Knox

I never truly understood my purpose in this life and i have always found it ridiculous whenever i hear people say everyone has a purpose. I'm sure anyone who took one look at me felt the same. I didn't understand the concept behind my existence and what was the thought process behind whoever decided to put me on this earth.

I was born with an illness guaranteed to kill me eventually. The doctors said it was a miracle that i had managed to live so long but i believed it was the universe's way of prolonging my suffering on earth. After all, how could it be a miracle if there wasn't any chance of a good life afterwards.

My brain was apparently the only thing that could function well enough. When i was eight years old, i was put in a wheelchair and I never got up again. My illness got worse and eventually I stopped talking, i was hospitalized and forgotten. The only interactions I had was with my nurse, Greta or Gloria or something who came to check if i was alive. The persistent beeping of the heart monitor was proof of that.

There was no one to visit me as my parents had given up all hope. I don't remember the last time i saw them, i just knew they were rich enough to keep me alive all this time, i had no idea why they did it but their faces remained a fading memory in my mind. It was only a matter of time until death comes for me, i would tell myself for the sake of comfort until i eventually gave up hope on death itself. I would pull the plug myself if i could move.

It's not Greta who comes in today, but a pretty dark haired young woman i had never seen before. She checks her notepad and sighs when she looks at me.

“Poor kid” She whispers.

Like others, she assumes i can't hear her when she speaks. My new nurse moves across the room to where my pills are usually kept but she doesn't put them in a tray like my previous nurses have always done, she dumps them back in the cabinet and shakes her head.

“Those punks. This won't do” She says before walking back to me. I feel her hand on my forehead before she strokes my hair.

“Do you still wish to live like this?“

I want to shake my head 'no' but I cannot so i stare deep into her grey eyes hoping she can see the desperation in my eyes. Her lips curl into a sad smile but her eyes lack any empathy.

“Tell me, what is it you want Knox?“

Knox? Is that my name? I don't remember it. What do i want? I want to die. No, i want to live. I want to live but just not this life. I want to walk and talk and eat and live as others do. I want to know what it means to feel something and I want to be strong and healthy. I want to live another life. A better life.

I tell myself knowing she would never hear. Even if she did, what could she possibly do about it? She smiles down at me geniunely and her eyes light up with joy. “If you want to live, then you'll have to fight” she says and i wonder if she did actually hear me.

“You will be strong but you will need to be stronger. Both in heart and mind. If what you wish for is to live a better life, then you have to be selfish. Go in my place and do not disappoint me. Do not waste the opportunity you have been given” She whispers to me as she strokes my hair.

She definitely heard me. I don't understand what she's talking about but a dim light glows in the darkest corners of my heart clawing on to the hope that i might be getting better. When she reaches down to the plug that hold the pieces of my miserable life together, my eyes widen. She pulls the plug and everything stops.

My breathing slows and my head starts to spin but i can still feel her hand on my head. Is this what dying feels like? I have always imagined it would feel cold but i feel warmer than I've ever felt in my life. The world starts to blur as i slip into the unknown and right before it all goes dark, i hear her say the final words I'll ever hear in my life.

“I'll be watching you, Knox”

*** ***

When i open my eyes, my lungs are blasted with the most air I've ever received and i shoot up gasping for more. I stare around frantically taking in my unfamiliar surrounding. There are no hospital lights and no smell of bleach and medicine. It's a dark caved space and I'm lying on hard floor. It's cold but I'm not shivering. I realise I'm sitting up and my hands go straight to my body. My chest and torso is rock solid under my finger tips. My face feels different away and it feels like there's electricity bursting through my skin.

“I'm moving” I tell myself as i rise to my feet.

“I'm moving!“ I say again, this time with more enthusiasm.

“I'm talking and moving!” I announce with a small smile on my face. “This is amazing” i say as i walk around the cave.

After being mesmerised by my new found state, i sit down and wonder how this was possible. Had my previous life just been a dream and i had been napping away in this cave? No no… every moment of it was too painful and antagonising for it to be a dream. Have i been reborn? I suddenly recall what the lady had been saying. If I've truly been reborn then i should go out and see what the new world is like.

“Where the hell am I?“

“Welcome to Eden Bizarre” A female humanoid voice says, startling me out of my skin. I jump around looking for where it had come from.

“Who are you?“ I ask to no one in particular.

“I am Spix. An internal assistant generated by the system to help you through your journey through Eden Bizarre. I do not exist in a physically form and i can only communicate to you through your mind” She says and for some reason, her words only make me more uncomfortable.

I didn't have an internal assistant in my previous life.

“You are no longer part of that world. You have died and come to Eden Bizarre for a chance of a second life. All souls who come to Eden Bizarre will participate in a tournament of games and battles to determine if they will make it to another lifetime” Spix says.

“So this is the after life?“ I ask unsure if i was truly going crazy. Maybe i should add that to my long list of ailments.

“The Middle realm is a preferred term.“

“So there are other people here?“

“Affirmative”

The approaching footsteps only confirms her statement. I turn to face a large sword pointed directly at me. I fall back into the dirt and scamper away from the giant man. He towers over me and I'm sure he would have cut my head clean off, if it hadn't been for the girl who came running in.

“Darach! Did you find any—” the rest of her statement is cut short when she lays eyes on me. The large man puts down his sword and turns to the petite girl. She has short brown hair that's side parted with a clip, their dressing is unfamiliar and traditional.

“Who is that?“

“I found him here. He doesn't have any energy. Who are you?” The man asks.

“Um…” Who am i? “Knox” I say the first thing on my mind.

“What are you doing here? You lack energy. Do you have any idea how dangerous it is? What is your rank?“

“Rank?“

The two of them turn to each other and sigh while the girl shakes her head.

“You must be new to the system. Every player has a rank. I'm Kara and this is Darach. We're members of a party. Spix should feel you in soon but since you're new and have no energy, i guess she's taking her time to boot or something. In Eden Bizarre, you have to stay alive until you get to the gates. You're weak so i suggest you join a group. Maybe someone will agree to take you in as a baggage carrier. Might as well make yourself useful since you're not going to last very long” she says it so casually like i should expect it. Her rude remark offends me but not enough to provoke a reaction.

“What happens if i die?“ I ask.

“You disappear. End of lifetime. No further lives. Cease to exist” Darach says and i understand why Kara said what she said.

“We should get going and so should you. I just got a notification from my radar. Hosts might be around somewhere ” she says, turning to leave.

“Host? What is that?“

They both stop in their tracks. “The top of the ranks. The gane works in their favor. Designed to make the system harder for us players. They're insanely strong so if you see one. Run” Darach warns and with that they leave.

What the hell is going on?

A hologram appears in front of me and there's a bunch of stuff that i can't understand. On top of it in english it says. “Knox System Activated. Welcome to your system tab”

“Spix, what is this?“

“Your system tab. This is where you find everything you need to know about the Eden Bizarre system.“

I reach out and tap on the personal information and a list of my statistics opens.

Everything is blank except my name. My jaw drops when i read my objective and rank.

Name: Knox

Powers: XXXX

Special abilities: Consumption.

Past life abilities: XXXX

Health: 10% Stamina: 10% Energy: 1/100

Strength - 1

Physique - 1

Mentality - 1

Energy - 1

Control - 1

(average stat of a normal human is 1)

Body Skills

- physical training level 0

- Left hand mastery level 0

- right hand mastery level 1

- basic boxing level 0

- combat mastery level 0

- speed reading level 1

- mind palace level 1 - passive +men, and memory retention/lvl

Energy Skills

- energy manipulation level 100000- +en/lvl, ++con/level, increase ease of control of energy

- energy blast level 100000 - dmg=en+con*skill level , basic energy attack

- energy mastery level 1 - +con/level and adds damage equivalent to skill level to energy skill.

-Rank- Host

-objective- Subdue and destroy.