Chapter 1: chapter 1: the beginning
A/N As fair warning, this chapter will be dark, so the faint of heart should not read this chapter as a description of torture and the like will be in this chapter. I warned you.
In a world that is 10x the size of the earth and the population more than billions as humans aren't the only race that lives here, the living dead also live here.
It is very similar to how RPG games are with levels, skills, and all that.
However, as everyone has that kind of life with seemingly no limit to levels and is only allowed to have one skill, lives a disfigured boy.
If I had to describe the child, he looks very similar to Gollum.
With small patches of skin on his face and the top of his head, it looked like someone burned it slowly.
Then healed in the wrong way as some strands of skin were connected from the left cheekbone to the left eyebrow.
The child's eye underneath was damaged as the pupil was grayish due to the extent of the damage.
He was practically skin and bones due to being malnourished.
With a loincloth to cover the lower body, however, there were signs of someone enjoyed mutilating this poor boy around that area.
Filthy due to being forbidden from cleaning himself, and lastly.
Signs of bruises, cuts, and the left hand forced to being healed that way like a sick joke as it looked like the culprit broke repeatedly.
Look more closely at the child's blackened and swollen fingertips.
He had no nails as the one responsible maliciously ripped off some time ago.
Forcing the victim to have some bugs and flies gather around at the deformed fingertips despite the child's condition.
Even with all the suffering, the boy endured as He carried vigor in his remaining eye that gave off a glint of hatred beyond what anyone could show.
This child was only able to do so, Whenever he was left alone in this small room.
Where this child could only fit into if he curled into a ball, this small area covered in dust and stench would wrinkle anyone's nose of whoever approached.
One might ask why is this child suffering so much?
Why is the child in such a state one might ask?
Well, let me ask you this in a world where the strong can do whatever the hell they want, what is it that they wouldn't do?
The reason for the child being in this state is significantly due to the one supposed to be taking care of him.
This nearly crippled boy's uncle, former elite before the world, changed into what it is now and with the mindset that was instilled into him by the world and his ego.
He was a rather tall man, in the eyes of the boy, around 5'7", not very handsome face with blue eyes, narrow nose, somewhat high cheekbones, shady looks.
A skinny frame of a man looked better than the starving boy locked in that compartment of a cage, still wearing a filthy suit with a few holes covered in dirt and grime due to the lack of access to water.
The man was stronger than the tortured boy yet was weaker than most of those that have skills that are considered 'weak' in general and thus to satisfy his vanity.
The man vented on to his nephew.
It started with a simple slap when the boy asked for food during his time of raging in anger and frustration.
Then before long, that one slap towards the boy that was weaker than him brought about a feeling that was so satisfying.
However, that wasn't enough this man wanted to make the boy feel pain, to kneel at his feet, to make the boy feel weak.
The sick man used a flat head screwdriver for ripping the boy's nails and toenails off then halfway drowned the boy.
He then enjoyed the boy's screams of pain as the uncle mutilated the child's d**k and testicles, then when the child's cries died down, the man then used some leftover gas to start burning the poor child until it was past the outer skin then dousing the boy with cold water to shiver in pain and the cold.
While the child can get stronger from fighting some lower leveled zombies and possibly help him survive it can also give the boy a chance to kill him, he couldn't allow that now could he?
Given as for letting the boy get a chance at getting stronger than him?
Hell no, he'd instead lock the boy up in a small room with barely enough to satisfy the child's hunger, which is why the boy looks like a six-year-old despite being 11 years old.
While the boy didn't show signs of fear there was still hostility, heh the man laughed to himself, the boy was too weak with him being a level 22 and the boy being level one. At the same time, he could make sticky spit, which can only be activated three times a day.
It was a very useless ability around zombies that always come in packs of 10 to hundreds.
The place they are living in temporarily is on the third floor.
While it was tempting to use the boy as bait, the man would rather keep him around as his stress relief punching bag and torture toy lest the boy manages to escape and get stronger than him.
Hell with the lack of food, the boy might work better as rations despite the boy's lack of meat and being filthy.
Yes, the uncle, no, the fiend was thinking of eating the boy, yet, luck seemed to be on the child's side today as the sound of gunshots and people shouting out their skills was getting closer and closer.
The fiend was cursing the ancestors of the people that were causing such a racket.
As not only are they destroying the area, they are attracting the zombie from around the city towards them.
Wait... attracting the zombies???
The man had a eureka moment before he started gathering his gear then went towards the boy's Little room as he let out a cold snicker filled with sadistic hunger!
"well, "meat" looks like we get to live another day."
the fiend then yelled at the boy
"get your ass out and hurry up, we are leaving the place while those fools distract the zombies."
The boy tried to resist as always defiantly.
Still, it was futile as the man smacked the boy across the face sending the boy into the wall headfirst, causing the child to bleed a bit from the head.
Due to the crash, the boy was dizzy.
The fiend picked up the boy before lapping up some of the blood that dripped down the child's face due to his hunger causing the child to shudder in disgust.
At the same time, the uncle was shivering in delight due to how sweet the blood tasted.
It had been a few days since he had a decent meal, and the "meat" in front of him looked even more delicious the more he stared.
This fiend barely managed to rein in his urges and lifted the boy's body to his right shoulder then.
While the courageous and noisy group distracted all of the moving zombies, he ran in the opposite direction from the noise.
He was seeking a way to find another safe house to eat his now delicious smelling "meat" on his shoulder Despite the boy being unable to properly bathe for a few weeks now.
The route he took was quiet and away from the majority of the zombies as well as other humans as he didn't want to share as he imagined the meal that he will have soon.
The fool didn't notice the intelligent zombie that was waiting in ambush to get him.
Sure enough, as the man was running, he coincidentally reached the ambush area of the zombie.
Thus when he reached it, a pair of claws dug into his left leg.
The zombie pulled him towards it; the sound of tearing flesh echoed about every time it jerked.
The fiend wailed in pain as it was tearing at his leg as the bloodied man resisted, dropping the now barely conscious boy in the process.
The man was now on the ground on his back using his free leg to repeatedly kick the monster before it could sink its teeth into his flesh.
The struggle was fierce and seemingly pointless as the damage done to him was significant as the deep gash was from the middle of his thigh down towards his calf.
It showed his now cracked bone poking about allowing all to see how bad the state of his leg was at this time.
The man repeatedly kicked this attacker with his free leg with all of the strength that he could muster as his blood gradually left him as this man was huffing and puffing.
The man was starting to blacking out, and the zombie was on its last struggle as well.
It's the neck, the bone was barely hanging together, yet it hasn't let go of its prey until a small figure with a rock sneaked behind it.
With both hands raised, the rock high then pummeled it with the stone until the zombie stopped moving.
Then with rotten flesh and blood splattered over the figure, it slowly approached the heavily injured barely breathing man that seemed to have fallen into a daze from fatigue and blood loss.
(A/N vengeance is always so sweet when delivered)
Upon seeing this, the figure smirked at this chance and again raised the rock covered in zombie flesh, and brain matter then slammed it into the face of the man with a bloody, loud sound.
*thwack*
that strike immediately awakened the tired fiend!
"AAAHHHH!!!"
He screamed sharply in pain from the sudden attack but it was soon cut off by another heavy 'thwack' to his face that spurt out some blood from how sharp the stone was as it cut deeply into the side of his face!
The stone continued to brutally smash into the face of the now powerless fiend.
The assailant had thoughts of his own as every strike gave him a sense of liberation as he was savoring this chance.
This bastard had tortured him repeatedly for seven years.
7 F*CKING YEARS!
Yeah, that would make anyone hold a deadly and massive grudge; thus, while it was in the face, it was as if the physical lessons that the man "taught" the boy...
let us just point out that it ensured to prolong the suffering of the now unlucky man, as the man wailed in pain.
He tried to move to defend himself; however, after exhausting himself, he was bleeding out, barely able to lift a finger.
This moment was a perfect time and opportunity for the boy to bring about his revenge, after leveling up seven times from the level 18 zombie from earlier he body was significantly stronger than before.
As the formerly heavy rock which needed two hands to lift was now easy to lift with just one swung downwards into the barely wailing man as the man coaxed, begged, threatened, then cursed at the assailant.
Unfortunately for the man, thanks to the blood, dirt, and the man's own flesh blocking his sight, didn't notice it was his nephew that was bashing his head in then again if he happened to see the bloodthirsty look on the boy's face he would've realized his time was up.
As the eyes of the boy gleamed with cruelty and promised only death for this bastard!
so the man could only lay there as the rock hit him with another loud.
*thwack*
*thwack*
*thwack*
within a few minutes of bashing his head in the man's face swelled and was beyond recognition as the man groaned the boy held the rock with both hands this time then slammed one more time with a vengeful growl to bring about the beautiful.
*splat*
Several sounds of notifications echoed in the boy's mind as he failed to notice the two major ones.
The two that will make his life so much more different than others, including the bonus for completing his vengeance and a secret mission that he will never get to see or even understand.
As the fiend's head exploded from that final strike, a sense of freedom enveloped his mind. This action leveled up the boy to 15 which unlocked his unique skill that was his alone.
Due to his sheer desire to change his outer appearance due to the damage it had received from the "kindness" from his so-called uncle, which was "flesh manipulation (1) (0/10),".
However, now the boy was rather tired some of the injuries his fiend of an uncle gave him earlier caught up to him.
He tried to get up but to no avail causing him to stumble to the ground, then fall into a deep slumber.
Upon the concrete floor, not noticing the pair of glowing red eyes that were watching him at this moment as it licked its razor-sharp teeth.
As it ever so slowly drew closer in a hungry manner.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone