MTL NOVEL Chapter 9: Chapter 9:The Awakening
Takaviel's eyes blinked open slowly, his consciousness a fog of confusion and disbelief. He gasped for air, expecting it to be his last. The pain in his body was a dull echo, a distant memory of the agony he had endured. He should be dead. The humanoid creature had cut him down, he had felt the fatal blow and yet, he was alive.
"How...?" he muttered weakly, his voice hoarse. The question burned in his mind.
He forced himself upright, his muscles aching, and glanced down at his torso. The wound, the terrible gash that should have claimed his life, was gone. In its place, a jagged scar traced the line where the creature had slashed him. Shock coursed through him as he touched the scar, feeling the rough skin beneath his fingers. His body had healed, the mortal wounds now nothing more than reminders of a battle he shouldn't have survived.
But as his eyes scanned his body, he froze in horror. His right arm... it was no longer his.
Takaviel stared in shock at his arm, pitch black, grotesque, and alien. It had grown larger, more monstrous, the skin looking less like flesh and more like the hide of some ancient, unholy beast. His once-human limb was now riddled with *eyes* unnatural eyes with pupils as black as voids, surrounded by white, concentric circles. Some of these eyes had a single pupil, while others had multiple, all blinking in eerie synchronization, watching him with cold detachment. And then there were the *mouths* twisted, grotesque mouths of varying sizes. Some had jagged, sharp teeth like a predator, others gaped with malformed, fangless gums, dripping with saliva. They shifted, opening and closing in a disturbing rhythm, as if waiting for something to devour.
Takaviel's heart pounded in his chest, his mind screaming at him to wake up from this nightmare. This was the arm of the monster—the strange being he had seen just before losing consciousness. *This* was the thing that had brought him back.
"No!" he whispered, his breath quickening. Panic seized him. He couldn't live with this... this *thing* attached to him. Desperation took over. He grabbed the broken remains of his spear and, with trembling hands, raised it above his head, ready to plunge it into his own arm.
But just before the sharp stone could pierce the blackened flesh, a soft, pulsating *blue light* emerged in front of him. It was blinding in the dim surroundings, and Takaviel stumbled back in shock, his spear clattering to the ground.
The light hovered before him, radiating a calming energy. And then, with a soft hum, it took shape a system interface, like something out of a dream or vision.
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*
System Overview
Name: Takaviel
Lord Title: Lord of the Swarm
Level: 1
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*Core Stats:
*Strength: 10
- Physical Attack: 10
Determines how much damage Takaviel deals in combat.
- Physical Resistance: 10
Reduces damage taken from physical attacks.
- HP Points: 10
Represents the total health Takaviel has.
*Agility: 8
- Movement Speed: 8
Affects how fast Takaviel can move.
- Stamina Points: 8
Determines how much energy Takaviel has for physical actions and how quickly it regenerates.
*Intelligence: 6
- Mental Attack Resistance: 6
Reduces damage from mental or mystical attacks.
- Mana Points: 6
Determines how much energy Takaviel has for casting spells or using magical abilities.
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*Bars:
- HP Bar: 100/100
- Stamina Bar: 100/100
- Mana Bar: 100/100
- EXP Bar: 0/1000
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*
*Points System:
- Current Stats Points: 0
- Current Ability Points: 0
- Current Passive Points: 0
---
Takaviel blinked, utterly bewildered. He reached out cautiously, half-expecting his hand to pass through the display, but his fingers touched something real. His mind raced, trying to make sense of it all.
"A... system?" he muttered, turning his hand over to look at the interface. It wasn't a hallucination. Somehow, he had been pulled into something beyond his understanding—an interface that now governed his existence. Was this real? Or had the Swarm done something to him?
His thoughts turned to his right arm. The grotesque mass of eyes and mouths seemed to pulse with life, reacting to his thoughts. Takaviel swallowed hard, feeling his stomach churn with revulsion.
"The monster… it must be connected to this," he thought. It was the only explanation. That thing, the strange object he had seen just before losing consciousness, had done something to him. It had kept him alive and transformed him into… this.
As his mind reeled, a soft chime echoed in his ears, and a new message appeared in front of him.
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*Congratulations! You have gained a new ability:*
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*Devourer
*Type: ?
*Level: 1
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*Description: The Devourer allows the user to consume the corpse of a living being. By devouring a corpse, there is a chance to absorb new abilities or fragments of abilities. The Devourer ability evolves with each use, growing stronger as more beings are consumed.
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Takaviel's eyes widened as he read the message. "Devourer?" The very name of the ability made his skin crawl, but at the same time, he felt a strange, primal urge surge through him. His gaze drifted to the lifeless form of the humanoid creature that had nearly killed him. Could this ability really work?
Driven by a mix of curiosity and revulsion, Takaviel approached the body. He crouched beside it, willing the strange ability to activate. At first, nothing happened. He tried again, focusing harder, but the creature's corpse remained untouched.
Frustrated, he glanced down at his right arm. Was this what the Devourer referred to? With a deep breath, he extended his mutated arm toward the corpse. The reaction was immediate and terrifying.
His right arm seemed to come alive, the mouths stretching open in unison. The grotesque mouths widened impossibly, teeth gleaming as the arm began to *grow*. The eyes blinked rapidly, shifting in position, as the entire arm swelled with a sickening noise. One of the mouths, larger than the others, yawned open, revealing a maw lined with razor-sharp teeth.
Before Takaviel could react, his arm lunged forward, seizing the corpse in its monstrous grip. The sight was horrifying. The mouth stretched wider, engulfing the creature's body, the eyes blinking with hunger as the corpse was pulled into the gaping maw. Flesh, bones, everything was devoured with a gruesome efficiency.
Takaviel stumbled back, his heart racing as the creature's remains were consumed. The Devourer had worked, but the process had left him horrified. His arm, now swollen and pulsating, slowly returned to its previous size, the mouths and eyes settling back into place.
Breathing heavily, Takaviel felt a rush of energy course through him as a new message appeared before him.
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*Congratulations! You have gained a new ability:*
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*Berserk
*Type: Buff Skills (Active Skills)
*Level: 1
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*Description: Berserk allows the user to temporarily enter a heightened state of rage, greatly increasing physical attack power and speed (50% Increased physical attack and Movement Speed). However, the user's control over their actions is reduced, and they are more vulnerable to damage during this state. This ability consumes stamina and Mana rapidly.
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Takaviel stared at the system message in disbelief. He had gained a new ability by consuming the creature, just as the Devourer had promised. But the cost of using such a power...
He looked down at his mutated arm again, a cold shiver running down his spine. The Swarm had chosen him, but what had he become?
As the weight of his situation settled in, Takaviel could only wonder what other horrors awaited him on this dark and twisted path.