The explosion was supposed to be impossible.
Alex had spent months meticulously fine-tuning the prototype—a reactor that could generate renewable energy at levels unheard of on Earth. It was his magnum opus, the kind of innovation that would cement his name in history. He'd double-checked every calculation, scrutinized every connection. The numbers were perfect.
Or so he thought.
That final test—where everything was supposed to click into place—ended in disaster. The reactor surged uncontrollably, its temperature skyrocketing beyond the system's limits. Alarms blared, piercing and relentless, as Alex scrambled to shut it down. His team's frantic shouts rang in his ears, their words lost amidst the chaos.
And then, the light. A blinding, all-encompassing glow that consumed everything.
In that moment, Alex wasn't afraid. He was furious. Furious at the reactor for betraying him. Furious at himself for missing something. And then… nothingness.
---
He woke with a gasp, his lungs burning as if he'd been submerged underwater for hours.
Alex shot upright, his hands flailing to grab onto anything solid. Instead, his palms slapped against cold, rough stone. His heart pounded in his chest, his breath coming in sharp, shallow bursts.
The room around him was dim, illuminated only by faint beams of light filtering through cracks in a high, crumbling ceiling. Stone walls loomed, jagged and ancient, their surfaces streaked with moss and vines. The air was damp, thick with the musty scent of decay and wet earth.
Alex pressed a hand to his temple, trying to steady himself. His head throbbed, and his vision swam. Slowly, he forced himself to his feet, his legs shaky beneath him. The stone floor was uneven, littered with debris—broken pottery, rusted shards of metal, splinters of rotting wood.
"This… isn't the lab," Alex murmured, his voice rasping in the stillness.
He looked down, his breath catching. His clothes—his lab coat, T-shirt, jeans—were gone. In their place was a coarse gray tunic, cinched at the waist with a thin leather belt. Rough trousers covered his legs, and his feet were clad in scuffed, heavy boots that looked like they belonged in a medieval museum.
"What the hell is going on?" Alex whispered.
His hands roamed over his body, checking for injuries, burns, anything that could explain how he had survived. His skin was intact, though his muscles ached as if he'd run a marathon. But nothing made sense.
The last thing he remembered was the explosion. He should be dead—or at the very least, in a hospital. Instead, he was here, in this strange, crumbling ruin that reeked of abandonment.
"Think," Alex muttered, dragging a hand through his hair. "Think. There has to be an explanation."
The silence of the room pressed down on him like a physical weight. He glanced around, his eyes darting between the shattered pillars and gaping holes in the walls. It looked like the remains of a castle, once grand but now reduced to rubble.
---
A sound broke the quiet.
Low. Guttural.
Alex froze. His eyes snapped to the shadows at the far end of the room, where the faint glow of red eyes pierced the darkness. His heart leapt into his throat as a hulking, wolf-like creature stepped into the light. Its fur was matted and patchy, its body unnaturally large and twisted. Jagged bones jutted from its shoulders, and its teeth—long and razor-sharp—dripped with saliva.
"No, no, no," Alex muttered, stumbling back. The wolf growled, its glowing eyes locked on him.
Alex's mind raced. He looked around frantically, searching for something—anything—he could use as a weapon. His pulse pounded in his ears as the creature lowered itself into a crouch, muscles coiling.
This couldn't be real.
---
"Welcome, User."
The voice was calm, mechanical, and loud enough to make Alex flinch.
"Who's there?!" he shouted, spinning around. His voice echoed off the stone walls, but no one answered.
Instead, a glowing blue screen materialized in front of him, floating midair like a hologram. Alex stared, his breath hitching. The text on the screen shimmered faintly, its glow casting eerie shadows.
"What the…" Alex reached out, his fingers brushing the edge of the display. It flickered but remained solid, as if it were anchored in place.
---
[Technomagic Constructor System Activated]
Welcome, User Alex Reed.
You have been granted access to the System. Utilize it to build, innovate, and thrive.
Current Location: Ruins of Zorath.
Status: Destitute.
Objective: Secure shelter and establish basic defenses.
---
"What the hell does that mean?" Alex muttered, his eyes scanning the words. None of it made sense. A "System"? This felt like something out of a game, but there was no console, no interface—just the glowing text and the calm voice in his head.
The wolf growled again, louder this time.
Alex turned to see the creature stepping closer, its glowing eyes narrowing. Its claws scraped against the stone floor, each step sending shivers down Alex's spine.
The screen flickered.
---
"Threat detected. Combat tutorial initializing."
"Basic weapon blueprint unlocked: Crude Crossbow."
---
A new diagram appeared on the screen—a rough sketch of a crossbow alongside a list of materials: wood, metal, and fiber. Around the room, several objects began to glow faintly, marked by the System as usable components.
"You've got to be kidding me," Alex muttered, backing away as the wolf advanced.
The wolf snarled, its glowing eyes locking onto Alex. The room felt smaller with every step it took, the tension unbearable. Alex's mind raced as the holographic screen hovered in his peripheral vision, its calm instructions completely at odds with the danger he faced.
The diagram for the crude crossbow remained on display, along with the glowing markers on various debris scattered around the room. The materials he needed were highlighted: a broken wooden beam, a shard of rusted metal, and a vine trailing down from a cracked pillar.
"Wood, metal, fiber," Alex muttered, his breath quick and shallow. "Wood, metal, fiber."
The wolf growled again, its muscles coiling as it prepared to pounce.
Without thinking, Alex bolted toward the nearest glowing object—a jagged piece of wood lying among the rubble. He dove for it, his fingers scraping against the splintered surface. The System chimed.
---
"Material acquired: Wood x1."
---
The wolf lunged.
Alex rolled to the side just as its claws raked the ground where he'd been. He hit the floor hard, the breath knocked out of him, but he scrambled to his feet and scanned for the next glowing marker.
There—a shard of rusted metal, sticking out of a pile of broken stone. Alex darted toward it, his boots skidding on the uneven floor. The wolf snarled behind him, its claws scraping against the stone as it pivoted to follow.
Alex reached the metal shard and yanked it free, nearly slicing his palm in the process.
---
"Material acquired: Metal x1."
---
"One more," Alex panted, his eyes darting around the room. The wolf growled, its breath hot and heavy as it closed the distance. Alex spotted the final marker—a vine hanging from a pillar near the far wall.
He sprinted toward it, adrenaline drowning out the burning in his legs. The wolf roared, its claws tearing into the stone as it chased him. Alex leapt for the vine, grabbing it with both hands and yanking it free.
---
"Material acquired: Fiber x1."
"Materials gathered. Crafting initiated."
---
The objects in Alex's hands glowed, rising into the air on their own. He stumbled back, watching in disbelief as the pieces clicked together with mechanical precision. The wood shaped itself into a stock, the metal shard forming a crude firing mechanism. The vine twisted and stretched, binding the components into a functional weapon.
In seconds, the glow faded, leaving behind a crossbow in Alex's hands. It was rough, its edges jagged and uneven, but it felt solid. A single bolt materialized alongside it, resting in the groove.
The wolf snarled, its red eyes blazing as it charged again. Alex barely had time to raise the crossbow before it was on him.
"Come on!" he shouted, his hands fumbling with the weapon.
He pulled the trigger. The bolt flew with a faint thwip, striking the wolf in the shoulder. The creature yelped, stumbling back, but it wasn't finished. Its glowing eyes burned brighter, and its growls deepened, almost resonating in Alex's chest.
"Reload, reload!" Alex muttered, his hands shaking as he searched for another bolt.
---
"Manual reload required. Gather additional materials to craft bolts."
---
"Seriously?" Alex shouted, his voice cracking.
The wolf lunged again, its claws tearing through the air. Alex dodged to the side, his back slamming against a cracked pillar. He spotted another shard of metal on the ground and snatched it up, jamming it into the crossbow's slot like a makeshift bolt.
The wolf turned, snarling as it prepared for another attack. Alex raised the weapon, aiming for the exposed ribs that glowed faintly beneath its fur.
"Let's see how you like this," Alex muttered, pulling the trigger.
The bolt fired, striking the wolf's chest. This time, it sank deep into its flesh, and the creature let out a strangled howl. It staggered, its legs wobbling before it collapsed to the ground with a heavy thud.
Alex stood frozen, his chest heaving as the adrenaline coursing through his veins began to subside. The wolf lay still, its red eyes fading into darkness. Blood—thick and black—pooled beneath its body, filling the air with a metallic stench.
---
"Threat neutralized. Reward: 20 Resource Points."
---
The calm voice of the System felt almost mocking after what he'd just been through. Alex lowered the crossbow, his hands trembling.
"This… this can't be real," he muttered, staring at the lifeless body of the wolf. He glanced at the glowing screen, his mind racing.
The text shifted again.
---
"Objective updated: Secure shelter. Analyze nearby materials for crafting basic fortifications."
---
Shelter. Right. Alex forced himself to take a deep breath, wiping sweat from his brow. He couldn't stay out in the open, not if there were more creatures like that wolf lurking nearby.
He looked around the room, taking in the debris with fresh eyes. The System highlighted several piles of rubble, marking them as usable resources. Wooden planks, broken stone, rusted beams—everything he needed to start building.
"All right," Alex said, his voice steadier now. "Let's see what you've got."
---
The next hour passed in a blur of work. The System guided Alex step by step, overlaying blueprints onto the ruins and highlighting the materials he needed. He scavenged relentlessly, dragging stone and wood into place as the System assembled them into rough barricades and makeshift walls.
His hands ached, his muscles screamed, but he didn't stop. He couldn't. The memory of the wolf's glowing eyes was burned into his mind, a constant reminder of what was out there.
By the time he was done, the ruins looked less like a crumbling death trap and more like a defensible shelter. A wooden barricade now blocked the main entrance, reinforced with jagged pieces of stone. Simple traps—sharpened stakes hidden beneath loose debris—lined the perimeter, their placement guided by the System.
---
"Objective complete: Shelter secured."
Reward: 50 Resource Points."
---
Alex collapsed onto a makeshift bench, his chest rising and falling as he caught his breath. His body ached, but there was a flicker of satisfaction in his exhaustion. He'd survived. He'd built something. It wasn't much, but it was a start.
The glowing screen hovered in front of him, displaying his progress.
---
"Next Objective: Expand defenses. Warning: Hostile activity increasing in surrounding area."
---
Alex frowned, sitting up straighter. "Hostile activity? What does that mean?"
The System didn't answer. But as Alex stared out at the darkening treeline beyond the barricade, he had a sinking feeling he already knew.
---