Kael Ishiro was not special.
Not before the world ended, anyway.
Just a quiet boy, average in strength, forgettable in looks, and cautious to the point of hesitation. He walked like someone always trying not to be noticed. Lived like someone waiting for the world to pass by without touching him.
But today—In a city cracked open by the apocalypse—He stepped into the ashes of the old world with a god-machine at his back.
And the Creation System whispered possibilities no human should ever hear.
The store was once a normal convenience chain. Clean signage, automatic doors, stacked fridges humming with overpriced drinks.
Now?
Glass scattered across the sidewalk like ice. One of the walls was collapsed inward, as if something had clawed through it. The logo above the doorway was half melted, the plastic drooping like wax. No movement inside. No sound.
Kael stopped ten meters away.
[Location: RUINED CONVENIENCE OUTLET – TIER 1]
[Threat Level: Minimal]
[Scavenge Potential: Moderate]
He glanced at the Steel Sentinel beside him. The unit stood motionless, scanning the perimeter with soft blue optics. Battle-ready. Still. Patient.
Kael took a breath.
One step in.
Then another.
His boots crunched on broken glass. The aisles inside were mostly intact, though some had collapsed or burned. A small drone—dead and shattered—was wedged between a freezer and the chips section. Something black and dried clung to the floor by the counter.
He forced his body to move.
"System… scan everything in here. I want food, water, batteries, anything I can use."
[Initiating Scan Protocol…]
[Required: Scan Upgrade – 50 CP]
[Would you like to unlock Scan Function? Y/N]
His eyes twitched. He hesitated, just a second. Then:
"Yes."
[Upgrade Purchased: SCAN MODULE V1]
[-50 CP | Remaining Points: 100]
The gauntlet on his hand vibrated gently.
Light lines radiated outward from him, invisible to the naked eye but felt like static on his skin. After five seconds, the results began to appear, item by item, overlaid directly into his vision.
—
Scan Results:
3x Water Bottles – Expired, Safe to Consume
2x Canned Meals – Dent Damage, Still Sealed
1x Energy Bar – Contaminated (Discard)
4x Lithium Battery Packs – 63% average capacity
[Unidentified Material: Residual Mutagen Sample – 1 unit]
1x Survivor Tag – "N. Reyes"
—
Kael paused.
The last two lines.
He crouched near the register and saw the source.
A torn, half-melted ID badge, scorched but intact enough to read.
N. Reyes. Store Manager.
Next to it was a shattered bloodstained phone and a cracked thermos.
There was no body.
Only the stain.
Kael stood slowly. There were no illusions here. No fantasy curtain left to pull. The world was dead, dying, or both.
Still—
[Scavenge successful. Resources claimed.]
[+25 CP]
[Updated Total: 125 Points]
He breathed out. It wasn't much. But it was something.
He ate in silence, back against a half-collapsed shelf. The Sentinel waited near the broken entrance, a wall of protection against an uncaring world.
The food was bland. Cold. Tasted like glue.
He still finished every bite.
Then:
"System," he said quietly. "Is there a way to copy things I scan?"
[Scan & Replicate Function: LOCKED]
[Requirement: Blueprint Module or Creator Tier Access]
[Cost to Unlock Basic Blueprint Mode: 100 CP]
Kael stared at the prompt.
With 125 points, he could do it.
But that would leave him with almost nothing. No weapons. No defenses. No safety net.
Yet… the idea of blueprints—the ability to replicate objects, construct tools, maybe even fabricate weapons—held a deeper weight.
It was control.
It was power that grew.
He nodded.
"Do it."
[Blueprint Module Unlocked.]
[-100 CP | Remaining Points: 25]
[Scan & Replicate now available for non-organic materials.]
A new tab opened in his vision.
[BLUEPRINTS]
Water Bottle (Purified)
– BasicCanned Meal – Model A
– BasicBattery Cell – 63% Cap
– BasicStandard Steel Paneling
– UnrefinedScavenger Tool (Improvised) – Crude
He smiled for the first time.
Tired. Faint. But real.
The implications were staggering. If he could scan and replicate food… tech… maybe even buildings…
Then even if the world had ended—Even if the skies fell and monsters ruled the ruins—
He could rebuild.
Not just survive.
Create.
[NOTICE: Moderate Threat detected nearby.]
[Distance: 142 meters and closing.]
The light in Kael's eyes dimmed.
Reality reasserted itself like a punch to the chest.
"Sentinel," he said, standing fast, voice steadying. "Full combat readiness. Stay close."
[Command Acknowledged.]
Kael looked back at the store one last time. At the shattered ID tag. The quiet shelves. The last traces of someone who didn't get a system. Didn't get a chance.
He stepped outside.
Steel at his back.
Blueprints in his mind.
Points in his pocket.
And something large was coming.