“If there is one thing to fear, it is the darkness that comes with each night. Hide as fast as you can, because if you don’t, Nightmares will come. They will tear you apart and harvest all the Essence you have left. Some are brave to fight them, risking their lives to advance faster. But is it really worth it?”
~Thoughts of a warrior, 26th Outbreak
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“I just can’t catch a break, can I? And Nightmares? Really? The hell does that even mean?” Leo grimaced as the message faded away. “Must be one of those threats that the clone forgot to mention…”
Just great.
Fists clenched, he left the entrance hall and moved into a large living room, his shovel left forgotten by the door. A quick check around the house showed that nothing had disappeared since he was last here to water the plants just a few days ago. At least some good news…
Leo placed his backpack on a table in the middle of the room and approached one of the windows, curiosity getting the better of him.
The red sun still hung low in the sky, bathing this side of the world with its last rays as it neared the horizon. The wind that just a moment ago barely rustled through the bushes and leaves, now picked up the pace, forcing the trees in the distance to dance to its tune.
Something's definitely coming.
The weather just didn’t change like that without a reason. There was always some kind of build-up before a disaster struck. Besides, with the System’s notification, he had to be mad to ignore the possibility of the approaching danger.
Although I could use a bit more info.
Cursing under his breath, Leo took a step back and tugged the curtains together, shielding the house from the outside world. He did the same thing to the other two windows, plunging the living room into complete darkness. Not stopping there, he dashed through every single room, taking away their only source of light.
He returned to the living room, sweat drenching his forehead as he leaned against the table. Secure shelter my ass. He snorted, uncorking a bottle of water. As if a few curtains and bookshelves blocking the entrances could be called secure.
The only good thing that came from the rearrangement of the furniture, was his decision to definitely assign a few more points to Might. Soul could wait. His empty lungs and burning muscles? Not so much. Not when this definitely wasn't the last time when he had to move some heavy objects.
Shaking his head, Leo threw the empty bottle away and moved upstairs, right into his old room.
Unlike every other window in the house, the one in his room had a small gap in between the curtains. The lone ray of the sun became dimmer and dimmer with every minute, letting him know just how little time he had left before the night came.
He locked the door behind him and sat on the small bed lying in the corner. His fists clenched as a burst of anger filled his veins.
Hour after hour this day was becoming more and more messed up. First, he awakened with abilities that a week ago were reserved for fiction. Then he had to kill the remnants of his own father and another man he knew for over ten years.
And now?
He just might die in the coming hours. After all, what even counted as a "secure shelter" in this damned world? By hiding inside this closed and empty house, he could be signing his death sentence with a timer on it. And the less said about other survivors — his family — who probably had similar thoughts running through their minds, the better.
Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! Leo scowled, punching the bed’s mattress with all the rage gathered in his veins.
This damned Outbreak just had to happen in his Universe. Destroying his life. Destroying the lives of everyone in this bloody world.
Stop. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to force those thoughts away. Thinking like that won’t help anyone.
It wasn't healthy, he knew that. Pushing problems away only hurt a person in the long run. But what else could he do? Break down crying just because life once again decided to shit on him? To wallow in pity and let the world swallow him?
I can’t, I won’t.
When he lost his mother, and after Edward decided to just up and leave one day, Leo almost threw away any future he had. He raged like a maniac until the people he now called family, rescued him. That day, he promised never to fall that low again. And if that meant pushing his problems to the deepest corners of his mind, then so be it.
He took a few deep breaths and fell back on the bed, eyes closed. He would deal with all of this pain and anger one day. Just not now, not today.
Minutes passed as he just laid there, mind empty of any thoughts as the howls of the wind outside continued to echo around him. However, as if someone flipped a switch, the world suddenly went silent. Even the rare screams and screeches of Voidlings died out.
His eyes snapped open as Leo sat up, his gaze snapping towards the window.
Darkness. Complete and utter darkness. No more light entered the room through the small gap and his cursed arm became the only source of lighting. Even then his veins seemed to dim a bit. Cursing, he moved to stand.
'Boom!'
The entire world shook. Wind like no other crashed into the house. The building groaned, almost shaking as Leo fell back on the bed. The pressure in the air thickened. Doubling, tripling or even quadrupling as the powerful Essence in the air almost pushed him back into the mattress.
The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
That wasn’t how I wanted to learn more about Essence. He groaned, slowly crawling towards the window.
The wind was relentless, howling and pushing against anything that stood in its way. The roof and walls of the house continued to scream in protest. His heart thundered in his chest, hoping that the building was at least half as sturdy as it looked.
Then, human screams and guttural screeches pierced the air. Joined by the wind, they created a symphony of death that pierced straight through his soul as he settled into a corner and shielded his ears.
Night is here. Good luck.
The words echoed through his mind as Leo shut his eyes and tried to focus on anything but the events happening outside. He sat there for God knew how long, taking in deep breaths to calm the heart that threatened to burst from his chest.
He gasped when the house shook one last time, the pressure lessening just a bit. He could still feel the Essence in the air and hear the howling of the wind, but they no longer seemed like a threat to his life.
A chuckle left his lips, a single word that perfectly summed up this situation leaving his mouth.
“Shit.”
Even the screams quieted down, leaving only the bone-chilling screeches echoing through the neighborhood. Those sounds weren't normal and definitely didn’t belong to Cursed Humans. There must be something different, stronger outside, traversing the area of the city as the darkness consumed the world.
Leo shuddered. He almost didn’t want to know what made those sounds, but as they said “knowledge is power”.
He crouched low and once again approached the window, peeking through the small gap. His eyes widened, mouth opening as instead of pure darkness a much different sight lay ahead.
While most of the world was still shrouded by darkness. Small parts of grass, leaves of bushes, and trees — the same ones that absorbed the Sun’s hue — now illuminated the entire neighborhood with a dim crimson glow.
The grass along with the fallen leaves created carpets of blood upon the ground, while the forest in the distance could make Christmas lights seethe in hatred. As unnatural as it was, this sight easily became one of the most beautiful things he had seen during his short life.
Although, Leo had to wonder if the entire world would one day look like this. The whole Earth, covered in glowing flora. Only a day passed and so much had already changed. What more could happen in a week or a month? An interesting picture indeed. It gave him some hope that maybe the darkness of the night wouldn’t be that bad with some light to guide lost survivors.
Not that he had any plans to go outside during the night in the near future. He wasn’t suicidal… at least not yet.
Leo shook his head as his thoughts began to wander. Focus. Once again, his gaze fell on the glowing grass and his eyebrow rose, an idea appearing in his mind.
Why not?
Bloody Vein (Common):
A grass-like plant naturally found in Void realms. It was born thanks to the radiation of a Cursed Star. Possesses natural healing properties if used correctly. Often utilized as a basic ingredient in alchemy, smithing, and enchanting. Can be used in upgrades.
Healing properties if used correctly. He hummed, expecting the System to give him some bullshit explanation of how useless red grass was. Yet he received something more.
While the description provided him with some terms he didn’t understand at all, he hoped that with time — and more Identified objects — he could learn all about this new reality. And the correct way to use this for healing. No way in hell I’m experimenting on myself.
His dagger also mentioned something about upgrades, and anyone who ever read some fantasy knew what alchemy and enchanting were. At least to some degree. The System might as well have something completely different in mind when mentioning those two things.
At least you can’t mess up with smith… What is this?!
Any thoughts about the red plant flew out of Leo’s mind when some sudden movement caught his attention.
It appeared at the end of the street, coming from the direction of the city. From so far, Leo only noticed a smudge of deep violet glow, moving towards the houses.
He didn’t move an inch, heart beginning to thunder like a drum of war.
The Essence in his body came alive and he wrestled it under control in record time. The familiar blanket settled over his skin and a short sigh left his lips.
Minutes dragged on as the creature came closer to the houses right next to the one he was in. With every single second passing, he could make out more and more of the now identified monster.
Collector (Nightmare Voidling) | Rank: E | LVL: N/A
Leo shuddered. He might have broken into rank F himself after the advancement to the second level, but this creature had an entire rank over him. Hell, even its level wasn’t available. And its body…
He almost wished that the glow of its skin wasn’t there. To save him another heart attack.
I’m dead if it finds me.
When it stopped, the monster stood proud and tall, almost like a human. Its body was a pack of muscles covered in deformed skin much like on his own cursed arm. Add to that, similar to a Cursed Human, the Collector's skin broke in hundreds of places, releasing the deep purple glow from within.
Leo watched with bated breath as the monster traversed on all four, only to pause before the Gibson household. It raised its head, bald and ugly as if it was searching for something.
The protective barrier around his body tightened as the creature jumped inside Gibson’s house, shattering a window in the process.
Leo refused to move, fear and curiosity freezing his bones.
Why did you go there? He had to know. What if his current hideout would be the monster’s next destination just because it was searching for something obvious? ‘Collector’ had to mean something and hopefully, it wasn't just another name for a hunter.
Thankfully, the Voidling appeared not even a minute later — he counted — jumping out through the same broken window with the massacred body of Mrs. Gibson slung over its shoulders.
Leo held his breath, only letting it out when the creature disappeared into the night, going back towards the city. Now he definitely understood why the monster was named Collector. Though the question still remained. Did it want only dead bodies of humans or was there other stuff the monster was interested in?
He hoped to never find out.
Slumping, he leaned against the wall, his mind still trying to process what it had just witnessed. Another type of Voidlings. Much stronger than the two Cursed Humans according to the rank system.
How is anyone supposed to survive against that?
Death awaited survivors that met this creature face to face. Especially when only a day passed since this entire bullshit began. He doubted that anyone reached E- rank, not to mention E+.
“Only the strong survive indeed,” Leo snorted, a bitter laugh bubbling in his chest.
Everything the clone said was true, only very understated. Not that words ever could prepare anyone for this new bloody reality. You have to experience this shit for yourself to even believe half of it.
Leo shook his head, standing up. He grabbed the backpack and sat by a desk, another object of the past. A finger ran along the wooden surface and he coughed as dust filled the air.
Whatever. He scoffed, solving the problem with a single swipe of his sleeve.
Reaching within his backpack, he took out a few candy bars. Not the best type of food to survive the apocalypse but this was no place for complaining.
Absently biting into the candy, he opened one of the drawers in the desk, checking if maybe he left something useful inside. His claws touched a stack of books and he tilted his head, delicately grabbing the papers.
The veins of his arm bathed the two books in a warm glow and his eyes widened by just a fracture.
Who would have thought that it was still here? He mused, running his hand along the cover of his first and only journal.
Leo covered the rest of the candy bar and flipped the old leather book open. The uneven scrawl of his younger self greeted him and in spite of the events happening across the entire world, he smiled lightly.
How the times had changed.