The following events rushed by my mind in a flash. This time, it was clear that they were not happening, but were memories. I saw the Eaters still moving after the explosion. My frenzy in trying to escape. The moment Pops, Michael, and Vanessa were revealed, thanks to the lightning. When I attacked the Eater. When it came after me. My tumble after trying to dodge its attack. Seeing the monster broken and bruised before it jumped towards me. The moment my stomach was pierced. And how I died…

But I was still conscious.

I had full access to my mental faculties. All my memories were still there. Even in the less holistic philosophies, when one died, there should be a change. I would either be tossed into the void, stopping from existing completely, or see some sort of afterlife. Yet, that didn’t happen. If anything, this felt like the moment after waking up, but before opening my eyes.

Since that was the case, might as well try it. My eyes slowly opened, revealing the open night sky in front of me. I could feel my body, but everything hurt. Not to the point of thinking I was about to die, but it felt like a boulder fell on top of me.

‘How long was I out for?’ I asked myself.

[User Cassandra was unconscious for a total of 4 hours and 38 minutes.]

‘What was that?’ I tried to ask out loud, but my mouth couldn’t move for some reason.

[Greetings user Cassandra. This is the System.]

That didn’t answer anything. I slowly try to sit down. My body started to complain, but staying alone at night in the woods was a bad idea. Thanks to the stars, I notice my hands covered in a liquid that resembles milk, but a bit more florescent. I only have a moment to think about that before I notice all the blood covering my clothes, and the massive scar covering my entire stomach in a thick layer of skin.

‘How the hell am I still alive?’

[User Cassandra was in critical condition during the process of integration with System, stopping the user from being able to confirm or deny necessary permissions for integration. System was able to find a way to solve said issue by taking temporary control of user Cassandra’s motor functions. In order to receive user Cassandra permission for said solution, System accessed user Cassandra’s cerebral cortex as it accessed various memories generating the effect known as ‘life flashing before your eyes.’ By following the neural pathways active, System was able to communicate the current situation to user Cassandra and receive permission to apply the solution. Once user Cassandra condition improved, System relinquished all control over motor functions and finished integration.]

[Congratulations, user Cassandra, for becoming System’s first human user.]

For the first time, I paid attention to what was actually happening. Whatever that System was talking appeared in front of me as words floating in the air. They would still be there no matter where I looked, and my own voice repeated them in my mind. No, the voice was different. Close to mine, but on a different pitch. Not enough to be completely alien, but enough to make it seem like it was someone else. That wasn’t all, somehow, despite the confusing way that System was speaking, I understood perfectly what it meant, as if I instantly received the information related to those words.

Basically, between the Eater attack, the lightning and my near death. I triggered the System integration. Which meant that the System would become part of me. But because I was about to die, I couldn’t give a last confirmation needed to let that process continue. So, the System took over my body, first going inside my memories and talking with me through them, and once I accepted its offer of saving me, it did just that. I just didn’t know how.

‘How am I still alive? And why can’t I move my mouth?’

[User Cassandra’s body was in critical condition. Due to a number of variables present at the moment of integration, System was able to quickly recover user Cassandra’s body, stopping user Cassandra from perishing. Current inability to move jaw is a minor side effect of the steps System was required to take in order to save user Cassandra’s life.]

[Time until jaw is no longer paralyzed: 2:12:54.]

‘So two hours before I can speak? Or drink water?’

[Correct.]

‘Ok… but what were the steps? How did you save me? Give me the details?’

[System was only able to save user Cassandra’s life due to the following variables present near user Cassandra’s body-]

Before this System could continue, I shouted in my mind.

‘Stop! You don’t have to keep repeating user Cassandra. Just say you, or user, or Cassandra. Hearing user Cassandra over and over is just making this more confusing.’

[Acknowledged. The variables that allowed System to save user’s life are the following:]

[1 - High amount of energy in the form of the lightning discharged during the storm.]

[2 - High amount of condensed energy present inside the body of the creature user knows as Eater.]

[3 - Access to three skills belonging to the creature know as Eater.]

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

[3a - Skill {Quick Tier 1 Evolution} - Allowed user to level up at a rapid speed. Extra attribute points were added to Body.]

[3b - Skill {Body Regeneration} - Allowed user to recover wounds at an accelerated speed at the expense of Energy.]

[3c - Skill {Compression} - Allowed the System to compress specific parts of user’s veins to slow down the process of bleeding out.]

[4 - Enough Energy was available to create sufficient System Particles in order to increase user’s level to 5.]

[5 - Assigning the extra attribute points in Body increased the resilience of user’s body, allowing it to survive despite wounds as skill Body Regeneration closed said wounds.]

[6 - Creature know as Eater releases a specific type of signal to nearby system particles that repel animals and mutated creatures when deceased. This created a temporary safe location for user’s recovery.]

[7 - User’s tenacity and desire to survive was strong enough to push through biological reactions even as user’s body was in System control. This was also responsible for the creation of a mutation.]

[If any of the above variables were not present, user would not have survived. Variable 7 was responsible for an increase of 25% in the survivability rate.]

‘What was the initial survivability rate?’

[40%. Thanks to variable 7, it became 65%]

I paused, letting that information sink in. This System had saved me, even if it had to take over my body to do that. At the same time, it didn’t sound like it was in complete control. For instance, I could still think like this without it interrupting me. It only replied when I made a conscious decision to ask it a question.

Looking around, I finally saw the body of the Eater lying on the ground behind me. Some white florescent liquid was smeared on its tentacles and the legs were… exposed? Almost as if someone took a crowbar and forced them open. I could also see… bite marks? And not the kind that an animal would leave. Maybe something came out of that thing? I felt something dripping from my chin and looked down. The same white liquid that was covering me was inside the Eater.

‘Did… did you make me eat and Eater?’

[Correct. The Energy from the lightning strike was used to regenerate the internal organs. Once said Energy was depleted, a new source of Energy was required. Creature know as Eater possessed large reserves of liquefied Energy. The digestive track of a human is excellent at extracting Energy from biological matter. Preliminary analysis confirmed that being known as Eater did not have access to any skill that could prove to be an issue for user’s stomach acid or intestines. However, there was still the possibility of bacteria or other parasites that were unknown to user and System. This is a fact that reduced the survivability rate of the solution found by System.]

I felt my stomach turning, but forced it to stop. My insides had just been torn up and somehow rebuild by this voice in my head. What if throwing up ended up doing the equivalent of opening stitches? I wasn’t about to risk that. Still… Seeing an Eater right behind me, even if it was dead, made me lose any semblance of calm in my being. This even made me realize that, so far, I wasn’t feeling any sort of emotion during this conversation.

‘What did you do? What are you? Why am I not feeling anything? How did I eat an Eater? What are skills? Levels? What does attribute point in body means? What is going on?’

I could feel myself starting to hyperventilate and focused on my breathing to try to calm down.

[As System took over user’s body, user’s emotions had to be dulled in order for them not to interfere with the healing process. The inhibitors are in the process of losing their effects. The shift from not feeling emotions to feeling them again is the reason for user’s elevated emotional distress. As for user’s other questions, System can answer them. However, it would be better to find a safe location before having that conversation. The creature know as Eater has a skill called ‘Rapid Decomposition,’ that makes its body decompose in a few hours. When that process is over, the signal that is repelling animals and mutated creatures will vanish.]

‘Ok, ok. A goal, that’s good. There is a hunter’s cave close by. I think. ‘

[Does user give permission for System to access informations about the hunter’s cave?]

‘Yeah, yeah, sure.’

I barely registered what System asked. My mind was still a mess and everything seemed wrong. Was this really happening? Skills, levels, attribute points, this all sounded like one of the novels Pops had in the game room. Not in an actual book, of course, but in the electronic reader.

[Hunter’s cave located. Position triangulated using landmarks. Would user like to create a marker to guide to the hunter’s cave?]

‘You can make markers? Like one of those GPS things from the old world?’

[If user has enough information about the destination, and the path to get there. It is possible to replicate effects similar to what was known as GPS.]

‘Ok, do it.’

Just as I said that, an arrow appeared in the air. It was far away and I could see it even behind the trees. Once more, I was able to understand what it was just by hearing the System talk about it. That’s where the cave was located. Or the approximate location of it. By walking towards that arrow, I would arrive there. I nodded and forced myself to get up. Stumbling at first, but managing to get my footing. But before taking even a single step, the voice in my head spoke again.

[User Cassandra. It is inadvisable to walk the forest without a weapon. System recommends user to take the pole used to kill the Eater.]

I looked to the side. The pole was much bigger than me. And even if it was hollow, it was very heavy.

‘How am I supposed to pick that thing up?’

[User’s current level of Body enhances your physical abilities. User is able to lift the pole. In addition, by using the skill {Compression}, user will be able to change the size of the pole. However, the weight of the metallic rod will remain the same.]

‘How do I use a skill? ‘

[Simply think about using said skill. The same way user think about asking System a question.]

I reached down to the pole and tried to pull it up. It was easier than I expected, but the thing was still heavy. And it wouldn’t be easy to walk around with something this large. Then again, it was better than not having anything. Thinking about what the System said, I focused on the skill called {Compression}. All I had to do was picture the pole to be in the size I wanted it to be. Right now, I wanted a walking stick.

Something left my body. There was no other way to explain it. A small piece of me left and covered the pole before it shifted into something a bit smaller than myself. Once that was over, whatever left me came back, making me feel whole again. Glancing at the Eater, I took one last look at the monster that almost killed me, or what was left of it. All tentacles had collapsed into themselves and the legs were broken open like a lobster. Or at least, how people seemed to eat lobster on TV shows. Maybe one day I could try one myself. A putrid smell, like a dozen rotten bodies, hit my nostrils and forced me to walk away. That monster was dead. I had killed an Eater. Sure, I might have survived only because of the System, which was still something I didn’t know how to feel about. But no one could deny.

I Cassandra, killed an Eater on my own.

With that thought, I started walking towards the hunter’s cave, using my new old and rusted walking stick to help. I still wanted to know what the hell was inside of me, and if the System was something good that could help me survive. Or something that could control me.