R:IX "Devouring Tyrant "

"Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one." – Albert Einstein

Fate warps, time bends, and Ryuxian learns to nudge probability itself. What is real when reality can be altered?

Darkness wrapped around Ryuxian like a second skin, pressing in from all sides. The obsidian cave pulsed—alive, ancient, watching. He could feel it in his scales, an eerie sensation crawling up his spine.

His body trembled. His mind burned. The scorpion's fate surged inside him like wildfire, trying to carve itself into his being.

"What... the hell is this?"

Memories that weren't his flickered behind his eyes. A vast desert. The hunt. The kill. A creature lurking in the sand, waiting, striking, claiming its prey. The hunger. The instinct to survive.

Ryuxian thrashed, his long body coiling in agony as the visions warped his mind. His tongue flicked out instinctively—too fast. His movements were sharper, more precise. Something had changed.

And then, all at once—the pain stopped.

His breathing slowed. His body no longer ached. The heat that once seared his veins settled into something new. Something powerful.

He cracked open his glowing amber eyes.

"Did I... just level up?"

He flicked his tongue, testing the air. His senses were sharper, clearer. The cave wasn't just dark—it was alive. He could feel the way the stones shifted, the faint whispers of time itself pressing against reality.

And the best part?

"I feel awesome."

He wiggled experimentally, watching his scales shimmer. His body felt lighter, his movements smoother. He definitely got an upgrade from that scorpion.

"Alright! Time to test this out!"

He lunged forward—

—and immediately smacked into a rock.

A loud thud echoed through the cave. Dust rained down from above. Ryuxian groaned, rubbing his snout against the floor.

"Owwww. Okay. Maybe too much enthusiasm."

He shook himself off, acting like nothing happened (because obviously, nothing did happen), and continued forward.

The Cave Stirs

As he slithered deeper, the walls of the cave began to move.

At first, it was subtle. A ripple in the darkness. A shift in the air.

Then—the obsidian glowed.

Faint, pulsing veins of blue light slithered through the walls, flickering in response to him. They weren't just reacting to his presence.

They were recognizing him.

A slow, creeping feeling coiled in his gut.

"Did I just unlock something... or break something?"

Then the ground shuddered.

A deep, guttural growl reverberated through the cavern. The air crackled.

Something was waking up.

The Guardian of Fate

The shadows shifted, and a creature stepped forward.

A towering, skeletal beast, its body forged from obsidian shards and woven fate-energy. Its eyes burned with blue fire, hollow and endless.

Ryuxian froze.

"Nope."

He immediately turned around.

The beast moved faster than he expected.

A claw slammed down behind him, blocking his escape. The air twisted, bending in unnatural ways.

It wasn't attacking randomly.

It was changing his fate.

Ryuxian's pupils narrowed. His heart pounded. Every instinct screamed run—but deep down, he knew.

"I can't run from fate."

So instead—he faced it.

The beast lunged. Fate warped. The attack should have missed—

—but reality shifted.

The claw grazed him, just barely, scraping against his scales. Ryuxian hissed, his body instinctively moving before he could even think.

For the first time, he understood.

This wasn't about dodging

It was about nudging

A fraction of a second, a minuscule shift in probability—and fate bent around him. As the claw came down again, Ryuxian saw shadows of possible futures flicker before him: a direct hit, a glancing blow, a near miss. He focused, pushing his will into the shadows, nudging the outcome towards the near miss.

A grin spread across his face.

"Oh, this is gonna be fun."

Ryuxian moved, dancing between fate's strings. His body twisted, sliding through impossible openings. The beast's attacks missed by a hair, but one claw swiped down, far faster than he expected, the air twisting around it. He felt the weight of a deadly strike about to connect, a flicker of a future where his scales were shattered, but with a surge of focus he nudged fate, and the claw scrapped harmlessly along his side.

Then, his instincts screamed—an opening.

He struck.

His fangs sank into the obsidian beast.

And then—he absorbed as much as possible

A rush of energy slammed into him like a tidal wave. His vision blurred. His body shifted

New power. New knowledge

New possibilities

As the beast crumbled into fate's embrace, Ryuxian exhaled, his body still thrumming with newfound strength

He looked ahead

A new path had opened

His grin widened

"Alright, world. Let's see what else you've got."

Ryuxian slithered through the newly opened path, his body still thrumming with power. The obsidian cave had led him here—to ruins.

Towering stone pillars, cracked and worn by time, loomed over him. The ground was uneven, littered with ancient stones both large and small. Everything here felt old—like the world itself had long forgotten this place.

And yet…

A sound echoed through the ruins. A faint, familiar hum.

A sound he had been hearing time and time again.

Then—

"Ohh!! You came!"

A voice. Ethereal, distant—yet somehow warm.

Ryuxian blinked. His body tensed on instinct, but his mouth moved before he could think.

"Yeah, I came! What now?"

A soft, glowing dust drifted toward him—silver and gold, swirling like a miniature galaxy.

"Well, I'm the one who provided you the code."

Ryuxian's tongue flicked out. The dust had a strange, familiar presence. It wasn't just energy. It wasn't just magic.

It was something… different.

"Code? What code?" he asked, coiling slightly.

The dust shimmered, shifting into a delicate, celestial form—like a living constellation.

"The Serpent Code. The knowledge you've been hearing… the instincts guiding you. It was all my gift."

Ryuxian's scales prickled.

"Wait—are you saying… you're the reason I got reborn as a snake?"

Silence.

The dust glowed brighter.

"You're an Otherworlder, aren't you?"

The words hit him like a strike to the head.

Ryuxian froze.

His thoughts scattered. His heart—if he even had one in this form—pounded.

She knew...!??

She knew !...how !?

He didn't reply.

The dust swirled closer, surrounding him like stardust caught in an unseen wind.

Then—

"You were not meant to be reborn as a reptile… but fate wove a different thread." The God of fate's voice was calm, almost clinical, like a doctor observing a curious anomaly.

The celestial form shifted, taking a more defined shape—graceful, divine.

"I am the God of Fate. And you, little serpent, are a mistake I intend to correct."

The ruins trembled.

Ryuxian narrowed his eyes.

"Oh… that doesn't sound good."

"He who controls others may be powerful, but he who has mastered himself is mightier still." – Lao Tzu

The God of Fate seeks to correct a 'mistake,' but Ryuxian is no mere pawn. He is learning to control not just his power, but his destiny.