Xander was lost in a sea of incoherent images.

He vaguely remembered dealing the final blow on some horrid monstrosity.

Snippets of that event repeatedly played in his mind as memories of simpler times flitted by.

Xander felt like he was in a lucid dream for a brief moment. At one point, he was drifting in the dark—unaware.

The next moment, he was laid flat in a bright space that stretched for eternity, where a slight breeze brought peace to him. Xander rose from the ground in wonderment and stood on the damp white marble floor with bare feet. The young could feel the moisture seeping through his soles. He bent down and placed a hand on the surface, curious, and was surprised that his hand passed through without resistance!

Xander realized he wasn’t standing on a solid floor but an unending silvery ocean.

The young man walked on the glimming liquid and scanned the horizon. He saw nothing but the endless calm sea and milky white sky. However, as he looked right above him, Xander saw a small ball of flame that spun around its center axis.

He felt a pull from it and caught a taste of a myriad of emotions, thoughts, and dreams.

It felt amazing.

It felt like him.

Before Xander could ponder further and continue gazing contently at the sun-like object, Xander caught in his sights a golden floating stream that orbited the fiery orb.

Xander peered at it curiously from below. The stream was tiny compared to the ball of flame. At first, he had confused the piece of thread flowing in the air as a trick of the eye. Instead, Xander sensed from it a quiet melody that imparted its unique presence.

The young man closed his eyes as he perceived its rawness—unprocessed and malleable.

But as he continued familiarizing himself with the golden thread, Xander detected something different from the faintest drop in the stream.

It was nothing more than an echo of a previous existence.

Fragmented thoughts of a mad intelligence beset Xander.

A jumbled mess of ideas cluttered Xander’s mind but allowed the young man to look through a tiny window of the memories within.

Xander realized that these images came from what could only be the Senior Acolyte. He wanted to question how he received this but moved on to examine further what he was seeing. First, he caught flashes of being covered in a purple cloth embroidered with strange sigils. The creature had a name, one it was proud of bearing, but couldn't be pronounced by the human tongue.The being under the hood was hard to distinguish but looked vaguely similar to the horrid monster Xander and Ben battled. However, this form felt more coherent and stable.

Next, Xander saw an image of a dark cavern filled with blinking lights and glowing circuitry. Then, he saw a multitude of these robed aliens of all shapes and sizes gather in the ample space, all facing toward a powerful presence high on a stage.

Xander tried to look closer at this presence before he felt a piercing pain in his eyes. He shouted as the stinging sensation forcefully booted him out of his foray.

Xander bolted upright from his hospital bed as he rubbed his eyes with his palms—the throbbing pain still lingering. The dream he had felt so surreal that he wondered if it was just a part of his delirious psyche. When he opened his eyes again, he was brought back to reality.

“Xand!”

“Hey, he’s awake! Finally!”

Xander simultaneously heard the cheery and relieved voices of the handful of people in his room. His cherished friends surrounded him as he sat up on his bed.

Anna, Enzo, Chico, Georgy, and Ben were with him in the small hospital room. The latter had sat down on a chair asleep. Xander was left surprised at where he was, and a wave of confusion and urgency flowed through his face.

“Wait, what happened to the ritual?” he asked in a hurry as he propped himself up with his elbow, “The Acolyte?”

Anna—who currently had a few bandages on her arms and the side of her head—placed a hand on his chest and gently pushed him back down.

“Relax, Xand.” She spoke slowly before sighing, “It… wasn’t a complete failure. You and Ben killed the Senior Acolyte. We saw its corpse, and Harby confirmed it. The ritual failed, but two monsters still came out. We managed to get rid of them, though. It’s just…”

Xander’s friend immediately looked downcast. Anna looked particularly exhausted from the dark bags under her eyes. Xander slowly reached out and held her hand.

“Is it bad?”

She nodded ever so slightly and looked over to Enzo. The man, who now had a new pair of glasses, came closer with a tired and grim expression.

“From the eleven who joined us in the fight, three died. As for the hostages, four didn’t make it.” Enzo exhaled through his nose, and his usually arrogant demeanor wasn’t present, “We couldn’t account for a few more who were with us during the party, and Ben’s alumni friends, four, were all dead.”

Xander froze as an acute pain stabbed his heart. His grip tightened around Anna, unfazed, clutched tighter.

Xander was prepared to lose a few, at least, he thought he was. But as Enzo listed the names of his classmates—people he knew for four years and shared many good times with—something inside his heart cracked.

When he finished, a dark atmosphere settled in the room as everyone tried to process the events. To think they were just there to have fun, to get together one final time as new graduates before they prepared for an exam to get their engineering license. But instead, they lost seven, with more missing.

As no one said anything for a while, each person went to their corner in silence, miserable.

Xander slumped into his bed as he rubbed his eyes while Anna took off her shoes and slipped into his bed.

The young woman buried her face in Xander’s bandaged chest. Xander felt hot tears soak through the covering and held on to Anna as deep sorrow wracked her body.

The two held each other in a desperate attempt to find an inkling of comfort.

As the two's embrace tightened, Xander sniffled quietly—tears threatening to leak out of his blurry eyes. He faintly heard Anna’s soft voice through mumbled words and choking sobs.

“I’m sorry…”

Unable to contain it any longer, Xander felt his throat tighten and took a short intake of breath before losing all the pent-up emotions.

“Oh, God…” He choked out as his lips quivered, “God, why…?”

Soon everyone's expressions of sadness and grief filled the air. Enzo chewed his lip as he sat by a small table with his face resting on his palms. Chico’s tears spilled over and stained his cheeks as he whimpered incoherently, while Georgy looked adrift in a torrent of anguish.

Ben sat still, faced away from everyone, yet had solemn tears fall down his cheek despite the calmness of his body.

And for the next few minutes, everyone continued to grieve, muttering apologies or half-hearted curses.

As emotions started to cool down and everyone was brought out of their misery—though the feeling was still everpresent—they all began to do something to keep their thoughts busy

Anna fell asleep on Xander's chest as the young man looked at the ceiling with vacant eyes. He saw a blinking prompt in the corner of his vision and knew his ONIM was calling him with several notifications. But he couldn’t be bothered to open them just yet and instead lay there in his bed in silence, focusing on Anna's warmth.

A nurse came and checked on Xander and Ben’s condition before nodding in satisfaction. Xander had to move the resting woman on top of him to the side as the nurse came up to him with a sly smirk.

“Well, you’ve healed up nicely. You should be ready to leave in an hour, we have more patients who could use the room.” the female nurse looked down in apology.

Xander noticed her tired look and had to ask.

“I was pretty sure I got beaten to a pulp. How’d I get healed so quick?”

The nurse looked up and smiled.

“You have to thank the Harbingers. Two popped up inside the hospital and are providing medicine and other great stuff that’s really easing our load. A few of our doctors and nurses were assessed and given some unique gear to assist the patients. And we’ve been receiving missions from them, even the Tier α’s.” the nurse laughed as she sheepishly scratched the back of her head. “I don’t really know how it works. I’m a Tier I Support myself as are most of the residents. So I just do what I usually do and use the Lumina I get to purchase drugs which I hand over to storage.

Xander nodded in amazement, as did those awake to hear it. The Philippines was rather proud of its medical personnel, what with nurses being one of its best imports. He was pleasantly surprised to know how much aid they were getting. Supplementing the hospitals had to be a vital objective for the Omninexus to preserve a semblance of order. The fact that these personnel are gaining rewards for doing they're job was only fair.

Xander nodded in thanks after a few of his bandages were removed. Anna immediately reclaimed her position like a clingy cat. A while after the nurse left, Xander turned to face Enzo from across the room who was sipping a cup of hot coffee.

“How long has it been? Since...”

“About six hours since we found you and Ben passed out.” Enzo smirked as he turned to face him, “Anyone ever tell you you’re a massive pain to carry?”

“Yeah, sorry about that.” The two chuckled ever so slightly, the bit of humor somewhat alleviating the atmosphere of gloom.

Once the two quieted down, Xander looked at Enzo for more information. Enzo sighed as he propped up his glasses.

“Well, your fat self aside, we brought you and Ben to Queen Mary’s hospital. Chico and Georgy went earlier to ferry all our classmates to the emergency room or somewhere their parents could pick them up. Since then, it’s been a while, but we wanted to wait and see if you woke up.”

“Huh. Well, thanks.” Xander sighed as he adjusted himself into a more comfortable position with Anna on top of him. “Anything else?”

“Hm? Apart from the general mayhem happening throughout the city?” the bespectacled young man groaned as he stretched his strained back. “Not much, though I asked around and apparently, emergency services are getting things under control with the help of the Tier I’s among them and the civilian population. There are still a number of hotspots, though that’s all I know.”

Xander nodded as he contemplated what he heard. The chaos caused by the human cultists should have softened major cities like Rio de Oro. But apart from the possibility of Acolytes and monsters being summoned, civilians and law enforcement should easily be able to handle them.

He was still worried. Some Tier I’s failing to stop these rituals was inevitable. And with Acolytes acting as relays for its corrupting broadcast, more people might fall under the influence.

Xander was too tired to think much of it. But, he knew it was only going to get worse.

“We need to get stronger.” Xander spoke to his friends as he softly nudged Anna’s sleeping form to wake her. “Sorry, I need to sit up.”

“Hrmm…” Anna frowned as she briefly buried her face deeper before slowly moving toward the edge of the bed.

As everyone sat straighter to look at Xander, the young man laid his thoughts bare.

“We need a plan to survive this hell. Being smart is how we'll live through this and we need to consolidate our assets. So we’ve completed the mission, yes? We got our rewards?” Everyone’s eyes momentarily went unfocused as they all looked at their ONIMs. Enzo’s eyebrows raised as he looked at his screen and everyone else looked only mildly intrigued. Xander brought up two fingers. “Nexus Merits and Lumina.”

“I have no idea what the Merits are for, but we can buy guns, weapons, ammunition, utility items, and combat medicine with Lumina.” Xander paused as they nodded along. Enzo crossed his hands as he closed his eyes in thought.

“Harby said HNH would only get more organized. Meaning more technology we can use to protect ourselves.” The young man opened an eye as he fixed a steady look on Xander, “You’re suggesting we do more missions and get more rewards?”

Xander nodded before continuing his explanation.

“Thereby stockpiling on things we can arm ourselves with and whatever advantages the Omninexus hands out.”

“But Tier I’s already get Priority Missions whenever there’s a nearby emergency,” Anna asked as she brought her legs into a lotus position.

“Yes, we won’t get a choice then, but we ought to ask Harby if we can get more. Just around the area of Puerto and maybe the surrounding barangays.”

“Our families wouldn’t approve.” Anna frowned before her eyes went wide. “And I, uh, may have called them that were only staying in the hospital to make sure our injured friends were alright. I didn’t say anything about… You and Ben, you know?”

Xander, Anna, and Ben winced.

“Yeah, we’re in trouble.” Xander groaned as he pinched the bridge of his nose, “No way they’re letting us out for that reason.”

“I’d rather you two not do any more life-threatening activities.” Ben spoke as he scratched his bandaged cheek, “The one we just finished almost killed us.”

“We have to, Ben. The Omninexus is an opportunity.” Xander fervently replied, directing his gaze at the athletic man and everyone else, “When we were fighting the Senior Acolyte, I felt something. Like an egg dormant inside me. Anima. That’s what helped me get out of that mental attack.”

Xander’s friends were looking at him in confusion. Anna cocked her head as she asked him.

“What are you getting at, Xand?”

“I’m saying its a key! The Aspects! It felt different, unique. Something we can influence and I know we have a chance! If just a bit. Argh! I don’t know!” Xander shouted before he let out a deep sigh and rested his arms on his knees. “Sorry... I felt like I touched something precious when I was having that mental battle. And when I was out, I dreamt of something similar. It was hard to make out, but it was significant. Whatever the case, we shouldn't be do nothing. We can't.”

Everyone in the room was quiet as they deliberated in their thoughts.

Xander took in the silence as a time to organize his thoughts. Planning for an apocalypse was a herculean task, but he' had worse experiences with his college projects. The young man decided to finally look at his ONIM notifications and get those out of the way.

When he mentally affirmed the prompt, a torrent of green windows barraged his vision.

One at a time! Start at the beginning.

• Missions • Priority Mission: Visual sighting of a summoning ritual is being invoked by a Thrall at Chalice Beach Resort. All nearby Tier I's are to prevent the ritual from finishing and rescue the humans being used as sacrifices. // Ritual was rendered incomplete but brute-forced by the Thrall. Foul denizens from beyond have been summoned, slay them all.

Updated Threat level: Moderate >>> Substantial

Rewards: 10 Nexus Merits, 250 Lumina Shards (Rewards may vary) Objectives

- Prevent the ritual from finishing (Partial Completion) - Rescue civilians (Partial Completion) - Eliminate all Corrupted Humans and the Thrall leader (Completed) - Eliminate the Malformed Voidlings and the Senior Acolyte (Completed) Mission accomplished! +8 Nexus Merits, +200 Lumina Shards, +80 Lumina Shards (Bonus) Titles: 'Underdog' and 'Skull Crusher' earned! Skills: 'General Fighting (Low)', 'General Hammership (Basic)', and 'General Marksmanship (Lower)' recorded! New ONIM Function: [Skills & Profeciencies] unlocked! New ONIM Function: [Titles] unlocked! Superlunary Matter: 22 mL of 'Ichor' detected.

Alright, that’s a lot to take in.

Xander impassionately read through the Chalice rescue mission and scoffed.

‘Partial Completion’. What a sugar-coated way to say we screwed up but not totally.

Xander scowled as the people he lost were reduced to simple statistics. Just another few amongst thousands already dying across the globe. The young man shook his head before he spiraled down that hole of grief and regret.

Focus! The next screens will help me ensure I don’t screw up again!

His rewards seemed to have adjusted to the fact that they only botched the ritual. If he had killed that Thrall quicker or destroyed whatever it was holding, they wouldn’t have to deal with the monsters that came after.

Still, the Omninexus compensated Xander and likely everyone else for eliminating the monsters. When Xander turned to ask his friends how that went, Chico answered blithe disregard.

“Ah, those things weren’t so tough. They caught fire quick, literally and figuratively.”

“It was because of our good position and planning.” Enzo reminded his friend, “If we fought them out in the open, disorganized as we were, a lot more of us would have been seriously injured.”

Xander felt grave after that. It was a poorly executed mission, in his opinion.

The young man continued reading through his ONIM screens.

Titles and Skills, huh? New sub-menus. How many more are there?

Xander mentally peered at his new gains.

• Titles • Achievements earned through blood, sweat, and tears. Show pride in your efforts for these are proof of your feats! Underdog You have felled an opponent mightier than you. You stood at a razor's edge between victory or death, and came out on top! +8 Nexus Merits Skull Crusher

The club was man's first weapon after their own bodies. A weapon used when predators lurked outside their caves. A crude thing, but effective. You used such a tool to savagely crush the weak skulls of your foes. Onward, warrior! Like ancestors past, there are more heads that need smashing and bones that need breaking! +4 Nexus Merits

Those… sound pretty good, sure. Obviously, I got ‘Underdog’ from the fight with the Senior Acolyte. But ‘Skull Crusher’? I don’t feel particularly savage, but a hammer does feel right in my hands. And crushing skulls does sound awesome. Was it when I smashed the Acolyte’s head into a pulp?

Xander hummed as he scratched his goatee. The Conscript turned inward at his personal assistant.

Hey, Aide.

[ How may I assist, Conscript Xander? ]

Uhuh, sure, what can I do with Nexus Merits? Harby hasn't explained it to me.

[ Nexus Merits acts as a precious medium for quantifying your achievements in service to Fhâlma and the Omninexus. It cannot be given to other Users or stolen and is only traded in the Merit Exchange—now available at HNH—or any Omninexus representative for exclusive goods and services. ]

Oh, that sounds useful. So it's like a combination of a premium coin, reputation, and social credits. Xander speculated before nodding in understanding. Huh, I approve. I guess I only get it when I do missions or earn titles?

[ Affirmative. ]

Sweet. Alright, what else do we have?

• Skills & Profeciencies •

A list of your skills and your proficiency in them. These will crystalize in your mind and will become extremely difficult to forget, if ever.

Skills range from ( General >>> Advanced >>> Expert >>> Master >>> Apex ), while your Proficiency ranges from ( Lowest >>> Lower >>> Low >>> Intermediate >>> High >>> Higher >>> Highest )

General

Fighting (Low) (+) Hammership (Lowest) (+) Marksmanship (Lower) (+)

Xander genuinely grinned at the sight. It wasn't anything special, but having something to measure what you're good at tickled his fancy. If he looked inward, he could sense his marginal combat skills. He was thrilled that his training from his grandfather translated to alright marksmanship.

Anna’s marksmanship would probably be Intermediate or High, at least.

To him, it just meant that these are things he could train. ‘Hammership’, which was swordsmanship but, well, for hammers, is clearly a martial art. Xander was somewhat surprised to see that the Omninexus actually considered his waving and flailing of the blunt implement passed the bare minimum for the skill.

There’re probably some historical medieval manuals on how to get good with war hammers or maces. I should search and download one.

Xander made a note of it. Another note amongst a hundred flitting about in his head. His first stop was definitely Harby, the loveable bastard was a blessing, and he some questions and shopping to do. Xander jot down his list of things to do today before he gazed at the final notification.

And was immediately confused.

Ichor?