BLOOD MOON SYSTEM

The Taste of Blood

   Theo learned years ago that if you curled into a ball and protected your head, the kicks hurt less. If you didn't cry, they got bored faster. If you just took it, eventually they'd leave.

But tonight, Blake Morrison wasn't getting bored.

"You think you can just walk around like you own the place?" Blake's boots connected with Theo's ribs again, and the seventeen-year-old felt something crack. "Your deadbeat father owed my family money. That means YOU owe us!"

Theo tried to speak, but blood filled his mouth. He'd already tried explaining three times. The Crimson Fang gang didn't care that his father was dead, or that he'd been working double shifts at the convenience store trying to pay them back. They just wanted their pound of flesh.

"Blake, man, I think that's enough," one of Blake's friends said, his voice uncertain. "He's not moving anymore."

"Shut up!" Blake kicked Theo again, this time in the stomach. "My uncle said to make an example of him. This is what happens when you try to dodge payment!".

Theo's vision was getting blurry. The alley behind the old industrial district was dark, and he could barely make out the three figures standing over him. Blake and his crew. They'd been waiting for him after his shift ended at midnight.

He should have known better. He should have taken a different route home.

'Mom,' Theo thought, his consciousness starting to fade. 'I'm sorry. Who's going to take care of you now?'

His mother had been sick for months. The medical bills were piling up, and between that and his father's gambling debts, Theo had been drowning. But he couldn't give up on her because she was all he had left.

"Let's go," Blake finally said, spitting on Theo's still form. "He's done."

The footsteps faded away, and Theo lay there in the darkness, unable to move. Every breath sent shooting pain through his chest. He was pretty sure at least two ribs were broken, maybe more.

'Is this how it ends?' He thought. 'Beaten to death in some dirty alley?'

Time passed, he didn't know how long. His body was going cold, and he could feel his consciousness slipping away.

That's when he heard it.

A low, rumbling growl that made every hair on his body stand up. Even through the pain, some primal part of his brain screamed danger.

Theo forced his eyes open, just a crack.

In the shadows at the end of the alley, something massive was moving. At first, he thought it was a really big dog. But as it limped into the weak moonlight, Theo's blood turned to ice.

It was a wolf. No, that wasn't right. It was too big to be a wolf. The thing was the size of a small car, with jet-black fur that seemed to absorb the light around it. Its eyes glowed with an unnatural amber color.

And it was bleeding.

Silver liquid dripped from multiple wounds across its body, hissing and smoking where it hit the ground. The creature looked like it had been in a war, and it was losing.

The wolf's glowing eyes locked onto Theo, and he felt like he was being judged.

Then, impossibly, the creature began to move toward him.

'This is it,' Theo thought, too weak to even feel afraid anymore. 'I'm going to be eaten by a monster. At least it'll be quick.'

But the wolf didn't attack. Instead, it collapsed next to him, its massive head landing just inches from Theo's face. Up close, he could see the intelligence in those amber eyes. This wasn't just an animal. There was something more there. Something almost... human.

The wolf's breathing was labored, rattling with each exhale. It was dying.

"What... what are you?" Theo whispered, his voice barely audible.

The creature didn't respond, but something changed in its eyes.

The wolf opened its massive jaws, revealing teeth the size of daggers, and before Theo could react, it lunged forward and bit down on his shoulder.

The pain was instant and overwhelming, making his previous beating feel like a massage. Theo tried to scream, but no sound came out. He felt the creature's teeth sink deep into his flesh, and then something else. Something hot and burning flooded into his veins from the bite, spreading through his body like liquid fire.

The wolf released him and pulled back, its amber eyes meeting his one last time. There was something there. Gratitude? Apology? Theo couldn't tell.

Then the massive creature simply faded. Its body dissolved into black smoke that swirled in the air for a moment before vanishing completely, as if it had never existed.

Theo lay there in shock, his mind unable to process what had just happened. The burning sensation from the bite was spreading faster now, racing through his veins, organs, bones, and brain.

He looked down at his shoulder, expecting to see a massive wound, but the flesh was already knitting itself back together before his eyes. The broken ribs in his chest began to crack and shift, realigning themselves. The cuts and bruises all over his body started to fade. And then the real pain began.

It felt like his entire body was being torn apart and rebuilt from the inside out. His bones felt like they were melting and reforming. His muscles contracted. His skin burned and itched all over.

Theo finally found his voice and screamed into the empty alley.

When Theo woke up, the sun was rising. He blinked in confusion, his mind foggy. Slowly, memories of the night before came flooding back. 

He sat up quickly, his hand going to his shoulder where the creature had bitten him, but there was nothing there. 

'Was it a dream?' He wondered, but then he looked down at his clothes. They were still covered in his dried blood. 

Theo stood up, expecting to feel the pain from his injuries, but there was nothing. No broken ribs or bruises. He felt... good. Better than good, actually. He felt amazing.

It was then that he noticed something strange.

Floating in front of his face, like some kind of holographic screen, was a translucent red interface with glowing text:

[BLOOD MOON SYSTEM ACTIVATED]

[Host Compatibility: 97%]

[Initializing Werewolf Transformation Protocol...]

[Integration Complete]

[Welcome, Theodore Cross]

Theo stumbled backward, waving his hand through the screen, but his fingers passed through it like it wasn't really there. Yet he could see it clear as day, hovering in his vision.

"What the hell?" He whispered.

The screen flickered, and new text appeared:

[Tutorial Quest Initiated]

Quest: Return Home Safely

Objective: Reach your apartment without attracting attention

Reward: 10 EXP, Basic System Functions Unlocked

Failure: ???

Time Limit: 1 Hour

Theo stared at the screen in disbelief. This couldn't be real. Things like this didn't happen in real life. Systems and quests were things from video games not reality.

But as he looked down at his blood-stained clothes and remembered the impossible wolf and his miraculously healed injuries, he realized that his understanding of reality had just been shattered. Something had changed last night. 

And as Theo started walking toward home, he couldn't shake the feeling that his life of being beaten down and preyed on was over.

[Status Window Available]

[Say or think Status to view your current statistics]

Theo hesitated for only a moment before thinking the word.

'Status.'

Immediately, a new screen appeared before him:

STATUS WINDOW

Name: Theodore Cross  

Age: 17  

Level: 1  

Race: Human (Werewolf Bloodline Dormant)  

Title: None  

STATS:

Strength: 8 to 15 (+7)

Agility: 7 to 18 (+11)

Endurance: 6 to 14 (+8)

Senses: 9 to 25 (+16)

Bloodlust: 15/100

ABILITIES:

Enhanced Physiology (Passive) - LV1

Night Vision (Passive) - LV1

Partial Transformation (Locked - Reach Level 5)

Full Moon Transformation (Uncontrolled)

Pack Sense (Locked - Reach Level 10)

SKILLS: None

BLOODLINE SKILLS:

 ??? (Locked - Requirements Unknown)

??? (Locked - Requirements Unknown)

??? (Locked - Requirements Unknown)

EXP: 0/100

Theo's eyes widened as he read through the information. His stats had increased dramatically, especially his Senses. He focused on that for a moment, and suddenly the world around him became sharper.

He could hear a conversation happening three blocks away. He could smell the coffee brewing in a shop that hadn't even opened yet. He could see details on buildings that should have been too far away to make out clearly.

'This is insane,' Theo thought. 'I'm not dreaming. This is real.'

He looked at the quest timer in the corner of his vision: 54 minutes remaining.

He needed to get home, clean up, and figure out what exactly he'd become.

As Theo started walking through the early morning streets, he couldn't help but think about Blake and his crew. About all the times they'd beaten him down. About the Crimson Fang gang who'd been bleeding his family dry.

A dark smile crossed his face.

'They have no idea what's coming.'

Author's Note: Thank you for reading the first chapter of Blood Moon System. Theo's journey from weak to strong is just beginning. What will he do with his new powers? How will he handle Blake and the Crimson Fang gang? And what secrets lie within his werewolf bloodline?

Find out in the next chapter!

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