He still couldn't bring himself to look at it; Grey's whole body was frozen solid. Inside, he thought, "Where is this place? I can barely breathe. I need to look around, but I can't even move. What should I do?"
He barely managed to move his head, attempting to look up. Just then, a voice echoed in his mind, warning him, "Little human, do not even think of looking at me. Close your eyes and slowly lower your head. Keep them shut, and don't try to open them. It's too early for you to look at me. If you do, you'll die."
Grey's entire body began to tremble, gripped by fear. He followed the voice's instructions, all while thinking about everything he had been through. He felt as if he was being tested with the worst luck and loneliness. He had almost lost everything; there were hardly any people left who would miss him or come looking for him. Like so many others, he had lost his loved ones in that great apocalypse and had used up all his luck just to survive. "Looks like the end of the road is near," he thought.
Grey had been focused on survival until now, driven by a relentless determination and desire for revenge. It was this feeling that had kept him alive through all the pain. But here he was now, in a place so oppressive that he couldn't even open his eyes. Even if he thought it might be a bluff, his instincts told him that he had to do as the voice commanded. "Strange… it feels so strange, as if I could vanish with just a single thought…" he pondered.
"Who are you?" he asked, but received no answer. Even before he could utter a single word, memories of how he'd ended up here began to resurface… That day, he had just finished his cargo delivery and was heading home. He was exhausted and just wanted to shower and go to bed.
After a failed artificial portal experiment, "Parallel Voids" had started forming, threatening humanity. At first, people thought it was a natural phenomenon, but things escalated, and humanity realized it was not alone in this vast universe. These Parallel Voids linked at least two different planets together, and if one wasn't careful, they could accidentally cross over to another world. Many people became food for uncategorized, wild beasts, disappearing without a trace. Initially, only mindless creatures were crossing over, and humanity was struggling to resist, but things changed once intelligent beings started to arrive…
Grey turned a corner and entered the park after crossing the road. His apartment was an old five-story building at the end of the park, and he was barely able to afford rent. He didn't have much food left, either.
He kept walking, but his exhaustion was making his eyes slowly close and open. He should've been home by now, but for some reason, the path never ended. The stony road had turned into grassy ground. It was dark, yes, but this darkness was different—it was pitch black, and he could see the stars above, with no artificial lights around. He was starting to feel a twinge of fear, his drowsiness long gone. He looked around, but it was so dark that he could no longer see anything. Just as he was realizing where he was, his whole body trembled and froze. He couldn't move, and his body began to shake.
And so, here he was, in the present moment. Grey was still waiting, but he was beginning to feel strange, as if his body was deteriorating, slowly falling apart. The voice echoed again.
"Young race, I don't have much time. My aura has begun to wear you down, so I must send you back before it's too late. I cannot give you much information right now, as you're not capable of handling it. You must help me destroy those who desire destruction. I will grant you my knowledge and the Life ability, but you will understand these only as you grow stronger; otherwise, you'll lose all awareness and turn into a mindless creature. Now, tell me, what can you offer me in exchange for the Manifestation of the True Creator?"
It was as if Grey's mind had frozen. What was this voice talking about? What were they supposed to destroy? What was the Manifestation? And what was he supposed to offer, and what would he gain? All these questions flashed through his mind in less than a second, but he didn't know what to say. He figured he probably had to make a choice.
"Couldn't you just leave me alone? I'm sure you can find more capable people for this kind of task. I'm a worthless, talentless person—I'm only living to survive," he said.
"I know better who should be chosen, and only I know the talent you possess," the voice responded.
"A talent? Me? Ha… This is nonsense. If I had any talent, everyone would be by my side right now…" Grey's eyes welled up with tears.
"You don't understand right now, but I'm out of time. My existence has been discovered, so whether you like it or not, I must take certain things from you. I'm sorry, inferior being, but you can't blame me; it's your fate," the voice echoed again in a dreadful tone.
At that moment, countless pieces of knowledge flooded into Grey's mind, but they all seemed sealed; he couldn't understand anything—he could only see it. In the final moment, a bright, golden object, as small as a marble, appeared and touched his chest, dispersing. He opened his eyes in excitement, trying to see what had happened, but… he couldn't see anything. "What?" He brought his hands to his eyes, feeling a liquid flowing down. It was a familiar sensation; he tasted it and realized it was blood. Yes, his eyes were gone. In their place was an empty, swirling blackness resembling a dark tornado. Of course, he was terrified; he could see nothing anymore.
"This was necessary. In time, you will regain your sight, but for now, you need to adjust to the abilities I've given you and the hidden skill you already possess. We will meet in the realm where you'll learn everything," said the voice, and the entire space twisted, sending Grey back to the park. But he still couldn't see anything. He began to shout. Blood poured faster from his eye sockets, and at last, he passed out.