Apocalypse Baby

As soon as Alex accepted the prompt, the world around him exploded into streaks of light.

It felt like being launched through space in a ship moving at the speed of light.

But he wasn't just surrounded by stars—they were everywhere.

Above, below, beside him.

Twisting and stretching into glowing ribbons, bending reality itself.

Colors warped into each other like paint swirling in water, as if he were slipping through the cracks between dimensions.

His body floated. Limbs loose. No gravity, no weight. Just him, drifting through this tunnel of cosmic chaos.

Time—or whatever passed for it in this place—felt stretched thin.

Like a rubber band about to snap.

And yet… it wasn't disorienting.

If anything, Alex felt amazing.

No disorientation. No motion sickness.

Just this strange calm and a buzzing energy in his chest.

He stared at the shifting waves of color around him, eyes wide, lips parting slightly.

"This doesn't seem like teleportation," he muttered.

It felt like a transition.

A true shift between worlds.

Like plunging into the depths of some cosmic ocean… diving past the surface and heading straight into something deeper.

Something unknown.

It wasn't instant.

Which meant… he had time before he reached wherever this place was taking him.

And, he figured he might as well make use of the pocket of silence.

So, he turned his focus inward—checking on the one thing he couldn't stop thinking about.

His clones.

Had they disappeared when he got yanked out of the tutorial? Or were they still out there doing their thing?

He closed his eyes and reached out with his mind, tapping into the faint threads that connected him to the scattered fragments of himself.

Each clone left behind a subtle pull, like invisible wires stretching across worlds.

Alex waited…

One heartbeat.

Two.

And there it was.

Still active.

Then another.

And another.

All three clones—still in play.

Alex smirked a glint of satisfaction in his eyes.

"Perfect."

They hadn't been dismissed.

His presence was still there—through the clones.

That meant something important.

He could still operate inside the tutorial… even while being somewhere else entirely.

Alex grinned. Multitasking at its finest.

He closed his eyes again, letting his mind follow the thread to each of his clones—checking what they were up to.

The first one?

Locked in a full-on brawl with beasts.

The battlefield looked like a dungeon—multi-floor, dim lighting, the air thick with danger. Each level seemed more brutal than the last, and his clone was tearing through it like a beast unleashed.

The second?

Moving through a different region. It was on a hunt, scanning over maps and terrain, searching for the second Beast Lord's lair. Sharp, methodical, efficient.

And the last one—the one who had discovered the Legacy Cave and swapped places with him was sitting calmly under a tree… casually eating roasted rabbit.

Just chillin'.

But it wasn't exactly peaceful.

From the corner of the clone's vision, several figures watched him from the treeline—spying.

Alex narrowed his eyes.

"Those guys never learn."

They were either from Ethan's crew? Or Darrel's?

Hard to tell. But it didn't matter.

The clone knew he was being watched.

He could feel the eyes on him from the shadows of the trees.

But he didn't care.

As long as those spies didn't get too bold—didn't try to move in—he wouldn't be forced to crush their bones into fine dust.

Simple boundaries.

Pleased with the situation, Alex shifted his focus back to the present.

He exhaled slowly, letting go of the background noise in his mind, and turned his attention to the golden interface glowing in front of him.

It shimmered like molten sunlight, pulsing with quiet power.

He needed to jog his memory—get a proper read on what this Legacy Trial really was.

Then, like it had been waiting for his cue, the notification from earlier reappeared—hovering before his eyes:

[Alex Knight]

[You have been chosen to be a Legacy Holder.]

Legacy: Ascension to Godhood

You stand at the threshold of a destiny forged beyond mortality. The Reigners—ancient beings who rule entire planes—have marked you. Few are chosen. Fewer survive.

You are no longer a mere player. You are a Candidate for Divinity.

Forge your Pantheon.

Shape your Doctrine.

Bind followers to your Pact, empowering them with your will.

Transcend the mortal coil.

Become a force worshipped, feared, and obeyed.

[Legacy Trial]

Compete against beings drawn from countless universes—humans, demi-humans, spectral races, abyssal spawn, and creatures birthed in planes where time folds and suns bleed. Each wields strange magics, divine blessings, or monstrous heritage.

Only one will inherit the Legacy.

Only one shall stand among the Deities.

Alex leaned in, his eyes narrowing with excitement.

From what he gathered so far, the Legacy Trial was no ordinary challenge.

The winner wouldn't just walk away stronger—they'd gain power that rivaled actual deities.

Scratch that. They became one.

Insane.

It was exactly the kind of power Alex wanted.

But it wasn't going to come easy.

With a quick swipe, he pulled up more details.

The glowing text shifted, rearranging into a new header that revealed details of the trial.

First Selection – Screening Test

Pass the individual selection set by the Proctor. Losing in this round you will be transported back to your world.

Second Selection – Tournament Phase

Fight against challengers from different species. Though you will be healed and returned back to the tutorial. Soul rending injury is likely and guaranteed if you end up killed.

Third Selection – The Legacy Race

A chaotic free-for-all across a dynamic battlefield. Face demonic beings, form alliances, betray them, and survive. Death here is permanent participate at your own will.

Main Reward:

The Mantle of a Newborn God.

Alex's heartbeat kicked up a notch.

He was going to fight creatures from different realms.

Not just humans. Not just monsters.

But actual otherworldly beings.

Alex grinned excitedly.

He didn't even know what thrilled him more—the shot at godhood… or the chance to throw hands with something that had six arms and flaming horns.

Probably both.

Alex clenched his fists, knuckles cracking.

Legacy Holder, huh…?

He grinned wide, eyes gleaming with anticipation.

Then the air around Alex began to hum—a low, steady vibration that crawled across his skin.

The starry streaks surrounding him blurred faster, warping into a tunnel of light speeding toward infinity.

The transition was picking up. Fast.

But weirdly, his body didn't budge.

No spinning. No tumbling. No queasy gut.

It was like all this insane cosmic movement had zero effect on him.

Convenient.

He'd seen enough sci-fi movies to know space travelers usually puked their guts out when their ships hit light speed.

The last thing he needed was to be disoriented right before getting tossed into a battle with aliens or eldritch monsters.

Then the light flared—white… then violet… then a blinding obsidian black.

And just like that, it all stopped.

The weightless drifting vanished.

Gravity came crashing back.

Hard.

With a heavy thud, Alex's boots hit solid ground.

He blinked rapidly, the blinding light slowly clearing from his vision.

And then... he saw it.

A colossal stone arena, rising like a forgotten relic of an ancient empire, but floating in the middle of a vast, endless sky.

There were no walls. No horizon.

Just an endless, star-strewn sky above, and a sea of rolling clouds far beneath, as if a storm was waiting to swallow the world whole.

At the center of this arena stood a massive circular platform, its surface etched with glowing symbols—each one pulsing with a faint, eerie light.

Around him, scattered about—stood other people.

About thirty of them.

Humans.

Like himself.

And they all turned to look at him.