Ram gasped for air, his chest rising and falling rapidly as if he had just been dragged out of a drowning nightmare.
With a sharp breath, he bolted upright, blinking against the blinding light that flooded the room.
His surroundings were unfamiliar—a sleek, futuristic room with walls filled by glowing patterns, and holographic screens floating in the air.
The high-tech environment made him feel like he had woken up in a sci-fi movie.
"Where... am I?" Ram whispered to himself. He tried to sit up fully but found his body drained, as though all his energy had been sapped away.
A strange, soothing energy coursed through him, slowly bringing his strength back.
As his senses sharpened, he noticed several other teenagers lying in beds around him, some awake and confused like him, others still unconscious.
Medical staff, dressed in white coats, were busy working around, checking the holographic displays that hovered above each patient.
Ram's gaze shifted to one doctor in particular who was attending to a teen, not far from him.
The doctor held a strange, semi-mechanical creature with sharp tentacles inside a strange-looking syringe, which he injected into the teenager's body.
The sight sent a shiver down Ram's spine. What the hell is going on here? he thought, his mind racing.
"The last thing I remember... we were attacked by the Shadow Messenger. Where's Liam?" Ram's eyes darted around the room, searching for any sign of his friend, but he saw nothing familiar.
His heart pounded with growing unease. "Is this some kind of hospital? What did they do to me?"
Listening to what the guards and researchers were talking he was among one of the subjects, injected with a similar parasite known as the Mind Shadow Parasite.
This insect was designed to enslave those injected, manipulating their heart while absorbing the host's blood for its own growth.
He instinctively placed a hand over his chest and could feel a faint, almost imperceptible presence there.
The parasite was dormant for now, but just the thought of it made Ram feel trapped and terrified.
It lurked deep within Ram's body, intertwining its dark influence with his neural system and heart.
He felt any attempt to remove it risked severe damage, both physically and mentally. He realized the full extent of the danger he was in.
According to the researchers, this parasite wasn't only about control—it enhanced the host's physical abilities, optimizing the human body to adapt to Reiki.
But the cost was devastating: it would eat away at his lifespan.
Suddenly, a commotion broke out among the medical staff. One of the researchers pointed at him, alarm clear on their face.
"The test subject is awake! Call the Shadow Messenger!" Ram's heart sank as he realized they were referring to him. A guard quickly used his holographic device to send a call, while the researchers scrambled around.
Minutes later, Ram tried once more to sit up, but this time, a sharp pain exploded in his chest, radiating through his entire body. He gasped, clutching his temples as a strange sensation surged through him.
It felt like some kind of shackles had been broken inside his body. He could feel something powerful pumping from his heart, spreading through his veins, flooding his body with strength.
He instinctively was about to open his attribute panel, as he had always done, but was interrupted by a sudden shift in the room.
The lights flickered, and the air grew cold. Out of the shadows, a figure materialized, just as the Shadow Messenger had appeared before.
The dark, swirling body glided toward him, and Ram's anger flared up. He clenched his fists, feeling rage mixed with fear. "Where am I? What did you do to me?" Ram demanded, his voice sharp.
The Shadow Messenger chuckled softly, a chilling sound that echoed through the sterile room. "Isn't this what you wanted, to become an awakener?" the figure asked, its voice cold and mocking.
Ram's frustration deepened at the shadow's response. "I just want to know what's going on and how to get out of here," he retorted, his voice tinged with urgency and exasperation.
The Messenger tilted its head as if amused by Ram's defiance. "Small price to pay for what you get, how can there be any free lunch in our current world," he said cryptically before his body began to dissolve into thin air, leaving Ram even more confused and angry than before.
Ram was at a loss for words. He didn't fully grasp the meaning behind the shadow messenger's words.
However, he sensed a stark contrast between the person before him now and the one who had kidnapped them.
The sensation he felt just now, compared to the despair he experienced before losing consciousness, he strongly felt that the current person's aura was only a fraction of that previous shadow messenger.
It was like comparing a lion to a house cat— and that made Ram uneasy.
Just as he was about to pull up his attribute panel again, the sound of footsteps echoed through the room.
A woman in a white coat approached his bed, her expression cold and clinical. Her sharp features, steel-gray eyes, and silver-streaked hair pulled into a tight bun gave her an air of authority.
She studied Ram with a look that made him feel more like a lab specimen than a patient.
"You're awake," the doctor said in a detached tone. "Good. We've been monitoring your progress. You'll want to cooperate if you want this to go smoothly."
Ram kept his face blank, hiding his fear and confusion behind a mask of calm. He knew that revealing too much right now would only put him in more danger.
He nodded slightly, not saying a word.
The doctor seemed satisfied with his silence and turned to leave. "Rest for now," she said over her shoulder. "You should be an awakener by now."
Those words hit Ram like a truck. Awakened? Did it work? He couldn't stop himself from blurting out, "I've awakened? Did it succeed?"
The doctor paused, her icy demeanor softening just a fraction. "Yes, you've awakened, although it is a useless profession," she confirmed, though there was no warmth in her voice.
"But we still have a lot to monitor about the talent you awakened. Your progress is far from over."
Ram's mind raced with questions, but he knew better than to voice them now. He simply nodded, masking his inner turmoil behind a facade of compliance.
After checking a few others, the doctor turned to leave once more, her footsteps echoing through the sterile room. She proceeded to a different room and approached the Shadow Messenger to make her report.
"How's it did you find any good talents?" The Shadow Messenger questioned her, his tone slightly irritated.
The woman shivered slightly listening to his tone, she replied immediately, "Twelve subjects successfully awakened; however, only three acquired Rare Professions. The others were ordinary, with five of them awakened life professions such as Spiritual Planter and so on."
"Fuck it, you say I wasted so many resources on such waste," he got angry, however after a second thought, he calmed again "Keep those that looked good and discard the rest; I have no need for waste products. We will gather those parasites once they have matured."
The woman nodded and quickly exited the room, fearing that any further delay might further enrage the shadowy messenger.
Left alone once more, Ram stared up at the glowing ceiling, his mind racing. He had awakened, but at what cost?