Defiance of the Fall Chapter 1: Roll For Survival

[Initiating System]

[Welcome to the Multiverse.]

A detached, freezing voice resonated in Zac's ears. Or was it inside his mind? He wondered, glancing around in a state of confusion. Nothing in his existence had prepared him for these events; for a moment, he suspected a severe solar eclipse was occurring. Total and absolute darkness was all he could see. Only his own body remained visible, illuminated by an unseen light source that left the rest of the world in a void of black.

Heatstroke? He whispered with uncertainty, though this didn't feel like a delirium caused by the sun. Before he could analyze the baffling situation further, his thoughts were cut short by the monotone voice.

[Planet Earth scanning complete. Low F-grade mass, ungraded energy.]

[Adjusting]

[Due to insufficient energy and size, planet Earth will be merged with additional planets drafted for initiation. New values: Low D-grade mass, low D-grade energy. Topography readjusted. Spawn points randomized based by cohorts. Wildlife upgraded due to insufficient challenge. Link to the Multiverse system activated.]

What? Hello? He yelled, or believed he did, but the oppressive blackness functioned as a natural silencer, swallowing every sound. The voice continued, seemingly oblivious or indifferent to his shouts.

This was starting to feel far too tangible to be a heatstroke or some elaborate prank. Zac gave himself a pinch, and the sharp sting confirmed he wasn't unconscious.

Attempting to find logic in the strange voice's ramblings only deepened his confusion. It mentioned Earth but utilized terminology that sounded like it belonged in a video game or a sci-fi flick. The voice gave Zac no time to process the circumstances as it relentlessly droned on.

[Initiating Incursions. Spawning Herald]

[ERROR! Herald occupying same space as you! Adjusting]

A more piercing version of that same mechanical voice cut itself off.

Zac's heart rate spiked at the ominous message, and a heavy feeling settled in his gut. This madness felt too real, and if it was, he was in serious trouble. He was informed he shared the same coordinates as some "herald," and he couldn't imagine any positive outcome for that.

Choosing to be cautious, he tried to leap to the side to dodge whatever was coming, but it felt as if he were suspended in a vacuum. He went through the motions of jumping, yet he remained stuck in the same spot.

[Merge unfeasible. Protocol SL-34572 initiated.]

Phew. At least he wouldn't be fused into a half-human, half-herald hybrid. However, the realization that the voice was prepared to mash him together with another entity was deeply disturbing, and his unease quickly escalated into panic.

Zac tried to mentally force himself awake, even resorting to a hard slap across his own face. Nothing changed; he remained trapped in the dark.

[Roll for survival. Due to the massive power gap between Herald UrKhaz and you, odds heavily in his favor.]

SHIT! Zac yelled, though it came out as a squeak. Full-blown panic took hold, sending adrenaline racing through his body. WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?

Silence was the only reply to his questions until a rift appeared in the darkness. Out of nowhere, a hovering screen manifested silently before him.

The window resembled an interface from an old-school video game, colored blue with white text and borders. The absurdity of the situation made him freeze for several seconds before he could process the text on the screen.

It looked exactly like a game prompt, and the familiarity briefly calmed his nerves until he understood the content and its implications. At that moment, his panic returned with a vengeance, nearly turning into hysteria.

The window appeared to be a prompt for a roll between himself and this herald, but they weren't rolling for loot—they were rolling for their lives. The ranges were blatantly stacked in his rival's favor, leaving Zac with pathetic odds of making it out alive.

Hello? This isn't funny anymore. Let me out! He screamed, clinging to the desperate hope that this was some bizarre experiment. But the gravity of the situation was settling in. For a few seconds, Zac stared blankly at the display, trying to grasp what he was looking at.

This is insane. You want me to bet with those odds? Why the hell would I roll? Zac muttered. Yet, the moment the word "roll" left his lips, the display shifted, and the digits next to his name began to cycle rapidly.

[Protocol SL-34572 accepted by participant. Rolling]

No, no, no, wait, wait. Stop. Let's find another way! He yelled, flailing his arms in a desperate attempt to halt the process. Regardless of his actions, the numbers continued to spin. It felt as though they were counting down his final moments on Earth.

In Zac's mind, panic was being replaced by fury at the twisted situation. He was enraged by the total lack of information. He was furious at the voice's insulting assessment of him, seeing the blatant favoritism shown to this UrKhaz person. He was livid at the deceptive way the voice had triggered the roll, as if searching for a technicality to proceed.

With a crimson tint clouding his blue eyes, Zac let out a roar and struck the floating screen, trying to discharge his fraying emotions. The screen did not shatter into fragments as he hoped; it merely flickered slightly under the blow.

Ignoring his attempts at physical release, the numbers flickered again, slowing their spin until they settled on a final result. Almost as a taunt, an irritating line appeared where the roll button had been.

The message regarding the reroll seemed to drain all his energy. It wasn't actually a terrible roll. In a game, he would have definitely won the item, he thought with a dark sense of irony. However, he was well aware by now that this was no game.

He still clung to a sliver of hope that he was merely dying of heatstroke in the woods. But if that were the case, he was likely doomed anyway. He was either being killed by the sun or by some video-game deity. Neither conclusion was what he had anticipated for his life. Unsure whether to weep or laugh, his expression froze in a sickly smirk as he stared into the void.

Of course, a glimmer of hope remained since the other party hadn't rolled yet. But it didn't feel like it mattered when the deck was so clearly stacked. He glanced at the screen one more time, his eyes lingering on the other entity's roll range.

The smirk slowly faded. A sigh like a leaking balloon escaped his lips as he shut his eyes and slid down into a sitting position. Every bit of Zac's stamina had been drained by the emotional roller coaster. Only a hollow despair remained, as he realized the end had come. He would die alone in the forest, never getting the chance to say goodbye to his family.

Zac experienced no grand epiphanies or massive regrets at the end, other than wishing he had been closer to his kin. His thoughts drifted toward past memories as a shield against the madness.

He saw his sister, her long brown hair flowing around him during a hug. He saw his father's quiet smile as he left their apartment for work, eyes weary but filled with affection. He remembered spending his youth glued to a computer, mostly neglecting his younger sibling. He recalled college years lost to partying and booze. He thought of his first day on the job, and the sharp realization of how unprepared he was for adulthood despite seventeen years of education.

[Protocol SL-34572 accepted by Herald. Rolling]

The monotone voice spoke again, sounding like an executioner reading a final sentence.

[Congratulations!]

Zac no longer cared about the voice as memories flashed by. Friends, family, and moments of both joy and sorrow. It wasn't the most thrilling life, but it belonged to him.

Wait, what? Congratulations? His eyes flew open and focused back on the screen.

Dazed, he stared at the display until the voice broke through his stupor.

[Protocol results in the continued existence of Zachary Atwood. UrKhaz vanquished. Resuming standard protocols.]

A sickening burst of sound, color, and light erupted, disorienting him and making his stomach churn. His body suddenly felt as if it were engulfed in flames, searing and tearing at him. The final things he witnessed before losing consciousness were the small clearing he had vanished from and a massive red pillar stabbing toward the heavens.