In a quiet field on the outskirts of what had long ago been known as the Carpathian Basin, the wind stirred the tall grass with a whispering sigh. Birdsong ced the morning air, weaving a fragile calm across the ndscape. The sun burned brightly, casting golden streaks over the wild terrain, where ancient pines rose like solemn sentinels—patient and unmoved by time.
Then the birds fell silent.
A heartbeat ter, they erupted skyward in a frantic explosion of wings, their preternatural senses screaming of danger.
The air split open.
A swirling portal tore into existence at the heart of the clearing, a spiral of violent light and shadow as if reality itself had been wounded. A muffled sonic boom rippled outward—not loud, but unnatural, like thunder trapped inside a sealed room. From the vortex burst a figure trailing streams of blood, her scorched armor blurred by sheer velocity.
Kae Sirova hit the ground shoulder-first with bone-jarring force. She slid through dew-slick grass, carving a muddy trench before smming to a halt against the base of a massive tree. Dirt exploded around her, clinging to her face and matting her blood-soaked hair.
Steam hissed from her armor, the burned and bckened pting venting heat like the hull of a downed starship. Blood traced a dark line from a gash above her brow, curling over her cheekbone. Her left arm dangled grotesquely, clearly broken in more than one pce.
Pain bloomed—not sharp or clean, but deep and primal, the kind that strips away everything and leaves only raw instinct. The kind that makes you forget your own name.
Shit. That’s the only pce I’m still bleeding?Hoo boy. I got lucky. Too damned lucky.Those st few strikes I had to take…
Blinking sweat and blood from her eyes, she stared at the ruined mess of her left arm and managed a breathless half-ugh, half-cough.
“I’ve seen worse,” she muttered. “Still breathing—more than I can say for the other guys. That’s for fucking sure.”
Lying nearly broken beneath the massive tree, Kae couldn't shake the silence surrounding her.
No cheering crowds.No audience.No witnesses to what she’d survived.After everything she’d put herself through today, she was still alone.
Is that the price of winning?
Yet, she was breathing. And she had won.The rift was sealed; the incursion defeated.All by herself.
Kae’s trial—unprecedented, entirely solo—was complete. No one had known what awaited beyond that breach, but she’d stepped through anyway. Faced it alone. Survived.
Her head rolled back against the bark, eyes gently closing as her wounds began knitting themselves together. Threads of warmth rippled over her skin, her body still working, still healing itself. Her breathing slowed—shallow and controlled—as she focused everything inward on recovery.
She was still standing.
Well—not literally standing at the moment—but her body would heal. At this rate, she’d be back in fighting condition within an hour or two.
Desperately in need of a shower, yes. But hey—You don’t have to be clean to kick ass, do you?
Finally, she shifted and tried to rise. She propped herself up on her right elbow, reaching for her scorched bde half-buried in the grass nearby. Her fingers brushed the hilt…
And her arm gave out.
Kae colpsed again, shoulders shaking with quiet ughter as a few zy clouds drifted across the pale sky above.
Then—
Ding!
A soft chime echoed in her mind. An overy shimmered into view at her mental command, translucent across her vision.
---
System Message
Kae Sirova, you have reached level 500.Congratutions, you are the first to reach this milestone.
You are hereby granted the title:[First Ascendant]Effect: All core stats increased by +20%.
Note: You have reached the boundary of mortal potential in several core attributes. Further progression is governed by the genesis protocol.
Additional notifications avaible.View notifications? [Y/N]
---
Kae stared at the message, unmoving, her breath caught between awe and exhaustion.
After decades of rift closures, System trials, and brush-with-death battles across the multiverse, she had finally reached it—the ceiling, the edge of what even the architects of The System had defined as mortal.
Level 500. The final threshold.
Part of her wanted to celebrate, while another simply stared at the title.
[FIRST ASCENDANT]
It felt too quiet. Not lonely—more like the stillness before a thundercp. As if the universe itself had paused, holding its breath.
No grand announcement.No bring fanfare.Just glowing words in her mind—simple, absolute.
I hope this isn’t it, she thought. There has to be more beyond this. Right?
She exhaled slowly, then mentally selected Status.
---
System InterfaceCharacter StatusName: Kae SirovaAge: 134 yearsLevel: 500Race Path: Homo Sapiens - AugmentedCss Path:
Skirmisher Phantom Lancer Aetherbde Void Sentinel (Mythical Tier)
Profession Path: Chrono-Architect
Titles:
First Ascendant (Mythical – Unique)Chronicler of Ages (Legendary)Harbinger of Silence (Epic – Combat)Vowkeeper (Rare – Moral Integrity)Architect of Insight (Rare – Profession Path)Core Attributes (Stats):
STR 5,096 Locked DEX 5,788 Locked END 5,566 Locked VIT 5,566 Locked INT 5,020 Locked WIS 5,408 Locked CHA 4,344 Approaching Threshold PER 5,894 Locked
Health: 45,236 / 83,490Stamina: 12,955 / 55,660Mana: 31,004 / 64,896
Please note: Attributes exceeding 5,000 are currently locked. Additional growth is suspended until all attributes meet the Genesis Protocol threshold. Overflow values are preserved and will activate upon evolutionary transition.
---
Kae blinked slowly, studying the numbers.
That st title—FIRST ASCENDANT—had pushed every attribute but one past the line.
So close. That’s why it felt anticlimactic. I’ve still got work to do.
Her hand trembled slightly as the final traces of adrenaline bled from her system. The tension she'd carried so long—the drive, the hunger—surged through her spine like an electric current, then vanished.
One st push, she thought, and I’ll see what lies beyond.For me. For us. For humanity.
What comes after Homo sapiens – Augmented?
---
Notifications Pending– View now? [Y/N]
---
She selected Yes—and nearly fell back in surprise.
A notification bloomed across her entire vision, its border etched in glowing gold. Even the font felt different. Older. Ancient.
---
[Private System Alert – legacy access level granted]Kae Sirova, you have triggered a dormant message embedded within the ascension framework.No other individual has reached the criteria required for activation.
Message status: LockedSubject: YouYou are the first to unlock this message.Ensure you are in a safe pce before beginning pyback.Do you wish to view the message now? [Y/N]
---
Kae’s breath hitched, her vision blurring. Exhaustion tugged at her consciousness. She closed her eyes and selected No.
Not yet. She needed rest. A safe pce. Crity.
Finally healed enough, she retrieved her Aetherbde, slid it into its scabbard on her back, and turned toward the clearing’s edge.
It was time to return to civilization.
Time to unlock some secrets.
Kae Sirova was ready—come what may.