The demon's sword pierced my chest. Cold. Precise.
"We'll meet again, Fironi," he whispered, pale fingers brushing the "17" etched like a scar on my wrist. His eyes—human yet impossibly empty—locked onto mine as the dream dissolved into pain...
I jolted awake.
"Just a dream...?"
My hand flew to my unmarked forehead. No blood.But the ghost painlingered like a fresh burn beneath my ribs. In the foggy bathroom mirror, his face flickered in the steam—sharp features, a smile like broken glass.
BANG!
My door slammed open. "Yo! Sleeping Beauty lives!" Imanse barged in, tripping over a landslide of burger wrappers and soda cans I'd been "meaning" to clean for a week. He wore that same stupid band tee from my dream. Coincidence?
"Get up, Fironi! School's in ten minutes!"
Before I could breathe—
"FIROOONI!" Mom's voice shook the hallway. "Breakfast is cold!"
Panic spiked. Late. Again.
I tore through the trash-sea for my backpack. No time for food. No time for that dream. Just the bus stop three blocks away—
SCREEEECH—
Tires shrieked.
I'd sprinted into the crosswalk without looking.
Headlights. Too bright. Too fast.
Metal met bone.
Darkness.
Silence.
Then... light. Soft, pearlescent.
I floated in an endless white void, the scent of ozone sharp in my nose.
"Hey," a bright, chirping voice cut through the stillness. "So that's how you ended up here?"
A girl materialized before me—no older than twelve, with hair like spun starlight and eyes glowing like liquid gold. She tilted her head, a clipboard materializing in her hands. "Name's Chicka. Welcome to the Soul Nexus, Fironi."
I stared at my translucent hands. Dead? " Y-yeah... I guess I did."
Chicka's smile held infinite sadness. "Let's talk about your second chance... and those seventeen lives you've got left."
Soul Nexus - White Void
Fironi stared at the glowing "17" now shimmering on his translucent wrist. "Seventeen lives? What's the meaning of this? Am I reincarnated?"
Chicka shook her head, starlight hair rippling. "It's not like that. The world you lived in is different than this world. This is where your new life begins." Her golden eyes sharpened. "You have a journey here, Fironi. You got the most lives. Now, the next with the most lives… his name is Zujike. And right now, he's fighting a battle against one of the strongest demons."
She floated closer, her voice dropping to a whisper. "You have to be prepared. You have to train hard. The demon you saw in your dream? He's the one hunting you. He wants your lives. That guy is no joke—he collects lives like it's nothing. He's seeking immortality." A holographic map flickered between them, highlighting a pulsing red sigil. "He's the one we have to go after… to collect the power he's carrying."
Fironi's eyes widened. "Did you know there are a lot of different elements and powers in the Soul Nexus?"
Chicka grinned. "We can steal them from demons. Just like this—"
She snapped her fingers.
Mind-Seeing: Fironi felt his own panic flash in Chicka's pupils.
Portal: A swirling vortex tore open beside them, revealing a storm-battered mountain.
Screenshare: The battle on the mountain projected between them—Zujike parrying a demon's axe with a shield of ice.
"Woow! That's so cool! Can I steal that too?" Fironi breathed.
Chicka laughed. "You could get one stronger for yourself! The one I showed you?" She dismissed the portal with a wave. "Not even from a top demon. This is very weak power compared to what the biggest demons have."
—DOORS OPEN—
No sound. No footsteps.
Just sudden pressure, thick and suffocating.
A man stood before them.