# Chapter 5: First Blood of Ruin
The ruins were alive with the whisper of danger. Kael moved cautiously, yet his steps were confident, each one guided by the Codex that throbbed like a living heartbeat in his chest. The crimson glow in his eyes pulsed faintly with each motion, casting an eerie light across the jagged concrete and twisted metal around him.
He knew the city like the back of his hand now—or at least, as much as one could know a place so fractured and decayed. Broken highways arched overhead like the ribcage of some long-dead giant, and the wind carried with it the faint groans of creatures yet unseen. For Kael, each sound, each shift of dust, was a map. Every shadow was a potential threat—and a source of power.
Ahead, movement caught his eye. A scavenger gang, larger than any Kael had faced before, patrolled the crumbling street. Their leader, a tall, wiry man with a scar running down the left side of his face, barked orders at the others, sending them to search for supplies in abandoned buildings. The Codex pulsed violently at the sight, urging Kael forward. Hunger, raw and insistent, pressed against his chest. It demanded action.
Kael approached cautiously, crouching low behind the wreckage of a collapsed car. He could see the fear in the scavengers' eyes—not of him, yet—but of the ruins themselves, and of the unseen predators that stalked this wasteland. Kael's lips curled into a grin. Fear was a resource, just like debris, just like the ruins. The Codex hungered for it.
He struck first. A stone thrown with uncanny precision hit the gang's lookout, sending him sprawling into the rubble. Chaos erupted. The others scrambled, weapons drawn, shouting in confusion. Kael didn't hesitate. The Codex surged through him, enhancing his speed, his strength, his awareness. With a single bound, he was among them, swinging the steel pipe with devastating force. Each movement was precise, almost instinctual, as if the Codex itself guided his body.
The gang's shouts filled the air, but they were quickly drowned out by the sounds of destruction. Kael's strikes were not mindless; they were controlled, measured, and calculated. Every blow was a statement, every fallen enemy a spark feeding the Codex.
When the dust settled, the gang lay scattered across the rubble-strewn street. Kael stood amid them, chest heaving, the Codex glowing faintly against his skin. He looked at his hands, now tinged with the energy of the destruction he had wrought. The power was intoxicating, addictive even. He could feel himself growing stronger with every act, every movement, every breath of chaos.
*Skill Progress: Devour Debris — Level 3*
Kael's grin widened. This was just the beginning. The scavengers had underestimated him, as everyone did. They had abandoned him, mocked him, left him to die. And now, they were nothing but stepping stones.
He turned his gaze toward the city beyond, toward the horizon where shadows hinted at greater challenges, greater predators, and greater opportunities. The ruins were no longer just a place to survive—they were a battlefield, and Kael was becoming a force to be reckoned with.
As he moved forward, the Codex pulsed with anticipation, feeding on the echoes of violence he had left behind. Kael's mind was clear, focused, and cold. The weak had no place here, and soon, neither would any who dared challenge him.
A low growl rumbled in the distance. Kael paused, sensing it before he saw it. Larger than any of the creatures he had faced, its presence radiated raw power. The Codex throbbed violently, hungry for the challenge. Kael's crimson eyes narrowed.
"Finally," he whispered, tightening his grip on the steel pipe. "Something worthy of feeding the Codex."
The first blood of ruin had been spilled, and the city would never be the same. Kael was no longer a scavenger. He was a predator.
And
his hunt had only just begun.