The rain didn't fall in the Undersprawl—it bled. Dark water, thick with soot and rust, dripped from broken gutters and iron bones of collapsed towers. The sky above Caldrath's lower rings was a permanent bruise, veiled by smoke from forge chimneys and magical runoff. No stars reached this place. No light endured.
This place was the low of the lows, the worst of the worst, the hated of them all.
In a narrow alley between a collapsed bakery and a brothel-turned-battlefield, a boy lay curled in a bed of shattered glass and silence, his body was a huge mess, filled with blood and waste. His right leg was shattered and had was in a disproportionate state, glass particles stuck from his leg like spikes on a wooden club.
He called himself Rex.
This wasn't his real name, if he'd ever had one, he wasn't too sure, the Undersprawl had stolen it long ago. Here, the only names given were earned. You didn't get to be called Rex, "King," unless you'd stolen, scraped, and clawed for every breath you had. And that's what he had done, today however it seemed he had done too much.
And right now, he wasn't breathing properly, his ribs heaved, every breath a shallow rasp, short spams that sent his body into a frenzy accompanied every breath. Blood mixed with the rain, trickling from a deep gash in his side.
The job had gone wrong—again. The alchemist's courier had arrived early. The guards had been too many, they were outnumbered, three were already dead, thr old man tht had sold them the Intel, had been left behind when he split, how wouldn't he, he thought the guard with the flameblade had been bluffing when he said, "Run, and I split you like kindling."
Rex hadn't run fast enough.
"Stupid," he muttered, coughing up another mouth full of blood, his lungs were bleeding now, he noticed as blood flwed the wrong way, more coming from his mouth than his already battered body.
"Should've taken the sewer route…"
Around his neck, a piece of cracked copper sparked faintly—his System Token, issued to all citizens of age.
Except his was blank. Had always been blank.
Until now.
Whatever the reason was, he had no idea, why fate chose to finally look his way with kindness, whatever the reason, he was glad.
Just then the copper token shuddered against his skin. Lines of silver light crawled across its surface like veins, pulsing as though alive. And then—
> [System Awakening Detected]
Initializing...
Class: Undefined. Tier: N/A
System Type: Forbidden – Devourer Protocol
Passive Skill Unlocked: EXP Gain +10,000%
Active Skill Unlocked: System Assimilation [0/∞]
WARNING: This system is illegal under Divine Accord 7-4A. Report immediately to your nearest Temple Enforcer.
He blinked. The light faded and he felt his body reconstruction in the next second, his wounded leg started healing, with his lungs and broken bones not to far behind.
The token melted into his chest with a hiss of steam, leaving behind a faint black sigil over his heart—like a crown woven from thorns and fire.
"…What the hell?"
Down the alley, a figure staggered. A man—older, hunched—clutching his own bleeding side, a dagger still dripping in one hand. The old man! He survived, Rex was glad, at least there was someone else other than him who escaped, however a proper look at him told him otherwise. His System Token hung loose, blinking erratically.
The man saw Rex. Smiled with missing teeth.
"You're bleeding out, kid," he wheezed, mistaking the blood on his cloths to be his. Well it was his but he was no longer injured as badly.
"Lucky for me. Guess I don't die alone…"
He raised the dagger.
Rex didn't move, he was shocked, but maybe that was alright, he was already exhausted with this life, he prayed and hoped that lady Luck would shine on him in his next life, perhaps he could be born as a Lord or Noble, in fact anything was better than this. As he closed his eyes accepting death, he heard a chime.
L
> System Alert: Nearby System Detected
System Type: Shadowstep – Tier D
Assimilate? [Y/N]
Something inside him screamed. Not in fear—but in hunger.
He didn't know how he said yes. He didn't move his lips. But the world blinked—
And so did the man.
One second, the thief was lunging. The next, he was nothing—just ash caught in the rain.
And Rex…
Rex stood.
Unbroken. Unscarred. And suddenly, very fast.
> [Shadowstep Acquired – Cooldown: 6s]
EXP Gained: 4,000
Level Up: 1 → 5
He gasped, then laughed, his laughs were as those of one who had just hugged death and came out unscathed. The sound echoed oddly in the empty alley, jagged and wild.
The hunger inside him had tasted its first bite.
And it was starving.