Lord Of Ashes

I am John Young. I suffer from a mild case of choice disorder—nothing serious, but it makes me indecisive at times. My life is pretty ordinary, even with the slight complication of being an "awakened." For the most part, I'm just a part-time college student trying to get by. My routine consists of school, practice, and returning to my small, shared apartment in the Happiness Grove Apartments. I don't smoke, I don't drink, and my life lacks any real excitement. If you had to pin down a hobby, I'd say it's watching people, but not in the way you'd think. I observe them when time is paused, though I'll explain that later.

As a working college student, I had assumed my life would follow a predictable path: finish school, get a decent job, find someone to marry, have a child, maybe even a second one by the time I'm middle-aged. A simple but acceptable future. It was ordinary, but in its own way, it was reasonable. Or so I thought.

I didn't foresee that, about six months ago, everything would change. The Empire officially announced that the world was entering a period of Aura recovery once again. When I say "once again," I mean that this isn't the first time it's happened—though no one seems to know when the last recovery was. The Empire's historical archives vaguely mention cyclical occurrences of this kind, suggesting it's a natural, albeit rare, phenomenon.

This Aura—a form of spiritual energy—began to spread across the world, and with its revival, came powers, abilities, and awakening. People started manifesting extraordinary capabilities, some subtle, others more... overt. According to the Empire's statistics, one in every thousand people would "awaken" in some form, which, when you think about it, is a pretty high chance.

Take Brightwater City, where I live. The city's population, including its transient inhabitants, exceeds 20 million. By the Empire's estimates, that means more than 20,000 people in the city would awaken to some kind of power. I wasn't one of the first, though. My power didn't emerge immediately. It wasn't until about a month ago that I began to experience the strange phenomena that would change my life.

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It was September 30th, 2020—the day before the Moon Harvest Festival and National Day holidays. It was a little after noon, around 12:10 PM. I had just finished my last class for the day and was walking home, as I often did, alone. The streets were busy with people rushing about, preparing for the upcoming holidays, but I didn't feel any particular excitement about the break. I had eight days off, yet the prospect didn't spark any joy in me. After all, I had no girlfriend to celebrate with, I wasn't keen on traveling, and I had very few close friends. To me, the holiday was just an extended period to practice my powers in solitude.

Some might find this lifestyle lonely or even pitiful, but honestly, I was fine with it. My life, though monotonous, was something I had grown accustomed to, and I found comfort in its predictability.

As I approached a busy intersection, something odd happened. It was subtle at first, like walking into a thick fog or plunging into water. The air around me became heavier, pressing against my skin as if it had taken on physical weight. It was a peculiar sensation, like the atmosphere itself was closing in, although it didn't cause me any harm—just a faint, uncomfortable pressure.

Then, out of nowhere, several translucent text boxes appeared in front of me.

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[Would you like to return to Happiness Grove Apartments?]

[Option 1: Turn left]

(While the traffic light is green, turn left, walk on the crosswalk, and follow the correct path. You will reach the gate of Happiness Grove Apartments by 12:30. At the entrance to the corridor, you will find a lost wallet containing 500 dollars and all the relevant identification documents.)

[Option 2: Turn right]

(Ignore the green light and turn right instead. Walk straight for about 15 meters, where you will see a red apricot sticking out of the wall. Pick the apricot—it contains a Vitality Apple, which will enhance your physical fitness and improve your defense.)

[Option 3: Go straight]

(Wait for the traffic light to turn green, then cross the road. Sit on the second public bench along the path, and start a conversation with the female college student sitting there. You will be recorded on her GoPro camera, and the video will be uploaded to a popular short video platform, making you an instant minor internet celebrity with over a hundred thousand followers.)

---

I blinked, confused. My mind struggled to grasp what I was seeing. These options—these choices—were laid out in front of me as if the world had suddenly transformed into a game. The people around me, the cars, the entire cityscape had frozen in place. Even the sun, which should have been blinding at this time of day, hung in the sky like a vivid painting, no longer radiating any heat.

I glanced at my surroundings. The bustling intersection had become eerily silent. People who were once rushing past were now locked in place, as if someone had hit the pause button on the world.

Curious, I bent down and reached out for a mosquito hovering near my leg. I expected it to fly away when I touched it, but instead, I plucked it right out of the air with a small snap. I brought the insect closer to my face and examined it. It was a female black flower mosquito, the kind that's notorious for sucking human blood. I flicked it away casually, and it once again froze in midair.

This was the moment I realized what had happened. The ability I had awakened wasn't just something mundane—it was powerful. The official term for it is [Multiple Choice]. As the name suggests, it presents me with options, guiding me through decisions. But there's a side effect: time stops. Everything around me halts, giving me time to contemplate my choices.

For someone like me, with mild choice difficulties, this ability is perfect. It allows me to weigh my options without feeling rushed. The time suspension lasts about an hour, during which I'm free to analyze every choice presented to me.

However, I quickly discovered that I wasn't invincible during this pause. I can't alter the world in any meaningful way while time is frozen. I can't hurt anything, and nothing can harm me. It's as if I'm separated from reality entirely—hence why I had flicked the mosquito away instead of crushing it.

That day at the intersection, as the world remained still, I realized that life had become a series of choices, and the mundane future I had envisioned for myself was no longer within reach.