The token in his hand, glowed a little giving him a small light within the dark, starless night. It was circular, and he felt the symbol of a helix against his fingers. The strange crystal had been clear at first, but now it was too bright to stare at directly. The light it gave off was colorless and pure. He didn’t know how it worked and didn’t care either.

He used it to guide his path, as he had nothing else that could provide him with such a thing. He held it in front of him, passing it between his hands since it was actually quite warm. He didn’t have any good gloves and had just wrapped pieces of cloth around his hands. The wraps didn’t do much in the middle of winter though, and the cold seeped right through them. However, they found their use when he got into a fight and needed to block a bat or bar. The light steadily grew brighter, telling him that it was almost time to go. Perfect, he was almost at Transit Park too.

The park didn’t actually have a name since it wasn’t much of a park to begin with, but it was close to the train station and that was all that he needed. After using the token, he would hopefully be able to take the train to somewhere better. Warmer at the very least. This winter had been bad, and it was going to be one of the coldest ever on Serath. He had no doubt that he wouldn’t make it if the token didn’t work. The token would probably work. He had never heard of it ever having a problem. Any failure would fall on his shoulders alone. That was how it had always been, and this would be no different.

The token was known as a “Greater Invitation,” and would let someone undergo the “Trial of Evolution.” And it would hopefully be his ticket out of his situation. At the very least, it was the only thing left he could try. After all, he had stolen the token, so doing poorly on the trial would mean death. Although, stealing the token had been unavoidable. It was the only chance he had to live, and it wasn’t like his situation could get much worse. Especially not after what he had done last week. Even if security on this planet was poor, eventually someone would find him and that would be it.

He shook his head violently, some of his hair falling out of his hood as he did so. The black locks felt uncomfortable as they brushed his forehead, and he pushed them back and pulled his hood down. He couldn’t be so pessimistic, not now. The Trial was his chance at a better life, and the entrance ticket was in his hand. All he had to do was wait a few more minutes.

Walking through the dark empty streets felt serene, and he couldn’t remember the last time he was able to just walk the streets. Though it was almost midnight, and everyone would be indoors for the start of a new year. Even on this shitty planet, people found a way to deal with one another to celebrate a new year. To celebrate the fact that they had lived for one more year. Snow caked the stone ground, and he felt the cracks along the walkway despite wearing thick boots.

The buildings here were a bit better than the ones back in his district. They were entirely made of stone, rather than the unfeeling metal of his old home. They were square structures that each held a single-family. His home had been an enormous metal cylinder with people constantly fighting over who would get a bed or a new set of clothes. This district was just upscale enough that they could afford to buy a coat once every few years. He couldn’t help but feel a little jealous when he passed someone's home, and he was able to hear some music coming from inside of it. While he knew that their wealth was insignificant compared to some of the athletes he had seen in the occasional ad, it was still far more than he could imagine. Finally, he spotted the park he was looking for.

It wasn’t anything special and only people like him would even call it a park. In reality, it was just a bunch of random pieces of metal that had been made to look vaguely like a park. A large triangular piece of something had been stuck into the ground. A rope tie around the tip so that kids could use it as a slide. A metal tube was half-buried into the stone and worked as a bench.

The light of the token was still getting brighter, so he guessed that he still had a few more minutes. He didn’t have many fond memories, but he could remember coming to this park when he was a kid. Of walking through this district and needing to sneak past the very rare police officer. Traveling between districts was technically against the law, though there was barely anyone around this area willing to enforce them. So long as he didn’t do anything drastic, like stealing a token from a government-sanctioned library, he would be fine.

He sat on the bench, the chill of the metal quickly seeping through his two layers of pants. He wore a set of leggings he had found and put sweatpants over them. Even if men didn’t typically wear leggings, he didn’t have the liberty to care about his appearance all that much. The leggings helped him stay warm, and that was enough. His torso was tightly wrapped with whatever pieces of cloth he could tear out of his home when he left. Over top of that he wore two partially torn shirts and a large baggy hoody that was missing a sleeve. The sweatshirt had some cartoon cat character on it, and his entire outfit was probably one of the worst things someone could come up with. However, it was warm enough to survive in the winter, and that was all he needed.

He breathed in deeply, staring up into the dark empty sky. Their world didn’t have a moon, and half the planet would be completely dark at night. It was too far away from the Central Sector, that there were no visible stars either. This was Serath, the planet of scrap and one of the outermost planets in the Grand Connection. He looked around and despite the darkness, he knew what his home was like. Worn down buildings, and junk that was treated like treasure. This whole world was little more than a collection of trash, and he was just another piece of it.

Thankfully, he was saved from brooding as the light of the token stopped growing brighter. It was easily bright enough to act as a lamp, and he was blinded by it for a second. An instant later, the light was gone, and he found himself laying down on what felt like a hard rock. His hands brushed against the ground, and he pushed himself up, immediately realizing that it was a lot warmer now. His extra layers were now making him uncomfortably hot though his attention was drawn to the strange screen that appeared in the corner of his vision. He knew to expect this, but he wasn’t prepared for the strange color of it. It was a black screen with white text, and he scanned the text while taking in his surroundings.

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Welcome to the Greater Connection. This is your first Trial of Evolution, your opportunity to raise your grade and become something more. Please think of seeing more to continue…

The text bothered, him but he cared more about what he noticed around him. There was a short slightly worn sword on the ground beside him, and he realized that he had fallen into the combat path. It was what he was hoping for, and he wrapped his fingers around the hilt of the blade. The hilt was thin and the blade light. There were no guards on the blade, and it curved slightly. It had a pointed tip, though the end was more rectangular than he expected. Since the blade was small, he felt more comfortable holding the blade backward, the tip pointing behind him. It was obviously meant for slashing, and he knew how to make use of a small blade.

Finally, his attention was drawn back to the screen, and the thought of the word continue. It was strange to think about a word, but it seemed to work for the “Greater Connection”. The screen changed and more information was displayed.

Name: Cl03

Home World: Serath

Grade: F

Rank: N/A

Physical Grade: 0.0

  Strength: 0.0

  Dexterity: 0.0

  Speed: 0.0

Mental Grade: 0.0

  Reflexes: 0.0

  Intuition: 0.0

  Fortitude: 0.0

Gift Grade: N/A

Recognitions: None

Continue…

He knew what to expect, so he wasn’t particularly surprised to see grades. Everyone received the same grades at the start of the trial, and the exact information would only be displayed at the end. From what he knew only the best of a generation would get out of the F grade from the first trial. Most attribute grades fell between one and two with few managing anything higher. He thought to continue quickly, but his eyes shot forward as he heard footsteps in the distance. The message showed up, but he only had a moment to look at it.

First Mission: Get Out of the Cave

  Bonus: Slay the Moss Wolves

As he finished reading the message monster jumped from the shadows, seeming to form out of thin air. In a panicked reaction, he swung his hand up, using his body to brace for the impact. The blade was still in his hand, and the motion gave him the opportunity to cut the wolf while blocking. The blade sliced through its flesh, and it yelped as it fell away. The wolf was covered in moss that shimmered between colors as the wolf thrashed on the ground. A deep cut was leaking blue blood on the wolf's side, and his eyes narrowed at the creature as he attempted to slash the back of the creature’s neck.

He didn’t get the chance to complete the swing, as another wolf leaped at him. Its fur turned from a grey that matched the stone of the cave to a dark shade of purple. The beast was half as tall as he was, and he wasn’t able to react well to the surprise attack. Its teeth sunk into his shoulder easily biting through his sweatshirt. He clenched his teeth, containing his screams. The pain was something he could deal with; he was more concerned with the actual damage.

Thankfully, his body was well wrapped, and the layer of cloth managed to stop it from tearing off a piece of him. It also worked as a crappy bandage and managed to stop the wounds from bleeding too badly. The wolf got stuck and tried shaking to free itself, and he grunted in pain. Thinking quickly, he fell onto the wolf, using his other hand to drive the blade into the beast’s head. He didn’t bother aiming for a weak point and just focused on putting all of his weight behind the fall. The blade slid into the wolf, and he felt its struggles end. He had to pry the creature off of him, and he struggled from the pain of it. Before he could get it off, he felt a stab of pain shoot up his left leg.

A glance showed him that the other wolf had recovered enough to attack. The pain was bad, and his legs weren’t as well protected as his body. He knew that he couldn’t let it continue and kicked its snout with his other foot. It flinched away, and he used the opportunity to roll so that he was able to raise his blade towards it. Since he was still lying on the ground, the wolf pounced on his other leg. He expected it and swung his entire body while screaming in pain. He drew the blade from the dead wolf’s skull in the motion and held it toward the jumping one. It couldn’t stop and settled for slamming its mouth down on his arm. A few teeth managed to pierce his bicep, but the wolf died as his blade cut into its throat and body.

Gasping in pain, he pulled his hand out. The blade was thoroughly stuck, and he had more urgent matters to deal with. He got back to prying the wolf from his shoulder, though he kept his vision on his surroundings. There might be another one, and he was in no condition to fight. Honestly, he wasn’t even sure if he would be able to resist another one of the wolfs. Although, he felt some relief as he saw the screen from earlier.

First Mission: Get Out of the Cave

  Bonus: Slay the Moss Wolves (Completed)

The wolves were dead. The Greater Connection was undeniably the closest thing to a god that they had now, and he trusted that it would know if there were more wolves. Instead, he decided to focus on his injuries. After removing the wolf from his shoulder, he dealt with the wound on his leg first. It was by far the worst injury he had. He tore off some of the cloth of his sweatpants and tied it tightly around the bite on his thigh. The shoulder wound wasn’t urgent, and he left it as it was. The other arm had barely even taken any damage, and he didn’t even consider dealing with it. Turning back to the other wolf, he grabbed the hilt of his blade again. It stuck out partially from the open mouth of the wolf. It took some effort, but he managed to get the blade out, though now his hands were covered in the blue blood.

Since this was a cave, the exit would be towards the light. That was enough of a direction for him, and he pushed himself to his feet. His first attempt at standing failed, as the wound on his thigh throbbed with pain. It caused him to stumble and fall. He dragged himself to the nearby wall, rising to his feet by leaning against it. The stone had some ridges on it, and he could use it to take some of the weight off of the leg. With the additional support, he managed to limp his way toward the exact. Thankfully, there was nothing else within the cave and he managed to get to the exit easily enough. However, he knew that this was not the end of the trial as the text on the screen changed.

First Mission: Get Out of the Cave (Completed)

  Bonus: Slay the Moss Wolves (Completed)

Rewards: Infinite Water Bottle

Bonus Reward: Basic Medical Kit

Second Mission: Find Other People

  Bonus: Avoid Bandits and Criminals

  Bonus: Kill Bandits and Criminals

  Bonus: Capture Bandits and Criminals