Chapter 1: The Awakening of Void Knull
The first thing he felt upon returning was emptiness—a profound, consuming void. It was cold, stretching infinitely in every direction. Then came the weight of a heartbeat, a fragile reminder of life in this dead space. His eyes opened slowly, only to find himself under an alien sky—a place where clouds hung heavy, shifting as if they had minds of their own, casting long shadows across a bleak, crumbling landscape.
A distant chime echoed in his mind, crisp yet soft, followed by a voice—a voice that seemed to emerge from the emptiness around him, filling his thoughts like a whisper in the dark.
[System initializing… Template: Void Knull. Current completion: 0.01%]
The phrase Void Knull settled in his mind, bringing with it an understanding that was half memory, half instinct. The world around him came into focus, each detail sharp and foreboding. He felt the weight of ancient knowledge, of cosmic secrets whispered from the very darkness itself, and an instinctive grasp of powers that belonged to a realm older than creation.
Fragments of understanding flooded his mind, piecing together the fate of this world. It was a land on the brink, haunted by a prophecy of slumbering gods—ancient, malevolent beings waking from their age-old rest. Humanity here was fragile, unprepared, and struggling against the rising darkness, as cities fell and villages burned, their defenses useless against the horrors lurking beyond.
The voice in his mind—his system—spoke again, as if guiding him through this alien rebirth.
[Welcome to the End Times. Your template, Void Knull, is calibrated to 0.01% capacity. Prepare to adapt.]
Even with a fragment of this power, he sensed it was something both limitless and dangerous. Void Knull. His consciousness stretched, and he could feel threads of darkness stirring in response. It was as though the shadows themselves leaned toward him, ready to obey his commands. He raised a hand, watching as the world around him dimmed, shadows bending toward him, merging at his fingertips in wisps of liquid darkness. A chill radiated from his hand, freezing the grass beneath him, a faint echo of a far greater power.
This 0.01% was barely a taste of what Void Knull could offer, yet it was enough to give him dominion over small fragments of the Void. Shadows were pliable in his grasp, granting him basic abilities of umbrakinesis—he could shape shadows, create small constructs, and channel a Void energy so cold that it numbed his own fingertips. But this fragment of power was raw and required honing.
[System Notification: Initial Knowledge Download Complete]
More understanding filtered through his thoughts, shaping him with the knowledge of the evil gods looming in the darkness. He could sense them—presences older than the stars, bound to a primal hunger for domination. He caught a flash of visions: worlds reduced to ruins, skies choked with darkness, and armies of creatures twisted by the gods' malevolence.
These glimpses only added weight to his new identity. Void Knull. In this cursed world, the template would grant him an edge, a set of powers rooted in the Void, the very antithesis of life and light. His power, for now, was basic—an embryonic form of what it could become. With 0.01% completion, his Void Knull abilities were limited, but he could already sense its potential, an insatiable darkness waiting to expand, to corrupt, to consume.
He raised his hand again, letting the Void trickle through him, an invisible current that clung to his skin like mist. He understood that his connection to this Void was only just beginning, an echo of the immense power Knull himself wielded in myth. Yet he could sense it: he was the conduit, the bridge between this fragile world and the boundless, devouring darkness beyond.
Suddenly, a rustling from behind snapped him back to awareness. Shadows curled instinctively along his fingers, forming claws of darkness, a reflex he didn't yet control. A figure approached—shrouded in rough armor, face grim and watchful.
"Who are you?" the stranger demanded, eyes narrowing at the eerie aura around him.
He searched for an answer, a name, but in this new existence, words failed him. All he could offer was the only truth that mattered.
"A shadow of something older," he replied, his voice quiet but certain.
The stranger's gaze flickered with unease, as though sensing the unfamiliar and unnatural presence of the Void lingering around him. "If you want to survive, you should find shelter. This land has been taken by things none of us can face alone."
He gave a slight nod, a silent acknowledgment. But deep down, he knew he was different. In a world on the brink of collapse, his power would make him both the weapon and the curse. This wasn't a place for escape or survival; he was here for something far greater, something only the Void could reveal in time.
The armored stranger gave one last glance before turning to walk away, leaving a parting word. "Seek the resistance. They'll need someone like you… if you survive the night."
As the stranger vanished into the mist, he gazed down at his hands, watching as traces of Void energy still flickered across his skin. Even with just 0.01% of the Void Knull template, he felt the alien potential churning within, ready to swallow whatever lay in his path.
In this broken world, he would not just survive; he would rise as something this land had never seen—a being bound to Void Knull, the inheritor of darkness, the herald of a power that could reshape this crumbling reality.