Chapter 6. Ethan Callahan.

Ryan sat there, his mind wrestling with the mystery of the [INT] points. What could they possibly enhance? Intelligence wasn't like strength; it wasn't something you could flex or feel growing. After grappling with the puzzle for a time and coming up empty, he decided to shelve the conundrum. Right now, catching his breath was more pressing, and he leaned back to give his heaving lungs a break.

He was keenly aware that he couldn't afford to linger in this place. The area around him teemed with demonic beasts, and his recent encounter had depleted his reserves. Remaining in the open was a risk he couldn't take.

As Ryan rested, time ticked by, and he felt a measure of strength return to his battered body. His eyelids fluttered open, and the persistent system notification still hovered in his vision.

"Well, isn't this just grand? I've got my own Iron Man HUD," Ryan scoffed at himself, the frustration evident in his tone.

Just as he grumbled about the intrusive display, a chime sounded in his mind, and the words on the screen shifted.

._._._._._.

_Would you like to set a code word for dismissing the screen?

[YES] / [NO]

._._._._._.

"How convenient," Ryan mused.

"Yes, I would, very much so," he said aloud, his voice tinged with irony.

._._._._._.

[DING! DING!!]

_Answer detected. Please proceed to choose the code word.

._._._._._.

Ryan pondered the decision. It needed to be something he could utter without drawing undue attention or sounding like he had stepped out of a time machine from the medieval era.

"Dismiss," he finally said, choosing a word both modern and inconspicuous.

._._._._._.

_Are you sure you want to use the code word "Dismiss"?

._._._._._.

"Yes," he replied confidently.

._._._._._.

_Code word for notification screen deactivator has...

._._._._._.

Ryan didn't let the system finish. Impatiently, he interjected, "Dismiss."

Immediately, the holographic screen vanished from his sight.

"Now, that's better," Ryan sighed, relieved. "Next order of business: figure out where in the world I am and what on Earth's happened to me." He started to take a step, intending to survey his surroundings for clues, but he was interrupted by another chime and a new system alert.

._._._._._.

[DING! DING!]

_Would you like to retrieve the memories of the previous inhabitant of this body?

[YES] / [NO]

._._._._._.

Ryan's hand twitched towards his temple, ready to dismiss yet another alert, but the content of the message stopped him cold. A grin spread across his face, his annoyance turning to anticipation.

"Well, look at that. Just what the doctor ordered," he said, a chuckle escaping his lips. "Looks like my luck's turning around."

"Yes," he said without a second thought.

._._._._._.

_ANSWER DETECTED.

_Memory retrieval in progress [5%... 8%...

._._._._._.

Ryan watched the progress bar with an intensity bordering on fervor, eager for the influx of knowledge that might explain his bizarre circumstances.

"Hopefully, this time I won't freeze up when the memory transfer starts... But even if I do, I just pray there won't be another three-eyed wolf trying to swallow me whole," Ryan mumbled to himself as he fixed his gaze on the screen.

He didn't have faith in the system or its methods, and he certainly wasn't counting on his luck.

He couldn't quite imagine what his fate might be if he were to confront yet another three-eyed wolf barreling toward him. He doubted his chances of surviving such an ordeal twice in one day. Luck had never been a friend he could rely on, not as far back as his memories stretched.

Time seemed to crawl until, at last, the memory retrieval process reached completion, a notification blinking insistently on the screen in front of him.

._._._._._.

[DING! DING]

_Memory retrieval completed, proceeding to memory transfer in 3...2...1...

._._._._._.

As the countdown initiated, an abrupt sensation, akin to a small detonation, erupted in Ryan's skull, leaving a pounding headache in its wake that sent him reeling and crashing to the ground. The floodgates of the former inhabitant's memories opened wide, and they poured into him relentlessly.

His body, mercifully, did not seize up as it had before, but this formidable headache was no less debilitating than a full-body paralysis.

Within moments, Ryan was awash in the experiences of another life – seventeen years in the life of Ethan Callahan, the previous tenant of the flesh he now occupied.

Then, as suddenly as it had begun, the deluge of memories ceased, signaling the end of the transfer. The headache that had accompanied the influx subsided, and Ryan found himself returning to a sense of normalcy.

Gingerly, he got to his feet, shaking off the dust of the ground where he had fallen. As he stood, he began the monumental task of processing the wealth of information that had been bestowed upon him – Ethan's memories.

It became clear that his initial suspicion was correct; he had indeed been reborn into another's body. From what he could discern, he was still on Earth, though time had recoiled slightly. He had been reborn a mere five years before the year of his death.

"Damn it, what sort of force is at work here, and why was I reborn... What's the catch?" Ryan whispered to himself as his mind tried processing the reasons for his rebirth.

Ryan harbored no illusions of being 'the chosen one' or any kind of storybook hero. He was well aware that there must be a rationale for his rebirth, some higher power at play.

It was evident to Ryan that no earthly being could have orchestrated his resurrection, not after humanity's Awakening, not even those who had scaled the summit of power that the Awakening afforded. None could breathe life anew, let alone manipulate the timeline.

He supposed that some higher entity beyond Earth was responsible, perhaps the same that had triggered the Awakening of both beasts and humans. Yet the larger question loomed: Why him? Why was he selected to be reborn, and what purpose did altering the timeline serve? Was this entity attempting to prevent some future calamity?

Ryan's thoughts swirled chaotically, but he soon realized the futility of his ruminations. If a higher power was indeed involved, there was little fruit to be gained from his present speculation. Such mysteries were not to be unraveled in mere moments. He needed to take things one step at a time.

With a conscious effort, Ryan set aside these ponderings for the time being.

He turned his attention to locating the group of hunters with whom Ethan had come to hunt before the encounter with the three-eyed wolf which caused Ethan to stray from his companions.