The outskirts of the city were a place forgotten by time, a wasteland where the remnants of humanity clung to a bitter existence. The once-proud city, now crumbling under the weight of despair, had cast its unwanted to the edges, where survival was a daily struggle. This is where Kai lived—one of the Forsaken.
Kai had known nothing but hardship in his sixteen years of life. Orphaned as an infant and left to fend for himself, he had never experienced the warmth of a family or the safety of a home. The streets were his classroom, the alleys his bed. The other Forsaken, those without power, were the only people he had ever known, but even among them, he was an outsider. Small for his age, often sick, and barely strong enough to defend himself, Kai was at the bottom of society's lowest rung.
In this world, power was everything. Those born with it—or awakened to it—ruled over those who were not. The Forsaken were the powerless, the ones who had never been blessed with the strange abilities that manifested in others during childhood. The lucky few who did awaken were taken to the academies, trained to harness their powers and become the protectors—or tyrants—of the world. The rest were left to rot in the slums.
Kai's life was a constant battle for survival. Each day, he scavenged for food among the ruins, dodging the gangs that preyed on the weak and hiding from the monstrous creatures that roamed the night. His clothes were little more than rags, and his body bore the scars of countless beatings and close encounters with death. But despite the endless misery, a fire burned within him—a deep, unyielding desire for freedom.
He longed to escape the chains of his existence, to rise above the life that had been forced upon him. But in a world where power dictated fate, freedom was a distant dream, out of reach for someone like him.
One evening, as the sun dipped below the horizon, casting long shadows over the crumbling buildings, Kai found himself venturing further into the outskirts than he ever had before. The air was thick with decay, and the silence was eerie as if the very land had given up on life. He knew he was entering dangerous territory, a place where even the bravest dared not go. But hunger gnawed at his belly, driving him forward.
As he sifted through the debris of a long-abandoned building, a prickle ran down his spine. He wasn't alone. Before he could react, something moved in the darkness—a blur of motion, too fast to see. In an instant, sharp teeth sank into his flesh. Kai screamed as pain shot through his body, his vision blurring as the world spun around him. The creature that had attacked him was like nothing he had ever seen—its eyes glowed with an unnatural light, its twisted form defying explanation.
The venom from the bite spread rapidly, and Kai's strength began to fade. He knew he was dying. But as the darkness closed in, he felt an odd sense of calm, as though all the pain and suffering he had endured were finally coming to an end.
His consciousness flickered, like a candle in the wind. But just as he was about to surrender to the void, something pulled him back—a warmth that spread from the bite wound, coursing through his veins, bringing him back from the brink.
When Kai opened his eyes, he was lying in the same spot where he had fallen, but something was different. The pain was gone, replaced by an unfamiliar sensation of strength. He slowly sat up, his hand going to the wound on his arm. There, where the creature had bitten him, was a strange, glowing mark—a symbol that pulsed with an otherworldly light.
As he stared at the mark, a voice echoed in his mind, calm and authoritative.
"Welcome to the system, user. Initialization complete."
Kai's heart raced. He didn't understand what was happening, but one thing was clear: he was no longer the same boy who had collapsed here moments ago. Something had awakened within him, something powerful. In this world where power meant everything, Kai had been given a second chance.