The violence of that final explosion was more severe than dozens of the previous ones, which were already enough to rattle everything about Adam. His thoughts struggled to return as the white faded. Instead of color returning, the white simply dimmed. It became gray and then turned to black, becoming darkness that his struggling thoughts wanted to find a place within.

As if the shaking to his essence wasn't bad enough, there was now a bloated feeling in his soul. It reminded Adam of needing to loosen a belt by many notches after eating too much at a Thanksgiving dinner. The sensation was reminiscent of when he had connected his class space with the one in Cruxannith.

That time, it had felt like there was no space left inside him as he pressed to inflate the class space just enough that he could use it. If the scenes he had witnessed were memories from past lives that he was taking in, then it meant his soul was so full that memories wouldn't continue to fit inside.

Unavailable space for memories was a problem that he would need to address before it worsened. Especially if he might inadvertently absorb more memories from hacking the [System Conduits].

In the present, there was a more pressing concern for Adam. Each time he had watched those time-lapsed scenes of the devices being constructed, ending with the destruction of everything, including himself, he had come back to consciousness with the vibrations gone. This time, the vibrations continued. They were even worse than before.

Adam shook and trembled. His being was jostled as though explosions occurred all around him. It even felt like Adam could hear sounds added to the vibrating energy, such as screams and shouts.

"Quiet down," he groaned as if nursing a hangover, as he wished for the shaking to stop.

"Adam! Are you awake?" asked an almost recognizable voice. It felt like it shouted from far away and through a pool of water.

"Just make the shaking stop," Adam mumbled, not quite aware enough to realize what had happened.

"Sorry. Can't," stated the voice flatly.

The sounds were growing clearer, and for the first time Adam realized he was back in his body. The darkness that he experienced had been his closed eyes. They snapped open, only to snap close again. He groaned in pain from the light.

"What did they put in your food for it to wipe you out like that?" asked Carlos.

Adam's regained sensations allowed him to realize that Carlos was dragging him by the armpits while crouching close to the ground. The continued shaking was from his lower half being jostled by uneven asphalt on the highway, as well as the large sword on his back snagging on every bit of debris or crack on the road.

"Wasn't the food," stated Adam tersely.

"Then what did this to you?" asked Carlos.

"The [System]."

"Oh, yeah. That thing," spat Carlos sarcastically.

Carlos stopped moving and lowered Adam's upper body. With a hiss and clenched teeth, Adam rolled himself over and opened his eyes. It took a moment to push himself to his hands and knees.

"In case you weren't aware, this isn't a good place to rest," stated Carlos.

"What? Why?" asked Adam in confusion.

Then he looked around. Not a good place was an understatement. All the sounds Adam thought he had heard came from his surroundings. Carlos had dragged him to the edge of the most chaos battle he had seen. This wasn't a fight where both sides lined up, or where defensive positions were set.

Thousands of troops from both sides fought, humans versus Drathan. Small groups or individuals were spaced all over. They were on all the surrounding roads and overpasses, even below on the ground. The winged mounts the Drathan used were flying around, trying to take out ground bound humans while falling prey to gunmen on the nearby skiff.

Direct combat followed no order as warriors charged casters, defenders tried to protect anyone nearby, support classes were physically striking out, and ranged spells and projectiles flew everywhere. Fire and explosions burst all around them, wind raged like a tornado from wind spells, the ground erupted in stone, and all the while the pre-[System] highways shook and cracked.

"We've been fighting to retreat," interjected Carlos, bringing Adam's attention from the chaotic war around him. The scene reminded him of old videos of wars, except if they used magic instead of artillery. Everyone was trying to get as close to the enemies as possible to reduce the amount of enemy fire they might take.

"After you went down and that fire Drathan began raging, we moved in as fast as possible. Nick had been trailing you but waited outside the Drathan territory. Good thing he stayed that close too. After you collapsed, he was the only reason you weren't immediately beheaded by the Drathan's sword."

"I'll be sure to send him a bouquet for thanks," grumbled Adam, ashamed for not thinking of what might be happening to his body while he was interacting with the [System]. "How bad are things?"

"Bad," said Carlos flatly. "We're losing men quickly. It's been about fifteen minutes. Lamar and Nick are trying to keep those three you dined with busy while the rest of our army is just engaging while I drag you away. Too many of our troops are supporting against the bosses to allow Nick and Lamar to fight them."

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"Guess I need to get back to it," said Adam as he pushed his way to his feet. His head rang a bit and along with the bloated feeling, he was a bit wrung out and energy starved.

"Are you sure you can?" asked Carlos as he watched Adam stagger. "I can't let you go out there in this state."

"Think you can stop me?" threatened Adam, staring directly into Carlos's eyes.

Carlos barked a sarcastic laugh.

"Even your glaring seems lethargic," he said with a wry smile. "I'd feel better if you were closer to 100%, but I can help my friends against the bosses as long as you protect yourself. Just make sure you don't hold us back."

With a nod, Adam pulled out his sword and turned around. The ground had become dangerous, and he didn't even know where to step to move safely. Due to already unsteady legs, Adam pulled a blood pack from his pocket and sucked it down, feeling the way it restored his muscles.

But there was still something wrong.

Usually, Adam's heat and river would have threatened to set his insides on fire. With all the invaders around him, the damage he had taken, and the situation he faced, the berserker pseudo-skill [Unquenchable Rage] usually would try to overwhelm him. The voice of the corruption in his soul should also scream at him. Yet, everything inside was quiet. There was a stillness that Adam hadn't felt since that day at school when the [System] arrived.

Adam pulled on it. He tried to activate the pseudo-skill, which he wasn't sure how to do since it had been perpetually active. Instead of power, he felt weak. Hollow. Inside, he had nothing besides a quivering absence.

Taking a deep breath, Adam realized he couldn't even get naturally angry. If anything, all he could feel was a chilled fear.

That made him think of the cold, and he reached for his [Soul Forger] pseudo-skills. He moved towards where three Drathan were fighting five humans. When he got within range, Adam used [Soul Bolt] on a mage with orange cracks in their skin.

The pseudo-skill activated, and the invader bent over in pain. Then Adam used [Gladiator's Approach]. Instantly he was behind the mage, and he brought his sword down.

Drathan "Flame Attendant [35]" slain. 7,152 XP gained.

The other two Drathan barely noticed him. One with two long ethereal daggers and green cracks in his skin began to turn around, but Adam stabbed him in the side with his sword. Then he opened [Soul and Body Shaping] to 60% for the stat increase. Strength flowed in, but it wasn't as impactful as usual. The modifier he got from the [Power from Rage] pseudo-skill had no rage to empower Adam with.

"How did…" began a Drathan who held an oblong shield that looked like part of his arm. He didn't finish his words as Adam swung his sword, with the struggling green tinted Drathan that he had stabbed, into the defender. They both slammed into the ground and the humans they had been facing hurried forward and finished them off.

Drathan "Swift Gust [32]" slain. 4,922 shared XP gained. Drathan "Defiant Stand [28]" slain. 4,375 shared XP gained.

Pulling his sword away, Adam focused on the feeling of the XP entering him. He was like a desert where someone dropped a barrel of water onto. In the past when he ran out of soul energy, it endangered his life. He didn't feel like his life was drained or that his soul was damaged or empty.

"Only my rage seems to be missing," grumbled Adam to himself. "At least my other abilities worked."

The five humans thanked Adam with a bow or salute, and then they rushed off to help another group about 100 feet away. Carlos put his hand on Adam.

"You still seem weak, but you moved fine."

"Let's get this done," agreed Adam.

Carlos and Adam's run along the highway wasn't fast. Drathan would still target them, forcing them to fight. Adam would also teleport around to take down Drathan fighting humans, to better give the Sentinel Army soldiers a chance to survive. They also needed to keep above supporting pillars for the highway for fear of it crumbling and dropping them below.

Every kill infused Adam with energy, bringing him closer to a normal feeling inside. Something had been done to him, and Adam wasn't sure if it was due to the memories he had absorbed, some disruption in his soul from experiencing the end of everything so many times, or possibly due to an action by the [System].

One fear that pushed through the other possibilities was that if Adam's soul was truly at capacity, would new memories be forgotten or would they push out old ones. And if the old ones faded, did that mean he was likely to forget the memories of skills that he inherited from future Adam and Gregor. Where would Adam even be if he lost those pseudo-skills and the stats he drew from Gregor?

It was with those thoughts and anxieties, instead of the usual rage, that Adam approached the site where he had eaten with the three Drathan. Sure enough, the table and meat were no longer there. Neither was the overpass they had been on. For a quarter of a mile, all the highways had collapsed or were crumbled rubble.

"It was here when I dragged you away," said Carlos when Adam looked at him. Then he pointed in the direction they had come from, the nearly two miles that Carlos had pulled Adam through enemies and attacks.

With a shrug, Adam took a step back and then leapt off the overpass he was on.

The fight below Adam was just as chaotic as those Adam had passed by on the way here. Lamar was running in a circle outside of the other combatants. He would vault piles of rubble, roll on flat ground to avoid attacks, and take half a second to shoot an arrow every chance he could.

Nick was trying to fend off the Blaze Scion's large sword with a combat knife. The Blaze Scion's sword had flames coming off it while Nick's knife was misshapen due to the heat. Nick also had burns on his jacket, pants, and face.

Keeping as far from the enemies as they could were other Sentinel Army soldiers, mostly support and protector classes. They were trying to keep Nick and Lamar buffed and healed, while putting occasional debuffs on the Drathan.

Patches of ice appeared under where Lamar was headed, and he was challenged by changing directions to avoid it. When his arrows approached the Aerial Bombadeer, pockets of air would implode, and the arrow would change direction. The Blizzard Mistress had plates of ice rotating around her that would intercept any arrows.

It looked like a losing battle for the humans.

Adam still didn't feel the berserker rage inside, but even with his impotent fury, he was seething at seeing his friends struggle against their enemies. A deep breath while falling filled Adam's lungs to use [Incapacitating Roar]. All the combatants looked at him in surprise, with the three Drathan momentarily pausing their motions.

With the stats he had access to from the memory of Gregor, the roar was powerful enough to catch the Tier 4 Drathan, but Adam knew that without the rage modifiers it wasn't nearly as powerful as when he had used it against the Juungii Archbishops.

Nick used the moment to spin away from the Blaze Scion. He used his binding skill and shadows rose from below the Blizzard Mistress as a black line was pinched between Nick's fingers and her.

Lamar also took the time to stop running and to concentrate. Three arrows were put on his bow simultaneously and they all flashed five times from his skills. An ominous glow lit the arrowheads.

Even though the Drathan were stunned, the Blaze Scion was fighting against it. His eyes burned with fury and his body shook as he managed to turn his head towards the descending Adam.

"What…did…you…do?!" he bellowed, as Adam noticed for the first time that the fiery Drathan's tag resembled a smudge.

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