This world was crumbling

resources scarce

pollution was so bad that in some cities respirators were needed

People starved to death, violance was at an all time high and the people in the better parts of the world were wage slaves and distractacted by social media and technology to care about what happened outside of their fake utopia.

The governments objective of distracting the world was a success.

The year is 2045 and everything is on the brink of collapse and you know who I am, well Im a thief. At a young age I fell into the wrong crowd and got mixed up with some of the worst types of people.

I'm not the best thief but I am quiet on my feet and my face is plain looking enough so I blend in.

Growing up as an orphan and not having many of the basic things that other people called necessities made survival almost impossible unless you joined the darker side of the city.

Which I did

One of my late night strolls I found an old book in the trash and kept it, sometimes I didnt even know why i grabbed things. I read it and it talked about a thief that stole from the rich and gave to the poor. I liked this story and I lived by it now

well kinda I steal from everyone and im poor so I give to the poor, me. I had less than most and wanted more so I resorted to stealing but that eventually caught up to me and the detention centers were no joke there were no rules there.

Now that everything is in the state it is, there is no dividing crime by age and everyone is packed into these facilites regardless. I was 15 when I was first brought here and due to harsher punishments I was sentenced to 5 years.

Today is the day of my release and now that I have the criminal mark on my face and the thief one at that I will never be able to find honest work or housing.

My name is lee lucas or at least it was I've lost that too, one of the few things I could call mine. After release you are known as the number they give you until you atone for your crimes and by that I mean paying money for a name and alot of it at that.

so my new name is 242829. I guess my name should be nine for short but only to me since Ive never been close with anyone. If you are caught using your old name you are sent back to a facility and they use you for anything experiments, poisons, or maybe somebody needs a heart transplant you never know what might happen to you so no one hardly ever tries that route.

In the 5 years I was away the world changed more than I could ever imagine.

The system appeared as a gift to humanity by the gods but only a few thousand were chosen and it was after the breaking of worlds. The system gifted powers that were straight out of a fantasy novel to people crowded in a busy place in one of the few thriving cities. i dont know why, maybe as a test run.

The rest of us We were also presented with choices

1. enter the tower to gain a system and experience with the monsters from other worlds and gain a class and the ability to join raids and get riches and resources beyond our wildest dreams from other civilizations or stay nothing and die when the worlds collide.

Towers littered the earth now rising out to the sky almost touching the stars and people being foolish as people were, flooded them like moths to a flame.

The towers were more difficult than anybody could ever imagine, out of 10 people who entered the tower maybe 1 made it back successfuly. They found out early on that these towers worked differently on the inside and what seemed like minutes to us could be months for them. No two towers where the same.

After the death toll hit unimaginable numbers a relic from the towers was found that would make death a thing of the past at least in the towers. The government found one of the early awakeners who had a production class and mass produced this metal and they formed it as a braclet. This made it possible for people to attempt the tower and get the system and maybe a class even if it was a low class one it could change a persons life and so having this bracelet was a game changer and was offered for free so the government could recruit people easier to fill their ranks while also keeping track or them and monitoring them.

Sometimes if I was lucky I would get some news from other numbers who heard it from the guards.

These bracelets were good for them but not for me because under article 10 section 3 of the numbers convention prisoners lost the right to be included with humanity on the exploration of anything system related.

I was reminded of this as I left it was like a twist after the stab.

Nobody would stop them from entering but if they entered, it was at their own risk many took that risk but numbers were not names and that meant they would not recieve any support from the outside. So many numbers died over these past couple years never getting far enough in the tower to recieve anything let alone make it out.

Some saw it as an opportunity to get the things they never had and more, while the rich and powerful wanted control.

Its been two years three months since this event many things have changed since then as the military and politicions put up barrriars with items they found in the towers to keep out the trash but only in the major cities as they didn't want to attract any numbers to their last safe havens.

The rich got richer and stronger while the rest got treated like trash and dicarded.

Am I too late?, I thought

was I always meant to be trash?

maybe but with these towers and everything changing this was still a chance to become something more then just a number.

The nearest city from the facility I was at was about 50 miles to the north so I it llooks like I might die before i get there

I was already severly malnurished and dehidrated and the desert surrounded me on 3 side with nothing in site. I had on a head cloth and a light robe no shoes the sand burned my feet so i wrapped some torn cloth around them to lessen the sting. My clothes were in tatters the ends frayed and thinning a little too much in some areas.

This is another thing that place does is they will release you but its almost a death sentence ( less mouths to feed and less hands to steal)

Roughly one hour later from what i could tell with how far the sun traveled I knew I was doomed

My feet were burned the cloth only helped at first

I could barely walk straight it felt as if the wind would blow me over

and through my dry eyes I looked and noticed a haze in the distance and as I squinted

I could see a sandstorm to the east approching steadily, I layed down I will face this comfortably. Which one will kill me first being dehidrated or the storm.

looking over I saw deaths circle come closer...closer....closer

I closed my eyes, this was the end. There was nothing I could do I was to weak too tired my throat was dry and raspy, my breathing intensified as the storm came closer.

Any moment now ....I can hear it the wind is howling like i imagine monster and beasts from any world would at prey.

The sound was as if it was right next to me roaring and then ...nothing

It was so quiet I would have thought I died if my body didnt still hurt and ache and the dryness of my throat made it seem as if with each swallow felt like sandpaper.

What going on?

I peeked hesitantly from out of my right eye and looked slowly to the east then slowly to the west. Im covered in sand but otherwise im unscathed.

I sigh as I really wasnt ready to die but somethings cant be helped so I was ready non the less.

I got up aching and dirt covered my lips tasted like blood as I licked them to relieve some pain.

Shielding my eyes with my hand I looked finally to the north and I thought I was going crazy

What was this in front of me, was this a trick of my eyes or a mirage.

I rubbed my eyes and looked again I was not mistaken there not 40 feet in front of me was a tower buried by the sand at least the entrance partially visible and now uncovered due to the wind.

Is this my chance to become something more,No theres no way things like this didnt happen to people like me there must be government people around waiting in ambush..

I waited but nothing happened I could hear my own breathing but that was it.

Maybe its broken

But a voice in my head said it wasn't

what if this one was forgotten i mean so many appeared everywhere at once some were bound to be missed right...

I looked to the south and then to the north

my face hurt but not from my sunburn but because I was smiling in spite of it.

I couldnt think about it anymore I ran or should I say I tried to as I stumbled and almost fell.

No one will look down on me not after I awaken too and then I will steal everything out from those government trash and I can leave this gods forsaken life behind.

what?

I did say I was a thief didn't I.