS
Strength: F-
Agility: F-
Speed: F-
Endurance: F
Magic: C+
Aura: none
Spiritual Power: D
Mental Power: C
Innate Abilities:
? (Sealed)
? (Sealed)
? (Sealed)
Skills: none
Quest: First Scenario: Survive 30 days.
Countdown: 29 days, 24 hours, 48 minutes.
Note: Hm… didn't expect to see such a rare Elf race in this distant universe. I can only wish you luck, dear. May all your ancestors bless you!
The further Leyna read, the stranger Endel's expression became under the mask.
Lineage? Heritage? Sealed abilities? Sponsors literally asking to be your sponsor? He could handle that… but the note…
His facial muscles twitched.
"They supported them… and me?.." he thought bitterly and opened his own status, especially looking at:
[System Status]
Name: Endel …
Dark Arcana: Return to the Beginning (3rd Regression)
…
Quest: First Scenario: Survive 30 days.
Countdown: 29 days, 24 hours, 47 minutes.
Note: Go kill yourself, you wretch.
…
Silence filled the room. Just like the thoughts of the two boys in one body…
Endel 3 snorted nervously:
"No words… just emotions. Seeing such a short but malicious note… and for friends — it's supportive."
Carlos and Leyna exchanged glances. They wanted to speak but stayed silent, noticing the darkening of Endel's eyes.
He just took a deep breath and waved it off.
"Alright… But what do we do?" Carlos broke the silence, looking away from the panel.
"Get stronger," Endel replied shortly. "But for now, it's better to wait and figure out what to do next."
Carlos frowned:
"Even if so… you saw how fast and strong those creatures are! And I feel there are even worse ones."
Gloomy Leyna, slightly calmer, nodded and added:
"Right. But first, we need information. And a plan."
She turned on the holographic TV and began scanning channels. Almost all reported the same thing: a monster invasion. Thousands dead, armies and armed forces overwhelmed.
On the screens they showed everything:
— tiny creatures ripped apart by tank shells and helicopters;
— soldiers in mechanical armor dying by the dozens;
— huge monsters tearing tanks with bare hands;
— monsters in the sky shooting down modern fighter jets…
In one word: Chaos.
"And here come the even worse ones…" Carlos muttered gloomily, watching the screen.