.

Evan sat on the edge of the training room's cushioned mat, his world spinning, and his stomach churning.

When he returned to the present, he felt a burst of powerful mana and meaning flood his mind, almost threatening to overwhelm him. At first, he had been too overwhelmed with nausea to acknowledge it, but he could still feel it. He could still feel the strange package of infinite and potent golden mana stored in his mind, almost begging for his attention, asking him to tap into it.

It was something he had never seen before. The mana felt strange, more potent than anything he had ever experienced. And it seemed immovable, like it existed outside of him, and was merely occupying the space in his mind, it felt almost divine. He sent a tentative, wary stream of the mana from his third skill, to see what this strange intrusion was.

When his mana made contact with the golden package of divine mana, meaning once again exploded into his being, its words imprinted into his mind's eye.

[Feat Recognised!]

[Skill Synergy achieved!]

[Blended Skills achieved!]

[Subskill Postcognition: Time Travel - Echo Of The Past obtained!]

Evans face twisted in a mixture of confusion and wonderment. Blended Skills? and Skill Synergy? The very mention of these elusive concepts sent a surge of excitement running through him. Evan was dumbfounded... Was this the system? The divine system, the pinnacle of human potential? The thought alone was both exhilarating and terrifying. He couldn't believe it. He had just seen a notification.

Everyone knew of the existence of the divine system, a creation of the long-dead gods, but only a few would see it more than once. The system was a rare phenomenon, only bestowed upon those who achieved greatness, who surpassed the boundaries of what was believed possible. 'Skill Evolutions', 'Blended Skills', and 'Skill Synergy' were the hallmarks of extraordinary individuals, the chosen few who dared to dream and pushed the limits of their capabilities. They were the pinnacle of human potential, marking extraordinary breakthroughs that defied the bounds of what was believed possible. And now, Evan stood at the precipice of this extraordinary realm, a glimpse into the realm of gods.

Something most people dreamed of. It appeared sparingly in the lives of adventurers and occasionally exceptional hunters, individuals who braved dangers and experienced the unimaginable. Their actions and their accomplishments, sometimes opened the door to the divine system.

He reviewed the final piece of divine meaning, a Subskill.

[Postcognition: Time Travel - Echo Of The Past]

His skill's ability to see into the past was never meant to be this powerful, he thought, as he rubbed his temples with his fingertips, still amazed. Just 30 minutes at best, an hour if he was gifted. But there he was, thrust into what must have been his own private version of the past, reliving moments that humanity had forgotten, a glimpse into a distant time that he had no business seeing. His skill had been influenced by [Teleportation], and his third skill. It had become unique. His skill, body, and mind could now withstand his consciousness being teleported to a reconstruction of the past, something that would otherwise be impossible, for anyone without his unique combination of skills. So all this time he hadn't been traveling to the future, but the past. His skill must have taken him only seconds into the past, and allowed him to see and live through the future. This was huge. If he could relive the past, and the near-future with no consequences, he could do anything.

He shuddered, rubbing his neck. Well, with some consequences. His death had felt so real, it was sickening. He never wanted to experience that again though, nothing was worth experiencing death. He had barely avoided the deadly blows that came his way. It was the worst feeling of his life. He remembered Lady Sariel's eyes on him, unfeeling as she watched his every move, as if she were playing a game and he was the pawn. The strange look of pity she had held as she beheaded him filled him with rage.

“Evan, you’re bleeding” he felt Lucia's hand touch on his shoulder.

He glanced down and noticed his clenched fists. He forced himself to let go.

He had still been alive those last few seconds. his body lying in a pool of his own blood. Evan had felt the final impact reverberate through his body.

He had never felt so outmatched in his life, he could never allow that to happen again.

"What happened…bad skill?" Lucia asked, concern etched into the lines of her face.

Stolen story; please report.

He looked up at Maximus, who was watching from the side-lines, his arms folded across his broad chest. "Can we have some privacy, sir?" Even asked, his voice shaking slightly.

Maximus nodded, and without a word, he strode from the room, his footsteps ringing in the silence.

Evan shook his head, his gaze flicking up to meet Lucia's. "I don't know," he said, his voice rough. "It's never been like this before. I saw things that I shouldn't have seen. I... I need to talk to you, both of you."

The training hall was dimly lit as the sun was setting, smelled of leather padding and incense. There were a few soft benches, targets, and weapons racks lining the walls. Evan collapsed onto one of the benches, his eyes staring off into the distance as Lucia & Marcus followed.

"My Skill, it's...changed. I saw something, something that I shouldn't have been able to see. In the past." Evan's voice trailed off as he struggled to hold back tears.

“In this room?” Marcus asked, shifting closer, growing concerned “did something happen?”

"What did you see?" Lucia asked, her voice soft. They had never seen Evan this shaken, even as kids.

Evan took a deep breath, his hands shaking. "I saw someone die," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. "I saw... I saw things that I don't understand. It was like I was living in the past."

“I died”

Lucia exchanged a worried glance with Marcus, her fingers toying with the straps of her training sword. "What do you mean?" she asked, her voice hesitant.

Evan took another deep breath and focused his eyes on some far-off point in the distance. "I saw... I saw things that I can't explain. Memories I didn't even know I had surfaced. And I died, Luci. It was... brutal. I was too weak. I can still feel it."

Marcus looked around the room, so did Lucia, “nobody has died here, everyone would know, it's impossible, Ev”

This secret was almost as bad as his third skill, but he’d known these two his whole life. They were pretty much family at this point, he knew he could trust them with anything. But he just couldn't imagine them lasting two seconds against Ari, Lady Sariel, and Kael; if he told them, he’d be putting them in danger too. Evan hesitated for a moment. before launching into the story of his vision, or a version of it. He spoke of the darkness that had surrounded him, the feeling of cold metal against his skin, of fighting to survive and the sound of his own screams echoing in his ears... of the pain. But he left out the parts about the gods, about his attackers identities, about his entire experience.

Lucia's eyes widened in shock, and she put a comforting hand on Evan's arm. "That sounds terrible," she said softly.

"But that's not the worst part," he said, “I feel like it could happen, for real. It’s not the future, but i know it could”

The three of them sat there in silence for a moment.

***

“How exactly did you die?” Marcus asked, breaking the silence.

Evan sighed, and looked up, clenching the wound on his fist. “I was attacked, & I wasn't strong enough. I was too weak. We’re all too weak” he smashed the bench in front of them, cleaving it in two, his emotional state causing him to lose control.

Marcus & Lucia paused. This, they had seen before; Evan had always been unusually strong.

“Look, I know it was terrible. But you’re not alone. We’ll figure this out, Ev. We will find a way to stop it from happening," Markus turned to face him too.

Marcus leaned forward, his voice uncharacteristically serious, low and steady. "We'll help you," he said, his hand resting on Evan's shoulder. "We'll make sure that we’re all ready. You’re not going to die, no way, never” Evan leaned back and looked at Marcus. He was starting to wonder if his confession had somehow turned his friend into a solemn stoic. The bench creaked as Marcus slightly increased his weight, grinning “and besides, you have us here with you. I get that you might feel weak, but nobody’s going to beat me." Ah. There he was.

Marcus leaned back and looked to the ceiling, joining Evan.

"Well, at least you know how you're going to go," Lucia chimed in.

Evan managed a small smile in response before looking up at the ceiling too, joining his friends in looking at nothing, Lucia sat between them.

Lucia smiled, her fingers brushing his cheek. "You don't have to worry," she said, her voice firm. "We're in this together. We'll make sure that we’re ready for whatever vision you had, or whoever comes."

"Thank you," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. "Thank you both. I don't know what I'd do without you."

Evan smiled weakly, his eyes closing, not sure if they'd heard.

They were right, but the thought of his friends fighting those three monsters made his stomach churn. No, he’d have to do this himself.

He had slid across surfaces, ran on walls, and even bounced off blades and constructs in his desperate bid to survive. And he had still been too weak, they had treated him like a child. He could still feel the blade against his neck, and phantom pains all over his body in all the places the knives had impaled him. He felt sick. And yet, he could not shake the feeling that he had just witnessed something important, something that could change everything. Breathing deep, he stood.

He couldn't face that again, the feeling of everything slipping away. He refused to lose his life, see his blood flow freely, controlled by someone else. He couldn't.

No, they would die. Anyone who wanted his skills, or his friends, or his family, would die. Or be beaten so badly they’d never come back. He needed to be the one who never moved a muscle as his enemies fought him with everything they had, knowing they would lose. He had to have the power to protect his life.

He needed to head into the forest, to the ruins. The dungeons. He needed those artifacts. He needed strength. He needed to practise his skills, all of them, and push them to the limit and then on to even further limits. He needed power. He swore he would never die again.

Evan activated all of his skills and flung himself through time.

***

When he arrived in the past, a vast, empty landscape with the sun hanging low among the sand dunes around him greeted him. He could hear thunder crackling in the distance.

"Okay, Evan, focus," he muttered to himself, taking deep breaths to calm his racing heart. "This is it. Time to experiment."

He raised his hand, studying it. He couldn't see any physical changes, but he knew the magic lay dormant beneath his skin.

Let's start small, he thought, reaching out and touching the tip of his index finger. Just a little tweak.