Tom stayed put across the dusty plains, holding his old metal rod tight - almost like it meant something big. He wasn't moving, not with that thing in hand, acting like it had power beyond sense. The wind kicked up dirt around him while he squinted ahead, ready for what came next - no backing off now.
The wind screamed over the sharp mounds of twisted metal. Yet it hissed inside the empty frames of massive machines, almost like fallen giants. Though the sky stayed a foul shade of dark violet. Since it gave the whole place a lifeless glow.
"Okay," Tom said to himself. "Step one: Don't panic. Step two: Figure out what the heck is going on."
He glanced at what he was wearing - once more. That beginner's shirt? More like a rough gray bag, with gaps for arms and neck. Felt harsh against the skin. Some spots made him want to scratch where no one should ever itch. On top of that, his feet were totally uncovered.
"Great design," Tom muttered. "The game developers really captured the 'homeless chic' look perfectly."
He moved ahead slowly. The surface wasn't flat - littered with rough stones along with shattered glass. Each move could go wrong. He stepped cautiously, eyes on his shoes, so he didn't seem brave but clumsy, almost like a kid finding balance.
He needed to check his status again. In the ads for Aetheria, players just waved their hands and cool blue screens popped up.
Tom lifted his hand. Nothing happened.
He lifted the second hand. Still no result.
He bounced around funny, arms flailing. On a gnarled iron branch sat a crow, screeching his way. Its cry came off like mockery.
"System?" Tom whispered.
Bzzt-chk.
The flickering gray square popped up in front of his eyes once more, almost wrecking his focus.
[ SYSTEM INTERFACE ]
[ Name: Tom ]
[ Level: 1 (Exp: 0/100) ]
[ HP: 50/50 ]
[ Mana: 0/0 ]
[ Strength: 3 ]
[ Agility: 4 ]
[ Intelligence: 2 ]
[ Luck: -5 ]
Tom looked at the final sentence.
"Negative five luck?" he groaned. "Is that even allowed? Does the game just hate me, or is that a personal insult?"
Still, it fit. He stayed in a metal box, plus his food was old. When chance counted like money, Tom owed plenty.
He tapped the "Skills" tab - didn't work. The button looked faded. Then he clicked "Inventory" - same issue, totally locked. Nothing responded except his health bar... and that odd ability nobody else had: Ultimate Infinite Extraction System.
"Okay, so I can't store items, and I can't cast spells," Tom summarized. "I just have to hit things with a pipe and touch dead bodies. It sounds like a serial killer simulator."
He shut the menu just by thinking. With a crackle, it disappeared.
He had to keep going. Staying put here meant trouble. Picking a path, he headed for a big mound made of wrecked vehicles instead. His feet began moving without waiting.
The Rustlands hit you hard - smell of burnt matches mixed with something stale. Now and then, cracks in the earth let out a sharp puff, spitting thick yellow fumes into the sky. Underfoot, everything trembled, like heavy gears turning way below. It felt less like walking on rock, more like standing on top of some buried machine that never quit.
Tom kept searching. Whatever he could find. A box, a stronger blade - perhaps some footwear.
But then, things went wrong.
He caught the sound first, then spotted it.
Skritch. Skritch. Clank.
That noise came from sharp metal bits dragging over hard sheets. From back near some old, corroded drums it crept out.
Tom stopped dead. Then he clutched the pipe harder - his fingers stiffened. The skin on his hands paled fast.
"Hello?" he called out. "If you're a player, I have no loot. I'm literally wearing a potato sack."
The scratching stopped.
A moment later, someone peeked through.
It wasn't someone who played.
It was a rat - only that didn't quite cover it. Calling it one felt wrong, like disrespecting the small, scruffy ones from the alleys downtown. This beast? Nearly as big as a bulldog. Hair came out in clumps, ruined by sores, showing skin beneath - gray, rough, peeling. Then there's the spine... now that messed you up.
Bits of broken metal stuck right into its skin, forming rough protection that looked almost alive. Not a real tail - more like a bendy cable ending in a sharp point. The eyes? A sickly red glow, like something you'd see near radiation.
[ Scrap Rat - Level 2 ]
The crimson words hung in the air over it.
"Level 2," Tom whispered. "I'm Level 1. That means you're the boss, right?"
The rat let out a sharp sound - its jaws widening, showing jagged teeth like shattered metal.
Nice grin," Tom muttered, his tone a bit shaky. Yet he asked, "Ever use floss?"
The rat wasn't amused by the prank - shot straight toward him.
Tom reacted fast. Not because he'd ever touched a VR headset - nope, never. Nah, this came from the streets. If something lunges your way, you don't think - you shift.
He jumped sideways fast. As he moved, the rat flew by - its steel fingers scraping the dirt right where Tom was a second ago.
Tom jumped up. "Alright - quick move. Real quick."
The rat spun fast, out of nowhere. Yet it lashed its thin tail toward his face.
Crack!
The back end struck his leg just below the knee.
"Ah!" Tom yelled.
A crimson digit rose from his limb: –8 HP.
Eight points of damage? That's nearly a fifth of my health!" Tom freaked out. His eyes dropped to his leg - fabric ripped, skin swelling into a reddish mark. It stung. A lot. Clearly, the game wasn't dialed down on pain at all.
The rat tensed up, ready to leap once more.
Tom figured he couldn't move fast. His body felt stiff. Dodging wasn't an option. Running from it like some game? That'd get him killed. Dying here - hooked up to a broken rig - meant one big question: would he come back… or just stop breathing for good?
It was harsh - he had no choice but to act tough.
"Come on then, you ugly toaster-rat!" Tom shouted.
The rat screamed, then jumped.
This time, Tom stood his ground instead of moving away. He moved ahead without hesitation.
It was a crazy thing to do. Using two hands, he whipped the old metal pole around - driving all his scrawny strength into it. Not unlike someone smacking a ball, he targeted the monster's skull.
CLANG!
The noise came out sharp, kind of relieving. As the thick iron latch at the pipe's tip slammed into the rodent's headplate.
-12
The rat got slammed mid-air. As it hit the ground, it rolled over the rough stones - crying out from the hurt.
Tom shouted, "Hey! What'd you think?" - his body buzzing with energy.
Yet the rat still had fight left. Shaking its head, those red eyes flared up more. With a sharp hiss, it lunged forward once more - staying close to the dirt, darting side to side to dodge the pipe.
Tom took another swing - this time, no luck. Dirt flew up when the pipe struck ground.
The rat sank its teeth into his ankle.
-10 HP
"Get outta here!" Tom jerked his leg, rattling the bulky beast. His foot throbbed like it was crushed in a steel jaw.
He lifted the pipe, then slammed it hard. Thud.
He struck the rat on its back. Yet the metal shell took nearly all the force.
-4
Tom growled, "Die!" He struck once more - then another blow followed hard behind. Each hit came fast, no pause between them.
He dropped every move he knew. Not a fighter - just someone backed into a corner. Survival mode kicked in real quick. Swung that pipe hard, like smashing nails.
Crack.
The rat's back snapped. As it dropped from his foot, its body jerked - just once more.
Tom hovered above, gasping for air. His ribs rose up fast. Pain shot through his foot. Then, he checked his health bar.
[ HP: 32/50 ]
"That was just a rat," Tom gasped, wiping sweat from his forehead. "One rat almost took half my life. I am so weak."
He glanced at the dead body. Usually, during regular gameplay, it'd flicker then vanish, dropping either a coin or some loot.
The rat stayed put, still lying there, oozing black fluid that seemed synthetic. Instead of vanishing, it twitched slightly under the dim light.
"So, no loot drop?" Tom asked. "Cheapskate."
Then he remembered.
[ The User must TAKE. ]
His unique talent.
Tom dropped to one knee. A strange tug built in his belly - almost as if something deep inside was yanking him forward, pulling him closer to the lifeless creature. While it didn't make sense, he couldn't ignore how strong the force felt. Yet every step seemed heavier than the last.
"Okay," Tom whispered. "Here goes nothing."
He touched the rodent's chilly, metal-covered skull with his hand.
"Extract."
He wasn't sure whether speaking up was needed. Still, it seemed okay somehow.
ZZZZT.
A jolt shot up his arm. Not sharp, nothing like the login zap. More... pleasant. Kinda like dipping your hand into hot water when you're freezing.
A dull glow came from the rat's form. Yet it twisted near Tom's palm, moving along his limb beneath the flesh.
[ EXTRACTION COMPLETE ]
[ Target: Scrap Rat (Lv. 2) ]
[ Tier Applied: Tier 0 — Material Extraction ]
[ Result: Scrap Metal Essence ]
[ Effect: +2 Physical Defense ]
[ Side Effect: Skin Hardening (Minor) ]
[ Mental Integrity Cost: -3% ]
Tom jerked his arm backward. As the dead rat broke apart into pale powder, a gust carried it off.
"Whoa," Tom said.
He glanced down at his arm. No longer was the skin pale or lifeless. A subtle glow, almost like metal, now covered it. His fingertip lightly hit the surface of his forearm.
Click. Click.
It was kind of like knocking against stiff plastic.
"I turned into metal?" Tom asked, eyes wide. "No... not metal. Just tough."
He grabbed his skin; no pain came. Instead, it was as if something stiff hid beneath, like hidden plating. Almost as though protection ran just below the surface.
He looked at his status once more.
[ Defense: 2 (New!) ]
"I got its armor," Tom realized. A slow grin spread across his face. "I didn't just get experience points. I stole its stats."
He stared at the "Mental Integrity" alert.
[ Mental Integrity: 39% ]
It fell down to 42%. A small ache crept in, just a faint pulse near his temples, yet he could handle it. Sort of how your head feels after hours glued to a monitor.
"So, using the power hurts my brain," Tom deduced. "If it hits zero, I probably go crazy or die. Good to know."
He got to his feet, checking how his ankle felt. The teeth marks stayed visible, yet no more blood came out. That added protection appeared to keep things from getting worse.
He grabbed the old metal tube once more. Lighter it seemed this time - or perhaps he was simply surer of himself.
"If I can get iron skin from a rat," Tom thought, looking at the distant mountains, "what can I get from a wolf? Or a bear? Or a dragon?"
The ache in his gut shifted into something else entirely, craving control. Not food, but strength called to him now. For once, Tom wasn't scraping by, grabbing leftovers like before. Instead, he moved with purpose, hunting rather than being hunted.
Tom stared at the barren land. "Can't help it," he muttered, kicking dust. Survival meant tougher choices now.
He kept moving, even though his leg hurt. Safety no longer mattered to him. Now he just wanted someone else to target.
While moving forward, he noticed a shine close to some worn-out tires. Not a creature, just a lifeless person. Human-like in shape.
"Jackpot," Tom whispered.
He rushed toward the figure. This one turned out to be an NPC clad in torn leather gear. Almost seemed like he'd just appeared there - and instantly wished he hadn't. A deep slash from some beast ran down his torso.
Tom wasn't bothered by the corpse. What mattered was whatever it clutched in its hand.
In the NPC's rigid grip sat a pair of daggers - battered, marked by rust, yet holding real grips and pointed tips.
Tom pried them loose.
[ Jagged Daggers (Common) ]
[ Damage: 5-8 ]
[ Speed: Fast ]
Huge improvement," Tom muttered, chucking the pipe aside. Spinning the knives around, he checked their weight - clumsy in grip, yet keen-edged.
He stared at the lifeless character.
"Can I extract from you too?" Tom wondered.
He put his hand forward.
[ EXTRACTION FAILED ]
[ Reason: Target has no remaining essence. Decay level too high. ]
"Darn," Tom muttered. "Fresh kills only. Got it."
He slid the knives into his belt - or actually, the string tied around his waist to keep his baggy shirt from falling down.
He felt tougher. He was armed. He understood the rules now.
Kill. Touch. Become stronger.
It was a simple loop. It was a brutal loop. And Tom was absolutely perfect for it.
"Alright, Aetheria," Tom grinned, his metallic skin glinting in the dim light. "Let's see what else you've got."