The NULL CODEX System

7. The analyst and the ghost

The gray morning light was spreading across Cinder Row like something reluctant, like the day itself did not want to fully arrive. Oren Vask pressed his back against the cold stone of the collapsed wall and watched the woman move through the ruins of his settlement.

Petra Wynn crouched beside him, her breathing shallow and quick. "Who is she?" Petra whispered.

Oren kept his eyes fixed on the woman. "I do not know. But the Codex showed me something about her."

Petra's brow furrowed. "What did it show you?"

"Hold on," Oren said. "Let me ask it."

Oren whispered to himself, his voice barely audible. "Codex. Who is that woman? What is she doing here?"

The cold blue text appeared at the edge of his vision, sharp and clean against the gray morning.

NEW DATA DETECTED. Anomalous biometric signature identified. 

Subject: MAREN DUSK. 

Classification: Class-B Analyst. 

Affiliation: Vael Institute. 

Note: The Institute has been tracking this bloodline marker for twenty years.

Oren read the notification slowly, letting the words settle into his mind. He said quietly, "Her name is Maren Dusk. She is a Class-B Analyst from something called the Vael Institute. They have been tracking my bloodline for twenty years."

Petra stared at him. "Twenty years? That is almost before you were even born."

"I know," Oren said.

Petra asked, "What is the Vael Institute?"

"I do not know," Oren admitted. "Let me ask the Codex."

Oren whispered, "Codex. What is the Vael Institute?"

The cold blue text appeared.

INSUFFICIENT DATA. The Codex does not have complete information on the Vael Institute at this time. Additional data required.

Oren read the notification and shook his head slowly. "The Codex does not know either. It says it needs more data."

Oren turned his attention back to the woman. He watched her move through Cinder Row with precise, deliberate steps. Her dark brown skin was clean and unmarked, and her sharp features were composed and professional. She was wearing clothes that were neat and clean and out of place in the ruins of Cinder Row.

The Division officers who had escorted her were standing at the edge of the settlement, waiting. She had told them to stay back, and they had obeyed.

Maren Dusk was not Division, she was something else entirely.

Oren studied her movements, the way she knelt beside a body and examined it carefully without touching it, and the way her face showed no emotion as she cataloged every detail. She was thorough and methodical, moving from one body to the next with the same careful attention.

Oren whispered, "What is she doing? Why is she looking at the bodies?"

Petra said, "She is documenting them. That is what Analysts do. They come after the Division clears the area and they document everything."

"She is not just documenting," Oren said. "it looks like she is looking for something."

Petra asked, "How do you know?"

"I can feel it," Oren said. "Through the Codex. It is like... like I can feel the shape of what she is doing. She is searching for something specific."

Oren closed his eyes and tried to focus on Maren. He did not know what he was doing, he just tried to feel her presence.

At first, nothing happened.

Oren opened his eyes and said, "I do not feel anything."

Petra said, "Maybe you are trying too hard."

Oren nodded. "Maybe."

Oren closed his eyes again. He tried to relax, he tried to let the Codex work the way it had worked in the tunnel, and he did not force it. He just let himself feel.

This time, something shifted.

Oren felt a presence at the edge of his awareness. It was faint, like a shadow in the distance. He said, "I think I feel something. But it is very faint, so I cannot really see it."

The cold blue text appeared.

“PASSIVE SENSING: ACTIVE. The Host is perceiving the biometric signature of the target. 

Current perception level: minimal. Further ability upgrades will be available through mission completion.” 

Oren said, "Okay. I can feel her now, but just barely. It is like seeing something through fog."

Petra asked, "What does she feel like?"

Oren concentrated. He said, "Different. She feels different from the Division officers. Her signature is... layered. Like there is something underneath it."

Oren whispered, "Codex. Why does she feel different?"

The cold blue text appeared.

“ANALYSIS: Subject MAREN DUSK's biometric signature contains anomalous layers. This suggests the subject is not operating under a standard classification. The Codex recommends caution. The subject may not be what she appears to be.”

Oren read the notification slowly. He said, "The Codex says she is not what she appears to be. There is something hidden about her."

Petra asked, "What does that mean?"

Oren shook his head. "I do not know. But I am going to find out."

They watched Maren continue her work. She moved through the streets with the same methodical precision, kneeling beside bodies, examining them, standing, and moving on. She did not flinch at what she saw, and she did not hesitate. She just moved forward.

Oren said, "She has done this before. She has done this many times."

Petra asked, "How can you tell?"

"She does not react," Oren said. "She just works. She is not shocked or upset, she is just... precise."

A Division officer called out from behind Maren. "Analyst Dusk, the sweep has been completed. There are no survivors."

Maren did not turn around. She continued her work. "I will determine that myself."

The officer said nothing else.

Oren watched Maren stand and move toward the end of the row. She was heading toward the old man's house. The one with the green door.

Oren said, "She is going to the old man's house."

Petra asked, "Why?"

"She must have found something," Oren said. "Or she knows something about it."

Oren watched Maren stop at the entrance to the old man's house, and she examined the ground outside the door. She knelt down and ran her fingers over something in the dust.

Oren whispered, "She found our footprints."

Petra's brows furrowed, "What?" She asked.

"Our footprints," Oren said. "She found them. She is examining them right now."

Oren watched Maren pull a small device from her jacket and photograph the footprints. She did not call for the Division escort.

Oren said, "She is not sharing what she found. She is keeping it for herself."

Maren stood and pushed the green door open. The hinges groaned, and she stepped inside.

Oren said, "She is going in. She is going into the old man's house."

Petra asked, "What is she looking for?"

"I do not know," Oren replied. "But it seems like she is looking for something specific."

Oren looked at the side of his eyes where the system's cold blue text always appeared, "Codex. Can you show me what is happening in the house?"

The cold blue text appeared.

“PASSIVE SENSING: ACTIVE. 

The Host can perceive the subject's presence within the house. However, detailed perception is currently limited. The Codex recommends observing visually where possible.”

Oren nodded, "Okay. I will just watch."

Through the window of the old man's house, Oren could see Maren move through the dark interior. He could see her stop near the center of the room, he could see her kneel down, and he could see her trace something on the floor with her fingers.

Oren said without taking his eyes off Maren, "She found the symbol, and I think she knows what it is."

Petra asked, "How can you tell?"

"Look at her," Oren said. "She is not confused, and she is not surprised. She is just still, like she is recognizing something."

Maren reached into her jacket and pulled out a small device. It was not Division-issue, it was something else. It looked like something older.

Oren said, "What is that? That does not look like Division equipment."

Petra said, "Maybe it is from her Institute."

Oren nodded. "Maybe."

Oren watched Maren hold the device over the symbol. He saw it pulse once with a faint glow.

Oren said, "It pulsed. It responded to the symbol."

Oren whispered, "Codex. What was that device? Why did it pulse?"

The cold blue text appeared.

“INSUFFICIENT DATA. The Codex does not have complete information on the device used by the subject. 

Additional data required. 

Note: The device appears to be keyed to pre-System bloodline markers. 

The Codex recommends caution.”

Oren read the notification slowly. He said quietly, "It is keyed to bloodline markers. That is why it pulsed. She has been tracking my bloodline for twenty years, and she has a device that can recognize the symbol."

Oren watched Maren stare at the symbol for a long time. Her face showed no emotion, but he could see her shoulders tense almost imperceptibly.

Oren whispered, "She is shaken. She does not look like it, but she is."

Petra asked, "How can you tell?"

"Her shoulders," Oren said. "She is holding herself very still, like she is trying not to react."

Maren said something that Oren could not hear. But he saw her mouth move, and he saw her expression shift.

Oren whispered, "She said something. I could not hear it, but she definitely said something."

Maren put the device back in her jacket, and she stood up. She took one last look at the symbol on the floor, then she turned and walked toward the door.

Oren said, "She is coming out. DO…NOT…MOVE."

Oren pressed himself flat against the wall, and Petra did the same beside him. They did not breathe.

Maren stepped out of the old man's house and stood in the gray morning light. Her face was composed and professional, but Oren could see her hands trembling slightly, barely enough to notice.

Maren walked away from the old man's house, and she passed by the place where Oren and Petra were hidden without turning her head.

Oren held his breath. He did not move, and he did not make a sound.

Maren kept walking. She did not stop, and she did not look back.

Oren let out his breath slowly. "She is gone."

Petra asked, "What do we do now?"

Oren watched Maren walk toward her Division escort. He said, "She knows something. She recognized the symbol the same way the Codex recognized it, and she has a device that responds to bloodline markers. She has been tracking my bloodline for twenty years."

Petra asked, "What do you want to do?"

Oren said, "I want to know what she knows."

Petra asked, "How are you going to do that?"

"I do not know yet," Oren admitted. "But I have to try."

Oren whispered, "Codex. Is there a way I can follow her without being seen?"

The cold blue text appeared.

NULLFIELD, TIER ONE: AVAILABLE. Active suppression of biometric signatures within a five-meter radius. 

Duration: sixty seconds per activation. The Host may use Nullfield to avoid detection. WARNING: The Host must be within five meters of the target to maintain suppression. The Host must also pay the memory cost for each activation. Recommendation: Use Nullfield only when necessary.

Oren read the notification slowly. He said, "It says I can use Nullfield to follow her. But I have to stay within five meters, and I have to pay the memory cost every time."

Petra asked, "Pay? Is that worth it?"

Oren shook his head. "I do not know. I do not even know what memory it will take."

Oren looked at Maren walking away. He said, "But I need to know what she knows."

Oren turned to Petra and said, "Let us go. We will follow her, but not too close."

Oren started moving, staying low and staying quiet, keeping to the shadows. Petra followed close behind him.

They moved through the ruins of Cinder Row, staying out of sight, and staying in the shadows. Oren kept his eyes fixed on Maren as she reached her Division escort.

Maren said something to the officers and Oren could not hear the words. He just saw the officers nod, and he saw Maren turn and walk away from Cinder Row.

Oren said, "She is leaving. She is heading back toward the city."

Petra asked, "Are we following her?"

"Yes," Oren replied. "We are following her."

Oren and Petra moved to the edge of Cinder Row. Oren looked back at the settlement where he had lived his whole life. The gray morning light was spreading across the broken streets and the collapsed houses and the bodies that still lay where they had fallen.

Oren thought about his mother's hands. He thought about the symbol on the floor of the old man's house, and he thought about the woman who had been hunting him for twenty years.

Oren turned away from Cinder Row and walked into the unknown with Petra Wynn beside him.

Behind them, Maren Dusk walked toward the city, her dark eyes fixed on the road ahead. She held the photograph of the symbol in her hand. She had been tracking this bloodline for twenty years. And now, she had found the symbol, she had found the footprints, and she had found the ghost.

And she knew, with the certainty of someone who had been hunting for two decades, that the ghost was watching her.