Unnatural Transformation.

I felt a certain hotness rise within my chest. With a strangled groan, I fell to my knees, tightly clutching my chest in an attempt to restrain the intense pounding of my heart.

Ba- dump! Ba- dump!

The erratic beats thundered in my ears, each one more violent than the last, as if my heart was trying to break free from my ribcage.

"What...?!"

I barely managed a groan, confusion twisting my features.

This contradicted everything I knew about Arcane Awakening. In theory, it wasn't supposed to be painful or agonizing. After all, it was more of unlocking something that had always been there, lying dormant within.

So… realistically speaking, it was supposed to emerge naturally. 

Not…

Forcefully.

BOOM!

A crushing pressure bore down on me, locking my body in place.