Jared Patterson, soon to be known as The Soldier, was a man who always had a disturbing fascination with violence. Even as a child, he would engage in fights at the playground, leaving his peers in tears while he smiled. Despite his parents' attempts to get him to help, Jared could never fully overcome his violent urges. So, as soon as he graduated high school, he joined the army.

Unfortunately, Jared found that the army did little to quell his violent desires. He quickly realized that guns were a cheap and easy method of combat, but he preferred to get up close and personal. He relished in the look of fear on his opponents' faces and loved medieval weapons like swords and spears. As he gained more rapport, Jared made a bold request: to keep a sword in his room. The army begrudgingly accepted, unaware that this request would soon save Jared's life.

Jared, a young man of 19, had short, spiky brown hair that he kept neatly groomed. He was known for his two distinct moods that could be discerned from a single glance at his piercing gray eyes. One mood was "cold and calculating," his expression cool and detached as he assessed the situation. The other mood was "crazy," where his eyes would widen with a manic glee and he would appear almost unhinged. Those who were close to him knew to tread carefully around him, for fear of setting off his violent tendencies.

On the day of the incident, Jared and his friends were taking a water break when the ground beneath their feet began to shake violently. Startled, they watched as the water spilled all over the floor, and just as suddenly as it had started, the shaking stopped.

One of Jared's friends spoke up, "Was that an earthquake?"

Before Jared could answer, a booming voice interrupted their thoughts. It was Fear Herself, announcing the arrival of the apocalypse in Dimension 1332. Her voice sent chills down Jared's spine, and a wicked smile crept onto his face as he realized what was happening. A screen appeared in front of him, and he knew that he was one of her chosen warriors.

"There are two quests for you to complete to prove yourself to me," Fear Herself declared, her voice dripping with malice. "And if you fail, well..." Her voice trailed off, and she began to giggle maniacally.

Jared's quests were different from those of the students, but they were just as deadly. The first quest was to "Kill 3 Imps, 0/3," and the second was to "Survive, 100/5." As he read the quests, he knew that these were the moments he had been waiting for his entire life. He locked onto one word and one word only, “Kill.”

As five imp creatures walked into the room, Jared's friends pulled out their pistols and opened fire. But the bullets had no effect on the demonic creatures, leaving the men in shock. However, Jared was laughing like a madman.

"You fools! Clearly your modern weapons won’t work on these demons," he said as he ran towards a door on the side of the room to grab his sword. "I'm surprised you're not all dead yet."

Ignoring the fact that one of his friends had been stabbed in the stomach by an imp, Jared charged forward and sliced one of the imps in half. He then lifted the sword to his mouth and licked off the black blood, continuing to laugh as he killed the remaining imps. The notifications from the system were going off, but Jared paid them no mind. In any case, he wasn't missing much, except for one that stood out:

Jared turned to face his friends, his expression cold and calculating. “I think you all need to understand something,” he said, his voice low and steady. “The Survive quest is a test of strength and skill, and only the strongest and most skilled warriors will be chosen. That means only five of us can survive. The rest will be dead weight.”

Some of his friends trembled in fear, while others protested. “But Jared, we’re your friends,” one of them said. “You can’t just abandon us like this.”

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

Jared’s eyes narrowed. “I won’t abandon you,” he said. “But I won’t save you either. If you can’t defend yourselves, you have no place in the apocalypse. Survival of the fittest, that’s the name of the game.”

His friends looked at each other nervously, realizing that Jared was deadly serious. He turned and walked away, leaving them to contemplate their fate.

In just a matter of hours, the once-crowded barracks had become eerily silent as the number of people dwindled from one hundred down to just fifty. Jared, now standing alone against ten imps, was unfazed by the sudden drop in numbers. As Fear Herself's voice boomed through the room, he tightened his grip on his sword, ready for whatever was coming next.

Her frustration was palpable as she spoke, "You guys are really pissing me off. You're supposed to be fighting each other! Our viewers are getting bored!" Her words trailed off into a growl before she came up with an idea, "If you won't fight each other, I'll just send something stronger your way!" She giggled sinisterly, "Send in a Pit Fiend!"

Jared's expression remained unchanged, his cold gray eyes fixated on the imps in front of him. He had no clue what a Pit Fiend was, but he wasn't going to let it stop him. After quickly dispatching the imps, he heard a blood-curdling scream. His smile turned even more cruel as he ran towards the source of the scream.

The scream had come from a training room within the barracks. It was a vast, open space with training equipment scattered about. Inside the room, about thirty soldiers stood frozen in fear, all looking toward one thing. The Pit Fiend was a towering, muscular creature with crimson skin. Its forearms were as thick as tree trunks, and it had massive wings on its back. The creature let out a deafening roar, and its glowing red eyes fixed on Jared as he stepped into the room.

Jared wasted no time, rushing straight up to the demon. He jumped up and slashed down on the Pit Fiend, but to his surprise, there was barely a scratch on the demon's skin. The Pit Fiend retaliated, slapping him away, and Jared hit the wall, cracks forming in the hard concrete bricks. As he watched, the Pit Fiend slaughtered his fellow soldiers one by one.

Jared was left alone with his thoughts, wondering if he had met his match, if this was where he would die. Suddenly, a notification appeared on his screen, interrupting his thoughts.

Jared shrugged and hit "yes," not fully understanding what it meant. In an instant, he was bombarded with more notifications.

Jared stood up with a newfound determination. He activated his new skill, the blood from his fallen comrades flowed up and entered his body. He felt himself growing stronger with each ounce of blood he absorbed. With his newfound strength he rushed forward and slashed the demon’s arm. As he swung his blade, it sliced through the demon's arm like a hot knife through butter. Jared laughed maniacally as he continued his assault, each blow from his sword sending shockwaves through the air.

The Pit Fiend roared in anger, its eyes blazing with fury. But Jared was relentless, fueled by his newfound power. He danced around the demon, striking it with deadly precision. The demon tried to counter, but its attacks were slow and clumsy compared to Jared's lightning-fast movements.

Finally, with one last mighty swing of his sword, Jared landed the killing blow. The Pit Fiend let out a deafening scream as it crumbled to the ground, defeated. Jared stood over the demon's corpse, panting heavily. He had done it. He had overcome impossible odds and emerged victorious.

As he caught his breath, he looked around at the carnage he had wrought. The training room was in shambles, and the bodies of his fallen comrades littered the ground. But he didn't feel remorse or guilt. He had achieved his goal, and that was all that mattered.

When the day was over, only five survivors remained, and they all received the same Aspect: The Soldier. Jared's lips curved upward into a cruel grin. He now had a clear advantage in the apocalypse, and with the help of Xipe Totec, he would become the most powerful warrior anyone had ever seen. Jared was determined to make everyone fear his name, to make them tremble at the mere mention of it.

He knew the world had changed, and it was survival of the fittest. Jared had no qualms about doing whatever it took to survive, and he was willing to do it alone if necessary. He felt a sense of excitement and anticipation for the future, where he could test his newfound strength against the horrors that lay ahead. Jared Patterson was no longer just a survivor; he was a force to be reckoned with.