All Chapters of GOD OF WAR: THE SYSTEM OF VENGEANCE : Chapter 31
- Chapter 40
92 chapters
Chapter 31- Ladies calm down
The safe house kitchen smelled like jasmine tea and something Mei Lin called "comfort food for the damned."Damon found her there at 4 AM, stirring a pot of soup that steamed in the fluorescent lighting. She'd changed out of her waitress uniform into simple clothes that made her look younger, more vulnerable than the confident woman who navigated Manhattan's criminal underworld like it was her personal chess board."Can't sleep either?" she asked without turning around."Sleep feels like a luxury I can't afford." He leaned against the counter, studying her profile. "You should be in protective custody. Somewhere Kane and Dragon Fang can't reach you.""Should be, could be, would be." Mei Lin ladled soup into two bowls with practiced efficiency. "I've spent three years hiding from men who wanted to own me. I'm tired of running."She set one bowl in front of him, their fingers brushing as he accepted it. The contact was brief but electric, sending warmth through his enhanced nervous sys
Chapter 32- Trapped
The Queensboro Bridge at 2 PM was supposed to be routine surveillance.Damon had positioned himself at the midpoint span, using the steady flow of traffic and pedestrians as cover while monitoring Dragon Fang's shipping operations through the East River terminals below. Mei Lin waited in a car at the Manhattan approach, ready for quick extraction if things went wrong.They went wrong faster than either of them anticipated.[THREAT DETECTED: MULTIPLE HOSTILES] [WEAPONS SIGNATURES: HIGH-CALIBER RIFLES, EXPLOSIVES] [TACTICAL ASSESSMENT: COORDINATED AMBUSH] [ESCAPE ROUTES: COMPROMISED]The first sniper's bullet sparked off the bridge's steel framework inches from Damon's head. Professional marksmanship from at least three hundred yards, probably more.Civilians scattered as the sound of gunfire echoed across the river. Cars screeched to a halt, drivers abandoning vehicles as panic spread through the afternoon traffic."Mei Lin, get out of here!" Damon shouted into his earpiece while
Chapter 33 - Ghost of Manhattan is Dead
The system's new quest appeared while Damon was still dripping river water in the emergency room.[PRIORITY QUEST ACTIVATED] [OBJECTIVE: PUNISH DRAGON FANG] [PARAMETERS: DEMONSTRATE CONSEQUENCES FOR CIVILIAN ENDANGERMENT] [REWARD: ENHANCED COMBAT PROTOCOLS] [TIME LIMIT: 48 HOURS] [WARNING: FAILURE TO RESPOND WILL BE INTERPRETED AS WEAKNESS]Mei Lin lay unconscious on a hospital bed three feet away, IV tubes snaking from her arms while machines monitored her vital signs. The doctors said she'd be fine…minor concussion, some bruised ribs, nothing that wouldn't heal with time and rest.But she'd almost died because Dragon Fang decided to use innocent people as pawns in whatever game he was playing."The quest is right," Damon said quietly to himself. "He needs to understand there are consequences."[ANALYZING TARGET LOCATIONS...] [DRAGON FANG PRIMARY OPERATIONS: THE JADE PALACE GAMBLING DEN] [SECURITY LEVEL: MAXIMUM] [ESTIMATED HOSTILE COUNT: 60+ ARMED PERSONNEL] [TACTICAL ASSE
Chapter 34-Decision
The whispers started before dawn.By sunrise, every criminal organization from the Bronx to Staten Island knew what had happened at the Jade Palace. One man had walked into Dragon Fang's fortress and walked out again, leaving forty trained killers unconscious and the most feared triad leader in North America broken in an alley.By noon, the story had reached legitimate circles."The Ghost of Manhattan," Senator Patricia Williams said, reviewing intelligence reports in her private office overlooking Central Park. "This individual represents either a significant threat to public order or a valuable asset for maintaining it."Her aide shifted uncomfortably. "Ma'am, the FBI is classifying him as a domestic terrorist. The bridge collapse alone…""Was Dragon Fang's work, not his. Our intelligence suggests he was protecting civilians, not targeting them." Williams set down the file, studying surveillance photographs that showed Damon emerging from the East River with an unconscious woman in
Chapter 35- Ambushed
"No."The word came out harder than Damon intended, but the system's quest interface flickered and died without argument.[ULTIMATE QUEST: DECLINED] [ALTERNATIVE PROGRESSION PATH: ACTIVATING] [NEW PARAMETERS: MAINTAINING HUMANITY WHILE GAINING POWER]Mei Lin looked up from adjusting his bandages. "No what?""Nothing. System gave me an ultimatum. I chose a different path."But before she could respond, a new interface materialized…simpler than the conquest quest, but somehow more ominous.[MANDATORY QUEST ACTIVATED] [OBJECTIVE: WIN THE UNDERGROUND BLOOD ARENA] [LOCATION: WAREHOUSE DISTRICT, PIER 72] [TIME LIMIT: 24 HOURS] [PARTICIPANTS: INVITATION ONLY] [WARNING: DECLINE RESULTS IN LOSS OF SYSTEM ACCESS]"This one isn't optional," Damon muttered.[EXPLANATION: BLOODLINE TRIALS ARE REQUIRED FOR POWER PROGRESSION] [PARTICIPATION DEMONSTRATES WORTHINESS TO INHERIT FULL CAPABILITIES] [PREVIOUS SUCCESSORS WHO DECLINED: 100% FATALITY RATE]The implications were clear. The system migh
Chapter 36- Crimson Lotus
The warehouse's ventilation system had been built to handle industrial equipment, not a man with enhanced strength and supernatural desperation.Damon pulled himself through ductwork that groaned under his weight, following schematics the system displayed in his peripheral vision. Behind him, tactical teams swept the building with methodical precision, sealing every conventional exit.[ESCAPE ROUTE ANALYSIS: ROOF ACCESS VIA MAINTENANCE SHAFT] [POLICE RESPONSE TIME TO PERIMETER: 3 MINUTES] [CURRENT DETECTION PROBABILITY: 27%]He reached the roof as helicopters converged on the warehouse district, searchlights carving through the night like mechanical vultures. The East River stretched before him, dark water offering escape but also exposure.[CALCULATING OPTIMAL TRAJECTORY...] [DISTANCE TO SAFE HOUSE: 2.3 MILES] [ENHANCED PHYSIOLOGY ALLOWS EXTENDED UNDERWATER TRAVEL]Damon dove from the warehouse roof just as the first helicopter spotlight swept his position.The river was cold e
Chapter 37- Assassinated again
The system's warning blazed across his vision like fire.[IMMEDIATE THREAT DETECTED] [SNIPER TARGETING: CONFIRMED] [TRAJECTORY ANALYSIS: FATAL HEADSHOT IMMINENT] [REACTION TIME: 0.3 SECONDS]Damon threw himself sideways just as the rifle cracked from the building across the street. The bullet carved through the air where his head had been, close enough that he felt the displacement of air against his cheek.The sniper's scope tracked his movement, already adjusting for a follow-up shot.But enhanced reflexes had turned those crucial microseconds into an eternity of tactical possibilities.[ENHANCED AGILITY: ACTIVE] [VERTICAL MOVEMENT OPTIONS: MULTIPLE] [TARGET LOCATION: IDENTIFIED]Damon launched himself at the nearest fire escape, enhanced strength carrying him up three stories in a single bound. Behind him, a second bullet sparked off the metal grating where he'd been climbing.Professional marksmanship, but not quite fast enough to track inhuman movement.The chase that foll
Chapter 38-Mother is kidnapped
The memory hit Damon like a physical blow as he made his way through Queens.His father's funeral. Rain drumming against black umbrellas while Kane delivered a eulogy about tragic accidents and family strength. But eight-year-old Damon had noticed things adults missed—how his uncle's grief seemed rehearsed, how certain business associates stayed away from the service, how his mother's hands shook whenever Kane got too close."Natural causes," the death certificate had said. Heart failure at forty-two, no underlying conditions detected.But now, with enhanced awareness picking apart memories through an adult lens, inconsistencies emerged like cracks in a facade.[ACCESSING ARCHIVED DATA...] [CROSS-REFERENCING BLACKWOOD FAMILY MEDICAL RECORDS...] [ANOMALY DETECTED: MULTIPLE CONVENIENT DEATHS SURROUNDING INHERITANCE DISPUTES]"System. Show me the pattern."[BLACKWOOD FAMILY MORTALITY ANALYSIS:] [JAMES BLACKWOOD (DAMON'S FATHER): DIED 2005, AGE 42] [CAUSE: ALLEGED HEART FAILURE] [BE
Chapter 39- Bigger conspiracy
The Blackwood estate burned like a sacrificial altar against the midnight sky.Damon stood at the treeline watching three generations of family history devoured by flames that reached toward heaven . Orange light painted his face in hellish shadows while smoke carried the scent of burning memories across the Hudson Valley.His mother was in there. Had to be.[THERMAL IMAGING: MULTIPLE HEAT SIGNATURES DETECTED] [STRUCTURAL INTEGRITY: COMPROMISED] [ESTIMATED COLLAPSE TIME: 8 MINUTES, 34 SECONDS]Eight minutes to find her. Eight minutes to search a twenty-room mansion that was actively trying to kill him.The system's calculations felt distant compared to the primal scream building in his chest. This wasn't tactical anymore. This was personal in ways that transcended enhanced abilities or divine inheritance."Beautiful, isn't it?"The voice came from behind him. Damon spun to find three men in Kane's colors, armed but relaxed. They'd been waiting for him to arrive, probably had camera
Chapter 40- 3 Months later
"Sign here, Mr. Blackwood, and the Henderson Technologies merger is complete. Two hundred million dollars, just like that."Damon stared at the contract on the mahogany table, pen hovering over the signature line. Through the floor-to-ceiling windows of his new penthouse office, Manhattan stretched below like a kingdom waiting to be claimed.Three months since the mansion fire. Three months since discovering the Council of Thirteen. Three months of building legitimate power while the system hummed quietly in the background, its influence less urgent now but never entirely silent.The Henderson deal would make him one of the youngest tech moguls in the city. Clean money, legitimate business, everything his father had wanted for the family name before Kane corrupted it.He signed."Congratulations, sir." His new attorney—Marcus Qi, no relation to James—gathered the documents with practiced efficiency. "This puts your net worth at approximately 1.2 billion dollars. Quite remarkable for