Kael Ardyn leaned back in his chair, letting out a long, frustrated sigh as he stared at the glowing screen of his laptop. The spreadsheet in front of him was filled with half-finished calculations, and his notes, scattered across the desk, were a mess of crossed-out ideas and arrows pointing in every direction. No matter how hard he tried, his brain just wouldn't focus.
"Another night of accomplishing nothing," he muttered.
The hum of his computer was the only sound in the room. His apartment—if it could even be called that—was small, cluttered, and entirely uninspiring. A single desk took up most of the space, surrounded by bookshelves that sagged under the weight of dusty engineering textbooks, fantasy novels, and an abandoned 3D printer covered with old laundry. His bed sat unmade in the corner, with a single pillow half-slipping off the edge. Kael couldn't remember the last time he'd cleaned up.
The walls were adorned with posters of fantastical worlds—towering castles, glowing forests, and endless starlit skies. These images were the closest Kael had ever gotten to adventure. Once, he'd dreamed of creating machines that would revolutionize the world, of being someone who mattered. Now, at 24, those dreams had faded, replaced by endless nights of coursework, part-time coding gigs, and the creeping sense that life was slipping away from him.
He glanced at the clock in the corner of his screen: 2:37 a.m.
Kael sighed and rubbed his eyes. "I need to get out of here," he muttered, grabbing his jacket from the back of his chair.
The streets were quiet at this hour, the kind of quiet that only cities could produce. A steady hum of distant traffic echoed through the night, and the occasional car sped by, its headlights cutting through the darkness. Kael walked with no real destination in mind, his hands stuffed deep into his jacket pockets as the cold autumn air nipped at his face.
He tried to think about anything other than his ever-growing list of failures. His engineering coursework was drowning him, and the part-time coding job he'd taken on to pay rent left him too drained to study properly. His parents called him every week, their voices laced with concern as they asked the same questions. "How's school? Have you been eating? When are you coming home?" And every week, he gave them the same lies.
"I'm doing fine."
The truth was that Kael felt stuck. He was smart—he knew that much. But no amount of intelligence seemed to help when the weight of reality pressed down on him. He had no real plan, no clear direction, and no one to pull him out of the fog he'd been living in.
"Maybe this is it," he muttered to himself, kicking a loose stone down the sidewalk. "Just grinding through life until there's nothing left."
Turning down a narrow side street, Kael froze mid-step. At the end of the alley, something shimmered faintly in the darkness. It wasn't a streetlight or the glow of a neon sign. This light moved, pulsing softly like the beat of a heart.
Curiosity tugged at him, even as the rational part of his mind screamed at him to leave. Against his better judgment, Kael approached.
The shimmer resolved into something that defied explanation. Suspended in midair was a crack in reality itself, jagged and uneven like a piece of shattered glass. Colors swirled within it, blending and shifting in ways that made Kael's head spin. The air around it felt heavy, charged with an energy that made his skin prickle.
"What the hell is that?" Kael whispered.
The crack pulsed, the light growing brighter as he stepped closer. It felt alive, as if it were watching him, waiting for him to make the next move. His heart pounded, but his feet moved forward on their own. He reached out, his hand trembling.
The moment his fingers brushed the edge of the crack, the world exploded into light.
Kael felt like he was being torn apart and reassembled all at once. A storm of images, sounds, and sensations flooded his mind—endless mountain ranges, sprawling cities bathed in golden light, and vast oceans that sparkled like liquid diamonds. His body tingled with a strange energy, every nerve alight with sensation. He tried to scream, but no sound escaped him.
Then, just as suddenly as it began, it was over.
Kael collapsed to the ground, gasping for air. His limbs felt heavy, his muscles aching as if he'd run a marathon. Slowly, he opened his eyes.
The sky above him was a deep shade of blue, speckled with constellations he didn't recognize. Around him stretched a dense forest, the trees impossibly tall and glowing faintly in the dim light. The air was rich with the scent of earth and greenery, tinged with something metallic that he couldn't place.
Kael sat up, his hands shaking. "Where… am I?"
A soft chime echoed in his mind, clear and melodic. Startled, Kael looked around, but there was no one in sight. Then, before his eyes, a translucent screen flickered into existence, glowing faintly against the darkness.
---
[SYSTEM ACTIVATED]
Name: Kael Ardyn
Title: None
Level: 1
HP: 100/100
MP: 50/50
Strength: 10
Agility: 10
Endurance: 10
Intelligence: 12
Wisdom: 11
Charisma: 9
Luck: 8
Skills:
- Skill Replication (Unique): Grants the ability to permanently copy skills from other individuals upon observation or contact. Skills replicated will retain their current tier.
- Body Double (Rare, Tier: Grandmaster): Creates up to 4 clones of the user with 90% of their physical and combat capabilities. The user gains full sensory feedback and memories from the clone's actions upon its dismissal. Duration: 10 minutes.
Titles: None
Quests: None
---
Kael stared at the screen, his heart racing. It floated in the air before him, responding to his thoughts as he willed it to expand and collapse. It looked like something out of a video game, but this wasn't a game. The ache in his body and the alien forest around him were proof enough of that.
"What is this…?" Kael muttered. He focused on the first skill, willing the description to expand.
---
Skill Replication (Unique): Grants the ability to permanently copy skills from other individuals upon observation or contact. Skills replicated will retain their current tier.
---
Kael's breath caught in his throat. Copy skills? Permanently? His eyes moved to the next skill.
---
Body Double (Rare, Tier: Grandmaster): Creates up to 4 clones of the user with 90% of their physical and combat capabilities. The user gains full sensory feedback and memories from the clone's actions upon its dismissal. Duration: 10 minutes.
---
The implications hit him like a thunderclap. He could copy the abilities of others and create clones that not only fought alongside him but also gave him their experiences and insights. His chest tightened as a mix of excitement and fear surged through him.
Before he could process further, a low growl broke the stillness. Kael turned sharply, his blood running cold. From the shadows emerged a creature—a wolf, but not like any he'd seen before. Its eyes glowed a sickly yellow, and its fur bristled with jagged spines. A small box appeared above its head.
---
[Feral Wolf - Level 3]
HP: 70/70
---
Kael stumbled back, his mind racing. He had no weapons, no combat training, and no idea how to fight something like this. The wolf growled, its lips curling back to reveal sharp, glistening teeth.
"Crap," Kael muttered, scanning the ground desperately. His eyes landed on a sturdy-looking branch. Grabbing it, he raised it just in time as the wolf lunged.
The branch connected with a dull thud, and the wolf yelped, staggering back. A notification flickered in Kael's vision.
---
Skill Gained: Improvised Weaponry (Basic)
---
The wolf recovered quickly, its growl deepening. Kael swung again as it charged, striking its leg and forcing it to stumble. But he knew he couldn't keep this up for long. His arms ached, and the wolf's movements were faster and more deliberate than his wild swings.
Desperation overtook him. Focusing on the Body Double skill, Kael willed it to activate. The air shimmered beside him, and a perfect replica of himself appeared, holding an identical branch.
The wolf hesitated, snarling as it tried to decide which target to attack. Kael grinned, adrenaline surging. "Let's see what you can do."
The double lunged forward, swinging its branch with calculated precision. The wolf growled in frustration, unable to fend off both attackers. Kael took advantage of the distraction, landing a heavy blow to its side. With a final yelp, the creature collapsed.
---
[Victory!]
You have defeated Feral Wolf (Level 3).
+15 XP.
---
Kael stumbled backward, panting as his double shimmered and vanished. A wave of memories hit him like a tidal wave—the fight from the double's perspective, every swing, every dodge, every calculated movement. It felt like watching himself fight, only better.
"I remember… everything," Kael whispered, staring at his trembling hands. The implications of the skill were staggering. He could learn faster, fight smarter, and adapt in ways no one else could.
Gripping his branch tightly, Kael took a deep breath. The forest was silent again, but he knew it wouldn't stay that way for long. Glancing at the notifications still lingering in his vision, a faint smile tugged at his lips.
"If this is my new reality," he said, his voice steady despite the fear gnawing at him, "then I might actually have a chance."
The night was far from over. But for the first time in years, Kael felt something he hadn't in a long time: hope.