The ruins of Sector 12's outer zones whispered like ghosts in the early morning wind. Towering skeletons of arcologies long abandoned stood sentinel in silence, their steel bones wrapped in vines and corrosion. Between them, glassless windows gaped like broken teeth, staring into a forgotten past.
Dray Ballack moved like a shadow beneath the concrete canopy, his steps quick, but measured. The worn satchel slung across his shoulder held what little he now owned: his cracked terminal, a pulse battery barely functional, a scavenged energy knife, and a data chip loaded with decrypted maps. He had spent the night reconfiguring them into a rough route—one that took him beneath the city, through the forgotten networks carved out during the early colonization of Earth.
The system hovered silently before him in translucent blue light, responding only when called.
Name: Dray Ballack
Bloodline: Locked
Race: Human (???)
Level: 4
Class: None
Strength: 4
Agility: 6
Endurance: 1
Vitality: 5
Skills:
• Night Adaptation (Passive)
• Blood Sense (Passive – Incomplete)
Inventory:
• Broken Pipe (1)
• Rusted Circuit Knife (1)
System Shop: [Access Granted – Insufficient Permissions for Purchase]
Next Level: 50 EXP
Status: Stable
There was no change since his last glance. No new prompts. No hidden menus opening just yet.
But he could feel it.
Something inside him stirred more each day. A pressure—not painful, but persistent—like the hum of a growing storm.
The entrance to the ancient sub-transport grid was sealed by rust and time. Thick layers of dust covered the biometric pad, long since rendered useless. Dray crouched beside the access hatch and pulled out the circuit blade. Sparks flew as he sliced through the locking mechanisms. With a loud groan, the hatch opened, revealing a ladder descending into pitch darkness.
Dray didn't hesitate.
Down he went—step by step—into the forgotten world beneath the city.
It was colder below.
The tunnel opened into a forgotten maintenance station buried deep beneath the crust. Pipes hissed with residual pressure, long-unused. Emergency lights flickered, and broken surveillance drones dangled from the ceiling like dead insects.
The walls were covered in graffiti—messages left behind by past scavengers, rebels, or perhaps… survivors.
"THEY ARE NOT GONE."
"THE BLOODLINE WALKS."
That last one made Dray pause.
He placed a hand against the wall. The spray paint was old. Cracking.
Could someone have known about him? Or was it coincidence?
The system pinged.
New Location Unlocked: Forgotten Subgrid Node Zeta-47
+10 EXP
+Bonus: First Explorer Reward – 5 EXP
Dray watched his progress bar climb. Almost there—just a little more, and he would reach Level 5.
He followed the winding paths until he stumbled upon a broken terminal, still humming with a flicker of residual energy. Dray bent beside it, brushed the dust away, and plugged in his cracked chip.
Lines of code scrolled across the screen.
"Welcome, Proxy Signature Detected."
"Unlocking Deep Cache: Archive – Z47-Bloodline Index…"
"Error: Partial Corruption. Proceed?"
Dray tapped the terminal. "Proceed."
The screen flickered. A blurred image appeared—black and white. A face.
Not his. Not anyone he recognized. But the resemblance to the vision he had seen of the vampire emperor was undeniable.
"To those who follow the blood… beware the hollow kings."
"The betrayer wears the crown, but the system remains loyal."
"You are not the last."
Dray's blood ran cold.
He leaned closer. "Who left this?"
The system offered no answers.
Only a soft hum.
System Alert: Resonance Detected
Vitality Pulse Triggered – Updating Skills...
New Trait Awakened: Blood Echo (Passive) – You occasionally hear whispers or instincts from your ancestral bloodline. May provide hints, warnings, or visions.
Dray stood frozen as a voice—not synthetic, but ancient—echoed faintly in his mind.
"The fangs of the stars… the war never ended."
A sudden bang echoed down the tunnel.
Dray spun, knife in hand.
A set of glowing red optics shimmered in the dark. A scavenger droid, military grade, began its approach. The last guardian of this forgotten place.
Combat Detected – Activating System Combat Protocols
Temporary Boost: Strength +2, Agility +1
Dray charged, blade raised—
The fight was messy.
Metal clashed against flesh, and sparks danced through the gloom. Dray ducked a whirring blade, countered with a strike to the droid's optic core, and rolled away as an energy bolt scorched the floor beside him.
It was longer than any fight he'd ever had.
And more brutal.
When the droid finally collapsed in a heap of scorched metal, Dray fell beside it, gasping.
+40 EXP
Level Up!
The blue screen pulsed brightly before him.
Name: Dray Ballack
Bloodline: Locked
Race: Human (???)
Level: 5
Class: None
Strength: 6
Agility: 7
Endurance: 2
Vitality: 5
Skills:
• Night Adaptation (Passive)
• Blood Sense (Passive – Incomplete)
• Blood Echo (Passive)
Inventory:
• Broken Pipe (1)
• Rusted Circuit Knife (1)
System Shop: [Access Granted – Insufficient Permissions for Purchase]
Next Level: 100 EXP
Status: Stable
Class Designation Option Unlocked
Would you like to choose a class?
Dray stared.
A choice…
But before he could answer, the terminal behind him exploded in sparks.
A hologram shimmered into existence. A man—tall, robed in dark crimson, with glowing silver eyes—appeared.
Not alive.
A message.
"If you have found this, it means the Empire has not yet silenced all truth. I am Valek, guardian of the Lost Index. The one who bore the Emperor's last seal. They hunted us to the edges of the void—but the blood cannot be erased."
"If you are of the line… if the system chose you… then awaken the stars."
"Your kindred await."
The image flickered and faded.
Dray stared at the emptiness before him, heart pounding.
His journey had only just begun.
But already… the stars were calling.