Chapter 18: Alone in the Abyss

"Let's move."

Alice's voice echoed faintly in his memory, sharp and commanding, even as Noah's own thoughts struggled to catch up.

But Alice was gone. They were all gone.

Noah's eyelids fluttered open, his head pounding with a deep, pulsing ache. The dim, reddish glow of the alien sky cast strange shadows over the grotesque landscape around him. His body felt like lead, his limbs heavy and sluggish as he forced himself to sit up.

The sight hit him like a blow to the chest.

Alice's torso, twisted and torn, lay just a few feet away. Her wide, unseeing eyes stared into the void, her face frozen in a moment of terror and pain. The surrounding stone was slick with her blood, and her innards were strewn carelessly across the jagged ground.

Noah recoiled, his breath hitching. The bile rose in his throat, and his stomach clenched violently. He scrambled backward, slipping on the slick ground, until he hit the rough surface of the boulder he'd been lying against.

"No…" His voice cracked, barely audible.

Tears welled up in his eyes, blurring his vision as he stared at what was left of her. Memories of their shared journey flooded his mind—her sharp wit, her strength, the way she'd always pushed him to be better. And now, she was just… gone.

The weight of it was suffocating.

Noah Greene - Level 5

The notification blinked faintly in his vision, but he barely registered it. His Grindstone's mechanical precision felt cruel in the face of such overwhelming loss.

[Noah Greene - Level 5]

Strength: 15 (+9)

Stamina: 13 (+8)

Agility: 11 (+6)

Intelligence: 6

Skills:

Beginner Combat Proficiency (Lv. 3)

Basic Evasion (Lv. 2)

Energy Surge (Active)

He had grown stronger. His stats reflected the brutal trials he'd endured, but what did it matter? What was the point if he was the only one left?

Noah clenched his fists, his nails digging into his palms as he fought to steady his breathing. He couldn't stay here, paralyzed by grief. This place was dangerous—every instinct in his body screamed it. He had to move. He had to survive.

With a shaky breath, Noah pushed himself to his feet. His legs wobbled beneath him, but he managed to stay upright. His eyes flicked back to Alice one last time, and he swallowed the lump in his throat.

"I'm sorry," he whispered.

He turned away, forcing himself not to look back as he began to walk.

The alien world stretched out before him, an endless expanse of jagged black stone and pulsating, fleshy growths. The air was thick with a metallic tang that burned his throat, and the ground seemed to shift slightly underfoot, as if alive.

Noah's mind raced as he tried to process everything. The rift node had brought him here—into the heart of the aberration's world. He had no idea how far he'd fallen, or if escape was even possible.

For now, survival was his only goal.

The first thing he needed was water. His throat was already dry, and the oppressive heat of this place was draining what little energy he had left. He scanned the area, his eyes searching for anything that resembled a water source, but all he saw were the strange, glowing mists rising from the cracks in the ground.

He crouched near one of the fissures, tentatively reaching out toward the mist. The heat radiating from it was intense, and a faint sizzling sound reached his ears as the air around it shimmered.

"Not a good idea," he muttered, pulling his hand back.

Food and shelter would have to come next, but the landscape offered little in the way of either. The grotesque growths that dotted the ground looked like some nightmarish parody of trees, their bulbous, pulsating forms oozing a viscous black fluid.

Noah's stomach twisted as he considered the possibility of eating one of them. Desperation might force his hand eventually, but for now, he couldn't bring himself to touch them.

He kept moving, his every step cautious and deliberate. The faint hum that seemed to emanate from the ground was unnerving, a constant reminder that this place was alive in ways he couldn't begin to understand.

His Grindstone interface remained active in the corner of his vision, a small comfort in its familiarity. He couldn't afford to ignore its functionality—it was the only tool he had left.

As he trudged forward, his thoughts turned to the others. Alice, Ezra, Dante, Mira, Lila… they were all gone. The image of their brutal deaths replayed in his mind, each memory a fresh stab of pain.

Noah stopped abruptly, his eyes narrowing as he noticed something in the distance. Shapes moved in the mist, their forms indistinct but unmistakably there.

A chill ran down his spine.

The Grindstone interface flickered.

[Warning: Aberration Presence Detected]

Low-level Aberrations Nearby.

Noah's breath caught in his throat as the shapes became clearer. They were humanoid, but their movements were jerky and unnatural, their limbs contorted at odd angles. Their hollow, glowing eyes locked onto him, and a low, guttural growl filled the air.

He stumbled back, his heart racing as more shapes emerged from the mist. They surrounded him, their grotesque forms closing in from all sides.

The Grindstone's earlier warning echoed in his mind—his presence attracted them. His Grindstone was a beacon, drawing these creatures to him like moths to a flame.

Noah's hand tightened around the hilt of his knife, his only remaining weapon. His pulse thundered in his ears as the aberrations advanced, their growls growing louder.

He was outnumbered, cornered, and alone.

The alien world seemed to press in around him, the air heavy with the stench of decay and the oppressive heat of the mist.

Noah gritted his teeth, his grip firm on his knife as the first aberration lunged.

And the fight began.

End of Chapter 18.