[COMPREHENSIVE INTEGRATION COMMENCING]
[BRACE FOR PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSE]
The pain began immediately, radiating from somewhere deep in his chest. Not sharp or burning but dense and expanding, as if something inside him stretched beyond its natural dimensions. Sunny clenched his teeth. He refused to scream even as the pressure built behind his eyes, even as his skin felt too tight for his skeleton.
The floating panel expanded, wrapping around him in a cocoon of light. Through the luminous shell, he could see the room distorting, reality bending around him as his body became the epicenter of some cosmic transformation.
His consciousness stretched thin across dimensions he could not previously perceive. Knowledge poured into him—concepts beyond human language, the fundamental structures of reality revealing themselves in explosions of understanding.
How long it lasted, he could not say. Time became meaningless as his perception expanded beyond its linear constraints. He experienced his pain across multiple timelines simultaneously, felt himself dying in countless potential futures while surviving in this one singular thread of existence.
When it finally subsided, he remained standing—though he did not remember getting to his feet. The room had changed, or perhaps his perception of it had transformed. He could see the atomic structure of the walls, could feel the energy fields permeating the air, could sense the dimensional barriers separating this space from countless others.
The panel reappeared before him, simpler now:
[INTEGRATION SUCCESSFUL]
[ALL PARAMETERS INCORPORATED]
[STATUS: OPTIMAL]
He looked down at his hands. They appeared unchanged to normal vision, but when he shifted his perception, he could see energy coursing through them—through his entire body—in complex patterns that he somehow understood perfectly.
He focused on the stone floor beneath him. With barely a thought, a section liquefied, reshaped itself, and solidified into a simple chair. He sat, testing the limits of his awareness. He could perceive the entire structure around him, could feel the presence of beings moving in adjacent dimensions, could sense the watchful attention of the gods themselves observing from their realm.
"I know you are watching," he said calmly.
The air shimmered, and the three avatars materialized before him. Their expressions betrayed concern—perhaps even fear—though they struggled to maintain composure.
"You have chosen... expansively," said the first, the woman with windswept hair. "More than any before you."
"We did not expect such ambition," admitted the second, the man with stars beneath his skin.
"Nor such success in the integration," added the third, their form shifting subtly. "Most would have been destroyed by the process."
Sunny regarded them with new eyes that saw beyond their avatars to the true forms concealed behind them. They were indeed vast and incomprehensible, but no longer beyond his understanding.
"You promised anything," he said simply.
"And we have delivered," the first acknowledged. "But that power, its too much for you told hold right now."
He felt it before he could respond—a sudden contraction, as if reality itself was being pulled away from his grasp. The expanded awareness that had allowed him to perceive the atomic structure of walls began to recede. The energy patterns flowing through his body dimmed from his perception. The comprehension of dimensional barriers faded like a dream upon waking.
"What are you doing?" he demanded, rising from his chair.
The panel reappeared before him, text scrolling rapidly:
[POWER STABILIZATION PROTOCOL ENGAGED]
[ADJUSTING TO HOST CAPACITY]
[RECALIBRATING...]
[ALL ABILITIES SET TO LEVEL 0]
[GROWTH PATHWAY ESTABLISHED]
"Level zero?" He read aloud, disbelief hardening into anger. "You promised no limitations!"
The second avatar stepped forward, constellation skin shifting beneath his human facade. "We promised you everything, and everything you shall have. But even gods require time to grow into their power."
"Your mortal form cannot contain what you demanded all at once," explained the third. "The integration would have succeeded temporarily, but your body would have burned away within days—perhaps hours."
Sunny attempted to manipulate the stone floor again, focusing his will as he had moments before. Nothing happened. The knowledge remained—he understood how to reshape matter at a fundamental level—but the ability to execute had been locked away.
"This is a betrayal," he said, voice dangerously quiet.
"This is preservation," corrected the first avatar. "Your parameters were incorporated exactly as requested: no limitations on power growth, no arbitrary caps, no hidden restrictions. Complete control over all abilities once unlocked. Immunity to mental influence." She gestured toward the panel. "Everything is there, but you must grow into it."
[CURRENT STATUS]
[PHYSICAL ENHANCEMENT: LEVEL 0/∞]
[MENTAL AUGMENTATION: LEVEL 0/∞]
[ENERGY MANIPULATION: LEVEL 0/∞]
[SPATIAL CONTROL: LEVEL 0/∞]
[TEMPORAL INFLUENCE: LEVEL 0/∞]
[BIOLOGICAL MANIPULATION: LEVEL 0/∞]
[MATTER CONVERSION: LEVEL 0/∞]
[DIMENSIONAL ACCESS: LEVEL 0/∞]
[UNIVERSAL COMPREHENSION: LEVEL 0/∞]
"You will notice the absence of upper limits," the second avatar pointed out. "The potential for infinity remains, but you must earn each level. Your capabilities will grow as you use them, as you face challenges worthy of advancement."
Sunny stared at the list. The promised powers remained, but reduced to potential rather than reality. He wondered if he had been naive to think the gods would grant him such power without conditions. Perhaps they feared what he might become—what he might do once fully empowered.
"And the duty you mentioned?" he asked finally.
"Beyond lies your first assignment," the third avatar said, gesturing toward the doorway. "A world where a so-called hero has upset the cosmic balance."
Sunny narrowed his eyes. "Hero?"
"Yes." The first avatar's expression hardened. "Throughout the multiverse, there exist individuals who are deemed 'heroes' by their local populations. Chosen ones. Saviors. Beacons of hope."
"And this concerns me how?" He asked, though he was beginning to understand.
The second avatar stepped forward. "These heroes often arise in response to threats—dark lords, demon kings, calamities. They are granted powers, destinies, divine favor. But what most realms fail to understand is that these heroes themselves become disruptions."
"Cosmic balance requires both creation and destruction," explained the third. "When a hero prevents the natural cycle of decline, they create ripples across dimensions. These ripples compound over time, threatening the structural integrity of multiple realities."
Sunny absorbed this information with growing interest. "So my duty..."
"You are to hunt these heroes," confirmed the first avatar. "To remove them from their equations. Not always through death—sometimes through redirection or neutralization. But the result must be the same: the natural order restored."
The panel before him updated:
[MISSION CLARIFIED]
[TARGET: HERO OF AZAROTH]
[WORLD: DESIGNATION E-775]
[OBJECTIVE: NEUTRALIZE HEROIC INTERFERENCE]
[DIFFICULTY: ???]
"And you chose me for this because...?" he let the question hang.
"Your detachment," said the second avatar. "Your emptiness. A hero hunter cannot be swayed by pleas of virtue or greater good. The balance transcends morality."
"Most importantly," added the third, "you harbor no inherent reverence for heroes. Your world has taught you the hollowness of such concepts."
Sunny thought about the simplistic hero narratives he had grown tired of, the black-and-white morality tales that bore little resemblance to the complex reality he had experienced. There was some truth to what they said.
"Level zero seems inadequate for hunting someone with heroic powers," he noted.
The first avatar smiled thinly. "Your first target has only just received their calling. They remain untrained, unaware of their potential. A suitable beginning for you both."
"As you complete assignments," said the second, "your abilities will advance. The greater the challenge overcome, the faster your growth."
"And should I fail?" He asked.
"Then perhaps that hero was necessary for true balance after all," replied the third with unsettling calm. "But we have selected you carefully. We do not expect failure."
Sunny approached the doorway once more, examining the darkness beyond with new understanding. He was to be not a guardian but an equalizer—a counter to those the multiverse elevated as special.
"One last question," he said, turning back to the avatars. "Why do the gods themselves not handle this task?"
The three exchanged glances before the first answered.
"Direct divine intervention causes greater ripples than the heroes themselves. We require an agent who can move between worlds with subtlety—someone who can operate within the systems of each reality rather than breaking them."
"A human who can grow in power," added the second, "but who began as human nonetheless."
"I see," said Sunny. "I am your loophole."
None of the avatars denied this assessment.
The panel before him expanded with additional information:
[TARGET PROFILE: HERO OF AZAROTH]
[NAME: ELYRIA DAWN]
[AGE: 17]
[STATUS: RECENTLY AWAKENED TO HEROIC LINEAGE]
[CURRENT ABILITY LEVEL: MINIMAL]
[PROPHECY STATUS: EARLY STAGE]
[THREAT TO COSMIC BALANCE: PROJECTED SEVERE IF UNCHECKED]
He vanished, sent to the 1st world.