Chapter 1: Level 1, Damage InfiniteThe brickwork of the alleyway was slick with a cocktail of stagnant rainwater and something much darker. Eka Pradana tasted copper, the metallic tang of his own blood blooming across his tongue as his cheek pressed into the grime. Above him, the flickering neon signs of the lower district cast jagged shadows that seemed to dance in sync with his blurred vision."You really don't know when to just quit, do you?"Garrett’s voice was heavy with a mix of boredom and irritation. He adjusted the leather strap of his chest plate, looking down at Eka with the same look a man might give a persistent insect."He’s still clutching the core, Garrett," another man laughed. Mick. The guy was barely a D-rank, but in this district, that made him a god compared to an unranked porter like Eka. "Look at him. His fingers are white. Eka, buddy, come on. Just hand it over before you actually get hurt.""I... did the work," Eka wheezed, his voice bubbling through the flui

Chapter 3: The PatternThe night air in the slums didn’t just smell like trash; it smelled like desperation. Eka walked with his hands shoved deep into his pockets, his hood pulled low to hide the strange, predatory glow that occasionally flickered in his eyes."Hey, kid. You lost? The orphanage is three blocks back."Eka stopped in front of a rusted steel door guarded by a man who looked like he’d been stitched together from spare parts. The guard’s cybernetic arm hissed as he adjusted his grip on a heavy shock-baton."I’m looking for The Iron Lung," Eka said, his voice flat."The Lung? You got any credits, or are you just looking for a place to die?""I’m here to fight."The guard burst into a gravelly laugh, clutching his stomach. "You? You look like a stiff breeze would snap your spine. What's your rank, kid? G? Is there even a rank that low?""I'm unranked," Eka lied, though technically, F was as close to unranked as it got. "Does the house take a cut of the registration fee, or

Chapter 5: Isabela CruzThe lobby of the Ascension Authority’s regional branch was a cathedral of glass and white marble, a stark contrast to the rust and oil-slicked puddles of the slums. Eka Pradana stood in the center of the hall, feeling like a smudge of grease on a silk sheet. He tugged at the collar of his shirt—the best one he owned, which still had a faint, stubborn stain of Shadow Hound blood near the hem."Name and purpose of visit?" the receptionist asked, her voice as polished and cold as the desk she sat behind."Eka Pradana. I’m here for the... uh, Special Potential Scholarship interview?"The woman didn't even look up. Her fingers flicked across a holographic interface. "Room 402. Elevators are to your left. Don’t touch the glass.""Right. Thanks for the tip," Eka muttered.The elevator ride felt like being launched into orbit. When the doors hissed open on the fourth floor, the air smelled of ozone and expensive air fresheners. A woman was leaning against the wall dire

Chapter 7: Not a BugThe broken fiber-optic cables hissed as they slapped against the concrete floor, sparks dancing like dying fireflies. Eka stood in the center of the warehouse, his chest heaving, though the air didn’t seem to do anything to settle the volcanic pressure building behind his ribs.Somchai stared at the snapped restraints, a piece of dried squid halfway to his mouth. He blinked, then slowly looked up at Eka, his holovisors flickering with rapid-fire data."Okay, so," Somchai said, his voice cracking slightly. "That was about ten thousand credits' worth of high-tensile fiber. Just thought you should know. It’s rated to hold a charging C-rank Behemoth.""I’ll put it on my tab," Eka rasped. He looked at his hands, watching the orange light pulse under his skin like liquid iron. "Somchai, tell me again. Why did someone do this to me? Why the lock?"Somchai kicked off from his desk, his chair spinning twice before he caught himself on a rack of servers. "It’s not just a lo

Chapter 9: BaitThe orange glow between them hadn’t even fully faded when the monitors in the loft began to scream. A jagged, rhythmic pulse of red light flooded the room, turning Isabela’s shocked expression into a mask of crimson."Are you kidding me right now?" Somchai yelled, his fingers blurring across his keyboard as he fought a losing battle against a dozen incoming data streams. "The kiss was a five-star performance, guys, but maybe wait until we’re not on the most-wanted list? Duc just tripped the kill-switch!"Isabela broke the contact, her hand instinctively reaching for the pistol at her small of her back. "What kind of kill-switch, Somchai? Is it a Purge Squad?""Worse," Somchai rasped, his voice cracking as a massive holographic map of the city materialized in the center of the room. "He’s not sending people. He’s opening the gates. Look at Sector 4. The containment pylons just went dark. All of them."Eka’s heart—the phantom organ that no longer beat—gave a cold, sharp