2025-12-21 04:39:50The beast lunged the moment the restraints disengaged.
Ryker didn’t move. Not because he chose not to. Because his body suddenly forgot how.
Muscle locked in place. Breath stalled halfway in. His feet felt nailed to the floor, as if the ground itself had decided he was finished. One heartbeat passed.
That was all it took. A massive blow hit his face.
It wasn’t a strike so much as an ending. Something vast and heavy collided with him, and the world snapped sideways. His body lifted, light and unreal, carried by force rather than will. For a fraction of a second, he was airborne, suspended in nothing.
Then he crashed into the concrete floor with great force. Air tore from his lungs in a violent rush. His back slammed down hard enough to rattle his teeth. Pain arrived late, thick and spreading, rolling through his skull. His vision fractured into color and noise.
He lay there, stunned, staring at the ceiling he couldn’t focus on.
Move, he told himself.
His arms trembled as he tried to push up.
Then—another hit landed.
Harder.
The impact cracked against his face and snapped his head back. Light burst behind his eyes, sharp and blinding. His jaw screamed. Something warm filled his mouth. He tasted blood before he understood what it was.
Laughter echoed faintly in his head. Or maybe that was the ringing.
The chimera stepped back.
Its massive frame shifted slowly, deliberately. Claws scraped against the reinforced floor with a sound that made Ryker’s skin crawl. It wasn’t rushing him anymore. It was watching. Measuring. Enjoying the distance it had created.
Ryker dragged in a breath that burned all the way down. His lungs felt bruised. His hands shook as he forced himself upright. The room tilted. His vision swam, edges darkening, but he stayed on his feet.
Barely.
He raised his arms. The stance was wrong. Too slow. Too loose. But it was all he had. Attack position, even if his body didn’t believe in it.
The chimera lunged again.
Faster this time.
Ryker lifted his guard.
The impact shattered it.
The force crashed through his arms like a wrecking ball. Bones in his hands exploded under the strike, sharp white pain erasing everything else. His wrists twisted at angles they were never meant to. His arms collapsed uselessly against his chest.
He went down.
The sound that tore out of him didn’t feel human. His breath left him in a broken gasp as his body hit the floor again, harder than before.
He lay there.
Broken.
Hands numb. Arms useless. Pain so loud it drowned out thought. The chimera loomed above him, its breath hot and wet, spilling over his face. It didn’t attack right away.
It waited. Patiently.
A blue glow cut through the haze. A screen burned itself into his vision.
RECOVERY POTION AVAILABLE.
USE?
The words were clear. Clean. Detached.
Ryker didn’t hesitate.
“Yes.”
The answer barely formed before the pain vanished.
It didn’t fade. It didn’t dull.
It disappeared.
Bones slid back into place with a sickening smoothness. Flesh rewove itself, knitting together as if nothing had ever broken. Strength flooded back into his limbs. Breath returned, clean and full, like it had never been stolen from him.
He was whole.
Behind reinforced glass high above the arena floor, Dr. Victor Clark leaned forward in his chair. His fingers tightened against the railing as he watched him suddenly recover.
“I guess he can do everything,” he murmured, voice low, impressed despite himself.
The screen in Ryker’s vision shifted.
30 COINS AVAILABLE.
PURCHASE ITEM.
DAGGER — SHIELD
Ryker didn’t think.
“Shield.”
The system ignored him.
A dagger formed in his hand instead.
Cold, simple, and balanced. Light enough that it felt unreal, like it might vanish if he loosened his grip. Ryker stared at it for half a second, confused, fingers tightening around the hilt.
What was he supposed to do with—
The chimera attacked.
This time, there was no pause. No testing. No curiosity.
Only murder intent.
It came at him with everything it had. The weight of it distorted the air. Heat rolled off its body in waves. Its eyes burned with intent so sharp it felt like pressure against Ryker’s skin.
The system reacted instantly.
MURDER INTENT DETECTED.
ELIMINATE TARGET FOR COMBAT POINTS.
Another window opened, hovering over the chaos.
Two choices.
INCREASE POWER.
INCREASE SPEED.
Ryker chose speed.
The screen vanished.
The chimera was already at his face.
And then—
It wasn’t.
The world slowed.
Not stopped. Just dragged, like it had been submerged in thick liquid. The chimera’s claws cut through the air toward him, but Ryker saw every inch of their path. Every ripple in the muscle. Every fraction of intent.
He moved—fast and efficient.
He slipped aside by a hair’s breadth, the claws passing where his skull had been a moment earlier. Heat grazed his skin, blistering, then healing just as fast.
His body felt lighter. Sharper. Each step landed exactly where it needed to. Each breath cut clean through his chest. It felt borrowed. Temporary. Dangerous.
He dodged. Barely.
The air screamed where he had been.
Ryker tightened his grip on the dagger and moved forward. He felt like he was riding the air itself, carried by momentum rather than muscle. His feet barely touched the floor as he closed the distance.
He struck.
The blade sank into the chimera’s head.
Not deep enough.
The creature roared, sound shaking the walls, and slammed into him with all its weight. Ryker hit the wall hard enough to crack reinforced concrete. Once. Twice. Again. Each impact drove the breath from him, rattling his spine, smearing red across his vision.
Blood spilled into his eyes, thick and blinding.
His legs buckled.
The world dimmed.
His knees gave out.
Then everything went quiet.
Ryker didn’t fall. He drifted.
It felt like sinking into deep water. Sound muffled. Pain distant. His thoughts loosened, unraveling into something older, something deeper. His body moved without command, without fear.
He straightened, stepping forward. And drove the dagger through the chimera's skin.
Once.
Twice.
Again.
The movements were precise. Merciless. No hesitation. Limbs separated cleanly. Flesh split without resistance. The chimera never touched him again. It didn’t even have time to understand what was happening.
When it was done, the pieces hit the floor one by one.
Ryker collapsed.
Red covered him. His own. The beast’s. It didn’t matter anymore.
Dr. Clark ordered a check on him.
Boots thundered closer from every direction. Orders shouted over one another. Hands grabbed him, rough and urgent, lifting him, dragging him away from the ruined arena.
Scientists flooded the room, voices overlapping, frantic, excited, terrified of what they had just seen.
One of them looked up at Dr. Clark, eyes shining with something close to awe.
“I think this one will go beyond our expectations.”
Dr. Clark watched Ryker’s unconscious form being carried away. His smile was thin. Calculated.
“We’ll see.”
Previous Chapter
Latest Chapter
CHAPTER 16: Dead Men Don't Answer
Ryker barely had time to turn before the man’s voice carried down the corridor, smooth and faintly impressed.“I didn’t think you’d be able to defeat my precious work.”Ryker stopped.The man with the scar stood a few paces away, hands folded behind his back, posture relaxed as if he were inspecting equipment rather than standing over the remains of a dismantled weapon. His eyes lingered briefly on his subject, then lifted to Ryker’s face.“But now that I’ve caught you,” the man went on, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth, “I’ll configure you to be my loyal dog.”Ryker said nothing. His chest rose and fell steadily, his senses still sharpened from the fight. “Since we’ve not been formally introduced,” the man said, inclining his head slightly, “I’m Dr. Stark Wilson.”The name settled into the air.At the same moment, Ryker’s system flashed fully into view.STATUS: STABLEMETA-NEUTRALIZATION: PARTIAL FAILUREHis eyes flicked briefly to the notification, then back to Stark. The
CHAPTER 15: God's Hands
The man with the scar didn't wait for an answer.“So,” he said lightly, already turning away, “I’ll leave the room to you two.”The door slid shut behind him with a dull metallic sound that lingered longer than it should have. The silence that followed was heavier than before, thick enough that The big man moved.He stepped forward in slow, measured strides, boots heavy against the floor. There was no rush in him, no wasted motion, no visible anger. Just intent. Ryker straightened, brushing his side once where the earlier blow had landed. The pain was there, dull and persistent, but manageable. He took a step back, eyes tracking the man’s movements, cataloging distance and angle the way instinct demanded.That was when he noticed it.At first, it was subtle. A faint distortion at the edge of his hearing, like static caught between stations. It grew sharper as the man came closer, a constant, unnatural hum that did not belong to muscle or breath or blood. Ryker’s brow furrowed as he
CHAPTER 14: Red In His Eyes
“There’s no way I’m leaving without you,” Ryker's voice thundered enough to rattle ears.Henry lay on the floor where he had fallen, one hand pressed uselessly against the metal band locked around his neck. The green light pulsed steadily.“Ryker,” Henry said, low. “Don’t be—”Ryker closed his eyes.The noise faded. The alarms, the shouting, the scrape of boots against concrete all dulled as his focus narrowed inward. He took a slow breath, felt it settle, and when he opened his eyes again, the system unfolded across his vision.Data scrolled clean and sharp.Armory access opened with a silent confirmation.Ryker filtered fast. Then he stopped.SHORT SWORD.He selected it without hesitation.Metal formed in his hand, solid and balanced, the weight familiar as it settled into his grip. He rolled his wrist once, feeling the edge align with his movement.Across the room, one of the men laughed.He had a long knife scar cutting from the corner of his mouth toward his ear, the skin pulled
CHAPTER 13: Extraction Point
Ryker slowed his steps as they moved deeper into the hideout, his hand lifting slightly to signal Henry to stop. The corridor ahead was narrow, lit by a single strip of flickering white light that buzzed faintly overhead.“We do this quietly,” Ryker said without turning his head. “As quietly as possible.”Henry walked beside him, hands loose at his sides, expression relaxed in a way that never meant what it looked like. “You keep saying that.”“I mean it,” Ryker replied. “Your power lights up rooms like fireworks.”Henry hummed. “Funny. Last time I checked, you were the one who jumped out of a chopper without a parachute.”“That was necessary.”“So is this,” Henry said lightly.Ryker stopped and held up a hand.Ahead of them, the hallway opened into a wider stretch. Light spilled out unevenly from overhead fixtures. Voices drifted through. Laughter. The scrape of metal on concrete.Ryker leaned just enough to see.Four guards clustered around a makeshift table. Cards scattered across
CHAPTER 12: Missile Lock
The rotors thudded overhead in a steady rhythm that sank into Ryker’s bones.The chopper cut through the clouds, metal humming beneath his boots, the cabin lit dimly by the glow of the interface screens lining the walls. Across from him, Henry lounged back in his seat, one leg stretched out, fingers drumming idly against the armrest.“You’re unusually quiet,” Henry said. “I don't think that's a good sign.”Ryker didn’t answer.He swiped the tablet dark and leaned his head back, eyes closing against the steady pulse of the rotors. The noise faded into something distant, like waves crashing far away.The memory came uninvited.His mother’s voice, tired but warm, calling his name from the kitchen. His sister sitting cross-legged on the floor, braiding scraps of string together and declaring it a crown. The cramped living room. The cracked walls. The laughter that had filled it anyway.They had been happy. It hit him hard enough to make his chest ache.Then the system screamed.WARNING.
CHAPTER 11: Before The Next Assignment
Ryker stepped out of Dr. Clark’s office with the tablet still glowing in his hand.The door slid shut behind him with a soft mechanical hiss. He didn’t slow. His eyes skimmed the screen as he walked, the familiar layout of mission data scrolling beneath his thumb. Coordinates. Timelines. Clearance codes. The kind of information that never surprised him anymore.The corridor stretched ahead, long and quiet, polished to the point where the lights above reflected faintly off the floor. His footsteps echoed back at him, measured and controlled. He welcomed the silence, as it gave him space to think.“Ryker.”The voice hit him hard enough to stop him mid-step.Not because it was loud. Because it was familiar.His grip tightened around the tablet before he turned. His stomach twisted, sharp and immediate, the kind of reaction that came from old instincts he’d never managed to bury. He turned slowly, already knowing who he would see.Damon stood a few paces away. He looked exactly the same.
You may also like
I AM THE MASTER OF UNLIMITED DOLLAR SYSTEM
MELODEAROSE28.3K viewsEast Meets West (Cultivation World)
OROCHIsBLADE28.8K viewsVillain steal the Heroines
Autistically20.9K viewsThe Hidden Heir Billionaire System
Cindy Chen87.4K viewsSystem Within: Rise Of Frank Williams
Olugbengapens641 viewsThe Billionaire Scientists’ System:Ten Geniuses. One Mission
Clare Felix746 viewsThe Juggernaut System
Kai Lennox 410 viewsThe Skill Imitator
scarfaced1.8K views