Ashbreath

In a desperate attempt to cure cancer, a coalition of biotech corporations and governments developed Regenera-9, a treatment meant to overwrite human cell death with constant regeneration. The early results were miraculous-cancers vanished, aging slowed, and the elite who could afford it became nearly immortal.

But within a decade, something went wrong.

The treatment mutated. The body didn't just regenerate-it reproduced itself uncontrollably, creating new, distorted cells that became sentient. Patients slowly lost their identities, physically and mentally, and became Lyrms-ghastly beings with pale gray skin, white eyes, and a constant emission of a gas that turned others into Lyrms upon prolonged exposure.

The world above became a toxic wasteland. Humans now survive underground in sealed bunkers and networks of tunnels. Surface expeditions require protective suits and air filtration.