Erik woke up. He almost wishes he hadn't. He was trapped inside a sphere of red liquid he could barely see through. There was a thin membrane with veins growing around it like vines crawling up a long-abandoned house. It pulsed to a steady rhythm and with each beat pure agony rushed through him. His fingers twitched as the force of the blood flowing into him was too much. Every vein and capillary was forcefully expanded to accommodate the raging river within. He couldn't scream, the thick ooze clogged his throat. He couldn't hear, the torrent of blood sounded like the marching of an army. He couldn't think, he felt like he'd gone fifty rounds with Chuck Norris!

He didn't know where he was, nor how he got here, but all he knew was one thing. One overwhelming need that consumed his entire being. Out. He had to get out. NOW.

OUT..! OUT..! OUT!

Like a man possessed Erik struggled within his confines and he chanted that singular mantra. He clawed his way inch by inch to the surface of the membrane. Grabbing it with his hands he tore it open and it burst like a water balloon. He cough and gagged on the fluid still within his chest. It was disgusting. He was disgusting. Drenched in blood like a wet cat, on his hands and knees as he puked, and tears running down his eyes. A fist sized chunk of congealed blood and mucus splattered on the floor as he finally cleared his esophagus.

It tasted like death.

As if someone had shoved a piece of rancid raw meat in his mouth in his sleep and duck taped it shut. Rot and the bitter tang of iron filled his mouth. His throat burned and it hurted to talk from all the dried blood caked in the back. He stayed in that position just breathing in the relief of still being alive.

Finally deciding that he had calmed down enough he stood up and looked around. He was still in the bathroom of the hospital, and the creature's corpse was still in the toilet head first. He found the remains of his fleshy prison and couldn't suppress a shiver going down his spine. That kind of pain was maddening. As if he was a balloon waiting to pop. His veins didn't feel like they were a part of him anymore, no, they were more like worms wiggling their way around inside of him. The remnants of the cocoon was like some twisted attempt of a human womb.

"Welp, that's another issue for my therapist" If that was how babies felt like being born than it was a mercy that nobody remembered the process of their birth. We had enough maniacs running around as is without every child being traumatized by that. Erik checked the small window panel of his door leading to the hallway for anymore of the creature. Once he was sure there was none roaming around he gently ran the shower, setting it to gentle drip down as to avoid making too much noise. Changing into a new outfit he decided to take stock of his situation.

[ ! ]

Seeing a hovering Icon in the side of his vision Erik finally gathered himself. Quietly walking to grab his phone he checked the time.

3:07 AM

It's been 3 hours since the System started and yet he could've easily died 4 times over. From the close encounter with the monster, from the risk of infect with his wounds, and from blood lost. At least he can't ever claim to die from boredom anymore it seems. Checking his arm and abdomin he saw smooth skin with a slight pinkish hue. It felt tender and slightly itchy as if an old cut with the scab falling off.

Feeling a tingle in the back of his mind he refocused back on the System. A mental nudge was all it required apparently as it soon opened with his thought. A bit concerning in what it implied, but he was hardly in any room to complain.

Shadow Beast(New Born) Defeated!

Tutorial Double EXP Event in process...

200 EXP Awarded!

2 Soul Points Collected!

Shadow Beast (New Born)

A recently born Shadow Beast. Considered pests in most worlds these creature roam between worlds traveling through the void of darkness. They are an unique species in that their members all acquire different forms independent of their birthgivers. A Semi- Corporal being it hides within the dark. Exposure to light can force it to temporarily take a solid form. Once a member of the species is pregnant they seek out a strong creature to laid their eggs in its shadow. The newborn shadow beast will adopt a similar form to said creature inheriting it's strength and few of it's weaknesses. Taking a few years to leave its infantile stage, this particular shadow beast belongs to a tribe that chosen to take part in the System as part of the Introduction phrase to integrate native species of [Earth]. Fresh out of the womb and suffering defects at birth before being transported, it is barely cognitive and with poor motor control. Shadow Beasts hardly qualify as a threat, easily dispatched by most children in integrated worlds.

Threat Level: Very Low

Erik Hunter was never one to turn away from a challenge. Coming from a long line of woodsmen he has hunted with his family in the woods ever since he was a kid. Being bullied from childhood because of his strange look and sickly demeaner he picked up some martial arts for self defense. Living in one of the more poor district in his city he was never too far from the occasional gang or thugs. He even relished in the random fight or sparring every now and then. The rush was addicting no matter how rare the opportunity came. Yet, as he was reading the message, it took all his might to not collapse back onto his knees.

Shadow Beast. New Born.

New Born.

He almost died to an infant. That thing was barely a handful of minutes old and he almost died. His shoulder started shaking as his hands covered his face. Whether it was cries or laughter that echoed within the blood soaked room, even he didn't know.

If all the information was correct he had almost been killed by the equivalent of a retarded infantile offspring of some type of galactic rodent. A Pest. Something so weak that it barely was worth even mentioning as a threat by the System. It was used as fodder for a mere Introduction, part of a Tutorial of sorts to help us get used to the System. Something that even goddamn KIDS were expected to handle with ease. It was by sheer luck that he had even survived it. If he hadn't been paying attention, if he didn't notice the ambush, he wouldn't died without knowing what even killed him!

What the fuck was this? What kind of ridiculous game has humanity and him been dragged into if this was the weakest thing they could throw at them? Someone took the difficulty lever, skipped passed the normal and hard mode, and ramped it pass Hell straight up into Nightmare. If the outside was anywhere near this than he can't even begin to imagine the maddness it was enduring. It must be an absolute blood bath. The world as we knew it had ended, for before creation must come destruction. From the ashes, a new world shall be born.

It was truly,

A Baptism of Blood.