"They say, 'If you stare into the abyss long enough, the abyss stares back at you.' "
Is this intended to serve as a warning that gazing into the abyss reveals only darkness? I refuse to believe that, for I am convinced that if one looks into the abyss, all they see is light, not darkness.
"Someone once retorted that i was mistaken and should correct myself. I replied, 'Well then, you haven't looked long enough into the abyss.' "
A young man in his early twenties muttered to himself as he lay on the rough concrete floor of his prison cell. Faint cracks spread beneath him, barely visible. Albeit the floor was rather cold, it didn't bother him. The room was small and had a bed attached to the wall on his left and a shabby sink in the corner. Moonlight streamed through a small window overhead, casting a faint illumination over the room.
These were the long nights of winter. Even though they were the same nights that covered all of humanity, he perceived them as particularly prolonged, enveloping him while the rest of the world slept.
The long nights of impenetrable darkness surrounded him, plunging through his heart with every waking moment. He hadn't experienced restful sleep for a long time.
The young man had just returned from his Rift collection duty, which he was obligated to perform as part of his prison sentence. Given his status as a juvenile offender, he was sentenced to 20 years with the possibility of early parole after 4 years. Having served 6 years already, he had been denied parole twice. No one knew if the man was actually innocent or guilty, but most were inclined to believe the latter.
"The young man's name was David, which he often struggled to remember, along with the incident that brought him here, the memory of which he recalled only vaguely."
***
The Rifts first emerged 51 years ago, appearing as massive, luminous cracks in the air and radiating enormous amounts of energy. Initially, the world governments quickly took control of these Rift sites to ensure humanity's safety. However, they soon struggled to keep track of the Rifts appearances and were eventually overwhelmed. The origin and purpose of the Rifts were unknown, but as physicists from around the world were brought in by the governments to study them, they identified the Rifts as potential portals to other domains. Despite this, how to operate and interact with them remained a mystery.
As the energy surging from the Rifts began to affect people's lives, their skin started to crack, forming radiant patterns across their bodies. The agony was excruciating, yet those who endured this torment emerged with the remarkable ability to command these patterns at will, making them appear or disappear. It soon became evident that these individuals were unintentionally absorbing energy from the Rifts, bestowing upon them extraordinary, almost otherworldly powers.
However, along with these powerful abilities came an inability to control them. Those unable to swiftly master the art of halting the absorption of energy from the Rifts eventually reached the breaking point of their physical forms and were shattered into fragments, leading to a brutal and merciless demise.
The process of absorption was slow, giving those affected a significant amount of time to learn to control their powers and halt the intake of energy.
As time went by, the world began to grow accustomed to these different powers, learning about their nature and categorizing them into classes and ranks. Some were relatively common, while others were exceptionally rare.
The most abundant and basic of these powers were
FIRE, WATER, WIND, and EARTH
The common, yet formidable powers were
ICE, LIGHTNING, METAL, and NATURE.
The rarest and especially intriguing of all were
LIGHT and DARKNESS
These were known as the original powers.
There existed other powers, some well-known and others entirely unheard of, among them some only manifested when an individual possessed two or more original powers and skillfully managed to merge them into a singular, novel power.
A person with mastery over both water and wind could, with skill, create a new power known as mist.
***
As for David, who possessed both light and darkness powers, both exceptionally rare, his fate was especially unfortunate since he was convicted. He was assigned a Rift collection duty that, while deceptively simple, required steadfast endurance.
He was regularly required to drain his darkness power into Rift reserve crystals, which were later used by the RiftWalkers.
These RiftWalkers venture through the Rifts to a realm that is a world of its own. To this day, the Rift domain remains largely unmapped, though some areas have been charted. Still, they are nothing compared to the vast unknown beyond. RiftWalkers claim it is ten times larger than our world and far more dangerous.
Conflicting theories surround the Rifts. Some propose that they all lead to a single world, while others argue that each Rift connects to a different domain. The reality remains elusive, as our comprehension of them is still limited.
"David himself wanted to become a RiftWalker, but fate had other plans."
"In the grand scheme of life, I have surely fallen short. Overtaken by my own darkness, I now stand in a sea of despair," David continued, steeped in regret.
The night unfolded as usual, but as it drew to a close, in the depths of his despair, he succumbed to sleep, overwhelmed by his body's fatigue.
It hadn't even been two hours when David was jolted awake by an alarm, its sound obnoxious and deafening, impossible to ignore as it blared for nearly a minute.
Following the alarm, a recorded transmission instructed all inmates to stand at their cell doors by 7 AM. They are to remain there until the headcount has been conducted.
With groggy eyes, David reluctantly rose from the floor, confused and disoriented, unable to distinguish right from left. He prepared to comply with the daily protocol.
Other inmates, already standing by their cell doors, exchanged impatient glances as they waited for the guards to arrive and complete the count.
David stood quietly at his cell door as guards moved silently through the corridor, taking careful notes of each inmate. The process was efficient and orderly, marked by the soft shuffle of feet and low murmurs that ensured everyone was accounted for before the day began.
Once the headcount was complete, the doors were unlocked, and the guards informed the inmates that they could proceed to the mess hall for breakfast.
David made his way to the dining hall,where he joined the line of inmates. Guards monitores the process closely, and conversation was minimal.
Breakfast might consist of a modest serving of scrambled eggs, a slice of toast, and a cup of watery oatmeal. Occasionally, a small carton of milk or juice is provided.
When his turn came, he picked up his breakfast and proceeded to a secluded corner of the dining hall, where he habitually chose to remain alone.
Breakfast is eaten quickly in a noisy, crowded dining hall. The atmosphere is tense, with everyone keeping a wary eye on their surroundings. Meals are rushed, leaving little time to savor or enjoy the food. Yet none of this bothered David.
True to his routine, he quietly completed his breakfast and made his way back to his confinement.
The only time David looked forward to was during recreational hours, when some inmates engaged in sports while others, inclined toward fitness, focused on weightlifting.
Yet all of that was beyond David. The only place where he could find solace was in the prison library.
As the hour commenced, he found himself in the prison library. It was precisely as one might envision, except for the scarcity of books.
The library was indeed quite expansive, though it held only around a thousand books, perhaps even fewer. Most of the shelves were barren, and not a single inmate was in sight.
David had already read most of the books available, some even twice, during his six years of confinement here.
He began searching for a book that piqued his interest, moving from shelf to shelf without success. He had already read all the others, leaving only those he found unappealing.
Until his gaze fell upon an old book nestled in the corner of the shelf he was examining.
"David had been avoiding it for six years, its worn leather cover and untitled spine rendering it an object that elicited no notice from anyone."
He remained motionless, fixedly gazing at it.
"I have avoided you for far too long. I now consider it time for you to impart your wisdom," David said, articulating his thoughts.
He took the book and moved toward the library desk, positioned behind the shelves.
As he seated himself and turned the worn leather cover, he was surprised to find that the pages were made of glass rather than paper, completely translucent and adorned with arcane symbols he could not decipher. The pages responded to David's touch.
He continued to turn the pages, which, although thinner than typical glass, were heavier than standard paper.
David examined this strange book thoroughly several times.
Noticing that as he applied slight pressure to the pages, they emitted a radiant glow.
In his excitement, he applied more pressure than intended, causing the page to crack. The crack spread to other pages, eventually making the book explode.
In an instant, the impact propelled David three meters through the air, leading to a violent landing on the ground where he felt shards of glass piercing his body.
"Ah, so this is how it ends," he thought as he began to black out. "Death by a book isn't so bad for someone like me..."
▪▪▪ INITIALIZING ▪▪▪
▪▪▪ LOADING ▪▪▪
▪▪▪ YOU HAVE SUCCESSFULLY
LOGGED INTO THE SYSTEM ▪▪▪
"He heard a strange voice just before he drifted into unconsciousness."