Chapter 2: The First Awakening

Not long ago, Serayne had tried to convince herself she had nothing left to wait for. Yet a single mention of magic had been enough to reveal just how hollow that resignation truly was.

If she genuinely wanted to give up on life, she wouldn't be staring at the low table with such hunger, her patience fraying with every passing second of immobility, even as her exhausted body begged to stay on the pallet.

She didn't know what a Talent actually was or what awakening one might entail. But if some power could tear her away from the steps of that shuttered clinic and drop her into an alien world, she refused to assume healing was beyond its reach.

First, I have to get over there… I can worry about my chances after.

Rolling onto her side, she braced her weight on one forearm and eased toward the edge of the straw bed, careful not to let her deadened legs slip off too abruptly.

Every movement demanded far more effort than it should have. When she finally managed to lower herself onto the floorboards, she sat with her head hung low, waiting for the dizziness to subside.

The table was close - just a few shuffles away - yet from the floor, the distance seemed far more daunting. Gritting her teeth, Serayne planted both palms on the wood and dragged herself forward, inch by grueling inch.

The thin clinic clothes bunched beneath her hips, hair fell across her face, and her white rabbit tail snagged on the corner of the pallet, forcing her to pause and untangle herself before she could push on.

By the time she reached the console, her back slumped against its wooden side. She breathed shallowly through parted lips, acutely aware of the ache in her arms and the bitter frustration that reaching an object so close had turned into such an ordeal.

Alright, I made it… Now show me what you can do.

Only up close did she notice the table’s surface wasn't ordinary wood, even if the sides matched the grain of the cabin walls.

The top was divided into two sleek panels. The larger occupied about two-thirds of the space on the left, while the smaller sat on the right, bordered by a faint line of green light.

It reminded her of the touchscreen desks at school, and the fleeting familiarity brought a strange calm - until text in a language she could easily read flickered across the larger screen.

[Place your palm on the right panel to bind the Hearthhold.]

Shifting slightly, Serayne raised her hand and set it down where prompted. She expected the cold slick of glass, but found only a gentle warmth under her fingers before green lines pulsed out from beneath her palm.

[Binding complete.] 

[Tree Trunk Hearthhold  -  Level 1.]

The patterns along the walls and ceiling flared in unison, washing the room in a vibrant emerald glow. Serayne tilted her head back on instinct, watching the radiance ripple through the timber before fading slowly away, leaving behind dark, inert linework.

A faint prickle stung the back of her right hand. She drew it closer to inspect, finding a tiny green crest shaped like a leaf.

She ran the thumb of her other hand over it, but the mark didn't smudge or fade; it sat beneath the surface of her skin.

A key?

Proof of ownership?

She didn't have an answer yet, but since the crest had formed right after binding the shelter, the two had to be linked. She turned her attention back to the console. The larger display had changed completely.

Six tabs ran across the top: [World Channel] [Regional Channel] [Regional Exchange] [Personal Profile] [Contacts 0/0] [Coming Soon]

Beneath the World Channel was a counter. Serayne stared at it, certain at first that she had misread the numbers.

[22,658,443,985 / 22,658,443,985]

She counted the digits again, slowly, scanning from right to left. When it sank in that she was staring at a figure well over twenty-two billion, she leaned her head against the console in disbelief.

That had to be a staggering portion of Asterra’s population. If the tally represented everyone transferred, this wasn't an isolated incident or some unlucky handful of souls.

Someone had relocated entire civilizations.

Next to the Regional Channel, she found a far smaller number and a designation that pinpointed where the system had placed her:

[Sector 666  -  Hollowbriar Forest] 

[10,000 / 10,000]

Ten thousand people in this forest alone… Hopefully one of them knows how to trigger this Talent.

Lacking the energy to dwell on the sheer scale of it, she tapped the World Channel in hopes of finding something useful. Immediately, a deluge of messages flooded the screen.

[Hello? Can anyone see this?] 

[I’m all alone in a wooden cabin, the door is locked, and I don't know if I should go out. What am I supposed to do?] 

[What the fuck is going on?!] 

[Did they seriously say we were transferred under some accord? Who signed it?!] 

[So Asterra dumped us like excess cargo? Fantastic.]

[I was sitting in a restaurant two seconds ago! The food had just arrived, I didn't even get a bite!] 

[Mom, if you're reading this, answer me! I'm in Sector 114!]

Serayne tried to keep up, but messages pushed past so quickly that by the time she finished the start of one sentence, several others had already scrolled out of view.

Amid the frantic cries, panicked questions, and calls for loved ones, there were also posts from people who had apparently decided that humor was the best response to an involuntary trip to another world.

[If there's a billionaire here, I'm willing to offer protection in exchange for half your fortune.] 

[What fortune? I've got a bed, a table, and wet socks.] 

[That's more than I have. They took me without shoes.] 

[What if you're all AI and I'm the only real one?] 

[Funny, I was just about to ask you the same thing.]

[Calm down and check your shelters. We need information first. Plenty of time to argue later.] 

[Fuck information, I want to go home!]

The stream poured in without pause. Serayne realized that if her old phone had tried processing this much data at once, it would have frozen in agony before giving up entirely.

Fortunately, the console included a pause-scroll toggle, allowing her to freeze the feed and read at her own pace. Even then, the sheer volume made searching for concrete answers feel like pulling a single needle from a haystack.

Beside each message sat a small profile picture along with a first and last name. Serayne wondered whether users had set them up themselves or if the system had automatically stripped away their anonymity.

She tapped the input bar, typed the simplest thing she could think of, and sent it, having to pause the feed to locate her own post:

[Serayne Veyra: 1111]

Right beside the text was her face - blue eyes and black lynx ears instantly recognizable despite the thumbnail's size. She grimaced at it for a moment, then dug around for settings to change her name or hide her picture.

She checked the available buttons, tapped her portrait, and inspected the edges of the window, but found nothing resembling an alias toggle or an incognito mode.

Kidnap me without asking, and then slap my full legal name on the screen for everyone to see… How polite.

She couldn't tell if everyone else's profiles worked the same way, but her own details had been displayed without consent and without any visible way to alter them. That alone was reason enough not to post another word until she understood the system better.

Searching for information regarding the Talent proved just as tedious, as most messages still revolved around the transfer itself. With each passing minute, her posture against the console grew increasingly uncomfortable.

Serayne shifted her hands, adjusted her hips, and leaned back against the wood, debating whether she should simply open her Personal Profile directly - when something she had actually been waiting for finally flashed in the feed.

[Check the right panel! That's where you awaken your Talent, I just got B-rank!] 

[I got A-rank, something with fire! If this really works, no monster's touching me!] 

[A-rank and you're already bragging? I rolled an S.]

[Show proof!] 

[What sector are you in? Can I team up with you?] 

[How does the awakening work? Do you have to press something?]

Serayne didn't wait for replies; she snapped her gaze over to the smaller panel. Sure enough, a prompt had been sitting there all along, previously hidden beneath her forearm.

It was here the entire time… Of course.

She moved her arm to read the full text. Her relief at finding it quickly gave way to curiosity, as the initial explanation concerned something other than the promised Talent.

[The right panel of the Worldheart Console manages item transfers and retrieval for the market storage.] 

[Before retrieving an item, ensure sufficient clearance near the panel. A lack of space may prevent successful transfer.] 

[The panel also provides item identification and appraisal functions.]

Serayne viewed the smooth surface in a new light, trying to imagine an object vanishing beneath her palm only to materialize somewhere else. Then again, after everything that had happened tonight, she supposed little should surprise her anymore.

They can move billions of people between worlds; teleporting a box of food probably isn't a stretch.

She opened the Regional Exchange, hoping it might offer a solution to her most pressing needs. Instead of a marketplace, she was met with a prompt requiring her to initialize her trading stall.

[Activation requirement: Deposit twenty units of basic resources.]

She stared at the message in silence, glanced down at her empty hands, and closed the window. She didn't even own a cup of water, let alone twenty units of anything the system might consider useful material.

Good to know that even here, you need capital to get anywhere.

When she returned to the previous screen, a new notification appeared on the right panel. Serayne straightened as much as her tired muscles allowed.

[A Talent is a reflection of the soul.] 

[Place your hand on the panel and focus on your deepest desire to initiate awakening.]

She read the instructions twice to ensure she hadn't missed anything, then carefully placed her right hand on the smooth surface and closed her eyes.

Her fingers trembled from exertion and nerves. But rather than trying to imagine devastating flames or a flashy skill to boast about in World Chat, she focused on something far simpler - something whose absence had defined the boundaries of every waking day for five years.

She wanted to move.

Not having to wait for someone to wheel her around, help her out of bed, or realize she had been left just out of reach of what she needed. She wanted to decide where she went and actually get there on her own.

She wanted to back away from anyone who frightened her, leave a room whenever she felt like it, and never again sit outside locked doors knowing that if no one came back for her, she was utterly helpless.

Just let me move… I don't need to be the strongest. Just don't make me wait for someone to come carry me away ever again.

She remembered the red beacon blinking atop the skyscraper she had watched from beneath the clinic’s awning. With it came the memory of open skies, high reaches, and birds gliding effortlessly over the city streets.

They never had to search for wheelchair ramps or beg for doors to be opened. A single beat of their wings was all it took to leave behind anywhere they didn't wish to be.

Serayne held that image so fiercely in her mind that, for an instant, she could almost feel a weightlessness she hadn't associated with her body in years. But before she could wonder if anything had truly changed, the console chimed.

[Awakening complete.] 

[Talent Acquired: Featherstep  -  Rank E.] 

[Basic Skill Acquired: Gathering  -  Rank E.] 

[Reward: Select one E-rank tool.]

Serayne opened her eyes, her gaze locking onto the letter denoting its rank. Memories of the chat bragging about B, A, and S flashed in her mind.

She felt an inevitable prick of disappointment, but forced her eyes back to the name itself. She had no idea what Featherstep actually did, and writing it off as useless just because strangers were flaunting higher letters would be a foolish way to squander her only hope.

Description first… I need to read the description.

Before she could tap the name, the prompt gave way to a row of buttons displaying various categories of equipment:

[Longsword] [Shortsword] [Dagger] [Saber] [Axe] [Bow and Arrows] [Crossbow] [Spear] [Staff] [Hoe] [Shovel] [Crowbar] [Hammer] [Shears] [Sickle] [Quill]

The list scrolled on. Swiping her finger revealed even more options - so many that after a few moments, she stopped trying to count them.

She looked at the weapons, then down at her motionless legs, a wry grimace forming on her lips. The prospect of taking on a magical beast with a sword seemed laughably unconvincing for someone who had just struggled to drag herself from a pallet to a table.

A dagger or a utility tool might prove practical even without working legs, but she didn't want to make an impulsive choice before finding out what her awakening had actually granted her - and whether this new Talent could change her situation at all.

Reaching back toward the larger display, she hovered her finger over the Personal Profile tab. The sight of the pending selection coaxed a faint, defiant smile from her.

First, let's see what I can do… And if it turns out to be absolutely nothing, at least I can pick out the prettiest tool to hang on these bare walls.