Rust tasted like copper and slow death. Dangling sixty feet above a sea of boiling toxic mist, Rin Kaine wiped grease from his eyes. His fingers trembled against the frayed hemp rope, each strand whispering of imminent collapse. Every sudden jerk of the wind sent a sickening vibration up his spine, reminding him of how thin the line was between a successful salvage and becoming another nameless skeleton in the deep. Below him lay the Iron Abyss, a jagged wound in the earth breathing out yellow sulfur and the low, mechanical hum of forgotten centuries. The toxic fumes gathered in heavy, stagnant pools down in the dark, waiting to choke out any living thing foolish enough to trespass. Only the most desperate scavengers dared to descend into this graveyard of ancient technology, and Rin was the most desperate of them all. "Just a few more inches," Rin muttered, his voice barely a whisper against the howling updraft. Sweat stung his eyes, blurring his vision as he strained toward the ancient bulkhead. Bolted deep into the corroded iron wall was a pristine, pre-collapse fuel cell. Its copper casing glinted with a faint, residual warmth that promised a week's worth of clean water and warm rations from the scrap-brokers. One good haul was all he needed to buy another map from the black market dealers. Another clue to where his little sister, Mia, had been taken after the sector's collapse. He had failed her once, leaving her behind in the panic of a crumbling scrap-raid years ago, and that guilt was a heavy iron weight in his chest. He would not fail her again, even if it cost him his life. Clenching his teeth, Rin swung his legs to build momentum. His heavy leather boots slammed against the rusted plating, sending a shower of orange flakes into the yawning void below. The sound echoed off the metallic walls, a lonely clatter that died in the vast emptiness. Air hissed through his cracked leather respirator as his lungs burned. The toxic haze constantly crept up from the depths of the ruins, threatening to melt his airway if his old filter failed. The filter was old, long past its expiration date, but new ones cost more than he could afford in this dying world. Reaching out, his gloved hand hovered inches from the fuel cell's brass valve. His knuckles were raw, split open from days of clawing through razor-sharp scrap metal. He ignored the pain, focusing entirely on the prize. "Come on, you beautiful piece of junk," he growled, stretching his fingers until his joints popped. Metal shrieked above him as the ancient crane on the surface groaned under the tension. The anchor cable slipped another three inches, and Rin's heart leaped into his throat as his body dropped with a sudden, violent lurch. He gripped the rope tighter, the rough fibers biting deep into his palms through his worn gloves. Gravity pulled at him like a physical hand, trying to drag him down into the crushing dark. He gripped the rope tighter, refusing to let go. He couldn't go back empty-handed to the scrap-town of Oakhaven. Gasped breaths escaped his lips as he stabilized his swing. He couldn't go back empty-handed. Going back meant admitting defeat, and defeat meant leaving Mia to rot in some slave-pen or worse. He refused to let that be her fate. With a desperate grunt, he launched himself forward once more, his fingers hooking around the cold edge of the fuel cell. Warmth surged through his palms as the fuel cell hummed with an active internal dynamo. It was a beautiful piece of pre-collapse tech, still holding a charge after all these centuries. Using his rusty iron wrench, Rin began to pry at the mounting brackets. Orange rust showered his face, stinging his cheeks and coating his tongue with the taste of decay. He worked with frantic speed, his muscles burning from the strain of holding his own weight. Suddenly, a sound cut through the wind. It wasn't the groaning of metal or the whistle of toxic gas. Click-clack. Click-clack. Metal claws scraped against the metal ledge directly above his head. Rin froze, his muscles locking instantly. He held his breath, listening intently over the sound of his own racing heart. Low growls vibrated through the ironwork, a deep, mechanical rumbling that made the soles of his boots hum. Peering upward, Rin felt his stomach drop. Two crimson optics flared to life in the gloom, glaring down at him from the dark overhang. They burned with a cold, synthetic hunger that had no place in a living creature. A Razor-Hound crouched on the ledge, a nightmare of rusted steel and exposed cables. It was a remnant of the Old World, a defense automaton gone wild and feral over centuries of isolation. Saliva, thick and smelling of burnt oil, dripped from its metal maw. The fluid sizzled as it hit the hot pipe next to Rin's shoulder, releasing a foul, acrid smoke. "Nice doggy," Rin whispered, his hand slowly sliding down to the iron wrench tucked into his heavy belt. His fingers wrapped around the cold metal grip, his knuckles turning white. Snarls erupted from the beast's throat as it lunged. Steel jaws snapped inches from Rin's face as he threw his weight backward. The wind rushed past him, a cold shock against his sweaty skin. Claws tore through his heavy canvas jacket, leaving deep, bloody gouges across his shoulder. Rin roared in pain, his grip on the rope slipping for a terrifying second before he regained his hold. He swung his wrench with all his might, connecting with the hound's metal snout. The heavy iron tool connected with a loud, metallic clang that echoed through the canyon. Sparks flew as the beast recoiled, whining as the blow dented its sensory array. But the distraction was brief, and its crimson eyes flared brighter, locked onto its prey with renewed ferocity. Before Rin could swing again, the Razor-Hound threw its heavy, iron-plated body forward. It landed squarely on the crumbling ledge where the fuel cell was mounted. Weight-bearing struts, already weakened by centuries of decay, groaned under the sudden impact. The metal screamed, buckling under the weight of the massive cybernetic predator. Cracks spiderwebbed through the ancient concrete and rusted iron. The entire ledge began to tilt downward, slipping from the cliffside. "No, no, no!" Rin yelled, lunging forward to grab the fuel cell as it tore free. His fingers brushed the metal casing, but the crumbling stone beneath the hound gave way entirely. A massive chunk of the wall collapsed, shearing the anchor cable above like a pair of scissors. The rope went slack, and the world disappeared. Freefall took him. Air rushed past Rin's ears in a deafening roar as the world spun into a chaotic blur. He saw spinning iron beams, falling debris, and the glowing red eyes of the falling Razor-Hound. He felt weightless, suspended in a pocket of pure terror as the darkness swallowed him. Darkness swallowed him whole as he plunged into the pitch-black heart of the abyss. The wind ripped the respirator from his face, forcing him to inhale the freezing, sulfur-choked air. Time seemed to stretch as he reached out blindly, his hands clawing at empty air. The ground was coming, and he knew it would be his grave. He thought of Mia one last time, whispering her name into the wind. Impact. He didn't hit solid stone, crashing instead through layers of rotten canvas tents and decaying cables. The ancient structures, built by forgotten miners long ago, slowed his momentum before he slammed hard into a sloped pile of soft, ancient dust. Air exploded from his lungs as he slammed hard into a sloped pile of soft, ancient dust. He tumbled over rusted gears and shattered glass before finally coming to a halt at the bottom of the pile. Silence descended, heavy and absolute. Groaning, Rin tried to push himself up, his body a map of agony. Every muscle screamed in protest, and his shoulder bled freely through his torn jacket. He coughed, spitting out mouthfuls of centuries-old dust that tasted of ashes and copper. Where was he? Looking up, he saw nothing but the oppressive, heavy dark. The mouth of the abyss was a tiny, pinprick star miles above, utterly unreachable. He was in the deep ruins now, a place where no scavenger ever returned from. Beside him, a low, metallic scraping sound made him freeze. Red eyes flickered to life in the dark, thirty feet away. The Razor-Hound had survived the fall, though its metal chassis was badly warped, one of its front legs dragging uselessly behind it. It growled, a broken, static-filled sound that promised death. It limped toward him, its whirring teeth spinning with a desperate, dying fury. Rin scrambled backward, his boots kicking up dust as he searched for a weapon. His hands brushed against shattered glass and twisted wires, but nothing heavy enough to stop the beast. His hand struck something hard in the debris behind him. It wasn't rock, but something smooth, unnaturally cold, and hummed with a strange vibration. It felt alive, pulsing with a power that sent shivers up his spine. Instinctively, his fingers clamped around the object. Blue light flared, cutting through the darkness of the cavern like a blade. The illumination was so bright it forced him to squint. Rin stared down at the glowing, crystalline artifact in his hand. It was shaped like a fractured mechanical heart, its surface covered in intricate, glowing runes that seemed to shift and writhe. Sparks of pure, electric blue danced across its surface, leaping onto his skin. They didn't burn; they tingled, filling him with a sudden, overwhelming surge of energy. Before he could let go, the artifact seemed to liquefy, flowing over his fingers and up his arm. It moved like quicksilver, tracing the veins of his forearm in glowing lines of sapphire light. Agony, pure and blinding, ripped through his body. Rin arched his back, a silent scream tearing from his throat. The blue energy burrowed deep beneath his skin, fusing directly with his ribs, his lungs, his very soul. It felt like liquid fire pouring through his veins, rewriting his biology from the inside out. Veins across his arms glowed with a brilliant, neon-blue light, pulsing in sync with his heart. The pain was absolute, tearing at his sanity, but with it came an undeniable sense of absolute control. Whirring jaws snapped as the Razor-Hound lunged, aiming straight for his throat. Without thinking, Rin thrust his glowing hand forward. A wave of blue energy erupted from his palm, freezing the beast instantly. The kinetic force of the discharge rippled through the cavern, kicking up a wall of dust. Rin watched in utter disbelief as the metal of the hound began to warp and reshape under his touch. With a mere thought, the steel plates dissolved, flowing like water under his touch, reassembling into a harmless pile of scrap. The dangerous predator was gone, reduced to a collection of neat, non-threatening metal parts. Intoxicating power surged through his veins, a godlike rush of creation and destruction. He felt like he could rebuild the entire world with his bare hands. He could feel the molecular structure of the metal around him, understanding its design perfectly. Then came the toll. A sudden, freezing void opened in his mind. It felt like a physical hand reaching into his brain, snatching away a piece of his soul. A fragment of his history was ripped away, leaving only cold emptiness in its place. "No," Rin gasped, clutching his head as a wave of intense nausea hit him. He fell to his knees, his hands trembling. He tried to picture his childhood, searching for the warmth of his home. His mother's face was the one thing he tried to hold onto. He desperately tried to summon the curve of her smile, the color of her eyes, the sound of her voice. Only gray static answered, her smile and the sound of her voice dissolving into nothingness. He remembered he had a mother, but the memory was a blank slate, a hollow space where a person used to be. He had traded her face for his survival. Panic, cold and sharp, seized his chest, tighter than any physical grip. If the power took his memories every time he used it, what would be left of him when he finally found Mia? Would he even recognize his own sister? Rin stares at his glowing hands as a chilling message blinks directly in his vision: 'System Initialization Complete. Memory Partition 01 Corrupted.'

Chapter 1: Where the Rust Bleeds Blue