Kaz pictured a Dune
An endless, lonesome sea of sand dwarfed the surrounding dunes, merging with the high noon sky in a shimmering haze, and the horizon blurred into a boundless expanse of gold and light.
A distortion rippled through the sky, erupting into a brilliant white light as if the heavens were burning. The radiance coalesced, particles of light gathering to form a body, then weaving into clothes. It spun in a violent blur, winds of sand swirling around it, drawn into the storm of light.
"It stood at the heart of the endless golden expanse, radiating an ethereal glow so intense that even the sand reflected its light, casting a soft white shimmer across the dunes. If anyone were alive in this wasteland, they would look up and see a divine being descending from the sky."
"But there was no one— not a single human soul in the forgotten wasteland. And yet, there were eyes. Countless, hidden beneath the sand, watching. Perhaps they were used to this display, gazing at the light not in awe, but as if it were just another piece of meat, sent here for their feast."
"The ethereal strings of light finally settled, revealing a curly-haired boy with pale caramel skin. His clothes were unfit for the harsh weather— a tattered black hoodie and pitch-black ripped jeans. As the ethereal light faded, leaving him alone in the vast desert wasteland, Kaz had finally arrived."
**"The situation wasn't ideal— not in the slightest. A desert? Why a desert? His face was already sweaty, and now he was in a sweaty rage. He was exhausted, but the rift just had to rub it in. Life had never been kind to him, but somehow, it had just gotten worse.
[Novice! Welcome to the Rift. The path is set. The journey begins. Try to survive.]
Kaz ripped off his hoodie, pressing it to his face as he let out a muffled scream. Even through the fabric, his words were clear—anyone in his situation would have said the same.
'FUCK!'"**
Kaz squinted up at the sun, its brutal light stabbing into his eyes like daggers. He quickly shielded them with his arm, the heat radiating off his skin. With a sigh, he swept his gaze across the landscape, using his hand as a makeshift visor, hoping—praying—to spot something useful.
But what he saw sent an icy shiver down his spine.
The dunes… some of them weren't sand.
A sickening realization clawed at his gut—those hills of fine, pale dust weren't made by the wind. They were bone dust, ground into powder over time. And at the peaks of those dunes, where the wind had yet to finish its work, lay twisted, half-buried skeletons. Some human. Others… not.
Whatever had done this wasn't just dangerous. It was death itself.
Kaz didn't want to be here anymore.
A deep, primal cold clashed with the unbearable heat, spreading through his chest like ice. His instincts screamed at him—run.
And he did.
He tore across the sand, each desperate step kicking up a storm of dust. His muscles burned, his breath came in ragged gasps, and sweat drenched his body, clinging to him like a second skin. But none of it mattered. Something was there. Something wrong.
A predator.
It had been waiting, buried beneath the dunes—watching. The moment Kaz disturbed the sand, the beast stirred, locking onto him with unseen eyes.
And now, it was hunting.
A tail—so impossibly long that only the gods could know its true length—exploded from the sand.
It struck with terrifying speed, a razor-sharp stinger barely missing Kaz by inches. The force of the attack sent a shockwave through the dunes, scattering sand like a tidal wave.
Kaz risked a glance over his shoulder— and his blood ran cold.
A scorpion. A massive one.
Its exoskeleton gleamed under the brutal sun, thick and armored like living stone. One of its pincers was grotesquely oversized, a jagged claw that could crush him in an instant.
A scream tore from his throat, raw with terror.
"Is that a—" He gasped for breath, his legs burning as he sprinted for his life.
"IS THAT A SCORPION?!"
Was there anything he could do?
It was too fast. Too deadly.
A desperate thought flashed through his mind—Scorpions are bad at turning. Even smaller ones struggle to pivot quickly. And this thing? It was massive.
It was a gamble, but he had no choice.
Kaz planted his foot into the sand, skidding to a sudden stop.
The scorpion's stinger slammed into the ground where he should have been, a fraction of a second too late. Before it could adjust, Kaz took off again— this time, sprinting straight toward the towering creature.
It loomed over him, monstrous and alien, but it was too slow.
Kaz dove beneath its massive body, slipping past the crushing pincers, his breath ragged, his heart pounding like war drums.
"it worked"
Kaz let out a cry of relief as he darted under the massive scorpion's body, but his moment of triumph was fleeting. Something he hadn't noticed before—a cluster of miniature tails—crawled along the creature's armored exoskeleton.
With a sudden, sharp whip, five small, venomous projectiles shot off the scorpion's back like bullets, hissing through the air and landing in the sand beside Kaz.
Bang.
Before he could react, the impact sent him flying, his body catapulting through the air. His head struck the edge of the larger sand dune, and a sharp metallic taste flooded his mouth.
Kaz wiped his chin with a shaky hand, his fingers coming away stained with blood.
He groaned, trying to
rise, but as he looked up, dread froze his heart.
Five scorpions—the smaller, deadlier versions—crawled toward him with frightening speed, their pincers snapping, their eyes glinting with hunger.
There was nowhere to run. Nowhere to hide.
Is this it?
Kaz's chest tightened as the horde closed in, ready to tear him limb from limb. The end was coming...
Kaz was tired. Life had beaten him down at every turn, and at that moment, he felt like there was nothing left to live for. The weight of his existence pressed heavily on him—there was nothing left he enjoyed, nothing left to fight for. Why keep going?
The house he tried to hold onto was nothing but a hollow shell. The people who had once filled it were either dead, nearly gone, or emotionally shattered. His sister, once a beacon of light in his life, was now emotionally hollow—more ghost than girl.
What's the point?
The scorpions edged closer, their pincers clicking ominously. Death seemed inevitable, and for a fleeting moment, Kaz thought it was time to give in. But as they drew near, something deep inside him shifted—something he hadn't felt in so long.
People often said that when you're beaten down enough, you crave death. But in that moment, Kaz realized what he truly craved was life. The drive to survive—something primal, something fierce—cracked through the numbness. He wasn't ready to die. Not yet.
Kaz stepped back, his hand instinctively grabbing a jagged piece of bone. He held it tightly behind his back as one of the scorpions lunged forward. With a swift movement, Kaz tilted his head to the side, narrowly avoiding the deadly swing of the tail. In a stroke of luck, he thrust the bone with precision, driving it between the tiny crack in the creature's armored exoskeleton.
The Rift's cold, mechanical voice echoed through Kaz's mind:You have slain a Regent Scorpion of the Aberration rank.
But Kaz didn't have time to dwell on it. His eyes were locked on the four scorpions closing in before him, and the massive fifth one looming behind them. He stepped back, his voice barely a whisper."This is it…"
As the scorpions advanced, the ground beneath them began to shift. The sand caved in under the weight, sending them plummeting into the depths of the cave. Kaz tried to react, but before he could, the earth gave way beneath him. He fell into the darkness, his consciousness slipping away as he tumbled toward certain death.