An End - 1

What once was, never would be again.

A hand drifted over the hilt of a spear, a wand, a sword. A weapon that was everything yet nothing at all times. An existence that was cyclical. Only known to the user what it would be.

But now, that user pulled forth and out came a spear. So decorated and elaborate that one would think it merely a decorative piece fit for some nobles adornment, above a fireplace where it would stay until it rusted.

Yet in the hands of the user, a worldly angel, it was deadly. It struck, without even a moment's notice. Without even a sign that it had connected.

[Legendary Trait: Pierce activated - thrust weapons deal 800% more damage]

[Rare Trait: Wind Walker activated - When in the air damage dealt deals 20% more damage]

[Legendary Trait: Spearmanship activated - 400%]

[-38.4M]

[Void of the End]

[HP: 10.2M/100B]

Another strike, another parry, and the traits of the worldly angel activated once more. A string of light connected it to his enemy. His eyes scrunched and even through that light he was able to see the line of attack.

What he needed to do in order to take down his final enemy. The Void of the End, even debuffed to high heaven, still had over a hundred billion HP and after hours of damage and healing. And even more of just maintaining an advantage of damage over its natural regen.

It finally happened, one last thrust taken with all of the abilities of the angel. And for the first time in the history of the game, for the first time ever, the void of the end had died.

An explosion, dodged only by years of heightened reflexes gained by hundreds of thousands of hours of gaming. Over thousands of which were spent only to learn the patterns of this boss. 

Gabriel laughed, his voice reaching the very heavens with how great it was. He laughed, he cried. He went through cycle after cycle of emotion. Where each one was followed by the next.

[Void of the End]

[HP: 0/100B]

He fell to the void of the ground, where once it could only be traversed by wings. It was now solid. It was practically solid ground with the new trait that he had gained. 

All for the death of this boss. 

[Mythical Trait gained: One who has traversed the void - a level beyond normal, beyond even extraordinary, a man who has conquered more than a single one should ever be capable of. I gift to thee a boon created with the last vestiges of my life. May it help you grow ever stronger, for the man who had killed me should bow to none, be lesser than none.]

[Congratulations to player [Space] for completing the game, please log out as the final update commences, once again we congratulate user [Space] for the completion of our game please, conquer once again as the one who has made it to the peak]

…

A game, one that connects the user's senses to itself. A game in which a person's reflexes and physical skills reign supreme. 

Or at least that was what was shown to the people at the beginning, those that flocked to what was shown as the greatest leap in technology. A game so immersive that it was as if they had been transported into the world.

Then it was released, and millions flocked to it on the first day. Then the second day millions more.

Month after month it gained popularity, only for it to be forgotten as the next big hit came out. A game that gave the same immersive experience except for one caveat.

It was easier, it gave a quarter where the previous game would give none. And so people flocked to that game and the next, then the next after that.

Years passed and the game, known to many as Cyclical, passed by, its insane difficulty shone and passed in niches only to be forgotten once more when people could never get past the first tower. 

The first floor, a kingdom that was in war, where players would take sides and fight epic battles only to be discarded and killed. This was the gist of the first floor and while some were able to fight past it.

To take their mark and make it to the second floor, that was a minority. Out of the millions that tried only an estimated hundred thousand ever made it to the second floor. Never more than that at a time.

Gabriel was one of those, but there was something different about him. Something that even he did know about himself.

It was revealed when out of those hundreds of thousands, after years and years of playing, had never gotten past the tenth floor, it was only then that he shone. His determination brought him to greater and greater heights.

To the top of the tower where he fought the Void of the End, where he beat the game that most thought of as impossible. 

Where he threw his helmet to the ground. His eyes sunken and hollow, malnutrition and low body weight.

A body that had not been cared for in years.

"Twenty-three years" He mumbled to himself. His eyes hollow. Out of the current population, most made it to the ripe age of two hundred, aided by medical techniques that revolutionized health care.

But that was still a long while, from his teens, a thirteen year old who had just discovered the game, to a disgruntled thirty-six year old. It was to that that he woke up to.

A face that he could not recognize. 

"You" he smiles sardonically into the mirror. Not because of any misgivings but because of the simple fact that he spent more of his life as [Space] then he ever did as his own person.

It was to such a point that he could not even recognize himself in the mirror. And now that it was over, now what? What was he to do when his entire life was done? When everything he had worked towards was completed.