Instinct

[Sora: …This definitely looks like a dungeon.]
Sora stepped onto the dais, her boots clicking against cold stone. The underground hall stretched into the shadows, and torches flared murkily upon the ancient pillars casting long shadows.
(Is this some sort of big monster sealed inside the dungeon or mysterious ancient ruins recently found underneath the mansion type?)
Her gaze flicked to the Count, standing on the balcony above with two boys at his side. Below, Alaric knelt stiffly, his posture rigid like a slab of stone
She had read about this scene way too many times, this was the part where the noble revealed the mission.
Something like
‘An ancient ruins lay before us ! oh heroes and I need you to explore it’
‘A powerful monster is sealed here, and we must ensure it does not escape
But-
[Let the sacrifice begin.] The count finally spoke in an emotionless tone
Her breath caught.
(Wait what?)
A crimson burst of light erupted in her vision
Her legs locked up, body stiff as a chill raced down her spine. Her instincts screamed—move, run, do something.
Shouts erupted, raw, panicked, agonized.Around her, the mercenaries reacted instantly—blades drawn, bodies shifting to fight. But then—nothing.
They didn’t move
[Sora: …What?]
Her breath hitched. This wasn’t normal. The others were locked in place, frozen in mid-action, faces twisted with tension. Their bodies jerked, muscles twitching against some unseen force. Their mouths opened in silent screams, veins bulging, eyes wide with pain and terror.
Cold.
Not real cold—but the cold grip of fear
It sank into her bones, curled around her lungs, and tried to trick her body into believing it was freezing solid.
Her mind slowed. Her body felt distant, sluggish. There was something she needed to do, but the thought slipped away before she could grasp it replaced by a single, undeniable truth.
I’m going to die.
Sora’s heart pounded in her chest, a rapid, suffocating beat that drowned out all else..
And then something deep inside her snapped.
Her mind blanked.
Instinct, primal and unthinking, roared to life commanding the body to move.... her which body wasn’t affected by the spell…But her brain hadn’t caught up to that fact yet.
And in that frozen, panicked moment—her survival instinct awakened
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Standing before the doors of death—
All creatures fear it.
That primal terror, the will to survive, ignites a desperate power buried deep in every being.
 Hysterical strength.
 A fleeting, explosive force that defies the body’s limits. A mother lifting a car to save her child ,A soldier standing on broken bones. Muscles tear, tendons snap—yet for a moment, the impossible becomes real.
But for the Awakened it is different. Their minds and bodies exist at a different level compared to normal humans. Where others act on instinct, they become it. Conscious thought is burned away, leaving only the raw, overwhelming force of survival.
Fight or flee.
A single choice. A moment where hesitation means death. And in that instant they must make their choice as their brains running at speeds faster than a standard computer chooses the best possible outcome to survive
Eliminate all threats
Her magic surged.
And she marked them.
A rush of information flooded her brain, something deep and automatic. An understanding without thought. She wasn’t casting a spell. She was deciding what should be erased.
[Sora:Light III.]
A white-hot explosion of pure radiance engulfed the chamber.
The air burned. A violent shockwave blasted outward, filling the room with searing brilliance.
Then—
The world fell away.
Users they are people
‘Wild instinct ‘ that was considered as an inbuilt feature of strength-type
Sora gasped as her body lurched downward. No ground, no chamber, no torches, just endless darkness swallowing her whole.
Wind roared past her ears. A storm raged around her, lightning flashing in eerie, unnatural patterns.
She was falling, endlessly falling, but there was no bottom.
She twisted, struggling, but there was nothing to grab, nothing to stop the descent.
And then—
The thunder called out to her.
It wasn’t a voice. Not words. Not anything human.
It was just loud terrifying noise that cracked through the void, vibrating in her bones, with that wasn’t meant for human ears.
A door, no, her eyes, slammed open.
And then—
Reality snapped back.
Her knees buckled. A noise ripped from her throat, pain and nausea overwhelming her, too much, too fast.
Her head slammed with something massive and incomprehensible. Words, formulas, sigils, calculations—magic too complex, too vast, too unfamiliar.
She squeezed her eyes shut.
It passed.
Her thoughts cleared.
She inhaled sharply, forcing herself to focus.
And in front of her
The Count.
He was still alive.
Burned, his skin blackened, robes in tatters but his body was a mess of a creature—limbs sticking out at weird angles, muscles twisting like they were stitched together wrong. His skin was burnt and cracked, oozing something dark and foul, and his hair hung in thin, greasy strands, floating like it wasn’t even obeying gravity.
His face was the worst part. Bloated, lopsided, with a mouth that didn’t quite close right, leaking black sludge from between crooked teeth. When he moved, it wasn’t natural—his body jerked like something else was pulling the strings, making him lurch forward in a way that sent a shiver down Sora’s spine.
The mercenaries didn’t care for his ugly face
Swords flashed, axes swung, hacking at his misshapen body. Flesh split open. Blood sprayed. But—he didn’t go down.
He just kept moving.
One of them the griffion supporter guy barely had time to react before a clawed hand shot out, fingers curling tight around his throat. His weapon clattered to the floor. His feet kicked uselessly at the air. The Count didn’t even acknowledge the struggle—he just squeezed
(Fight...if I don’t...)
Sora foarced herself up
[Holy spear.]
A lance of searing light speared the Count’s chest.
He spasmed violently, mouth contorting in a soundless cry. His body crashed to the floor, twitching, barely clinging to life.
Roderic stepped forward both hands raised holding a broadsword
His sword came down cleanly cutting off the head the Count’s body jerked, then stilled.
Silence.
Sora exhaled, long and shaky.
It was over.
The Count, the man who had just tried to kill them, was dead.
She stared at his lifeless body.
The sight hit her like a hammer.
Not the violence. Not the blood.
But the finality.
One second ago, he was a powerful, terrifying monster. A monster.
Now, he was nothing.
A corpse.
Her stomach twisted making bile rise in her throat.
 She stumbled almost falling down and then—
A calm feeling washed over her making her head clear and her stomach to stop twisting
[Sora: Haaaa urk]
[Chudo: Sorha! ]
(Sorha? when did he start calling me that?)Sora thought dazed chudo helped her back to her feet
The dungeon was eerily silent now. The only sounds were ragged breathing and the occasional groan as some pushed themselves upright, wincing from residual pain.
The Count was dead, but no one felt like celebrating.
[Bastard.] Someone muttered, spitting onto the Count’s still-twitching corpse.
Roderic wiped blood off his blade, his jaw tight. [We’re not done. His men are still up there.]
[ Old scarred mercenary: Well let’s deal with them then]
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Later
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[Chudo: Here. You should have spent a lot of effort in those spells.]
Chudo handed her a tray with some cheese, brown bread, and a meat roll.
Sora accepted it without a word, taking a small bite. The warmth of the food barely registered.
Around her, the others rested. Some leaned against the walls, armor dented, weapons resting at their sides. A few whispered among themselves, voices low and hoarse.
They had gotten out of that accused dungeon and headed to the great hall
Most of the servents fled as soon as they saw them
Chudo sat on the edge of a chair, arms resting on his knees. [The Count… he was using dark arts.]
She finally glanced at him.
[Chudo: Essence extraction. He was draining us. That’s why no one could move. He wasn’t just casting a spell—he was taking. Leeching away strength, magic, everything. Twisting it into himself. That’s how he turned into… that]
[Sora : he targeted mercenaries because they have stronger essence than normal human]
[Chudo: I guess he must have eaten all the monsters essence around here that explains why the forest was so quiet]
Then—
[??? : No... No, please... wake up...]
A sob.
Sora turned her head just as several mercenaries trudged up the stairs, their expressions grim. They carried a body between them. The brown-haired girl rushed forward the moment she saw him, falling to her knees beside him.
[Girl: No...! Say something! Just—just open your eyes!]
Her hands trembled as she touched his face. The young man’s throat was crushed, his body lifeless. The only casualty.
Sora watched in silence she knew that boy as that guy arguing that griffins were more dangerous than hippogriffs
That girl was the only other magic user apart from her in the whole group
(Had the mutated Count got his… limbs—if you could call those things that—on me, I would’ve certainly been dead by now, just like them. )
[…] Sora placed the plate on the small table and stood up
(They could have abandoned me.
The moment they realized the Count was targeting me, they could have made a quick decision to flee and survive.
They had no obligation to protect me.
To them, I was just a nameless, wandering mage they happened to meet because our destination was the same.
Yet, they fought )
Sora felt it the grief stirring in her chest for people she didn’t even know along with another emotion
Was it frustration? Anger?
She didn’t know exactly what the emotion was.
Her gaze lingered on the girl, still clinging to the fallen mercenary, shoulders shaking with every breath.
Her fingers curled.
[Sora: …Rise.]
A pulse of golden light spread from her palm, covering the boy like a cocoon . The air vibrated with unseen force. The boys body jerked. Bone and muscle realigned, breath returning in a sharp gasp and he woke up coughing and alive
Silence.
The girl’s eyes widened, disbelief freezing her in place.
The others?
Stunned.
Sora didn’t stay to listen to their reactions. She turned on her heel and walked toward one of the side rooms.
She needed rest.
The moment she stepped inside, her body felt impossibly heavy... She barely registered the old furniture, the thick curtains blocking out the light. She sank onto the bed, her head hitting the pillow.
(I didn’t lose... control huh)
Darkness over took her
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