Darkness.
Not the comforting kind that wraps around you in sleep, but the cold, clinical black of isolation—the kind that seeps under your skin and hollows you out from within.
Asher Nyx sat cross-legged in a room without windows, without clocks, and without sound. A white room. Four padded walls. A camera in each corner. Lights that never turned off. The place he was born. Not biologically, but existentially.
He had another name, long ago—one no one ever called him. He didn't remember it. No one in the facility used names. Only numbers.
Subject 47-IX.
He was eight years old the first time he killed. A fellow child subject had gone feral during a psychotropic trial, tearing into a technician. The door wouldn't open until one subject was left standing.
Asher had survived.
That was the first lesson. "Only results matter."
---
"Your empathy is a defect," said the man with silver eyes. He had no name either, but Asher called him Ashborne—his first and only mentor. Not out of love, but respect.
Ashborne trained him in everything: knife fighting, emotional suppression, battlefield psychology, explosive disarmament, and thirty-seven languages. He also trained Asher to think like a predator.
"Don't aim to win," Ashborne once said. "Aim to ensure no one else gets the chance."
At sixteen, Asher was already a ghost in the intelligence community. At seventeen, he dismantled a global smuggling ring and leaked its financial records to crash six economies—because a buyer wanted "economic chaos in the Pacific." He didn't care why.
The work paid in freedom. In autonomy.
But the past caught up.
The jet exploded midair. No warning. No final words.
Just heat.
And then—
Light.
---
Back in the present, aboard the commandeered pirate ship now limping toward the West Blue, Asher Nyx stood at the helm.
The crew was silent, terrified.
They hadn't dared fight back after he killed their first mate in cold blood. Instead, he offered a choice: follow him, or swim. He was cold. Unfeeling. But logical. He hadn't killed anyone else—yet.
Their captain, a fat, trembling man named Boru, had handed over control without protest.
Now Asher sat on a barrel, his black hair tousled by the sea wind, dagger spinning between his fingers.
The system chimed again.
> [Mission Completed: Establish Presence]
Reward: 200 FP
New Quest: Learn Haki (Observation)
Objective: Engage in 5 consecutive combat scenarios without using system assistance.
Bonus: Unlock Observation Haki Potential
Reward: 250 FP
> Summon Shop Unlocked
He opened the panel.
A grid of glowing cards filled the screen—familiar names from his past life, from Fairy Tail.
> [Summon Options - Tier 1 (100 FP Minimum)]
Happy – 100 FP
Cana Alberona – 150 FP
Gray Fullbuster (Base) – 200 FP
Elfman Strauss – 200 FP
Levy McGarden – 180 FP
Jet & Droy (bundle) – 170 FP
Biska Mulan – 200 FP
> Tier 2, 3, 4: Locked
Upgrades Available After Summon Training
Asher closed the panel. He had power now—but it wasn't enough. Not here. Not yet.
"Cana or Gray," he murmured. "Both have good utility. But…"
He didn't summon anyone yet. His instinct told him to wait. The sea wasn't kind to the reckless. Besides, he had always preferred to test the field before playing a card.
His mind turned to the Haki challenge.
He had read about it in the system's lore files. Observation Haki. The ability to sense the presence, emotions, and movements of others. Useful. Strategic. He needed that—especially before he encountered Devil Fruit users.
"Captain Nyx!" one of the pirates stammered. "Land ahead! Some kind of island."
Asher stood. His sharp grey eyes narrowed.
Good. His first test.
He sheathed his dagger, cracked his neck, and stepped down to the lower deck.
"Prepare to dock. Small team with me. The rest stay and guard the ship. If it's not me returning, burn it."
"Y-yes sir."
---
Minutes later, Asher stepped onto the sandy shore of a small, remote island. Palm trees swayed lazily. The sun baked the dirt path. Birds chirped overhead.
Too peaceful.
He glanced at the system panel again.
> Optional Mission: Investigate Island Ruins (Combat Encounter Likely)
Reward: 50 FP
Bonus: +1 Endurance if completed with no summons
He grinned slightly.
"Perfect."
The jungle ahead rustled. Asher slipped his dagger free again and disappeared into the underbrush.
Let the training begin.