The arena for this next trial wasn't just a room it was an entire microcosm, floating in a liminal void outside conventional space. Stars drifted lazily in all directions, shifting, colliding, bending light, and shadows as if the universe itself had been painted in broad, chaotic strokes.
Astro's shadows stretched and curled across the shimmering terrain. "This… ain't normal. Feels like we're inside the universe's brain or something."
Lyara's glow cut through the darkness, casting soft light over the group. "Exactly. This is designed to test your Threads. Not just your combat skill, but your mind, your instincts, your will. Every node you unlock will come with a cost."
The First Node: Shadows of Self
Astro stepped forward. He had to awaken his first Thread Node, tied to his shadow-light essence. As he concentrated, the arena split into multiple layers: each one representing a version of himself across infinite timelines.
Past failures, where he hesitated
Possible futures, where he fell to enemies he hadn't faced yet
Dark thoughts, amplified and made tangible
A dark clone lunged at him, whispering taunts in his own voice. "You'll never be strong enough. You're just human trash."
Astro's heart pounded. He dodged, shadows extending like blades. But each strike carried psychological backlash, forcing him to relive every failure, every self-doubt. The arena distorted time, making minutes feel like centuries.
He gritted his teeth. "Enough… I define myself. Not you."
With a surge of shadow-light harmony, the clone dissolved. The first Thread Node glowed, embedding itself deep within him. Pain, exhaustion, and a sense of rebirth crashed over him simultaneously.
Tenji's Node: Environmental Resonance
Tenji's golden aura flared as he approached his node. The arena shifted rocks, air, energy flows, and gravity bent around him. Every particle of the environment responded to his aura, testing whether he could harmonize with more than just his physical body.
Rocks attacked as if alive
Gravity shifted in unpredictable waves
Energy surged from the ground into his body, threatening to overwhelm him
He clenched his fists, golden light pulsating. "Bruh… calm down, universe. Big dawg in control."
By letting his aura sync with the environment, Tenji transformed chaos into attack, firing golden shockwaves that shattered obstacles while protecting him from the arena's violent feedback. His first Thread Node activated, harmonizing body, aura, and terrain.
Hunter's Node: Probability and Perception
Hunter faced a fractured timeline simulation thousands of attacks happening simultaneously, each one slightly different, each branching into multiple possibilities. His Omni-Grid couldn't track it all… yet.
Threads required him to sync intuition, probability calculation, and foresight
One misstep and a cascade of illusions would kill him repeatedly
His mind screamed as time warped around him, showing him impossible outcomes
He breathed, letting his instinct and the Thread guide him. Patterns emerged not just numerical probabilities, but emotional and instinctual flows of enemies. He predicted attacks before they were executed.
Node activated. Pain coursed through him, but clarity followed partial perception of probable futures and instinctual reaction time expanded beyond mortal limits.
Phantom's Node: Infinite Mirage and Autonomy
Phantom's clones swirled around him, acting independently. The trial manifested mirrors of the squad dying in brutal, endless loops. His mind was assaulted from all sides.
Shadows tried to act on their own will, sometimes misfiring, hurting him
Time distortion made every strike feel like hours of agony
Emotional echoes of death and failure threatened to fracture his psyche
He let the Thread flow, giving clones partial autonomy while connecting them to his consciousness. Each strike, dodge, and adaptation fed back into the Thread, teaching him control through chaos.
The Node activated. He collapsed briefly, shadows folding around him like a cocoon. When he rose, his clones were smarter, faster, and instinctually adaptive, a fraction of his future power manifesting now.
Hints of Partial Evolution
The squad regrouped. Exhaustion painted every face. Threads had activated, but the evolution was only beginning. Subtle changes were visible:
Astro's eyes flickered with shadow-light interference, capable of perceiving multiple temporal paths
Tenji's aura resonated with the environment, leaving ripples in the terrain with every movement
Hunter's perception stretched across probability fields, giving him an almost precognitive edge
Phantom's clones acted semi-autonomously, reflecting his tactical intent even when he wasn't consciously controlling them
Lyara's voice cut through the arena's chaos: "This is just the start. You've unlocked the first nodes, but full evolution will take time, sacrifice, and repeated trials. The stones you touched are catalysts your Threads will awaken completely, eventually. Until then, you're still human in appearance, but your potential is god-tier."
Astro smiled weakly, exhaustion radiating off him. "Guess Big dawg evolution… officially started. Universe better take notes."