Andrew sat on the railings of his home, gazing at the dungeon door across the street. Police tape was still wrapped around it, fluttering in the evening breeze. The sight had become familiar—he'd been living here for three years, ever since he rented the place with his first paycheck.
Dalton was nearby, slumped in a chair and snoring lightly. He'd refused to go home, insisting he stay to keep Andrew from doing "something stupid."
Andrew's lips twitched into a frown. Does Dalton really think life can go back to normal after this? A massive change like this—dungeons appearing out of nowhere, people being given strange powers—it wasn't something anyone could just ignore. Did Dalton honestly believe whoever created these dungeons would be fine with people refusing to enter them? The thought made Andrew click his tongue in frustration.
Since there wasn't much he could do at the moment, he decided to check out his reward. He opened his palm, and a yellow card materialized, shimmering faintly in the dim light.
The card unsettled him. He couldn't quite put his finger on why, but something about it felt off. That uneasiness was the reason he hadn't interacted with it much since receiving it.
The image on the card depicted two people—one standing behind the other—with opposing arrows above and below them. He wasn't sure what it meant, and he hadn't planned on messing with it while Dalton was around. But boredom gnawed at him, and this seemed like the safest way to satisfy his curiosity.
Andrew focused on the card. Energy rippled around him, and suddenly the world seemed... different. The colors dulled, taking on a greyish hue.
He looked up at the sky. Birds were still flying overhead, so time wasn't frozen or slowed. Curious, he jumped experimentally, half-hoping he'd been "super-enhanced" somehow—but the only thing he gained was a bruised foot. Wincing, he rubbed his ankle. The pain surprised him; it felt sharper than he expected.
Shrugging it off, he tried punching the air, imagining an energy beam shooting from his fist. Nothing. He tried a light jump, hoping to float or fly. Still nothing. His excitement ebbed, replaced by frustration.
Common sense, he thought. If the card granted powers, surely someone online had already figured out how to use them. Then another thought struck him: Of course, the internet is full of clout-hungry streamers and influencers. Wouldn't they risk anything for views—even diving headfirst into this dungeon madness?
Pulling out his phone, Andrew opened Twitter. His feed was immediately flooded with images and videos of dungeons in all sorts of bizarre locations—floating in the sky, submerged in rivers, even appearing in people's homes.
He scrolled quickly, stopping at a post with over 500,000 likes—a number that shocked him. He hadn't seen engagement like that outside of Elon Musk's tweets. The accompanying video featured a tall, blonde-haired man with a charismatic grin.
"Yo! Yo! Yo!" the man exclaimed, waving at the camera.
Andrew rolled his eyes and skipped forward, bypassing the filler. He stopped at a scene where the influencer stood with about 50 people, each holding a card.
"Okay, so here's the deal," the man said. "These cards? They're like power cards—or ability cards, I guess. They give you specific powers, but the quality varies a lot."
He gestured toward a row of five people, each prepared to demonstrate their abilities. The first, a chubby, cheerful kid, hesitated nervously before stepping forward.
"This guy," the influencer pointed, "can see through things."
Andrew scoffed. X-ray vision? High school me would've loved that, he thought. He tried to imagine why people might find the ability exciting but quickly gave up. Guess I've always been the odd one out.
The demonstrations continued, showcasing powers ranging from mundane to outright bizarre. Some were undeniably impressive, but the disparities in quality were staggering.
Finally, the influencer stepped back, gesturing for someone to film him. "Alright, now for the wild stuff. You got my whole body in the frame?"
"Yeah," someone off-camera confirmed.
The man took a deep breath. A white glow appeared in front of him, quickly expanding into a creature with massive, unfolding wings. It buzzed through the air so quickly the camera struggled to keep up.
"Cool, right?" the influencer said, his tone turning serious. "But here's the issue—"
Andrew's phone screen went black. His battery had died.
He stared at the dead device in disbelief. Of all times…
His eyes shifted back to the dungeon door, then to Dalton, still sleeping soundly. The cards came from the dungeons—maybe there was some clue inside about how to use his ability.
Carefully, Andrew opened the front door, stepping out as quietly as he could. He didn't want to wake Dalton. With a single thought, his armor materialized around him. It fit snugly, ready for what lay ahead.
There weren't many policemen around—the force was stretched too thin. Most of them were probably distracted by their new cards and abilities, too.
Andrew moved stealthily through the quiet streets, his steps light against the pavement. His gaze settled on a dungeon door near a small blue house, its surface shimmering faintly under the streetlights. He darted toward it and reached out, his fingers brushing the cool, metallic surface.
[Do you want to enter this dungeon without a team?]
"Yes," he whispered.
The door snapped open with a sharp hiss, bathing him in a pale, otherworldly light. Without hesitation, Andrew stepped forward, the light swallowing him whole.
[Information Bits: There are three steps of system initiation: Foundation, Reconstruction, and Absolute Unification.]
Andrew found himself in a grassy field, the air crisp and oddly sweet. The grass, tall and swaying, looked like cattails dancing in the wind, their movement mesmerizing.
Unification? What's this, Europe?
The term Reconstruction made him pause. Did it mean the dungeons would vanish one day, or that society would adapt to them, building itself around these strange phenomena? The latter seemed more likely—and more worrying.
Brushing aside the thought, Andrew summoned his ability. His ax materialized in his grip with a satisfying weight. He swung it at the grass, chopping through the dense stalks with ease, clearing a path forward.
The first card, which he privately called the Knowledge Card, appeared in his hand at his command. It seemed responsible for granting him armor and other abilities. He stared at it, the intricate design of glowing lines and symbols mesmerizing.
Maybe I should name it something cooler.
Focusing on the card, Andrew imagined it growing larger. To his surprise, it obeyed, expanding slightly in his palm.
Ha, that's cool.
The thought was interrupted by a sharp, rippling sound. A strange bat, its body formed entirely of water, flew at him in a blur.
Andrew grinned. Finally, some action.
He readied himself and swung his ax in a clean arc, slicing the creature in two. It burst into droplets, soaking the grass around him.
His ability didn't seem to trigger anything unusual during the fight, but as he deactivated it, the subtle grey filter that had covered the world faded away. Oddly enough, he could reactivate it almost immediately.
What's the point of it turning off if I can switch it right back on?
With no better leads, Andrew returned to chopping grass, hoping to draw out more water bats.
After what felt like hours, Andrew had defeated almost every monster in the dungeon but still couldn't figure out what his ability actually did.
He tried yelling, hoping for a sonic wave attack. Nothing. He entertained the idea of teleportation but couldn't make it happen.
Sitting down on a pile of chopped grass, Andrew stared at his card. Its image—a person and their reflection, with arrows pointing in opposite directions—nagged at him.
Body-swapping, maybe? That fits the imagery... but who'd want to swap for my weak body?
As he pondered, he noticed the number of remaining monsters displayed on the card ticking down: 4, 3, 2...
Andrew shot to his feet, gripping his ax tightly. Either the monsters were killing each other, or someone else was here.
His heart pounded as he scanned the area, ears straining to pick up any sound. The wind made it difficult, rustling through the strange cattail grass like whispers.
"Oh, you've been here a while?"
Andrew spun around, ax raised. A woman stood behind him, a bow slung over her shoulder. Her long ginger hair clung to her damp face, likely from battling the water bats.
"Yeah," Andrew replied cautiously. "That's why there aren't many left."
"I was wondering why this place was so empty," she said, stepping closer. "Thought someone popped in and left hours ago."
Andrew didn't relax. She was slim, probably half his weight, but anyone holding a weapon was a potential threat. He kept his grip on the ax firm.
She stopped a few steps away and took a deep breath, her shoulders relaxing. "Haven't breathed air this fresh in forever."
"You ever been to the countryside?" Andrew asked, trying to sound casual despite his unease.
"Grew up there," she said with a wistful smile. "But work's kept me too busy to visit."
"Relatable."
She stretched, then asked, "How long do you think it'll take for someone to find oil in these dungeons and make monster hunting an actual career path? I'd quit my job in a heartbeat."
Andrew thought about it. The weak monsters here wouldn't make for much of a living, but stronger monsters in advanced dungeons? That could be different.
"I could see it happening," he said.