Adam jolted upright,gasping for air. His head throbbed in agony,like it had been smashed into pieces. Sweat poured down his face,soaking the thin mattress beneath him.
The voices were back
Screams,cries,laughter—echoing in his skull like a broken record that wont stop playing
''I thought it was all over'' he thought''...thought it was just a one time thing''
But now he knew...it wasnt over. He was cursed
Suddenly the voices grew louder—almost unbearable,like a crowd of hudreds—no,thousands of souls, all yelling at the same time. Yelling,screaming for salvation.
He covered his ears instinctively,trying to calm the echoes reverberating in his skull. But they didnt stop,only getting louder with every passing second.
''Stop!''
The whispers grew louder. He turned left, then right. Behind him. But there was no one there
Was he hallucinating? Going mad?
''....stop it!''
Then—
silence
A foul stench drifted in—something sharp,metalic like burnt wires and dried blood. The shadows twisted along the walls, like they were trying to peel themselves free. Not random. Not normal. They moved like they knew he was watching.
He stumbled to his make-shift desk,knocking over stacks of old comics and half-torn magazines. His fingers crawled through the drawer until they gripped something cold
A half-broken mirror
He froze—staring in the mirror
His reflection wasn't his anymore.
The face staring back was pale, warped—eyes glowing green like radioactive sludge, flickering with unnatural light. His mouth hung open, but no sound came out.
"What the—"
His voice caught in his throat.
He stumbled back, heart slamming in his chest like it was trying to escape. His breath clouded in the air—cold, too cold, like exhaling straight into a freezer. He blinked, once. Twice. The reflection didn't change.
''No. No, no, no.''
He looked down at his hands—normal. But the reflection kept staring, smiling now, just barely. Was it smiling?
"Stop... stop looking at me like that," he muttered.
His fingers trembled as he dropped the mirror. It shattered against the floor.
His breath fogged in the air—cold,hollow like taking his final breath.It lingered in the air longer than it should have,thin trails of fog that refused to vanish.
He touched his chest. His heart was still beating
He dumped a bottle of water over his head,chest heaving. Cold run down his spine like static. He shook his head and wiped his face.
He picked up a broken piece of the mirror. Still dazed by what he just saw
He stared
His reflection was back to normal. Just a pale,ragged teen—alone. No family. Barely a future
He let out a shaky breath
"I'm losing it. Maybe i just need some fresh air...''
__________
Outside—on the rooftops
He didn't remember climbing the stairs. One second he was staring at shards of broken glass, breath fogging like winter, and the next—he was on the roof, knees weak, fingers numb.
The cold metal beneath him grounded his thoughts, but the silence felt too clean, too intentional. Like the city below was pretending nothing happened.
His heart still thudded in his ears, the ghost of that twisted reflection burned into his brain. He didn't know what scared him more—the face in the mirror... or the fact that a part of him hadn't looked away.
Adam sat at the edge,staring down at people below. A kid walking with his mom. A young man walking his dog.
The voices had stopped—for now.
A wave of calmness difted in the air.
He stared at his palm. Everything had changed—His senses,reflexes...even his hair. His body felt light and fast,his limbs felt borrowed—like it wasnt his own anymore. He felt...Different.
''Maybe I should sign up for—'' he thought. A ray of hope nudging its way deep down.
But—
''...nah...never mind. I dont belong there anyway''
The Hunter Academy was a special place every teenager dreamed of attending. Food,shelter,recreation,and most importantly...respect
Students of such a prestigious institution were hailed and respected by all. They were seen as the next heroes. Protectors of the living.
For one to even apply for enrollment was already an issue,more or less get in. One needs to at least possess a supernatural ability of some kind—one that could attack ghosts,or be useful in battle,like shooting fireballs or even heat vision.
But him,all he could do was hear voices in his head and see spirits—sort of. That wouldnt amount to anything in the heat of battle.
On the plus side,at least he had a cool system that showed him his stats.
[Strength—6]
[Strength: 6]
Adam stared. "Six?" he whispered. "That's like… one level above dying."
A thought lingered in his head. What if he leveled up,would that make any difference?
Usually,video game characters get stronger with each level up. They get cool new weapons and armor and all that.
[exp—0/100]
looking at the floating screen,an idea came in mind.
He'll have to start taking these quests more seriously. So far,that could be his only chance at gaining exp and potentilly get stronger. He would have to start hunting for a ghost.
He didnt like the sound of it though. Going straight to death's doorstep to say hello—definitely not a good idea.
He wasnt strong—given his current stats. Hell,he could barely hurt a fly. At least he was fast—kinda,that way he could just outrun his way out of trouble
He wished he had a alternative quest though—one that didn't involve any violence or fighting off ghosts.
Adam sighed,leaning back on the cold metal of the rooftop.
'That apple' he thought back to yesterday.
'...where did it come from'
The world he lived in was strange alright,but he had never heard of anything like that apple. Maybe a new tech experiment? A cursed item from the other side?
Thoughts spiraled in his mind,tying up like a knot. Was the curse permanent? Was his life going to be normal again? Would whoever owned the apple come hunting for him now?
And if they did...
What will happen once they find him?
A sharp click echoed nearby.
Adam's breath hitched. He didn't move—just listened.
Another click. This time closer. Metal scraping against metal, like something crawling across the rooftop.
Slowly, he turned his head.
Nothing.
But the air had shifted. He could feel it—colder, heavier. The kind of cold that didn't come from the weather, but from something else. Something watching.
Then came the static.
Soft at first, like a broken radio trying to find a signal. Then louder. Clearer.
A voice whispered through the noise, rasping directly into his ear.
"You shouldn't have eaten it."
Adam shot to his feet, heart thundering in his chest. "Who...who's there?" he barked, spinning around.
But again… nothing.
Only silence.
And the faint flicker of his system HUD—glitching.
[New Quest Unlocked]
[You should not have been awakened. They'll be coming for you]
Quest: Survive
Difficulty: ???
Reward: ???
''what?''