The morning sun beamed down.
The bright rays did their job splendidly, waking those who slept—including Zaire Zontes, who had fainted at the foot of the hills.
Rubbing his eyes, he stretched and stood up.
Pop, pop, pop—
Almost all his bones popped and creaked. The stretch was remarkably comforting.
Wait. His body didn't ache. And his shoulder... all that remained was a scar?
Whoa, whoa, whoa. He'd always been fit, but not this... toned, right?
Zaire Zontes not only looked strong, but felt strong. All his injuries and gashes had healed, leaving only scars from previous hurts.
He felt agile and energized. It was as if he'd been... reborn.
Then he looked at the mangled corpse beside him.
Ari.
Zaire's eyes welled up.
All the energy drained out of him. Nevertheless, he wiped his tears and rubbed his nose.
Yet, something inevitable happened.
Bleurgh—
Zaire lurched and started vomiting.
The corpse, hidden by night's veil, was now exposed by the morning sun.
Ari was... vile.
God forbid, but Zaire couldn't control his gag reflex.
His gut convulsed, and his vomiting became relentless.
He scrunched up, clutched his belly, and fell down.
The retching turned painful.
[PASSIVE SKILL: PERSEVERANCE HAS LEVELED UP. IT IS NOW: LEVEL TWO.]
Zaire's belly cramped, but the vomiting subsided.
"What the fuck just leveled up?"
[YOUR PASSIVE SKILL: PERSEVERANCE HAS LEVELED UP. YOUR EMOTIONAL REACTIONS ARE NOW MORE RESTRAINED THAN BEFORE.]
[ENGAGING IN SCENARIOS THAT EVOKE STRONG EMOTIONS WILL HELP IN THE FURTHER LEVELING OF THIS SKILL.]
"What!? I don't want that. I don't want my humanity—my emotional reactions to basic fucking things—stripped away from me. I don't want to become some caricature who looks at his buddy's mangled corpse and acts chill and shit... Please, turn this bullshit off. I don't want that kind of help."
"..."
"Why the fuck aren't you replying, Titan Atlas or whatever?"
[I AM MERELY A WISP OF CONSCIOUSNESS. I AM A BASIC ENGINEERED ASSISTANT AND MESSENGER FOR TITAN COMMANDER ATLAS. I CANNOT ANSWER OR ACT WITHOUT THE AGREEMENT OF THE TITAN COMMANDER.]
"What am I supposed to do, then? Just accept losing my humanity? Please, ask Titan Atlas for advice. I really want whatever's changing me this severely to be switched off."
[THE TITAN COMMANDER IS CURRENTLY UNAVAILABLE. HE WILL SELDOM BE AVAILABLE. NONETHELESS, I WILL INFORM HIM OF YOUR WISHES ONCE HE RETURNS. UNTIL THEN, CONSIDER THE DETRIMENTAL SKILL A PAYOFF FOR YOUR SURVIVAL.]
"I mean, yeah. I'm in no place to be a chooser. If the request is offensive, don't ask him. I don't want to be smote... well, at least for now."
Carrying Ari on his shoulders, Zaire started moving.
Since they were in an isolated hilly area, many small twists and turns had to be navigated before hitting a main road.
For the first few turns, everything was serene and quiet. After all, both sides of the road were expansive farmlands.
But from the fourth turn onward, Zaire saw—not men or women—but corpses, exploded bodies, and prowling beasts.
These bony, unnatural beasts were not only former humans, but also various animals... even birds.
"Shit! Messenger Bot, what are the skills Titan Atlas gave me? I mean, do I get a stat sheet or something like that?"
[YES. THE TITAN WISHED TO MAKE THE NEW WORLD MORE NAVIGABLE FOR YOU. THUS, HE HAS 'GAMIFIED' YOUR SKILLS. A STAT SHEET IS AVAILABLE, BUT PLEASE NOTE THAT NUMBERS ARE NOT THE BE-ALL AND END-ALL, AS CAPABILITIES ARE NUANCED.]
[ZAIRE ZONTES - THE GAIAN CHAMPION OF TITAN COMMANDER ATLAS]
[LEVEL 1 (0/100)]
[VITALITY - 100/100]
[STRENGTH - 8]
[AGILITY - 10]
[ENDURANCE - 12]
[WILL - 5+1 (from Perseverance evolution)]
[MAGIKE - 2 (1 regeneration per hour). CURRENT: 2/2]
[SKILLS:]
[PERSEVERANCE (LEVEL 2) - Increases mental resolve against tribulations. Provides resistance to overwhelming emotionality. Directly increases WILL upon leveling up. (Passive)]
[TERRA BULLET (LEVEL 1) - Bullets made of Magike. 1 Magike to create, 1 to launch. (Active)]
[BLOOD OF ATLAS (LEVEL 1) - Grants a trace of Primordial Titan power. Extremely destructive; advised for use only as a last resort. Vitality drops to 1 upon use. Current duration: 5 seconds. (Active)]
[RESOLUTION (LEVEL 1) - Increases physical capacity to withstand tribulations. Directly increases ENDURANCE upon leveling up. (Passive)]
"Okay. That's... very cool."
Zaire was impressed, and it didn't take him long to form finger guns and aim at a mutated dog-beast.
Bang.
He used Terra Bullet. In an instant, a bullet of earth materialized.
It spun at remarkable speed, tearing through the air before finally piercing the damned dog.
Splurk.
Arfk.
The dog died.
The earth bullet lodged itself deep in the wall of a nearby house before its spin abated and it stopped.
Zaire looked at the dead beast with a sour expression.
No matter how cool that was, he had just killed a dog. Yes, it was a beast—but still. Zaire felt conflicted.
Looking at the mutated people all around, Zaire knew one thing for sure:
The forthcoming tribulation would test not only his physical prowess, but also his mental fortitude. And he really didn't want to numb his emotions.
After all, he fucking hated the skill PERSEVERANCE.
He wanted to grow as a man.
Just a simple man.
He was happy to be Atlas's chosen, but he won't forsake his humanity for it.
Oh Atlas, come back quick dude... and please, please, answer to my plea the way I want...