The whiteout blizzard screamed across the ruined railyard. The freezing wind blew thick gray ash and white snow into the massive, smoking crater. The ground was cracked and broken. The smell of burning metal, melted ice, and dark blood filled the cold night air. Jonah stood at the edge of the crater. He was breathing slowly. His broad chest moved up and down. The thick, dark iron scars on his skin were cooling down. They did not glow with bright silver light anymore. They were just heavy, cold metal welded to his human flesh. He had done it. He had killed the Alpha Unit. He had shattered the greatest, most terrifying monster the Vanguard Command had ever created. Jonah turned to look at his son. Kevin stood a few feet away. The young giant held the black metal datapad he had taken from the dead assassin. The screen of the datapad glowed with a sick purple light. It showed the map. It showed the coordinates to Sector Zero. "We know where they are, Dad," Kevin said softly. His voi

"The giant," Lisa gasped softly. Panic suddenly filled her dark eyes. She tried to sit up, but the pain in her chest forced her back down with a sharp groan. "Jonah... where is Jonah? Did the ghost kill him?" Martha stepped forward. The doctor smiled a warm, beautiful smile. She handed Lisa a small plastic cup of clean water. "Drink this slowly, Lisa," Martha said gently. "Do not try to move. Your ribs are healing." Lisa took a tiny sip of water. It soothed her burning throat. She looked around the crowded concrete room. She saw the fifty survivors looking at her. They were all smiling. They looked happy. "What happened?" Lisa asked, confused. Old Marcus walked over to the bed. He pointed his shaking finger toward the television screen sitting on the table. The screen was still buzzing with static. "The giant is not dead, mechanic," Marcus said. His voice was full of absolute awe. "The giant just declared war on the whole world." Elena wiped her tears. She leaned close to Lisa

The concrete room was full of noise and movement. It was a good noise. It was the sound of people getting ready to fight for their lives. The fifty survivors of the Sanctuary did not look like scared victims anymore. They looked like an army of free humans. Old Marcus carried a heavy wooden box filled with canned beans. He grunted as he set it down near the heavy steel doors. Elena was wiping the dirt off her heavy iron mace. She checked the metal handle, making sure her grip was perfect. Mothers were wrapping thick wool blankets around their children, tying the blankets tight to keep the freezing cold away. They were packing up the camp. They were getting ready to leave the mountain. Jonah stood in the corner of the room. He watched his people. He was a giant. His broad, massive chest was covered in thick, dark iron scars. He held his forty-pound sledgehammer in his right hand. The glowing silver veins that connected his skin to the wooden handle were quiet right now, but he coul

Jonah had turned his System off before. He knew what it felt like to hide the magic. But this was different. This did not feel turned off. This felt like a thick, heavy steel door had been slammed shut over his brain, and someone else had locked it from the outside. He was completely disconnected. The piercing, high-frequency screech suddenly stopped. The silence that followed was heavy and terrifying. The survivors on the floor groaned, slowly moving their hands away from their bleeding ears. Kevin slumped forward into Jonah’s arms. The young boy was breathing in fast, ragged gasps. "Kevin," Jonah whispered. "Are you okay?" Kevin blinked his left eye. The glowing white spinning symbol slowly faded away, leaving his normal blue eye behind. "It is gone," Kevin choked out. He stared at the empty air in front of his face. He waved his hand. "Dad," Kevin whispered. His voice was full of absolute shock. "My stats are gone. My Perception is gone. I cannot see the map. I cannot access

The whiteout blizzard had stopped. The air was clear and freezing cold. The moon peeked through the gray ash clouds, casting a pale, ghostly light over the world. Kevin blinked his one good eye. He tried to open his magical radar. He wanted to see the red dots that meant danger. Nothing happened. His mind was just an empty black room. “Dad is right,” Kevin thought, taking a deep breath of the freezing air. “I have to use my own eyes. I have to trust myself.”Kevin squinted. His Perception was still physically enhanced. He could see perfectly in the dark. He could see the jagged rocks miles away. He could see the broken, twisted pine trees. He looked down into the massive, wide valley below the mountain. He expected to see total chaos. He expected to see the wild zombies running in panicked circles. He expected the pale blue Cryo-Ghouls to be shrieking and fighting each other because the magical connection to the Dead Zone was broken. But Kevin did not see chaos. What he saw was