The Abyss never slept.
The sky above Rey was a blood-stained canvas, painted in shades of dying red and coal black. The land stretched like a wound—cracked, dry, and lifeless, save for the eerie movements of creatures that crawled and skittered just out of sight.
Rey's stomach growled for the third time that hour. He hadn't eaten in… how long? Time felt broken here. The Abyss didn't follow the rhythm of the world he once knew.
His shirt was half-torn from climbing razor-edged rocks, and a bruise bloomed dark across his ribs. His legs trembled, not from fear—but exhaustion.
And yet… he kept moving.
He remembered something his father once said, almost jokingly:
> "Son, even a cornered rat will bite back if it has to."
Now, Rey was that rat. And he was more than ready to bite.
---
A rustle.
His ears twitched.
Rey ducked low behind a jagged stone. Through the cracks, he saw it—something crawling out from a pit nearby. It walked on two legs but slouched like a beast. Its arms were long, fingers sharpened to claws. Its face… wasn't a face. Just leathery skin with a jagged slit where a mouth should be.
It sniffed the air and growled.
It was hunting him.
And it was alone.
Perfect.
Rey's hands gripped the shard of stone he had been using like a knife—chipped, crude, but pointed enough to stab. His breathing slowed.
> "Don't wait. Don't hesitate. Move."
The thing turned its back for just a second. Rey lunged.
He buried the shard into the monster's thigh. It shrieked, swinging a claw wildly, slashing across his forearm. Pain exploded through him, but he didn't stop. He tackled it to the ground, pinning its chest under his knee, and stabbed again—
And again—
And again—
Warm, black blood splattered across his face. The creature twitched, let out a final gurgle, then fell still.
Rey rolled off, panting, shaking, covered in blood and trembling adrenaline.
He had done it.
He had killed.
He didn't feel proud.
He didn't feel strong.
Just… alive.
---
Hours later, after wrapping his wound with torn fabric, Rey sat beside the monster's corpse. His eyes scanned the body for anything useful. It had no gear, no armor… but its teeth were thick, jagged, and sharp as steel.
He grabbed a rock and smashed the skull. One tooth popped loose.
It glinted under the red sky.
---
Later that night, Rey walked through the black desert with a new weapon strapped in his belt—his first.
A blade made from a monster's tooth.
His steps were still slow. The pain in his arm still throbbed.
But his eyes…
His eyes had changed.
For the first time since entering this cursed land, they weren't filled with fear.
They were filled with resolve.
---