1 His Undying Will
"I can't die now… not yet!" Adam Murdock powered through the pain as he tightened his loosening grip. He tried hard holding on to his sword, even attempting to pass it unto his other hand. His efforts, however, were all for naught—He had no other hand. An enemy soldier had cut it off clean moments ago. Adam's vision started blurring. "... Not yet," he whispered, gritting his teeth, unyielding his dying breath. Unfortunately, a swing soon ended his struggle. It was a pitiful sight—an unforeseen attack decapitated him.
*Thud!*
Adam's body fell, lifeless; his severed head tumbling on the bloodied ground. He died without ever nearing his goal: To save his family from the grasp of the Cyrus Kingdom. It was a cruel fate that led him to become a militiaman of the same kingdom, bound by the promise of freedom for him and his family. It was all lies; Adam knew of it. But he had nothing to defy and escape the bindings of the strong.
"This world is too cruel for the weak."
---
Screams of terror awoke Adam. From the window of what seemed to be a hut, he saw a burning village — It was his home village. "Dad!" he heard someone call. It was his daughter! Adam stood up and immediately ran to her room. The door was already wide open when he arrived, "Dad!" his daughter cried for help as she was being dragged by Cyrus's soldiers. Adam could not mistake their identity; The black snake insignia on their armor plates could not belong to anyone else but them.
"Let go of my daughter, you bastards!" Adam angrily charged. However, his fist just went through the soldier who did not notice his presence. Everyone in the room was seemingly unaware of him; like he wasn't even there at all. 'What is going on?!' confusion flooded Adam. "Dad!" his daughter wept, oblivious of his father standing right in front of her.
A different cry resounded from the room whence he came. There, another group of soldiers surrounded his wife. 'This…' It then dawned on him. Everything that was happening had already happened five years ago.
It was when the Cyrus Kingdom attacked Bushel Village.
"Adam!" It was her wife's turn to cry for help. The Cyrus soldiers started ripping off her clothes, stripping her naked. She struggled, resisting with all her strength, but against a group of trained men, she was helpless. The scene was such a hellscape — the soldiers ganged up on her like there was no tomorrow.
Adam tried tackling them off, but his effort was to no avail. "What kind of sick dream is this!?" he exclaimed, thrashing around the room, which was unaffected by whatever he was doing. It was all a dream. No… It was a terrifying nightmare.
"What kind of 'sick dream', you ask? Is it perhaps something you want to change?" Out came a voice from the void. Adam looked around, but saw no one talking, "Who—Who are you?! And why are you doing this to me?!" Adam threw a fit. The voice's calm tone amidst the dire situation incensed him.
"I am absolutely doing nothing to you. This is… all you. You created this hell all by yourself." the voice explained, "But this hell, is also your salvation. You, my friend, could never change the past, but the future, however, is always up to you. Wake up. This is not the end… We're not done yet."
Adam was clueless about what the voice was meant. Suddenly, a bright light enveloped his vision.
---
Adam's supposedly dead body writhed. His left and only arm erratically moved as if it were looking for something important. It swept around the mushy ground, flicking off blood-drenched soil up the air. Adam's fickling hand stopped when it finally grasped what it was looking for — its own severed head.
Like piecing a human-shaped puzzle, Adam attached his head back in place. It was an ungodly miracle! "With your undying spirit, you have successfully unlocked [A Will That Conquers Death]," A familiar voice resounded in his head; It was the same voice as the one in his nightmare.
'What is happening?' Adam thought, as he could, now that his head was back in place. As if to answer him, the voice spoke once more. "They killed you, but you didn't die because of your unrelenting will. I have granted you a gift, [A Will That Conquers Death], that will enable you to change your previously doomed fate. Go forth and change your future—It is yours to control."
---
Adam Murdock
Class - Undead
Level - 1 (0/10)
[Health - 120] Charges - 3
[Mana - 12]
...
[Abilities]
"A Will That Conquers Death"
Grants the user the Undone System.
Enables Life Charge - Gains expendable health bars. If all charges are consumed, the user would then enter 'Recovery State', regenerating health points and charges. Recovery time varies depending on the user's overall physical condition. (Life Charge can be improved through leveling.)
"The Undead" (Class Specific)
Grants resistance against Dark magic.
Grants total immunity against status ailments.
Grants the ability to communicate with monsters belonging to Undead class.
...
[Skills]
"Authority of the Undone" (Level 1) - Command monsters belonging to the Undead class. The monster's level must be lower than that of the user. Mana consumption depends on the level of the monster being controlled. (Level 1 - Can control up to 5 units at a time)
...
Equipment - None
---
Adam could not believe what he was seeing. A mysterious sheet listing everything—from his name to all the newly found abilities he has—suddenly appeared in front of him. Adam was curious but did not look further into the sheets. Instead, he inspected his own body. Now classified as an "Undead" meant he really died, but was then revived (sort of). Adam saw that he was still missing his right arm, and all the injuries he sustained were still there, untreated... but he was not bleeding to death anymore. Somehow, he was still "alive" — an assumption which might not be true, "... Heurgh?" (Am I really an undead now?)
Nonsensical words came out of Adam's mouth. He now lost his ability to speak normally.
Before Adam could even do anything to grasp and understand the situation fully, an enemy soldier suddenly rushed towards him, fitfully swinging a long sword. 'Right, I'm still on a battlefield.'
Adam reflexively dodged the incoming attack. He then picked up a sword and countered, fending the crazed enemy off. His movements were fluid — uncharacteristic to that of a typical undead, 'How is this even possible?' It baffled Adam. A side sweep swiftly ended the enemy.
"Gained + 10 EXP"... "Congratulations, you leveled up!"... "Level - 2"
It took a few more fights before Adam discovered how he could move faster; He was missing a lot of flesh. Besides the fact that he was without an entire arm, other parts of his body with deep cuts and severe injuries were starting to "shed" flesh — solid chunks of mass and muscles were dropping on the ground like fecal matter. His pearly white bones were becoming visible.
"Gained + 20 EXP"... "Congratulations, you leveled up!"... "Level - 4"
"Gained + 10 EXP"... "Congratulations, you leveled up!"... "Level - 5"
"Gained + 20 EXP"... "Congratulations, you leveled up!"... "Level - 7"
How did he become an undead suddenly? Adam did not care for answers anymore. Those reasons were now trivial matters to him. The power to become stronger — once reserved for heroes of mankind — was now in his hands.
'I… I could finally save my family!' Adam felt ecstatic.
---
Adam Murdock
Class - Undead
Level - 7 (0/10)
[Health - 240] Charges - 3
[Mana - 42]
---
Adam, now unbound by the false promise of freedom, indiscriminately started killing people on the battlefield; May it be the enemy or Cyrus soldiers; he did not care. Everyone around him was his enemy. However, the glaring black snake insignia eventually triggered Adam's rage. Instinctively, he started killing more Cyrus' soldiers than actual enemies. This traitorous act gradually drew a lot of heated attention towards Adam. "What are you doing, soldier?" A squad leader who passed by asked after seeing Adam purposely attacking Cyrus' soldiers amidst the furious battle.
Unable to talk properly, Adam kept his silence and feigned ignorance, attacking the actual enemies once more. However, the Cyrus soldiers around him caught up to his act and started maneuvering their way towards him. Adam was slowly being surrounded. "He's a spy, kill him now!" the squad leader commanded. Around twelve soldiers attacked Adam at once. Lacking a thing to shield against the swords raining down on him, Adam proactively made use of his flesh instead.
[Health - 20] Charges - 3.
A single barrage of attacks alone culled off a huge amount of his health points. Adam clicked his tongue, something which was still, somehow, possible after his cheek flesh deteriorated. 'I can't just take their attacks every time. I have to do something…'
Contrary to everyone's expectation, blood never squirted out from the cuts on Adam's body. "He's a monster!" one soldier exclaimed. The squad leader hopped off of his horse to assist, "Looks like there's a necromancer amongst the enemy. Look for him!" he instructed. "Also, ask the Order of the Holy Knights for assistance. There might be more undead amongst our ranks," he added.
"And as for you, unholy summon," the squad leader pointed his blade glinting from the bright afternoon sun towards Adam.
"I'll deal with you personally."
