The golden light pulsed faintly from Elian's hands, casting dancing shadows on the walls of the crumbling building. He clenched his fists instinctively, trying to snuff it out, but the glow persisted, warm and unwavering.
The injured woman he'd dragged to safety stirred slightly, her gaze flickering toward him.
"Your hands," she murmured weakly, eyes wide. "What… what is that?"
"I don't know," Elian admitted, his voice barely above a whisper. His chest tightened as he stared at the ethereal glow, a feeling somewhere between fear and fascination coursing through him.
Before he could think further, a sharp ping echoed in his mind, as clear and deliberate as a bell toll. His vision blurred, and suddenly, words appeared before him, floating in midair, translucent yet undeniable.
[System Activation Detected]
[Welcome, Elian. You have been chosen as one of the Seven Divine Candidates.]
Domain: Creation
Synchronizing…
[Status Interface Online.]
Elian blinked, his breath catching in his throat. The words hung in the air, shimmering faintly, their presence as undeniable as the glowing light on his hands. He reached out instinctively, as if to touch them, but his fingers passed through the display.
"What is this…?" he muttered.
Another ping followed, and the floating text shifted, revealing a new screen.
[Status]
Name: Elian
Level: 1
Titles: None
Domain: Creation
Achievements: None recorded.
Attributes:
Energy: 60\60
Agility: 7
Strength: 5
Endurance: 7
Intelligence: 12
Creativity: 18
Luck: 10
Abilities: [Creation I]
Divinity:
Divine Essence: 0
Faith Points: 0
[Mission]
Further details accessible as level increases.
[Status End]
Elian stared at the screen, his mind racing. None of this made sense. A system? Divine Candidate? It sounded like something out of one of his sketches, not real life. He rubbed his temples, half-expecting the vision to disappear, but the words remained, patient and unmoving.
"Chosen…" he murmured. "Why me?"
As if in response, a new notification appeared.
["You possess a unique potential, a vision that sees what others cannot. Use it wisely. The path to divinity is fraught with peril, but creation is the foundation of all progress. Begin small and grow."]
Did the system just talk to me?
Elian swallowed hard. The words resonated deeply, stirring something within him. His hands still glowed, the light syncing perfectly with the system's presence.
Creation.
The domain felt oddly fitting, as though it had been waiting for him all along.
But there was no time to dwell. The building trembled again, a low rumble shaking dust loose from the ceiling. Through the broken windows, he could see the glow of fires outside, the shadows of creatures moving through the streets.
The woman beside him whimpered, clutching her leg.
"What do I do?" he thought desperately, his gaze darting back to the system interface. As if hearing his plea, he felt something happening within him.
The golden glow from his hands intensified, and suddenly, images flooded his mind. A makeshift barricade, crafted from debris in the room. A reinforced door to keep the monsters at bay.
He saw it all as though it had already been built, every piece fitting perfectly into place.
Elian didn't hesitate. He scrambled to his feet and began moving around the room, dragging furniture and debris into position, guided by the vision.
The injured woman watched in stunned silence as he transformed the chaotic space into a crude but sturdy shelter.
When he stepped back, the golden light dimmed, leaving him breathless but satisfied.
The barricade stood firm, and the door had been bolstered with scraps of metal and wood. It wasn't perfect, but it would hold for now.
The system pinged again.
[Achievement Unlocked: First Steps in Creation]
Reward: +5 creativity
Elian's vision blurred momentarily as the words faded. A warmth spread through his chest. He wasn't sure what the state creativity did exactly, but he felt like a smog, he never realise was there, was clearing out a bit in his mind.
"We'll be safe here," he said, his voice steady despite the chaos outside. The woman nodded, tears of relief streaming down her face.
But as Elian sat down beside her, his back against the reinforced door, he couldn't shake the feeling that this was only the beginning.
The system had chosen him for a reason, and if the world outside was any indication, he would need every ounce of its power to survive.
The tension in the room was palpable. Elian sat with his back pressed against the reinforced door, listening to the muffled growls and screeches echoing from the street outside.
Every sound set his nerves on edge. The injured woman beside him shifted uncomfortably, her breathing shallow but steady. She hadn't spoken since he finished building the barricade, her wide-eyed stare with a bit of fear.
Elian's hands itched, still faintly warm from the glow of his earlier work. He glanced at them and then at the system interface, which remained in his vision waiting like an open book.
For some reason he had a feeling he needed to say the word status to activate the interface.
The simplicity of it was jarring, especially after experiencing the Divine System. This interface offered no guidance just raw information.
It struck him then: everyone must have a system, yet, it would probably be limited compared to what he now possessed.
The system pinged again, drawing his attention back to the more intricate display of his Divine System.
[Mission Available]
Mission: create a base
Objective: In the apocalypse, nowhere is safe. As the future god of creation, your first step should be to create a secure base.
Reward: +10 Divine Essence, + 3 in all attributes
Failure: Exposure to external danger.
Accept Mission?
[YES] [NO]
Elian's brow furrowed as he stared at the text. The reward was enticing, but the word "failure" sent a chill down his spine. He couldn't afford to make mistakes, not now.
Swallowing hard, he reached out mentally, focusing on the [YES] option.
The interface responded instantly, the mission details shifting to the side of his vision while a faint golden glow illuminated his surroundings.
The warmth returned to his hands, stronger this time, accompanied by a rush of clarity.
His mind filled with new ideas to strengthen the barricade, reinforce weak points by utilizing the room's limited resources.
"Stay here," he told the woman, his voice steadier than he felt. She nodded weakly, watching as he moved toward the barricade.
Elian scanned the room, his vision almost overlaying a blueprint onto the space. He saw what could be done, a cabinet pushed against the door to absorb impact, extra debris piled along the edges to seal gaps, a makeshift brace fashioned from a broken chair leg.
His hands moving with purpose. He could feel his ability guiding him. The cabinet groaned as he dragged it into place, the sound echoing loudly in the confined space.
Every piece of furniture, fitting together like a puzzle.
When he finished, the golden glow faded, leaving the room eerily silent.
Elian's breath quickened as the shadow of the approaching creature grew larger in the flickering firelight outside the window.
Each step it took sent faint vibrations through the floorboards, a steady and ominous drumbeat that rattled his already frayed nerves.
Elian clenched his fists, forcing himself to focus. Fighting wasn't an option. He had no weapon, nor training, nothing to face a monster head-on. But the system had given him something better: creativity.
He inhaled sharply, closing his eyes as he activated the ability. The golden glow flared to life in his hands, spreading warmth through his fingertips and sending a rush of clarity to his mind. As he opened his eyes, the room seemed to transform.
His vision overlaid a faint golden blueprint onto the space.
Elian scanned the room, his gaze darting over the barricade he had hastily constructed earlier. Then he noticed its weak points: the top edge was too exposed.
But more than that, it showed potential. It could be a trap.
He moved quickly, his hands guided by the glowing blueprints in his mind. First, he reinforced the base by shoving additional debris into the gaps to create a sturdy foundation.
Then, he found a loose beam lying in the corner and wedged it horizontally behind the barricade, bracing it against the wall to act as a pivot point.
Next came the mechanism. Elian grabbed a bundle of frayed electrical wires hanging from a damaged wall socket.
He twisted the wires together, fashioning a makeshift pulley system that connected the beam to the top of the barricade.
The blueprint in his mind showed him the exact tension needed and he adjusted the wires accordingly, tying them securely around a jagged piece of rebar.
The result was crude but functional: if the creature slammed into the barricade with enough force, the beam would pivot, releasing the tension on the wires and collapsing the top section inward.
The debris above the pivot point, heavy slabs of wood and broken plaster, would fall like a guillotine, pinning anything caught underneath.
Sweat dripped down his forehead as he tightened the last knot. The creature's growls grew louder, closer. He could hear its claws scraping against the pavement outside.
Elian stepped back, inspecting his work one last time, but the real test was seconds away.
The creature struck with the force of a freight train. The barricade shuddered violently, and Elian braced himself against the wall as the entire room seemed to tremble.
For a heart-stopping moment, he thought the structure would give way entirely. But then the trap engaged.
The top section of the barricade collapsed inward, the heavy debris above crashing down in a calculated arc.
The sound was deafening. The creature let out a guttural roar as the rubble fell, pinning its front legs and shoulders under the weight.
Elian's chest tightened as he peeked over the barricade. The monster thrashed wildly, its obsidian-black scales glinting in the dim light. Its molten-gold eyes burned with fury as it snapped its massive jaws, trying to free itself.
But the trap held firm. Every time it tried to pull itself free, the tension in the wires shifted, causing more debris to slide down and trap it further.
For a moment, Elian couldn't breathe. He had done it. The system's glowing notification confirmed it:
[You have slain a level 3 mutant]
[You have level up]
Relief washed over him, but it was short-lived. The shelter was safe for now, but Elian knew it wouldn't hold forever. Status he thought.
[Status]
Name: Elian
Level: 2
Titles: None
Domain: Creation
Achievements: [First step in creation]
Attributes:
Energy : 60\60
Agility: 7
Strength: 5
Endurance: 7
Intelligence: 12
Creativity: 23
Luck: 10
[Free point: 5]
Abilities: Creation
Divinity:
Divine Essence: 0
Faith Points: 0
[Mission]
Further details accessible as level increases.
[status end]
So, each level gives us 5 point to distribute… I see.
The injured woman, still huddled in the corner, stared at him with wide, disbelieving eyes. "What… what was that?"
Elian swallowed hard, his gaze fixed on the pinned monster. "A trap," he said, his voice trembling slightly. "I just… built a trap."
"How…? It was so…" she asked.
He didn't answer. How could he? The system, the glowing blueprints, the strange warmth in his hands, it was too much to explain.
Even he didn't fully understand.
Instead, he wondered how he should distribute his points. Right now, only being creative wouldn't be enough to survive, he needed strength. He decided to put his 5 points in strength. While he could have divided his points, he felt like the upgrade wouldn't be enough.
He felt himself growing 2 time as strong. The feeling was amazing, but he still had to wonder how strong was he exactly right now? Would it be enough to survive?
Still, for the first time, Elian felt a flicker of hope. The system had chosen him for a reason, and if this was just the beginning, he had to be ready for whatever came next.