Luke hovered on the edge of decision, the Old Gods’ words echoing. “You are not born with greatness, but greatness you can become.”

  He stared at the Human description, thoughts flickering back to the others. Elves, arcane masters but frail, isolated. Dwarves, sturdy builders but shackled by past ruins. Treants, Harpies, Minotaurs—tempting strengths, yet burdened with trade offs he wouldn’t accept.

  He’d dismissed them logically, needing power and wealth fast, without built in problems. But part of him hesitated. “Am I really picking the most… vanilla option?” he muttered. Voice small in the vast void, a quiet question against the huge unknown ahead.

  Doubt crept in. Humans were average. No inherent strengths, no affinities, nothing for an edge in this unforgiving world. Was choosing Human setting himself up for failure? Handicapping himself?

  But that phrase… greatness you can become.

  Not just words. The feeling. Like they spoke directly to his new, desperate resolve, resonating deep where the cold fire burned. A pull, faint but undeniable, like a thread tightening the longer he stared.

  Luke shook his head mentally. “Come on, man. Grip up. Just flavor text. Don’t make it weird.”

  Still, the thought lingered. Humans had no innate power, no special abilities, no easy start. But they had freedom. Unfettered freedom. Choose any path, learn any skill, master any class, potentially become anything, limited only by effort and will. Wouldn’t be easy.. description said mastery required more effort. But nothing worthwhile ever was. Grit and determination? That, he had. That, Jason’s sacrifice demanded.

  He thought again of Jason, the impossible weight of the gift his friend gave him. “You believed in me,” Luke murmured, voice barely audible but heavy. Fists clenched as resolve, solid, unshakeable, settled over him. “Not wasting this chance. Not failing you.”

  Other races might offer a faster start, more power, a unique identity. But they didn’t fit what he needed, who he needed to become. This wasn’t about shortcuts or starting strong. This was forging strength from nothing. Earning his place, earning Jason’s rescue, becoming more than the nobody he was. The Human path, potential forged through struggle, felt… right. His path.

  Luke’s gaze locked onto the prompt:

  Become a Human?

  Accept: Yes / No

  “Yes,” he said aloud, the word carrying more weight than intended, echoing slightly.

  The instant he voiced it – or maybe when the intent solidified – the void shifted subtly. A pulse of warm, electric energy rippled through him, from deep in his chest outward. His body didn’t change physically, still Luke in a jumpsuit, but he felt it—a profound shift, like a key turning, locking something essential in place.

  He inhaled sharply. The void’s non air tasted sharper, cleaner, more real, like he’d only been half breathing until now.

  As the energy settled, another prompt appeared, edges glowing faintly:

  What is your name?: _______________

  Luke hesitated only a fraction of a second before mentally projecting: Luke Renoka. His name. His identity. Felt right, grounding him in this strange, new, terrifying reality.

  The Entity’s voice returned, softer, almost… approving? Or just acknowledging. “Welcome, Luke Renoka, Human of Rahu, to Shadowed Dawn.”

  The dark void stilled, an eerie calm settling. Then, top right corner of his vision, like old game HUDs, a timer materialized, counting down in sharp white numbers:

  You will spawn into Rahu in:

  5…

  4…

  3…

  2…

  1…

  Luke took a deep breath, chest tightening as the final moments ticked away. Butterflies turned to stone. “Here we go,” he muttered, bracing himself. “For Jason.”

  Just as timer hit zero, instead of transition, bright red text flashed violently:

  -ERROR-

  **ATTUNEMENT REQUIRED. SOUL RESONANCE MISMATCH DETECTED.**

  **INITIATING FORCED SYNCHRONIZATION…

  Countdown vanished, replaced by blinding white light fracturing the void, shattering calm. For the first time since entering this strange space, Luke felt the crushing weight of his new reality – and potential dangers – bearing down. He’d chosen. No turning back. But something was wrong.

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  Entity’s voice returned, calm, resonant, yet laced with something… heavier. Subtle gravity. “You have chosen your path, Luke Renoka. Yours to walk. But every path, every choice, carries weight. Echoes. Consequences.”

  Luke frowned, cryptic words tugging, amplifying fear. Not just what it said but how it said it, layered with unspoken meaning, like truth hidden beneath neutral words.

  Before he could dwell, or demand answers, the light shifted, morphing into countless, thin, translucent threads erupting from the void. They instantly encased him in a tight cocoon of shimmering energy. He froze, heart hammering as threads wove rapidly, binding him in intricate, pulsing patterns.

  “What the hell is this?” he grunted, struggling. Energy held firm, warm but unyielding, pressing in.

  “Your essence must be fully attuned to Rahu’s fundamental frequencies,” Entity explained, voice steady, unwavering, maddeningly calm. “Ensures stable place within its framework. Standard procedure, accelerated due to resonance differential.”

  Threads pulsed rhythmically. Luke felt something stir deep within, unfamiliar resonance setting nerves alight. Not painful—not like transition—but overwhelming, invasive, like his very being, his soul, was scanned, analyzed, forcibly rewritten to match a new template.

  “Why does this feel… different?” he managed through gritted teeth, voice tight with strain, panic rising. “Said character creation was done! What mismatch? What are you doing?”

  Entity didn’t answer immediately. Silence stretched, filled only by pulsing hum of tightening threads. When it spoke again, tone shifted subtly, quieter, almost reluctant, like conveying information it preferred not to. “Your choices, Luke Renoka, carry echoes from previous existence. Circumstances of your world’s demise, nature of transition… leave marks. Consequences reach beyond what you perceive. Attunement stabilizes foundation. Everything you build, become, stems from here.”

  Luke gritted teeth harder, body trembling as threads wove tighter. Felt them digging deeper, not skin, but something intangible.. essence, soul. Microscopic needles probing deepest parts, adjusting, calibrating, forcing conformity.

  Then, suddenly, pressure vanished. Threads dissolved. Luke stumbled, catching himself on the now stable void surface. Looked down at hands, flexing fingers, half expecting them to feel… altered.

  Looked same. Felt same. Didn’t they?

  Entity’s voice returned, firmer, standard neutral tone. “It is done. Attunement complete. First true step into Rahu. What you do next, choices from now on, define the mark you leave.”

  “Mark?” Luke repeated, narrowing eyes, suspicion flaring. “What mark? What the hell does that mean?”

  “You will understand in time,” Entity replied, cryptic as ever.

  Before Luke could press, frustrated, unnerved, final prompt appeared:

  Confirm your identity: Luke Renoka (Human)

  Accept: Yes / No

  Luke stared, mind spinning from forced attunement, ominous words. Thought of Jason, Irara, crushing weight of their hopes. No longer just a name, a menu choice. A declaration. Who he had to become.

  “Yes,” he said aloud, voice hoarse but firm.

  Prompt vanished. Void shifted again, slow, deliberate, final inevitability. Entity’s voice returned one last time, softer, almost a whisper on unfelt wind. “Welcome, Luke Renoka. Threads of your path begin weaving into Rahu’s tapestry. May you find your strength.”

  Luke frowned at the strangely poetic, personal closing, so different from before. Before he could ponder, the abyss shattered like black glass. Oppressive silence replaced by rushing wind, faint scent of damp earth, salt spray.

  Vision swam violently as the world took shape, coalescing from fractured void.

  Last remnants of black abyss faded, shimmering unseen threads of attuned identity settling within. Tangible world stirred, asserting reality. Shapes, colors rippled at vision’s edge, resolving from faint blurs to solid objects, like Rahu itself hesitated before revealing its face.

  Luke blinked seeing subtle interface element flickering in the top right:

  Spawning Location Acquired: The Whispering Meadow

  Transition Complete

  Luke’s breath hitched. Chest tightened. Staggering reality, new world, new body (or attuned old?), new rules, impossible stakes – settled into his bones.

  The Void trembled, vanished. Light exploded, soft natural sunlight flooding senses. Rush of cool wind tore past, carrying distinct cries of gulls, rhythmic distant crash of waves on rock. Ground shifted slightly, solid, real, grass and earth underfoot.

  When light faded to normal, Luke blinked rapidly, opening eyes to breathtaking view. Standing in sprawling, vibrant meadow. Gently rolling hills carpeted in emerald grass stretched far, slopes dotted with vividly colored wildflowers ,blues, reds, yellows, all nodding in breeze. Left, maybe half mile away, sunlight danced on vast, deep blue ocean, waves crashing against jagged dark cliffs plunging into water. Behind, dense ancient forest loomed, towering trees a solid green wall, leaves whispering secrets.

  Luke inhaled deeply. Clean scents of rich earth, sharp sea salt mingled with faint sweet fragrance of flowers. Intoxicating. Overwhelming. For a long moment, he stood rooted, letting sheer impossible beauty wash over him, stark, painful contrast to dying Earth.

  Entity’s voice returned, faint now, distant echo on wind, already fading. “Welcome to Rahu, Luke Renoka. Your journey begins here. Survive. Adapt. Prevail.”

  Luke slowly clenched fists, calloused skin a grounding reality check. Small determined smile tugged his mouth, chasing last transition shock. “Alright,” he said quietly, voice raspy but firm, to himself, to Jason, to the indifferent world. “Let’s do this.”

  Steeling resolve, he took his first step into Rahu, Whispering Meadow stretching before him like vast, unmarked canvas waiting.

  Then, cutting sharply through peaceful wind and waves, a sound pierced the air from beyond the meadow’s rolling edge. Screaming.

  Not distant murmur of village bustle or happy cries. Raw, panicked, primal screaming. Pure terror.

  Luke froze mid step, breath catching. Scene’s beauty evaporated. Sound clawed deep, dark part of his mind, visceral, sickeningly familiar. Sharp memory surfaced, unbidden: endless fearful nights huddled in decaying ruins of old Earth, shrouded in darkness, stink of fear, where screams like these echoed. The kind you learned to ignore because you couldn’t help. The kind you couldn’t save.

  The kind you could never forget.