The observation chamber in Anchorpoint gleamed with clinical precision—a transparent cube within a larger laboratory space. Medical equipment hummed softly as Volt's reconstructed form lay motionless on an examination platform, fracture lines still visible across his skin like dark rivers mapping an alien continent.

  Vidvan circled the chamber, his ancient eyes scanning the monitoring equipment with calculating interest. Each readout reflected impossible data-neural patterns that shouldn't exist in a human mind, energy signatures that defied classification.

  "The integration progresses faster than anticipated," he observed, fingers tracing patterns in the air as if conducting an invisible orchestra. "The Dark Tachyon Desecrator has fully merged with his cellular structure. What we witness is unprecedented.”

  Viro stood nearby, dark circles under her eyes testament to her three-day vigil. "Will he wake up?" Her voice held the edge of someone teetering between hope and dread.

  Vidvan's lips curved into what might have been a smile on anyone else, but on his ageless face looked more like a calculated gesture. "Oh, he will awaken. But the question remains—as what?"

  The monitoring equipment suddenly spiked, alarms blaring as Volt's neural patterns accelerated beyond measurement. Fracture lines across his skin pulsed with black energy, tiny tremors running through his still form.

  "It begins," Vidvan murmured, stepping back from the observation chamber. His posture shifted subtly, power gathering around him like an invisible cloak. "Prepare the dimensional portal. We cannot risk Anchorpoint's stability when he fully activates."

  Viro moved closer to the transparent barrier, palms pressing against it. "He needs medical attention, not exile! You can't just throw him into a rift the moment he wakes up."

  "Can't I?" Vidvan's voice remained mild, but the temperature in the laboratory dropped several degrees. "This facility houses thousands of researchers, many irreplaceable to our understanding of dimensional physics. Should he destabilize here, the casualties would be... extensive."

  His gaze fixed on Volt's twitching form, eyes gleaming with cold fascination. "No, Analyst Viro. He will be transported to a controlled environment—a C-tier rift where his capabilities can be properly assessed without risking Anchorpoint."

  "And if he dies in there?" Viro challenged, her exhaustion giving way to anger.

  "Then the artifact wasn't meant to have a human host," Vidvan replied simply. "All possibilities yield valuable data."

  Viro's fists clenched. "He's not just data.”

  "Indeed. Which is why I'm optimistic about his survival." Vidvan gestured, and the laboratory's far wall shimmered, revealing a portal preparation chamber. "His history suggests remarkable adaptability. I'm quite interested to see how he handles a solo rift clearance with his new abilities."

  "Solo clearance?" Viro's eyes widened. "His body was just put back together!"

  "Precisely why we must understand what he's become." Vidvan moved to the monitoring station, entering a sequence of commands. The observation chamber hummed, preparing for transport. "I've selected a C-tier rift with appropriate challenge parameters. Nothing he cannot handle if the integration is successful."

  He turned to Viro, his ancient eyes holding hers. "You may accompany us as an observer. Your analytical perspective could prove valuable, and your presence might provide... stability. But understand this clearly-you will not interfere, regardless of circumstance. My barriers will ensure compliance."

  Viro's jaw tightened, but she nodded once. "I'll be there."

  "Good." Vidvan returned his attention to Volt's form as the fracture lines pulsed again, brighter this time. "Come. Our subject awakens, and I'd prefer he do so in a more... expendable environment."

  The portal flared to life, a vertical tear in reality that leaked the scent of ozone and distant stars.

  The transition was seamless—a moment of disorientation as reality folded around them, then the sterile environment of Anchorpoint gave way to alien geometries and crystalline formations that defied conventional physics. The C-tier rift opened into a vast chamber of jagged crystal spires and floating debris, suspended in pockets of fluctuating gravity. In the distance, energy storms crackled across the horizon, painting the sky in shades of black and indigo.

  Vidvan moved with preternatural grace across the uneven terrain, carrying Volt's unconscious form as if he weighed nothing. The fracture lines across Volt's skin had intensified, pulsing in rhythm with the distant energy storms.

  "This location should suffice," Vidvan stated, laying Volt on a relatively flat crystal formation. "C-tier designation, mid-complexity, with adequate energy density to test his capabilities without overwhelming a D-tier raider."

  He stepped back, ascending to a floating crystal ledge with a casual disregard for gravity. From this vantage point, he could observe the entire chamber while remaining safely distanced from whatever might unfold below.

  Viro moved to follow, but Vidvan raised a hand, a shimmering barrier of synaptic energy materializing between them.

  "You will remain here," he commanded. "Close enough to observe, far enough to avoid immediate danger should things... escalate."

  The barrier solidified, creating a protected observation area that would allow Viro to see everything while preventing her intervention. Her expression darkened with frustration, but she stayed within the designated space, eyes fixed on Volt's still form.

  "You're just going to leave him there? Unconscious and defenseless?" she demanded.

  "Defenseless?" Vidvan's eyebrow arched. "I rather doubt that. As for leaving him—yes. artifact must activate under stress to reveal its true nature. A controlled laboratory awakening would tell us little."

  He gestured toward the distance, where shadows moved among the crystal formations—rift entities sensing fresh prey. "The inhabitants will provide adequate incentive for his abilities to manifest."

  Viro pressed against the barrier, her voice tight with barely contained rage. "You're using him as bait!"

  "I'm providing optimal conditions for observation," Vidvan corrected mildly. "The difference may seem academic to you, but it's quite significant from a research perspective."

  A distant howl echoed through the crystal chamber, followed by the sound of scrabbling claws on stone. The rift entities had caught Volt's scent and were beginning to circle.

  "He's waking," Vidvan observed, his attention entirely on Volt now. "Remember our agreement, Analyst Viro. No interference, regardless of circumstance. My barriers will not be kind to those who test them."

  Viro's hands clenched into fists, but she remained within the protected area, her eyes never leaving Volt as the first of the rift entities emerged from behind a crystal formation—a hunched, predatory shape with too many limbs and gleaming eyes.

  "Wake up, Volt," she whispered. "Please wake up."

  Consciousness returned like a sledgehammer to the skull. One moment, nothing-the next, everything. Too much. Too loud. Too bright. Too wrong.

  I gasped, lungs burning as if I'd been holding my breath for days. Maybe I had. My vision swam, fracturing into overlapping images that refused to align properly. Above me, a sky that wasn't a sky—crystal formations stretching toward infinity, energy storms painting everything in sickly purple light.

  Not anywhere I recognized.

  I tried to sit up, but my body felt wrong-lighter, almost insubstantial, yet simultaneously heavier with... something. Power? Pressure? I couldn't name it, but I could feel it coursing through me, humming beneath my skin along fracture lines that hadn't been there before. I ran a finger along one, feeling the slightly raised texture, watching black energy pulse in response to my touch.

  "What the hell happened to me?" I muttered, forcing my body upright despite its protests.

  The last thing I remembered was the Outpost—a freezing sensation in my chest, Viro's frightened face, then... nothing. Null space. A conversation with the System. New powers, new limitations, new ways to destroy everything around me.

  Instability. Annihilation. The words echoed in my mind, heavy with consequence.

  I took stock of my surroundings. Crystal formations stretched in every direction, gravity fluctuated in visible pockets where debris hung suspended. Energy storms crackled in the distance. Classic C-tier rift environment—mid-complexity, decent hazard density. Nothing I couldn't handle, assuming my body would cooperate.

  Movement caught my eye-a shambling form with too many limbs emerging from behind a crystal formation. Followed by another. And another. Rift entities, drawn to fresh meat. To me.

  "Great. Welcome party." I tried to stand, muscles screaming in protest after days of disuse. My body felt like it belonged to someone else-similar but fundamentally changed, as if someone had rearranged my internal wiring while I slept.

  A voice called from above, cool and measured. "Volt. D-tier raider."

  I looked up to see a floating crystal ledge where a man stood watching me-tall, ageless, with eyes that held galaxies. Beside him, separated by some kind of energy barrier, was Viro. Her face was a mask of worry and relief, hands pressed against the barrier as if trying to reach through by sheer force of will.

  "Viro?" I called, then turned my attention to the stranger. "Who the hell are you?"

  "I am Vidvan, Lorekeeper of Anchorpoint." His voice carried effortlessly across the distance. "And you are my newest subject of interest—a D-tier raider housing an aberrant artifact that predates Earth itself."

  I snorted, flexing my fingers experimentally. Energy crackled between them, black sparks that felt both familiar and alien. "Great introduction. Mind telling me why I'm in a rift instead of a nice comfy hospital bed?"

  "To determine your capabilities, of course." Vidvan's tone suggested this should have been obvious. "The Dark Tachyon Desecrator has fully integrated with your cellular structure. Such power cannot be safely tested within Anchorpoint's walls."

  "Volt!" Viro called out, her voice strained. "Are you okay? Can you move?"

  "I'm fine," I lied, forcing a grin. "Taking a nap in a rift. Nothing new."

  The nearest rift entity let out a chittering howl, drawing closer. I could see it clearly now—a crystalline arachnid the size of a small hovertruck, its multifaceted eyes gleaming with predatory intent.

  "I recommend you prepare yourself," Vidvan observed casually. "This rift contains challenges for a group of C-tier raiders, but your recent transformation may have... altered your capabilities in unexpected ways."

  "Let me help him!" Viro demanded, pounding against the barrier.

  "That would invalidate our observations," Vidvan replied without looking at her. "Volt must complete this rift clearance alone. His solo performance will provide crucial data on the Desecrator's integration."

  I rose to my feet, steadier now as my body remembered how to function. The crystal arachnid skittered closer, followed by two more emerging from the shadows.

  "Solo clearance, huh?" I stretched, feeling the power humming beneath my skin. "Nothing I haven't done before.”

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  The lead arachnid lunged, crystal legs scrabbling against stone as it closed the distance between us with frightening speed. Instinct took over—I activated Witness of Ruin, letting the Desecrator's fractured gaze overlay my vision.

  Immediately, the world shifted. Time seemed to slow, and I could see attack patterns forming—the arachnid's front legs aimed for a pincer movement, its venomous stinger already arching for a follow-up strike. But more than that, I could see weak points in its crystalline exoskeleton, fault lines where a precisely placed strike would shatter its structure.

  I dodged with inhuman precision, the creature's legs closing on empty air where I'd stood a heartbeat before. The power felt incredible—like cheating time itself. Each movement flowed with perfect efficiency, my body responding faster than it ever had.

  I felt a subtle shift inside me—a 5% increase in Instability from using Witness of Ruin. Not just a feeling—I knew the exact percentage, as if some part of my consciousness now tracked it automatically.

  As the arachnid recovered for another lunge, I spotted an energy storm pocket nearby—a swirling vortex of electrical discharge trapped in a gravity anomaly. Perfect.

  "Let's try this out," I muttered, extending a hand toward the storm. I activated Fractal Distortion, bending the hazard to my will. The electrical discharge responded, stretching like taffy toward the approaching arachnids. I shaped it into a sweeping arc that cut through all three creatures at once, their crystalline bodies conducting the energy perfectly.

  They shattered, fragments scattering across the ground like broken glass.

  Another shift inside me—this time larger. The manipulation had been significant, costing me about 15% Instability. Combined with the earlier 5%, I was now at 20% total. I could feel it building, a pressure behind my eyes, a whisper of chaos in my thoughts.

  "Impressive control," Vidvan commented from above. "Your trait grants you remarkable command over environmental hazards."

  I grinned up at him, cocky despite the situation. "This is nothing. You should've seen me before the upgrade."

  A tremor ran through the ground beneath my feet—not natural, but a response to my rising Instability. Reality itself seemed to shudder slightly in my presence, like it knew I didn't belong.

  Another rumbling sound echoed through the chamber, deeper and more ominous than the first. Not a tremor this time—movement. Something big.

  "The rift guardian approaches," Vidvan observed. "Your display has drawn its attention prematurely. Interesting."

  "Volt, be careful!" Viro called out, still pressed against the barrier. "Don't push too hard too fast!"

  I rolled my shoulders, feeling the power humming through me. Twenty percent Instability felt manageable—a buzz in my veins, a slight distortion in my vision, nothing I couldn't handle.

  The ground erupted thirty meters ahead as something massive clawed its way to the surface—a crystalline golem three times my height, its body composed of interlocking geometric shapes that shifted and realigned as it moved. An elite guardian, not the boss itself but a significant threat.

  As it oriented toward me, I felt a tug at my core—something new awakening in response to the danger. Each pulse of Instability created a momentary distortion beneath my feet, a promise of movement, of escape.

  Dark Tachyon Tether. The passive ability I'd never used before.

  The elite guardian charged, crystal fists raised to crush me into paste. I didn't dodge—not physically. Instead, I embraced the tether, focusing on a spot 50 meters behind the creature. Space itself bent around me, and suddenly I was there, exactly where I'd imagined, leaving behind only a spectral afterimage where I'd stood.

  The guardian's fists slammed into empty ground, confusion evident in its crystalline face as it searched for its vanished prey.

  "Nice," I breathed, looking down at my hands. Instant movement, effortless, with a range that made conventional techniques seem laughable. The fractured lines across my skin pulsed brighter, responding to my excitement.

  I didn't have time to celebrate. The guardian had spotted me again, already charging for another attack. This time, I activated Witness of Ruin again—another 5% Instability, bringing me to 25%—to analyze its structure. The vision revealed something crucial—its core, a pulsing geometric shape at its center, protected by layers of crystal armor.

  I needed a more precise strike this time—not just raw power, but targeted destruction. The guardian swung a massive fist, and I took a step and moved instantly again, appearing directly above it. Gravity took hold, and I dropped onto its shoulders, already channeling Fractal Distortion toward a nearby pocket of compressed energy.

  The hazard responded to my will, condensing into a lance of pure force that I drove down through the guardian's crystal skull, aiming for the core I'd glimpsed. The manipulation was precise, focused-costing me another 10% Instability—now at 35% total.

  The elite guardian shuddered as the energy lance penetrated its defenses, fracturing the geometric patterns that gave it cohesion. It tried to reach back, to grab me from its shoulders, but I was already gone—teleporting to a safe distance as the creature collapsed into a pile of crystalline rubble.

  "Efficient," Vidvan commented, his tone suggesting he was taking mental notes. "You adapt quickly to your new capabilities."

  I grinned, though the expression felt strained. The Instability was building, distorting my perception. A low hum filled my skull, the beginning of a whisper I couldn't quite make out, but sensed was always there. The fracture lines across my skin pulsed brighter, responding to the growing chaos inside me.

  "Interesting response pattern," Vidvan noted from his perch. "The fracture lines serve as both conduit and indicator of your Instability threshold."

  "Glad I'm providing good data," I shot back, my voice rougher than intended. "Any other observations you'd like to share?"

  A tremor ran through the crystalline ground, stronger this time. Not from my Instability—this was different. Rhythmic. Approaching.

  "The guardian comes," Vidvan said, his tone unchanging despite the imminent threat. "The true test begins."

  The crystalline spire at the center of the chamber shattered, fragments exploding outward as something massive erupted from below. A hydra-like creature emerged, its multiple heads formed from translucent crystal that caught and refracted the ambient light. Each of its five heads was a different geometric configuration.

  "C-tier boss," I muttered, assessing the threat. "Crystalline Convergence Hydra."

  I could feel my Instability thrumming at 35%, making the air around me shimmer slightly. The whispers were growing louder, not quite coherent but pressing against my consciousness. I activated Witness of Ruin again, pushing through the additional 5% Instability (now at 40%) to see attack patterns forming.

  The vision came instantly—brutal and clear. All heads would attack in sequence, releasing energy pulses that would trap me in a converging pattern. The central head was the core, protected by the outer formations. Standard boss design—kill the subordinate parts, then the heart.

  "Volt!" Viro called out from behind Vidvan's barrier. "Don't push too hard! That hydra's energy signature is unstable!"

  I teleported as the first head struck, leaving behind a spectral afterimage where I'd stood. The Dark Tachyon Tether responded to my rising Instability, dropping me 60 meters away in an instant. The hydra's crystal jaws snapped on empty air, its multifaceted eyes tracking my new position immediately.

  "I know what I'm doing," I called back, though I wasn't entirely sure that was true anymore. The constant teleporting felt incredible—power beyond anything I'd experienced before—but each jump added to the growing pressure behind my eyes, the fracture lines burning brighter.

  The second and third heads attacked simultaneously, spewing crystalline shards that curved through the air, tracking my movement. I dodged the first volley, but the second caught me across the shoulder, drawing blood.

  Except... I barely felt it. The wound was there, blood flowing, but the pain was distant, muted.

  Parallel Existence. The passive ability automatically displaced 90% of the damage beyond time's flow. Postponing consequences. I grinned—this I could use.

  "Come on then," I taunted, teleporting directly in front of the hydra. "Let's see what you've got."

  All five heads reared back, then unleashed a synchronized energy pulse—a wave of crystalline force that expanded outward in all directions. No dodging this one.

  I activated Fractal Distortion, targeting a nearby energy storm pocket. The swirling vortex responded to my will, stretching and solidifying into a crystalline shield that intercepted the energy pulse. The manipulation was moderate, costing me about 15% Instability—now at 55%.

  The shield held for precisely two seconds before shattering, fragments dissolving into the air. But it had bought me time to teleport again, appearing behind the hydra.

  "Volt!" Viro shouted, her voice strained. "Your fracture lines are spreading! Pull back!"

  She was right. The dark lines now extended across my entire torso, pulsing violently with each heartbeat. The whispers in my mind had become a constant background hum, a chorus of unintelligible voices speaking in tandem. My vision flickered between normal perception and something else—layers of reality superimposed, dimensions bleeding together.

  But I couldn't stop now. Wouldn't stop. That wasn't me.

  I tethered again, directly above the central head, and channeled Fractal Distortion once more. This time, I targeted the crystal structure itself, trying to turn the hydra's own makeup against it. The crystal responded, fracture lines spreading along the beast's surface, mirroring my own.

  The cost was severe—another 25% Instability—now at 80%. I could feel myself approaching the threshold, reality becoming increasingly unstable around me. The ground beneath my feet rippled like water, solid matter responding to my proximity.

  The hydra was wounded but far from defeated. Three of its heads were cracked, crystal fragments falling away, but the central head and one other remained intact. It gathered energy for another attack, this one charged with a deadly resonance that would shatter me if it connected.

  I needed to end this now, before I hit 100% Instability. One more big play.

  "Let's try something new," I muttered, focusing on the space between dimensions, the thinning barrier between here and... elsewhere.

  I activated Desecration, committing to a 20% Instability cost that would push me to the very edge—now at 100%. The air in front of me split open, creating a small vertical tear in reality pulsing with unlight. For a moment, nothing happened—just the eerie, perfect silence of a dimensional wound.

  Then it came.

  A swarm of crystalline insects poured through the rift—each the size of my fist, their segmented bodies glinting with inner light, mandibles clicking in hungry anticipation. They surged forward in a chittering wave, hundreds of them flooding through the dimensional tear I'd created. These weren't random beasts—they were C-tier hive entities, organized and lethal, their compound eyes tracking movement with predatory precision.

  Behind the insects, putrid miasma leaked through the gateway, thick purple-black fog that immediately began transforming the immediate small area around the rift in a circle. Crystalline formations dissolved on contact, regrowing as twisted, organic-looking spires coated in pulsating fungal growths. The fog spread outward in tendrils, converting a ten-meter radius into an alien landscape that mimicked the insects' native environment.

  The hydra recoiled from both threats—the advancing swarm and the corrupting miasma. It lashed out with crystal heads, shattering dozens of insects with each strike, but for every one destroyed, three more poured through the rift. The two-way gateway I'd torn open was showing its true danger—not just what I'd pulled through, but what might follow.

  The Swarmers ignored me completely, focusing their attack on the hydra. They swarmed over its crystalline form, acidic secretions eating away at its structure while their mandibles severed connection points between geometric segments. The hydra thrashed, all five heads screeching in a harmonized wail that shattered nearby crystal formations.

  "The rift's environmental bleed is accelerating," Vidvan observed clinically from his perch. "Fascinating cross-dimensional contamination."

  Victory. But at what cost?

  I'd created a permanent doorway between worlds, and the other side was winning.

  "He's at threshold!" Vidvan called out, his voice cutting through the chaos. For the first time, I heard genuine concern in his tone. He raised his hands, constructing a shimmering barrier of synaptic energy around Viro, protecting her from the spreading contamination.

  I felt it happen—the moment Instability hit 100%. Annihilation triggered. Time seemed to stop. The fracture lines across my body flared with blinding intensity, then... I was gone.

  For three seconds that felt like eternity, I existed everywhere and nowhere. I was consciousness without form, perception without body. I saw the rift from every angle simultaneously, witnessed the insects' invasion from both within and without. I existed beyond the limitations of physical space, beyond time itself.

  Then, violently, I snapped back into existence. Reality rejected my presence, and the backlash was catastrophic.

  A Tachyon Fracture erupted from my position—a cataclysmic explosion of force that expanded outward in concentric rings. From its heart poured forth a Chaotic Warpfield, a seething storm of corrosive dark green decay. This malevolent tempest surged with unrelenting ferocity, tainting everything in its grasp—Swarmers, miasma, hydra, and even the rift itself. All that it touched was warped into grotesque, malfunctioning aberrations, their very essence fractured beyond recognition.

  The warpfield’s shockwave rippled outward with devastating force, transmuting the world in its path. Solid matter dissolved into gas, and gas inexplicably solidified into chaotic, nonsensical forms, defying the laws of nature. When the cataclysmic energy finally waned, it left behind a desolate, dark green wasteland—a cursed expanse of infected matter that ceaselessly evaporated into the air, radiating an eerie, toxic haze.

  Not just damaged—fundamentally altered. The crystalline terrain had been replaced by a permanent defiled landscape where shadows moved with purpose and crystalline growths pulsed with eerie green light, a wound that would never fully heal.

  I collapsed to my knees, gasping for breath. The Instability was gone, reset to zero by the Annihilation, but the cost was written across the landscape. My body trembled violently, the fracture lines now etched deeper, no longer pulsing but a permanent part of my altered form.

  The whispers had fallen silent, but I could feel them waiting, gathering strength for their next assault on my consciousness.

  From his vantage point, Vidvan studied the Tachyon Fracture with clinical fascination, his ancient eyes gleaming with new knowledge.

  "Fascinating," he murmured, more to himself than to me. "The effect doesn't merely damage reality—it rewrites it entirely. The warpfield has created a permanent ecological transition zone, a nexus of altered physics. This data... this is beyond anything in my archives."

  He descended from his crystal perch, moving through the air with casual disregard for gravity, stopping at the edge of the transformed area. He extended a hand toward it, not quite touching the infused surface.

  Viro rushed to my side the moment Vidvan's barrier dissolved, her face pale with shock and relief.

  "You idiot," she hissed, helping me to my feet. "You could have been killed.”

  I leaned on her, more exhausted than I wanted to admit. "But I wasn't killed. And I cleared the rift. Solo. As ordered."

  I looked up at Vidvan, meeting his ancient gaze with defiance despite my weakened state. "So? Did I pass your test, Lorekeeper?"

  Vidvan's expression remained unreadable, but something like satisfaction flickered in his eyes. "No, I need more data.”

  He gestured, and a portal back to Anchorpoint shimmered into existence nearby.

  Viro helped me toward the portal, her arm around my waist, supporting me despite my weak protests that I could walk on my own.

  "What did he do to you?" she whispered, her voice barely audible.

  "He didn't do anything," I replied, glancing back at the fracture transformed landscape—the permanent scar I'd left on reality. "This is what I am now. A walking disaster."

  I managed a weak smirk, though the weight of what I'd become pressed down on me. "Better get used to it."

  We stepped through the portal, leaving behind the devastated rift—and the first of many scars I would carve into the world.