Finn Porter's face looked nothing like Levi Erik's had. Sharper features. Younger. Different enough that no one would ever connect the two. And fortunately, he was handsome too.
He dried off completely and wrapped the towel around his waist, then stepped back into the main room. His clothes were ruined so he'd need to find something else. He rummaged through the pile on the floor and found a clean shirt and pants that fit well enough.
Once dressed, he sat down on the bed and pulled up his system interface. Time to actually look at what he had.
[STATUS WINDOW]
Name: Finn Porter
Level: 3
Class: Spatial Reaver
Generation: 4th Gen
Stats:
Strength: F (15/100)
Agility: F (18/100)
Stamina: E (22/100)
Intelligence: C (58/100)
Spark Capacity: F (8/100)
Luck: E (25/100)
Active Skills:
Anchor Point (Lv. 1)
Phase Step (Lv. 1)
Spatial Blade (Lv. 1)
Passive Skills:
Scan (Lv. 1)
Spatial Cache (Lv. 1)
Skill Points: 2
Attribute Points: 6
He stared at the numbers, mind working through the implications.
His physical stats were low across the board. F-rank strength and agility meant he was barely above civilian baseline. The stamina was slightly better at E-rank but still nothing impressive. Intelligence was his highest stat at C-rank, which made sense given he was technically the creator of this world.
Spark Capacity at F-rank was concerning. That was his energy pool for using abilities. Low capacity meant he'd run out of juice fast in extended fights.
A new notification appeared.
[WOULD YOU LIKE A TUTORIAL?]
[YES / NO]
He selected no.
He understood the basics. Stats governed physical capabilities and scaled up through ranks. Skills had levels and improved with use. Attribute points could be allocated manually. Skill points unlocked or upgraded abilities.
What he needed was clarification on how his specific abilities worked.
"System," he said out loud. "Explain the skills."
Text appeared.
[ANCHOR POINT - LV. 1]
[Place up to 3 spatial markers. Teleport instantly to any active marker. Range: 50 meters. Cooldown: 10 seconds between teleports. Markers last 24 hours or until dismissed.]
[PHASE STEP - LV. 1]
[Short-range teleport 5-10 meters. Brief intangibility during transition (0.5 seconds). Can pass through thin barriers. Cooldown: 3 seconds. Spark Cost: Low.]
[SPATIAL BLADE - LV. 1]
[Condense spatial energy into cutting edge on hand or weapon. Ignores conventional armor. Duration: 10 seconds. Damage scales with Strength + Intelligence. Spark Cost: Medium.]
[SCAN - LV. 1]
[Analyze targets for information. Success rate: 45%. Range: 10 meters. Higher levels increase detail and success rate. Spark Cost: 5 per scan.]
[SPATIAL CACHE - LV. 1]
[Store items in pocket dimension. Current capacity: 10 items or 50kg total. Cannot store living things.]
He read through each description twice, filing away the information.
Anchor Point would be his escape tool. Mark safe spots before fights, teleport back if things went bad. Phase Step for mobility in combat. Spatial Blade for actual damage since his sword wasn't exactly high quality.
The six attribute points needed to be distributed carefully. He pulled up the allocation screen.
'Strength and agility are both F-rank,' he thought. 'Need to get them higher just to survive. Stamina is okay for now. Spark Capacity is the real problem.'
He put two points into Strength, two into Agility, and two into Spark Capacity.
[STATS UPDATED]
Strength: F (21/100)
Agility: F (24/100)
Spark Capacity: F (14/100)
Better. Not great, but better. He could feel the difference immediately, his body slightly stronger and more responsive than before.
The skill points he decided to save for now. No point spending them until he understood his abilities better.
His stomach growled, reminding him he hadn't eaten since before the Razorwolf fight. He stood and crossed to the kitchenette, opening the mini fridge.
Nearly empty. A half-eaten protein bar. Some kind of dried meat that looked questionable. A bottle of water.
He was reaching for the protein bar when someone knocked on the door.
Three sharp raps and it sounded impatient.
Levi froze. Who would be looking for Finn?
The knock came again, louder this time, followed by a voice.
"Finn! Open up, I know you're in there!"
It was a male's voice. A young, irritated one.
Levi crossed to the door and opened it.
A guy stood in the hallway, shorter than Finn by a few inches, with messy brown hair and a blue scarf tied around his neck despite the warm weather. He looked to be about eighteen, with the kind of wiry build that came from not eating enough. His clothes were stained with grease and his hands had dark marks that suggested he worked with machinery.
The guy didn't wait for an invitation. He shoved past Levi and walked into the apartment like he owned it.
"You've got some nerve," the guy said, spinning around. "Four days, Finn. Four days and not a word. I had to hear from one of the guys in your party that you guys ran into a pack out there. I thought you were fucking dead!"
He threw himself into one of the chairs at the table, the one with the makeshift leg support, and glared up at Levi.
Levi's mind raced. The memories provided nothing about this person. He hadn't written this character. Finn Porter wasn't supposed to have a best friend or a backstory beyond "orphan who hunts beasts."
But apparently he did now.
"Sorry," Levi said, closing the door. "Things got complicated."
"Complicated," the guy repeated. "Right. Because almost dying is just complicated." He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I'm glad you're okay. Really. But you've got to be more careful out there. You're not awakened, Finn. One of those things gets a clean hit and you're done."
Levi moved to the other chair and sat down, trying to figure out who this person was based on context clues.
"It's hard out here," the guy continued, not waiting for a response. "You know how it is. No awakening means no guild work. No guild work means scraping by on hunting runs. And the hunting runs keep getting more dangerous because all the easy marks near the city are gone. We're stuck in this loop and it's only getting worse."
He leaned back in the chair, the makeshift leg creaking ominously under the shift in weight.
"I swear, the restrictions get tighter every month. You seen the new rationing limits? They cut meat portions again. Say it's because of supply issues but everyone knows it's because the inner districts need more for their fancy restaurants." He laughed, bitter. "God forbid the awakened heroes go without their premium cuts."
Peter Clark. The name surfaced from somewhere, though Levi couldn't tell if it was from Finn's memories finally providing something useful or just intuition.
Peter was an inventor. Made gadgets from scraps. Probably why his hands were covered in grease. He was smart, genuinely talented, but his abilities only mattered in the unawakened world. The gap between those with Sparks and those without kept widening, and no amount of technical skill could bridge it.
"It's not fair," Peter said, his voice rising. "Heroes get praised for doing things anyone could do if they had the same powers. You think these guys are special? You think anyone of them is some kind of genius? They got lucky. They awakened. That's it. That's the only difference between them living in the inner districts with sponsors and us stuck out here trying not to starve."
He was on a roll now, gesturing as he talked.
"Unequal opportunities. Segregation based on something you can't control. And people act like it's natural. Like awakened humans are just better somehow." He slumped in the chair. "And you know what the worst part is? All the pretty girls are in the inner districts. Every single one. You ever see an attractive girl out here? No. Because they all get snatched up by guild recruiters or marry some awakened asshole with money. Meanwhile, we're stuck with... this."
He gestured vaguely at the apartment, at the outer districts, at their entire situation.
Levi found himself almost smiling. Peter was real in a way he hadn't expected. Complaints about segregation mixed with teenage concerns about girls. It was so human it caught him off guard.
"Life's not fair," Levi said, because that seemed like something Finn would say.
"No shit." Peter sat forward again. "But you know what? I've got a plan. Sort of."
"A plan."
"Yeah." Peter grinned, though there was nervousness behind it. "You know how the inner districts are off-limits without special permits?"
"Yeah."
"Well, I found a way in."
Levi raised an eyebrow. "What?"
"An illegal route. Through the maintenance tunnels under sector four. Guards don't patrol it because it's supposed to be sealed off, but I found an access point. Tonight I'm going through. Wanted to see what it's actually like in there, you know? See how the other half lives."
"That's insane," Levi said. "You get caught and they'll take your housing. Throw you in detention. Maybe exile you."
"I know the risks." Peter's grin widened. "That's why I want you to come with me."
"Absolutely not."
"Come on! When's the next time we'll get a chance like this? We could see the inner districts. The real city. Maybe even sneak into one of those guild halls everyone talks about."
"Peter, if we get caught—"
"We won't get caught. I've been planning this for weeks. I know the patrol schedules. I know the route. It's completely safe."
"Nothing about this is safe."
"Finn." Peter leaned forward, his expression shifting to something more serious. "We're stuck here. Both of us. We work ourselves half to death and we're still barely making rent. We'll never get permits to the inner districts. We'll never see what life is actually like for people who matter. This is our one chance to see something beyond these shitty walls and rationed food. Don't you want to know what we're missing?"
Levi looked at Peter's face, saw the genuine hope there mixed with desperation, and realized this was important to him. This wasn't just teenage rebellion. This was someone trying to feel like his life mattered, like he could do something beyond just surviving.
"When?" Levi heard himself ask.
Peter's face lit up. "Tonight. There's a hero celebration at the Grand Hall in the inner districts. Huge event. They're introducing some new S-rank team, lots of VIPs, the whole spectacle. Security will be completely focused on the crowds and protecting all the important people at the ceremony."
"And we're going to what, blend in with the crowd?"
"Better." Peter leaned forward, lowering his voice even though they were alone.
"You know what they always have at these big events? Tech exhibitions. They set up displays of new Spark-enhanced equipment, latest innovations, all that expensive gear they show off to sponsors and guild representatives." His eyes gleamed. "Perfect chance to get a real look at what they're working with. See the specs. Understand how it's built."
"You want to look at equipment while there's a hero celebration happening?"
"Exactly! Everyone will be watching the ceremony. The exhibition areas will be practically empty. No one pays attention to the tech when there's heroes on stage." Peter sat back, clearly proud of his planning. "I've been mapping the maintenance tunnels for weeks. Found an access point that comes out two blocks from the venue. We slip in through the back, check out the equipment while everyone's distracted, then leave before anyone notices."
Levi studied Peter's face, looking for any sign that there was more to this plan. But Peter's expression seemed genuine. Excited. Maybe a little desperate.
"This is insane," Levi said.
"This is opportunity," Peter corrected. "When's the next time we'll get a chance like this? A major event with minimal security in the back areas? Access to tech that could actually help people if anyone bothered to make it affordable?" He stood up, energy returning. "Midnight. Meet me at the sector four maintenance building. This is going to be worth it. You'll see."
He headed for the door, then paused and looked back.
"And Finn? I'm really glad you're okay. Don't scare me like that again."
Then he was gone, footsteps echoing down the hallway.
Levi sat in the quiet apartment and stared at the closed door.
'What the hell did I just agree to?'
___
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