"Wake up my little goblin." The voice was sweet and nurturing.

Noah stirred in bed before sitting up, still under the warm blanket. He felt a lingering sense of dread and anxiety but didn't remember why.

Lily, Noah's grandmother, was smiling and holding a cup of hot chocolate. Noah's mood brightened slightly as he took the cup and cradled it with both hands, just due to the reassuring presence of his grandma.

"Is something wrong, sweetie?"

"...I'm not sure."

Lily tenderly stroked Noah's head, ruffling his hair.

"You probably just had a bad dream, come eat breakfast and you'll forget all about it by the time you head to school."

Noah nodded, but when he turned to look at his grandmother, she appeared to be in pain.

"Grandma...?"

Lily attempted to speak, but only spewed blood. The tip of a sword was protruding from her chest. She collapsed down to her knees, revealing Voidstrider, standing behind her, eyes glowing crimson with a face twisted in murderous intent.

Noah was too petrified to move, as he looked on in horror.

The shock jolted Noah awake, his heart pounding against his chest as he gasped for air, the remnants of the nightmare still lingering in his mind.

"Ahhhhhhhh!"

Noah shrieked in a rather unmanly fashion. The first thing he saw upon opening his eyes, was an armored skeleton standing in front of him, wielding a Greatsword. Its empty eye sockets shimmering in pale green light.

'I command you to rise and protect me!' Noah recalled, trying to calm himself. 'Wait, the monsters...'

Noah's eyes scanned the hall, taking in the grim sight. Among the ancient, fallen human warriors and their monstrous adversaries lay six new arrivals – the insectoid creatures. Their battered carapaces oozed blue liquid, staining the worn marble floor beneath them.

"You got all of them?!" Noah looked at the skeleton warrior in awe.

The skeleton did not respond.

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"Okay, great talk..."

As Noah rose to his feet, he realized that he was feeling better. Much better. He was thirsty and could still feel the gash on his shoulder inflicted by the furry monstrosity back on the surface, but that was it.

In fact, not only were his throbbing headache and muscle spasms gone, but he also felt good, physically.

'It's like I'm 17 again and fresh out of bootcamp!'

Noah reached down and grabbed the folds of his belly.

'Nope, still fat.' Noah sighed. 'Oh... Right.'

"Hello? Voice in my head?"

There was no response.

"Did I imagine it?" Noah asked the skeleton warrior who did not seem to have an opinion on the matter.

'I have to think.' Noah scratched his cheek, feeling a stubble. 'How long was I out?'

Noah looked at his omni device. The holographic display showed it was 5:28 in the morning.

'She must be so worried by now.' Noah's heart ached with guilt, as he remained haunted by the memory of being too paralyzed with fear to even attempt to help his grandmother in his nightmare. Voidstrider's cruel expression sent shivers down his spine, even now.

Using his eyesight, Noah navigated the holographic display of his omni device and attempted to call his grandmother, only to receive a 'no service' display, which was not surprising, considering he was deep underground.

'Alright... So, it looks like I'm Touched?' It made little sense, however. The Touched begin to manifest their abilities in early childhood. Noah was 31. It did make more sense however that Voidstrider would be after him for some reason, due to his Touched ability, as opposed to public... defecation.

'And my ability is to... raise and control the dead?' He looked at the skeleton warrior, who had not moved at all the entire time since Noah woke up. 'I never heard of such an ability.' Touched abilities were seldom unique; control over elemental powers were among the most common types of Touched abilities.

Part of Voidstrider's fame stemmed from her extraordinary ability to manipulate space, a power unheard of even among the other cities.

Noah turned his attention to the skeleton warrior.

"So, you'll do whatever I say?"

The skeleton did not confirm nor deny.

"Skeleton, come here!"

The fallen warrior immediately walked over towards Noah, the clank of its heavy plate armor echoing with each step.

'So much for stealth.'

Sarcasm aside, Noah found a glimmer of hope for the first time since his ordeal began, knowing he had a loyal minion capable of dispatching six monsters singlehandedly.

'I have to get back.'

When Noah was only four years old, he lost his father and baby sister to a horrific phenomenon known as 'The Grinning Plague', which affected their entire city quarter. Noah's mother had taken him to work that day, in another city district, and so they were spared.

Noah's mother never recovered from that loss. Spiraling into depression, she turned to alcohol as a means of escape, and eventually, to SynthX, an addictive drug, until she had tragically overdosed.

Lily, Noah's grandmother, stepped in to raise him in her place. Despite her own grief, Lily provided Noah with a warm and loving home. Instead of enjoying retirement, Lily dedicated herself to raising Noah, even returning to work to support them both.

Noah never harbored grand aspirations; all he desired was a modest and comfortable existence. However, he made a solemn vow to care for his grandmother during her golden years.

'She'll be thrown to the street if I don't return to pay rent... and that's assuming that lunatic, Voidstrider, won't get to her'.

Noah gazed upon the hall, littered with corpses.

'So, I can raise the dead, huh...?'