The hum of fluorescent lights buzzed faintly overhead, drowned out by the rhythmic clicking of fingers on keyboards. Xander Knox leaned back in his rigid office chair, staring at the endless rows of numbers on his monitor. It was another day in the corporate grind—a life defined by monotony and mediocrity. He pinched the bridge of his nose, letting out a sigh as the clock ticked closer to five.

"Xander, are you done with the quarterly report?"

His manager's voice broke through the dull haze. Xander forced a smile and gave a thumbs-up without turning around.

"Almost there, boss."

Almost there. Words that had defined his entire existence. Almost enough money. Almost enough ambition. Almost happy. But today, almost wouldn't cut it.

The building shook violently, sending coffee mugs clattering to the floor. The hum of fluorescent lights faltered, replaced by the guttural roar of something... alive.

Screams erupted from the far end of the office, followed by a sound Xander could only describe as chewing.

"What the hell?" Xander whispered, heart hammering as he scrambled to his feet.

The glass windows of the office shattered inward, spraying shards across the room. Beyond the jagged openings, the cityscape was unrecognisable. Monstrous structures of obsidian-like stone jutted from the ground, pulsating with a sickly green light.

And then he saw it.

A creature the size of a bus, its deformed body swollen with tumorous flesh, moved with an unsettling grace. Countless milky eyes were haphazardly scattered across its grotesque head, as if they had been hastily sewn into place. As if displeased by Xander's gaze, it released a bone-chilling bellow that echoed through the air, sending a ripple of dread down his spine. Without warning, it began making a beeline for him, uncaring towards the devastation left in its wake.

Xander froze. His coworkers—people he'd known for years—were reduced to mangled heaps in mere seconds.

"Move!" someone shouted, snapping him out of his paralysis.

Xander dove behind a fallen desk as the creature's claws carved through the air where he had stood. His breath came in ragged gasps as he crawled, desperate to escape.

A sharp pain exploded in his side. He looked down to see a large shard of glass embedded in his flesh, blood pooling beneath him.

"I don't want to die," he muttered, his vision blurring. "Not like this."

And then, everything stopped.

The screams. The creature. The flickering lights.

Frozen mid-lunge, the monster hung suspended in the air like a hideous statue. Even the blood dripping from his wound hung motionless.

"Subject identified," a cold, disembodied voice echoed in his mind. "System initialising"

Before Xander could process the words a translucent blue panel appeared before him.

[Welcome to the Chronos-system]

[Would you like to begin the tutorial] - [Y/N]

Xander blinked, his heart racing as the strange panel flickered in front of him. His mind struggled to catch up with the situation, the words on the screen both foreign and familiar.

Chronos-system? he thought, a cold sweat creeping down his neck.

He glanced around, but there was no one, no sign of what had triggered this bizarre intrusion. The voice... that voice was still echoing faintly in his mind, as though it belonged to something far beyond human understanding.

"System initialising," the voice repeated, more distant now. "Please respond."

The panel shimmered again, waiting for his choice. Xander's fingers hovered over the options. The question was simple, but the stakes felt high. Glancing at the monstrosity that had, only moments ago, been wreaking havoc in his workplace, he steeled his resolve. Whatever this tutorial was, it couldn't be worse than certain death.

With a deep breath, Xander selected yes.

As soon as he selected yes, the air around him seemed to shift. The world dimmed for a split second, and then the blue panel reappeared, this time much larger and more detailed. It hovered in front of him like a transparent screen, its edges glowing faintly. A series of symbols and icons began to scroll across it, each one flashing briefly before disappearing into the ether.

"Welcome to the Chronos-system," the voice said, calm and emotionless. "You are now connected to the network. Please listen closely to the following instructions."

Xander's head spun with confusion, but he forced himself to focus. The monstrosity—the thing that had nearly killed him—was still somewhere nearby, but for now, he was trapped in this strange new reality. As he was contemplating just how he would escape his own inevitable slaughter a new screen appeared before him.

[Xander Knox]

Time : (1000/1000)

Strength : 1

Constitution : 2

Intelligence : 2

Agility : 1

Innate abilities : Time stop , Time skip , Temporal shift , ???

"Time Stop... so that's what's happening right now," Xander muttered to himself, the weight of the words settling in. Seems pretty overpowered. The whole concept was mind-boggling, almost too surreal to accept. One moment, he'd been fighting for his life, and now he was being told he could control time itself?

His head swirled with a mixture of disbelief and awe, but for the moment, he decided to set aside his skepticism. There would be time for questions later. If I even survive long enough to get the answers.

The panel flickered, flashing new information across the screen.

"Your innate abilities include:"

Time Stop: Freeze time for a limited duration. While stopped, you can move freely, but the world around you remains frozen.

Time Skip: Leap forward in time. Can be used to avoid danger or get an advantage.

Temporal Shift: Temporarily adjust the flow of time in your immediate vicinity, accelerating or slowing objects, people, or processes.

Xander's eyes moved quickly over the list, mentally cataloging the abilities. But when he looked back at the panel, one space remained blank, with no information to fill it.

"Wait," Xander said aloud, frowning. "What about the last skill? There's supposed to be one more, right?"

There was a pause—an unsettling silence. The panel didn't respond, and the cold voice remained eerily quiet in his mind.

"Hey," Xander pressed, frustration creeping into his voice. "What about the last skill? Why can't I see it?"

"Access to ??? is restricted," the voice finally replied, its tone flat and impersonal. "You do not have the necessary clearance to unlock this ability at this time."

Xander blinked, his confusion deepening. "Clearance? What the hell does that even mean? I'm supposed to use these abilities to survive, and you're telling me I can't use all of them?"

"Correct," the voice answered, almost dismissive. "Your current status does not grant full access to all abilities. Further information will be provided when deemed necessary."

"Do I not even have the clearance to see the name?"

There was no response , Xander's jaw tightened. He didn't have time to argue with whatever system was controlling all this.

"While these abilities are nothing short of godly, at most I can run away during Time Stop. I have no idea what dangers there could be waiting for me outside," Xander muttered, his voice hollow. The glimmer of hope he had felt when he first discovered his new powers had just been squashed, crushed under the weight of uncertainty.

He stood in the middle of the frozen wreckage, his fingers twitching, restless. He could feel the pulse of his powers, the steady hum of control over time itself, but it felt fragile. The more he thought about it, the more his powers felt like a fleeting advantage. A small window of opportunity that could vanish as quickly as it appeared. His mind spun with possibilities, but none of them felt safe. None of them felt like real solutions.

What now? he thought bitterly. What the hell do I do with this?

Xander scanned his surroundings, eyes darting over the twisted steel and glass, the scorched walls. Time was frozen, but the destruction was still palpable, like an echo of what had been. The building itself felt dead. Even though he had all the time in the world, it still didn't give him answers—just more questions.

A deep frustration churned in his gut. He had the power to stop time, to skip ahead, to manipulate the flow of moments themselves—but he had no idea how to use them to win. He couldn't even get any information. It felt like a cruel joke, as if someone were dangling a prize just out of his reach, making him dance for it, but never letting him claim it.

I need to get out of here, Xander thought, the idea solidifying in his mind. The building was compromised. The longer he stayed, the more dangerous it became. But that didn't make it any easier to leave. Just as his thoughts had grown dire , a new window appeared.

Xander's eyes flicked to the new window as it materialized, his brain still trying to process the chaos and confusion of the situation. The glowing blue panel flickered for a moment before the words began to rapidly generate, one line after another.

[Chronos-system Guide: Part 1]

System Overview

Time Mastery: Affects efficiency of Time Energy production. Current mastery : level 1 , mastery level can be increased by completing missions. Higher mastery levels allow for higher clearance.

Time Energy: Time Stop and Temporal Shift consume Time Energy, this energy regenerates passively. Using Time Skip can actively generate Energy however this isn't advised at low levels. Energy reserves currently at a critical level.

Xander's mind raced. Time energy? Mastery level? These new terms felt like they were part of a game, but they were too real, too important to ignore. He was staring at a system that seemed to govern his very survival. It was too much to take in all at once.

But then, one particular line of text caught his attention:

Energy reserves currently at a critical level

He swiftly opened his attribute panel 

[Xander Knox]

Time : (90/1000)

Strength : 1

Constitution : 2

Intelligence : 2

Agility : 1

Innate abilities : Time stop , Time skip , Temporal shift , ???

Xander's pulse quickened as his eyes locked onto the Time Energy reading: 90/1000. His stomach dropped. The warning was clear—his reserves were dangerously low. The clock was ticking down, and his brief moment of respite from the chaos was rapidly slipping away. He couldn't afford to waste any more time, but his mind was still reeling from the shock of it all. Every move he made had to count.

The creature—the abomination that had nearly torn him apart—was still frozen mid-lunge, but that wouldn't last forever.

"Ninety seconds... What can I do in ninety seconds?" Xander muttered, his breath shallow, his pulse thundering in his ears. Panic clawed at his mind, but he forced it down. He bolted toward the nearest exit, but his heart sank at the sight of the collapsed doorframe. Twisted beams and rubble piled high, an impassable barrier.

He cursed under his breath, fists clenching. Strength? Useless. His abilities? Drained and unreliable. He wasn't a hero with superhuman power—just a man on borrowed time with everything to lose.

Xander inhaled deeply, forcing calm into his body. If I can't escape, I have to fight.

He scanned the room in seconds, his gaze darting frantically for anything that might shift the odds. Amid the rubble, something glinted faintly in the dim light—a piece of rebar, its jagged end still embedded in a chunk of his office wall. It looked like a makeshift sledgehammer, crude but heavy. Xander darted forward, grabbing it with both hands. The weight was reassuring, a solid anchor in the chaos.

As he hefted the improvised weapon, his eyes locked on the creature, its grotesque form glimmering unnaturally, as if its skin was metallic. Doubt started to cloud his mind once again , how could he possibly do any damage to that behemoth? but then, he noticed something—a faint distortion around its midsection.

There.

The patch of flesh just below its chest seemed thinner, translucent almost, like stretched parchment. Through it, a faint, pulsing light was visible—its core, its weakness. Xander's heart raced. If he landed a direct hit, he might stand a chance of ending this. 

"5 seconds," he muttered, his voice steady despite the adrenaline coursing through him. Every move he made, every breath he took, was calculated to the millisecond, his life hinging on flawless execution.

Positioned mere inches from the creature, Xander gripped his makeshift weapon tightly, every muscle in his body coiled like a spring. As the countdown reached zero and the frozen world around him shattered back into motion, he swung with every ounce of strength he had.

The impact was immediate—a sickening crunch followed by a pulse of energy that rippled through the air. He felt the rebar connect with the creature's core, its body convulsing violently before crumbling into ash-like fragments. The remains dissolved into nothingness, leaving only silence in their wake as a chime echoed softly in his ears.

[Congratulations on completing the tutorial.]

[Rewards are being distributed.]