Pain, as i never felt before. I couldn't move my left leg anymore.

On the other hand I've never been so happy about this feeling.

I'm alive! at the very least. Carefully I first open my left eye, then the right one. I see nothing, only dark.

All right, with the help of my hands I manage sit down on the ground of what I presume being the canyon floor.

Within my left palm I was still holding on the pendant like object the enidian gifted me. It was cracked thought, I'm not sure if It will be of any use in this state.

I turn around, trying perceive the presence of the friend that fell with me.

I spot a very dim light a few meters from me.

"Inea wake up buddy. Can you hear me?" I whispered towards what seemed to be Inea's lantern.

Mine got clearly broken. Cracked, the little bit of nano-energy it needed to function was already gone.

Silence. Either he was still unconscious or life hit me a little too hard for me to bear this time.

Crawling my body in the direction of the lantern I start to get drenched in a warm liquid.

Sniffing my wet suit just to be sure, it clearly smelled a bit metallic.

There's not mistake, that's blood. Inea's blood.

I found the corpse, no pulse and he already stopped breathing. With a last moment of lucidity I try to analyse him. His general condition was similar to mine, the body had a lot of scratches and a broken leg.

But he had a dagger piercing his torso, were the heart was supposed to be.

Recalling back to a the few moments after the fall, I understood how he ended in his current predicament.

I can't hold them any longer. This is the second time in my life that I could feel tears falling down my cheeks.

I wanted to scream, to tell the world the sorrow I was feeling. To lose my only friend, the lone person that cared about me.

But at the same time my brain was holding back these irrational thoughts. I clearly couldn't reveal my current position the beasts lurking down there.

Even more I should grab Inea's lantern and bag before quickly leaving this area.

The stench of blood will surely attract some beasts. If move away soon enough I might get away with just a few riekrats tailing behind me.

"I won't waste the life you gifted me..." I muttered, sadness and sorrow imprinted on my words.

At the same time a new type of feeling was emerging within myself. Revenge.

Before all I turned of the lantern as soon as I got my hands on it.

Then I was slowly got more and more distance from the site of our fall.

Limping with the support of Inea's pickaxe I found near his corpse.

I tried to make less sound as possible.

After half an hour of moving I could still see the small green dots tailing behind me.

Damn riekrats! These pests sure are persistent. During this little stroll of mine I tried to look out for means to get out of this canyon.

I was hoping to find another tunnel connected to the mines. I even tried to force my orientation skill but to no avail. It seems to not be working here.

About 20 minutes later I couldn't stand it anymore. This little shits don't even see me as a potential thread.

I know I shouldn't cause a ruckus by fighting the riekrats. However my mind is clouded by the recent events, my emotions pressing hard against the reason still remaining in my thoughts.

I must vent my frustration and anger. With an impetus I grab the dagger that was hanging on my toolbelt. I extracted it from Inea's body before departing.

Then I suddenly stopped myself to turn around towards the direction of the little dots.

Arrived near enough, I left the pickaxe for a moment to turn on the lantern.

Four rodents with a body length of at most 1 meter. A pair of luminescent green eyes, pitch black fur and short white claws. Ugly faces with an elongated pinky nose.

With the little surprise bought by the lantern I lunged myself forward holding tight the dagger. To my displeasure it used the nano-energy given by its wielder to enhance itself. Clearly it couldn't reproduce the strength I saw from the black robes figures.

Still it had a fairly sharp blade, letting me pierce the small body of the rats.

Squiik!

Hearing the scream of their companion the other three rats rushed my way. One on the front and the other two on my left and right flank.

I felt besieged, but held firmly. With a quick stroke I retracted the blade from the rat's body, staining the ground with a ray of green.

Seeing the rat in the front leaping in the hair, with its incisors in full view, approaching my torso I hurriedly moved the dagger the parry the attack.

Noticing my right leg getting attacked one of the two other rats I placed all my weight on this very leg. Then I quickly moved the pickaxe to protect my only leg still operational.

It would be a big problem Id couldn't walk.

"Fuck!"

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Nonetheless having abandoned completely my left leg, I felt pain. The other rat had leaped as well, penetrating deep into my flesh with its teeth.

Infuriated by the pain I repeatedly smash and swing the rat still holding onto my pickaxe. Rendered as a pulp of blood and fur the rat's body finally let go and fell on the ground motionless.

Meanwhile the rat on my left leg continued to bite me and started to tore into my flesh even with its small claws.

The rat that rushed to the front and I previously was already back and tearing into my right shoulder.

I only noticed it once the pain got more intense.

Overwhelmed by the injuries and without the support of the pickaxe I felt on the cold rocky floor.

Thud!

Once again pain assailed me as my head hit onto the ground. A warm liquid dripping from it.

Fuck these damn riekrats, I won't lose to them.

Uttering my remaining forced I repeatedly tore my dagger into the rat biting down my leg. I clearly have hit myself too in the process, clearly not lucid enough to control my strength.

Only one rat remaining, still munching on my shoulder.

You little fucker! I threw away the pickaxe I was holding, since it was too long and inconvenient to attack the rat attached on the shoulder.

"AAAAHHH"

Not caring about anything I screamed and grabbed the little pest with my now free hand.

Squeezing it as hard as I could, I detached it from me. A chunk of flesh coming out with him.

With an impetus of fury I repeatedly smashed it from the ground until it uttered its last breath.

Was only now, ended the fight that I noticed how terrible my condition was.

My adrenaline going down the pain on my head, shoulder and now unrecognisable left leg, increased.

I bit hard my tongue not to lose consciousness on the spot. As the bloodied little battlefield we created would attract other monsters.

Not caring about anything other then my life I started crawling away living a tray of blood behind me.

I knew my death was not far off. Still I wanted to survive. I wished desperately not to lose the chance my friend gave me. To not disappoint him.

The next five minutes I continued my senseless creep.

I then noticed a strange phenomenon occurring ahead of my position.

It seemed like there was an area darker then the rest.

The little light that arrived from the luminescent flora on the walls of the canyon was getting absorbed.

On the centre of the very abyssal-like dark area there was a structure. It was a circular altar, with four pillars bending towards a central cube floating mid air.

The overall structure was composed of a dark material characterized by its metallic lustre. Blue lines following seemingly random patterns were present on its surface. Only the cube had a strange purple symbol imprinted on its sides, it had purple lines covering its corners too.

All the various lines were pulsating like a beating heart.

In my current condition I didn't have the time nor I was in the conditions to think.

I just continued to do what I had already decided to, going forward.

"Oh my we finally have an [inheritor], well your conditions aren't that good thought" said the voice of apparently a woman. A bit rasp, it gave an unpleasant sensation, hard to describe.

"Who are you? And what do you mean by [inheritor]?"I asked to who or what talked before.

"This, I cannot tell, you must accept to be entitled as [inheritor] before anything else. First of all you haven't that much of a choice. Accept and continue to live refuse and you'll die in a matter of a few minutes at most.

The only warning I can tell you Is that by accepting you'll become something else. Your fate will inevitably change too."

Explained the voice, with a hit of expectation.

"I accept, I didn't persevere just to give up now. I also have a revenge to accomplice" I answered with decision. I won't back down.

"Very well. The first step for you will be very simple. Open the [capsule]. This is a very special symbiotic creature. Unique in all the universe, even the [System] wouldn't have one.

You must to this operation by yourself, since soon after you'll become something like the parasite of your very own body.

You won't face risks thanks to the altar.

But beware that your body will get completely reconstructed, bear with the pain please.

Now hurry up or you'll die from blood loss"

The voice ended her speech, carrying a hint of urgency towards the end.

I then grabbed the little translucent white box that appeared from thin air. It had a small screen like interface on top of itself.

I instinctively placed my palm over it. The upper part of the box opened up and the blackish smoke like substance that was inside got out.

It flew towards me with high speed and quickly sank into my skin.

Of the thing I could consider a living being, and a parasite at that, didn't remain a single grain.

Then I started to feel that something inside of me was starting to boil, at an incredible high temperature.

"AAAAAARGGH!"

I could fell my body starting to collapse on itself. Important organs and body parts started to melt before my eyes.

As more time passed I could clearly see my body dissolving into an agglomeration of viscous fluids and flesh.

I would have died long ago if not for this strange altar that maintained me alive.

Even without the actual sensory organs I could feel me presence, my actual form. But about the external world I could only perceive the altar.

I think I had a special connection with it, and it was pretty obvious too since it was keeping me alive.

Suddenly the cube started to spin at high speeds, sparkles of purple energy emanating from it.

I felt my mass being reformed, my body moved on its own solidifying on the shape of a big cocoon-like thing suspended just under the cube.

Then from my lower and upper zones appendices started to grow, forming sort of roots and branches.

I resembled a bit a tree. Only that my new body colour was getting darker by the second, almost blending itself with the darkness.

As this process ended I could feel my presence over the cocoon slowly fading away and concentrating in its inside.

Vast amounts of nutrient fluids were all around me. I was just a newborn in the centre of the cocoon, more precisely an embryo.

Time flew by, the less I could sense from the external environment.

My connection with the altar was diminishing too. I think the cocoon is feeding on the

nano-energy around itself, draining it and feeding it to me through the fluids.

I started to feel myself growing bigger too, but not by much.

I roughly counted the passing of time. I can sense that my calculative capacity has increased enormously. A year should have gone by now.

I've bathed in the fluids for almost two years by now. I think my new body is completely formed.

I can feel that the time to break free from the cocoon has come.

The interior is still filled by the fluids, but my new gained instincts are telling me to get out.

Then almost as if normal as breathing I channel an unknown force into my hand.

I threw a punch towards the hard as rock wall of the cocoon, creating a crack on it.

A few ore punches and the cocoon wall split up letting the liquids and myself out. Then I could feel my connection with the cocoon completely cut out.

Soon after it started to slowly wither, as it didn't have anymore reason to exist.

Once out I watched my reflection on the translucent and luminescent liquid that gushed out of the cocoon.

I already knew it, but I was very short now. Probably still in the infant form of my new specie, my new height was no more than 80 centimetres.

My skin was pale white, with visible rainbow coloured veins under my skin. I remained amazed a bit under the alternating of colours that exchanged themselves continuously.

My head was the most characteristic part of my body, it was very elongated towards my back, arching a bit towards the end.

Then my general condition could be seen as extremely skinny, but I could feel that in my body was contained only the essential, what really was important with the aim of enhancing even more my already strong points.

Indeed I can feel that my new specie focused mainly on intellect, speed and power. Limiting to the minimum the defence.

It could be seen as a big flaw, but I'm sure that with the right [tool]s it won't be that hard to compensate.

Attack is the best defence, wasn't it?

Continuing to perceive my new apparatuses I notice my new extra limb.

A long spiked tail, I think its length is at least half of my body.

Looking to my hands I observed another particular I didn't see before.

On my forearms there was a multitude of thick rainbow coloured wires. They were wrapped all around my forearms.

I could feel them like they were my own limbs.

Trying to move them around I discovered that the were extendable and capable of carrying energy without problems.

For now I can't sense anything new, but this is more like the "baby" form of my specie.

Then, suddenly hearing a new robotic voice ringing inside my head I felt at the same time both surprised and pleased.

[User has been deemed as potential wielder of the System].