Level-Up Apocalypse: Surviving With The Assimilation System

["Turn Shadow"]

Finn swung once more, releasing the last bit of the blessing of wind, though the far-extending slice only carved through the yellow lane of the street. He relinquished the lengthy weapon, staying focused as he tracked down the fleeing shadow.

["Superior Sense: Smell"]

That egregious scent filled his nose; the stench of monsters, reeking of blood, brought him to look towards the red, crushed car to his right.

He held his hand out, aiming right for where he tracked the scent–

["Web Sphere"] [1:59]

A ball of the arachnid material was tossed right where the figure emerged from the shadows. It struck with pinpoint accuracy, exploding into a mass of webs that ensnared the predator.

Finn watched as the once overwhelming force was now bound like a fly in a cobweb. He lifted his foot with the intent of moving closer to finish the job, but stopped.

From the shadows of the alley, the fiends that had been watching leapt out; goblins, kobolds, orcs alike all dive right for the bound man.

"Hey!--" Crow yelled out, attempting to resist as the sturdy, adhesive substance latched itself to the curbside and the asphalt. "Don't let them…! Hey!"

A part of Finn wanted to take him out himself, though kept his distance, witnessing the gruesome fate as the countless fiends tore into the predacious figure. It was an abhorrent display, one that he didn't even know if he could say one as twisted as the hunter deserved.

–

As the screams of the man stopped, within the library, the spellblade found the doppelganger she faced dissolving into a puddle of black gunk.

"Ah…? Did he win?" Charlotte wondered, wiping the sweat from her chin.

–

["Crow Blackworth defeated."] ["Anarch Token x5000 obtained."]

[Experience Points: +30,000]

[Level twenty-seven reached!] [600/35000]

[Assimilated ability from [Crow Blackworth]: "Predator"]

[Assimilated weapon from [Crow Blackworth]: "Bone-Forged Cleaver"]

[New Skill(s) Obtained: "Unseen"]

It seemed to register that the man was already defeated by his hands even as the fiends feasted on his flesh, though the thought of inheriting the grotesque system of the man made Finn's stomach spin.

The flesh on his arm mended itself as the pain was cast away, allowing the black uniform to weave itself together as if time itself was reversed on its fibers.

It was over, the deed was done and the night finished.

Or, at least, that's what should've been the case.

Finn stepped away, though a distinct sound within the mass of fiends that feasted on what should be the shredded corpse of the emitted–

"...Haaa…"

As he looked back, that breathy noise turned into a "squelch" that surpassed the others, decimating both flesh and bone. What he witnessed didn't make any sense; amidst the pile of goblins, kobolds, and orcs that feasted on the men, something grabbed at the fiends and returned the favor.

Arms scraped of flesh, revealing bone as blood gushed out; they grabbed onto the goblins, shoveling them down into an unseen mouth.

'What the fuck…is that? What's happening?' Finn questioned the sight that didn't make any sense.

Somehow, the arms that hung by a thread grabbed and squeezed the closest kobolds, popping their necks before being shoveled into what could barely be described as a mouth.

What he saw emerge from the bloodied pile was a corpse, what should be laying dead; a shredded body, soaked in blood and missing an entire arm, most of its face, along with nearly all of its flesh.

"Crow…?" Finn said the name, though still couldn't logically believe it.

He knew what his system showed him, the experience he gained and the abilities he assimilated; that was the unmistakable mark of death–yet that mangled corpse walked.

"...Haaah…"

The still living remnants of the twisted man stood there with raspy breaths, collapsing to his knees as he opened his barely hinged jaw. A grotesque act; the walking corpse brought his hands, or what was left of his arms, to his mouth, shoveling them down his throat.

Finn didn't know what he was looking at, only watching like a car accident that one couldn't walk away from.

It didn't stop there; the devouring man continued to shove his arms down his throat, beginning to unnaturally curl the rest of his body into his mouth.

'He's…eating himself?' Finn watched in horror.

Until there was nothing left but the jaw that consumed, the remnants of the feasted-upon body had entirely vanished. It was a sight that made Finn question if he had fallen into a fever dream, only beginning to back away as a sickening feeling resonated in his gut.

The illogical sight reminded him of one concept, a memory he seldom wanted to remember.

He hurried down the street with a sprint, not taking very long to find himself hopping through the busted wall of the library.

As soon as he entered, he was welcomed by the reassuring sight of his companion joining him in the lobby as well, with a few cuts and bruises of her own.

"You're alright?" Finn asked, checking up on the young woman as he grasped her arms, looking at the state of her body.

Charlotte nodded, "I'm fine, did you do it? Did you get him?"

"Ah…About that, where's–" Finn began to ask.

Just as he looked over where the minotaur-sized hole was made in the left side wall, he saw the swede dragging himself into the room with a cough. The library was left in a complete mess, with toppled shelves and books left all across the floor.

Once embedded into the ceiling, the panels of lights had come down with spills of glass.

"I survived, somehow. That beast didn't make it easy," Magnus remarked, rubbing his lower back as if having strained it.

It was a relief to see that they were all fine, with no major injuries shared between them, though there was no time to relax in the mind of the young man.

"Did you do it?" Magnus asked, staring right at him.

Finn felt the gazes of both, not knowing exactly how to answer or put into reason what he just saw down the street, "I…I did, I think."

"You think? What happened?" Charlotte asked.

"I'd like to think it's quite obvious when you kill somebody," Magnus sarcastically remarked.

There wasn't much of a way to put into logical terms what he saw, finding himself digging into his own experiences that he seldom wanted to relay. As he stood there with hesitance, he found his arm soothingly held by the silken-haired girl's lithe fingers.

"Finn, what is it?" Charlotte asked.

"I killed him. I got the confirmation from my system, but–" Finn explained, trailing his thoughts.

Magnus folded his arms over her chest, pressing for more, "But?"

"He was still alive, sort of…Barely. Like a walking corpse. Then…I watched him eat himself. Until there was nothing left," Finn relayed what he witnessed.

"He…ate himself?" Magnus repeated.

Charlotte looked disturbed just by the thought of it, lightly covering her lips, "That's…"

"Then he's dead, right?" Magnus logically said.

"When I faced that faceless entity during that pitch-black night…When I was pushed to the brink, my body naturally guided me to plunge my dagger into my own throat. It wasn't to take the easy way out–I knew, instinctually, it was the way to survive," Finn recalled.

That recollection brought him to liken it to what he just witnessed; the self-consumption of the hunter, using that gluttonous system.

"If his system works by completely obtaining the properties of what he eats, then if he ate himself…There's a chance he can rebuild himself anew, preying on himself?" Finn said.

"If I'm being honest, I think you're likely suffering from exhaustion at this point," Magnus remarked. "I can't believe something like that, sorry."

"Magnus–" Charlotte sharply said.

Finn shook his head, rubbing it as he could feel his own fatigue, "It's fine. You don't have to believe me, but it doesn't change what we have to do either way. This place is trashed and monsters are gathering around this block like there's a parade."

"On that, we agree," Magnus said. "We should head out now–for the nearest Tower. Is that fine by you, Charlotte?"

"Mm. It'll be difficult during the night," Charlotte considered. "But, we don't have a choice."

"Yeah, that's about it," Finn confirmed. "This place will be crawling with monsters any time now. The sooner we can head out, the better–I'd rather not stick around to confirm my theory."

Magnus was already moving to gather the bags of supplies left sitting on the ground, hoisting one bag over his shoulder before tossing the other right at the young man.

"Oh–" Finn reacted as he caught the backpack.

"You plan on leading the way, right? After all, you're the silent-and-cautious assassin, aren't you?" Magnus asked.

There almost always seemed to be a presence of cynicism when the swede spoke, though Finn ignored it as he slid the straps of the backpack over his shoulders.

"That's fine. Just watch my back," Finn said.