I remember when it first started. There were youtube videos that popped up here and there with people doing ridiculous, supernatural things. Tossing over cars, crawling and jumping on buildings, moving at ridiculous speeds, etc. The reddit trolls never know when to quit, so you always saw their comments at the top. But if you scrolled down, half of the comments were commending the video animator for his superb job, and others were questioning how it was done.

It reached the news shortly after that this was a real thing, not just fancy camera effects. They were pegged as "humanoids". Once anyone gained their first kill, they were no longer human, they were something else, something new. The only indication were the eyes. They slightly glistened in darkness. It was like seeing a black cat on the road in the middle of the night. Even when they weren't looking directly at you, it always seemed like they we're stealing your soul with those damned eyes. Eerie and terrifying to say the least. Some noids used contacts to hide it and protect themselves from anti noid crowds. Other noids embraced it, especially in the danger zones.

I won't get into the gun control laws, but if there wasn't a lethal weapon in your household, you were either a non-believer, or an idiot. Corruption was the norm, and governments either didn't care or couldn't stop it. It was nothing like before, and just a year prior, everyone thought the world couldn't get any worse. Somehow New Zealand was safe for the first few months. It soon became overpopulated and murder rates rose just like any other place.

False worship was also at a rise. There were cults all over that had a humanoid god. Countless members would sacrifice themselves for their god for special privileges in the 'afterlife'. People would believe anything after the noid era started; it was laughable.

Governments lost control altogether. Everyone had to fend for themselves, or hire a noid and pray he or she wouldn't turn on you. It was similar to that Fallout game series a few years back, but without the nuclear disaster... at least, there was no nuclear disaster yet. Insurance companies had major impact and change. Health insurance rates sky-rocketed. Other countries that once had free healthcare now no longer provided it, yes... even Canada. Car insurance companies offered less and less protection for ridiculous rates. Even the fashion industry was affected. Everyone caught on quick as to why the market was changing so much. All the board members, CEO's, CFO's, of these corrupt companies were gaining multiple kills for every passing second. The amount of skill they could obtain was unfathomable.

Whatever action that you focused on after getting the kill, it improved slightly... or dramatically. It depends on the skill level of whatever you were killing. All humans were a level one upgrade. Humanoid kills were one plus a fraction of all of their obtained skills combined. People got really creative with their skills. But most of them were very similar to your typical role playing video game skill.

I saw his face... I saw his face and I knew it was him. He was the one. I had to be quick or I wouldn't get another chance. I snuck over to the edge of the bed, half expecting him to wake up any second. Each step I took felt like an earthquake and sounded like a sonar blast. I kept looking at the floor making sure I wasn't going to kick or step on any of his filthy mess. I was sweating like a raving madman at an EDM concert. I had to hold the knife with two hands from fear of it slipping through my fingers. My knees were shaking as I inched closer... I verified my target. All fear was immediately lost and the hesitation went away. I took the knife and swiftly plunged it far into his neck. He jolted awake with his arms scrambling around trying to grab me. The nails dug deep in my skin trying to pry his jugular free of my death grip. I twisted the knife as hard and fast as I could. He gagged for another moment and his eyes caught mine. I looked him down in disgust as he realized who I was. Just a second later, the glistening disappeared and the struggling stopped. It was done. I had killed him.

I thought for a moment as to what I wanted my first skill to be. I should have probably thought about this BEFOREHAND, but the skill was never my goal. I just wanted him dead. I heard a shuffling noise in the next room. My heart stopped as I forcefully slowed my breathing while starting to panic. Someone had woken up. I remembered that room door being slightly cracked open when I snuck into the house. If I left quickly and silently now would they see me? The shuffling continued and I could hear a mattress creaking. I tried to guess where in the room was the bed positioned. Was the person fully awake or just turning over? I peered at the wall hard praying for the later. And then it happened. It startled me for a second. I could see the person... through the wall. It was like a glow. A light, white glow that embodied the person in the other room. My first skill had activated; the "sneak" skill.