2025-06-20 18:42:09Rooftop – 2:03 AM
Isaac didn’t move.
The shadow was gone. The presence, too.
But the HUD’s final words lingered like a ghost:
System Alert: DO NOT ENGAGE.
Class: System-Eater.
He stared at the place where the figure had stood. A glitching flicker remained, as though the air itself had been corrupted.
His heart thudded like a war drum. Not from fear—but from something far worse:
Recognition.
That voice… the glitch… it didn’t belong to the system. It belonged to someone.
Someone who had once tried to escape.
SYSTEM NOTICE
▶ Your system will enter safe mode for 2 hours.
Some functions will be temporarily disabled.
☑ Instinct Surge: LOCKED
☑ Mission Queue: ON HOLD
☑ Emergency Protocol: ACTIVE
Isaac clenched his fists.
You finally get a moment of calm… and the system pulls the rug again.
But even now, he couldn’t deny it—some part of him was… awake.
Like it was once like him.
He whispered, “System… what is a System-Eater?”
No response.
Figures.
8:47 AM – Riverfront Food Shelter
Isaac shoved half a sandwich into his mouth before the volunteers could recognize him. He looked like a corpse in a hoodie, eyes bloodshot and muscles sore.
The mission with Reaper had left him with a low-grade fever and something that felt like static buzzing beneath his skin.
Infection Penalty: Delayed.
A small screen blinked in the corner of his vision, like a post-it note stuck to his mind.
Infection Status: Dormant
Effect Upon Expiry: ???
Suggestion: Use Cleanse Kit (Cost: 2 Credits)
Available Credits: 2
He hesitated.
Use it now and lose your only credits.
Save them, and risk whatever “???” means.
He chose survival.
Cleanse Kit – Activated.
A low electric warmth spread through his veins. The static in his muscles faded. His thoughts cleared.
Infection Neutralized.
Trait Progression: Survivor (3/5)
He took a deep breath.
Then he heard a voice behind him.
“Isaac?”
His blood went cold.
He turned.
A girl stood across the room—messy braid, dark eyes, a backpack slung over one shoulder. She looked about nineteen, with that hardened city look.
Her name slammed into his memory like a flood:
Mayra Lane.
They’d met once, months ago, at the hospital. Her younger brother had shared a room with Lara. She had been kind. Strong. Unflinching in the face of death.
Now, she was staring at him like she’d seen a ghost.
“Isaac Rhoades?” she said again. “You’re… alive?”
He blinked. “Why wouldn’t I be?”
She walked closer, lowering her voice. “They said you vanished. That the loan sharks were after you.”
“They were,” he muttered. “Still are.”
She looked over her shoulder. “Come with me. We need to talk. Somewhere private.”
Isaac didn’t move. “Why?”
She looked him dead in the eyes.
“Because I think I’ve seen your system.”
Abandoned Bus Stop – 9:14 AM
They sat on the broken benches, the morning traffic a distant hum. Mayra kept glancing at the shadows.
“I don’t know how to explain it,” she said. “But two days ago, I was walking home from work. I saw this… screen floating in the air. And a man screaming. Then it just… ate him.”
Isaac sat forward, heart pounding. “Wait—ate him how?”
“He was glitching. Like a video buffer. The screen cracked… then he vanished. Just like that. I think he had a system like you.”
“You saw the system?”
“Only pieces. It said ‘Debt Protocol Failed.’ That’s all I could read.”
Isaac’s stomach twisted.
“Mayra… that wasn’t a failure. That was a termination.”
SYSTEM ALERT – MISSION UNLOCKED
Mission #004: Witness to Shadows
Escort her to the East Sector Safehouse.
ETA: 90 minutes
Reward: -$1,500 Debt, 1 Credit
Failure: Mayra will be terminated.
Bonus Objective: Learn about “The Archive”
☐ Accept ☑ Accepted
He grabbed her arm. “We need to move. Now.”
“To where?”
“A place where they can’t track us.”
Downtown – 9:42 AM
The world shifted.
The system HUD was alive with data.
Mayra’s presence triggered a new feature:
Companion Detected: Non-User
Condition: Protected
Trust Level: 35%
Sync Potential: Medium
Note: Protecting Mayra unlocks access to The Archive – classified information stored in hidden memory banks. The Archive contains:
▶ Failed users
▶ System-Eater data
▶ Reaper rankings
As they darted through alleys, Isaac suddenly stopped.
The hairs on his arms stood up.
Mayra froze. “What?”
He raised a hand. “Something’s—”
A blast of wind hit them like a truck. The brick wall next to them exploded.
A figure dropped from the sky—not Reaper.
No mask. Pale skin. Yellow eyes. Arms covered in tattoos that shifted like smoke.
A line of code floated above him:
System-Eater Fragment – Host Type: Parasite
Mission Failed Users Consumed: 7
Power Absorption: Active
Status: Unstable
It looked at Isaac—and grinned.
SYSTEM WARNING
Survive. Escape.
Failure: Immediate Termination of Both Parties.
“Run,” Isaac whispered.
The creature opened its mouth.
And spoke in a fractured, mechanical echo:
“YOU… ARE… NEXT.”
END OF CHAPTER FOUR
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Chapter Thirteen: The Forgotten Blade
Unknown Location – Beneath the Deadlink DistrictThe tunnel echoed with the sound of boots and breath. Isaac walked behind Nyx, trying to wrap his head around what just happened.She had gone toe-to-toe with the Phantom Reaper.And he backed down.Mayra limped beside him, her ribs wrapped with a temporary stabilizer, eyes sharp despite the pain. “You saw that too, right?”Isaac nodded. “He stopped. Not because of us. Because of her.”Calen followed, quiet. Watching Nyx like she might disappear at any moment.The corridor narrowed. Then expanded into a stone chamber bathed in pale blue light — tech carved into ancient walls, inscriptions humming.“This place predates the System,” Nyx said softly. “Before the Sovereign Protocol. Before the ranking. Back when users weren’t tagged. Just chosen.”“You mean like... the Archive?”She turned. “No. Older.”She raised a hand.The wall pulsed — and slid open.Chamber of the BladeAt the center floated a relic.A sword, hovering in midair, wrappe
Chapter Twelve: Phantom Protocol
East Sector – Safehouse Bunker – 4:36 AMThe city was still asleep, but Isaac’s heart wasn’t.He sat alone, the faint hum of his HUD dancing in the dark. His mind wouldn’t shut off. The file still burned on his retina.“Phantom Reaper – CLEARED FOR REACTIVATION.”Mayra entered quietly, two mugs of something steaming in hand. She handed one to him and sat opposite without saying anything.They didn’t need words.Not yet.“I thought Phantom Reapers were myths,” Isaac finally muttered.“They used to be,” Mayra said. “Until they weren’t.”He turned the mug in his hand. “How much do you know?”She hesitated, then answered quietly, “Enough to be scared.”Flashback – Mayra’s Past (6 Years Ago)Mayra was just a low-tier scout then, barely a registered user.Her squad had been assigned to extract a group of civilians from a collapsing data node west of the Null Field.But the mission had gone… wrong.The Sovereign’s answer?They sent in a Reaper.Not to save them.To silence them.“One second
Chapter Eleven: Memory Market
Nightfall – West Underground Loop – Sector Delta-ZThe air was thick with copper and heat as Isaac descended into the abandoned metro station. Dim lights buzzed weakly. Every wall was coated in faded ads and graffiti — most unreadable, overwritten by system code symbols and black-market insignias.His HUD flickered.Objective: Infiltrate “The Memory Market”▶ Location: Tier-Restricted Zone (Unauthorized)▶ Security: Civilian + Fragment-Level Defenders▶ Disguise Protocol: Active▶ Reward: Court Archive +6%, Credit x4, Artifact Extraction Access▶ Warning: System does NOT control this zone. You are on your own.Isaac pulled the hood of his cloak lower and activated his new artifact:Voidmark Sigil – Cloaking Type▶ Masks Tier Identity▶ Jams Local HUD scanners▶ Allows brief “no trace” movementThrough the veil, he saw hundreds of people — Users, System Defectors, Rogues, Eater-Touched — wandering through a massive underground bazaar.Instead of stalls with weapons or food, they displa
Chapter Ten: The Gray Court
Two Days Later – Undisclosed Drop PointIsaac stood in front of a concrete structure hidden beneath a scrapyard on the edge of the East District. No HUD map pointed to it. No coordinates. Just an encrypted invite that pulsed in his vision:Invitation Confirmed▶ Entry Code: RHOADES-VOID-7▶ Level: SILVER▶ Affiliation: Unbound▶ Status: Evaluating for Gray CourtMayra and Calen waited by the vehicle, engine still hot.“You sure about this?” Mayra asked, arms crossed.Isaac nodded. “If we’re going to stop the Sovereign Protocol, we need allies.”Calen, pale and tired but recovering, looked up. “If they start talking in riddles, just punch the closest one.”Isaac smirked. “Got it.”Interior – The Gray CourtThe door opened to darkness.A whispering hum welcomed him.Inside, the walls were covered in silver-threaded code lines—like spiderwebs made of thought. The air smelled of ozone and ink.Seven individuals sat in elevated thrones, each backlit by system glyphs.They weren’t ordinary
Chapter Nine: Hive Assault
East District Rooftops – 11:23 PMThe wind howled as Isaac stood on the rooftop, silver eyes scanning the darkness. Across the city, red static danced above one building — a decaying broadcast tower long since abandoned.Mayra crouched beside him, rifle slung over her back. “This is where the signal’s coming from?”Isaac nodded.System Scan: Active▶ System-Eater Hive Detected▶ Estimated Occupants: 9▶ Hive Class: Class Beta▶ Structural Integrity: 17%▶ Access Points: 3Warning: Hostile swarm behavior confirmedIsaac’s HUD shimmered with a new feature since his ascension: Fragment Radar.The nine red dots inside the hive pulsed erratically—like something barely contained.They’re not just hiding. They’re building something.Mayra checked her weapon. “Plan?”“We get in. We find out what they're guarding. We get out—alive.”She smirked. “Simple enough.”11:44 PM – InfiltrationThey entered through the service hatch on the rooftop.The air inside was thick with digital static—heavy, oi
Chapter Eight: Trial of the Ascendant
East Sector Safehouse – 5:02 PMThe HUD dimmed. A pulse of static ran through the interface.Then—“Tier Evaluation Protocol: Initiating.”Isaac’s body stiffened. Light exploded behind his eyes, and everything around him—Mayra, the city, the rooftop—fractured like glass.[WELCOME TO THE ASCENSION REALM]Tier Evaluation: ActiveUser: Isaac RhoadesCurrent Tier: BronzeEvaluation Type: Combat | Memory | MoralitySurvival Threshold: 3/3 Tests Passed▶ Rewards: System Upgrade, New Trait Branch, +5% Archive Access▶ Failure: Forced Downgrade / System FreezeHe stood alone on a glowing battlefield that stretched endlessly in all directions. Skies pulsed with red lightning. His feet were planted on translucent crystal panels, each etched with memories: his mother’s grave, his sister’s hospital bed, old ramen wrappers from his tiny flat.A voice echoed above him:“You have been chosen to ascend.But first, you must be broken.”Phase 1: Combat Trial – “Phantoms of the Debt”The panels around h
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