Gods Game- Intro Arc Chapter 1

"You have been chosen."
Connor heard the voice in his mind as he stirred from his restful slumber. He rubbed his eyelids and opened his murky green eyes as he crawled out of bed. He scratched his back and ruffled his light brown hair as he staggered towards the bathroom, exhausted from his poor night of sleep. After rinsing and spitting, he hobbled downstairs where his mother and sister, Marie, were eating breakfast.
"You look terrible, honey. Was it that dream again?" his mother asked.
"Yeah, mom. It happened again. That's the third time in two weeks that I have had that same exact dream," Connor replied.
Connor's recurring dream felt more like a nightmare. In the dream, he was standing on a pedestal in an ancient temple with eleven other people standing on similar pedestals. Everyone was arranged in a circle and their faces and bodies were concealed by a shadowy mist. besides the elven other mysterious people, there were stage giant beings sitting above them, explaining the rules of some sort of game. What always frightened Connor was that the game was explained as a survival game where all of the contenders must fight until one is left. The strange gainsays also mentioned holy weapons that they crafted. The dream always ended with his opponents sizing up the competition and a booming voice shouting, "You have been chosen" with a bolt of lightning striking the ground.
"Connor's a fraidy cat! Connor's a fraidy cat!" his little sister taunted.
"Shut up! A high school student like me doesn't need to be bothered by an elementary school twerp like you!" Connor spat.
"Apologize to your sister right now!" his mother demanded.
"Can't Mom. Gotta get going. See you after school!" Connor called as he raced upstairs to collect his backpack.
As Connor entered his room, he stood at the doorway, frozen in shock and terror at his room. The walls and floor were covered in ashes and smoke and his belongings seemed to have been struck by lightning.
"It's not the dream. The dream can't be real," Connor convinced himself as he recalled the streak of lightning in his dream. However, all beliefs that he was still asleep were quickly squashed when he noticed the narrow bronze chitin lying on his bed. Connor gasped as he recognized the weapon from his dream. The giant that threw lightning called it the Bolt Kitten and claimed that Connor was his champion.
"Th-this isn't a dream! What the hell is happening?"

END OF CHAPTER ONE
Competitors left: ?