The Soul-Code Warden: Rise of the Ghost Heir

Chapter 5: Solitary Sovereignty

"Mapping... Mapping..." the voice in my head whispered, matching the golden text in the void.

"System, is that you?" I croaked, reaching into the blackness.

[Warden Signature Detected. Mapping Sub-Sector: Dark Hole.]

[Area: 400 Square Kilometers. Wing: The Abyss.]

"Four hundred kilometers?" I gasped. "This cell isn't just a box. It’s a network."

"Talking to yourself already, Star-Born?" A raspy voice laughed from the wall. "Most men wait until the third day to go mad."

"I’m not mad," I said, leaning toward the vent. "Who are you?"

"I’m a fragment," the voice said, sounding mechanical. "A memory. A mistake."

[Alert: Data-Log Found. Identity: Warden Silas—Deceased.]

"Silas?" I whispered. "The Warden from the Great Collapse?"

"So, you can read the walls," Silas’s ghost replied. "Impressive. Most just die in the corner."

"I need to get out," I said. "Lucian is coming for my eyes at dawn."

"Lucian is a child," Silas said. "But the Abyss is a furnace. You want out? Take my memories. See what I saw."

"Do it," I commanded. "D******d everything."

[Warning: High Data Load. Neural Strain Imminent.]

"Argh!" I slammed my head against the wall as images flooded my brain.

I saw the layout of the prison. I saw the hidden pipes. I saw the junction where the Scrap Heap turned into the Steampunk Wing.

"There's a passage," I panted, clutching my chest. "Under the floor plates."

"Yes," Silas whispered. "But you’re not alone, Prince. The cameras just went dark."

"What?" I stood up, my heart racing.

"The Warden isn't coming for you," Silas said. "Someone else paid for your head."

The heavy hatch above hissed. It slammed back, letting in a sliver of red light.

"Well, well," a gravelly voice echoed. "Look at the little Prince in his hole."

"Brux," I spat, squinting at the silhouette. "I thought I broke your arm."

"You did," Brux growled, stepping into the light. He had a new metal limb held on by dirty straps. "And now I’m going to break every bone in your body."

"The guards won't let you," I said.

"The guards took the night off," Brux laughed. He hopped down, followed by three men holding vibrating shivs. "No cameras. No witnesses. Just a tragic suicide."

"You think you can take me in the dark?" I asked.

"I have night-vision eyes!" Brux pointed to his glowing red optics. "I can see your heart beating."

"I'm not shaking because I'm scared, Brux," I said, stepping into the shadows.

"Then why are you shaking?" An assassin asked. "Hey, Brux, why is the air getting cold?"

"It’s just the vents!" Brux barked. "Kill him! Now!"

[System Command: Sovereignty Protocol. Law: Intimidation—Amplified.]

"Get him!" Brux screamed, but he didn't move. He was frozen, his jaw locked.

"You said you could see my heart beating," I said, walking toward them.

I didn't use a vial. I just walked through the dark, and every step sounded like a hammer hitting an anvil.

"Stay back!" Brux whimpered. "I'll give you the sector! Just stay back!"

"I don't want the sector," I said, leaning into the light. My eyes were burning like twin suns.

"He's a demon!" An assassin shrieked, dropping his shiv. "Let us out! Open the hatch!"

"The hatch is locked from the outside," I reminded them. "The guards aren't coming back for an hour."

"Arix, please," Brux begged, his voice cracking. "We were just following orders!"

"Lucian isn't here," I said, grabbing Brux’s new arm. 

The metal felt like ice. I squeezed, and the steel began to buckle like wet paper.

"Stop! It hurts!" Brux wailed.

"You liked it when I was on the floor," I said. "You liked it when I was tasting the oil."

"I was wrong! I'm sorry!" Brux cried.

"I'm sure you are," I said. 

I looked at the other assassins. They were huddled in the corner, weeping. The pressure in the room was so thick they couldn't stand.

"What are you?" The first assassin whispered. "You aren't a mundane."

"I'm the guy who’s going to rewrite this prison," I said.

I turned back to Brux. I leaned in close, until our foreheads touched. 

"You think I'm the one who's trapped?" I whispered.

"Aren't you?" Brux gasped.

"No," I said, a slow smirk spreading across my face. 

I gripped his throat, lifting the massive man off the floor. The System roared in my ears with raw power.

"You're trapped in here with me," I whispered.

"Help!" Brux screamed at the closed hatch. "Somebody help us!"

"Nobody is coming, Brux," I said. "Not for you."

[Warning: Warden Signature Approaching. Correction Unit: 30 Seconds.]

"Hear that?" I asked, tilting my head. "That’s the sound of the real Wardens. They don't like visitors in the Dark Hole."

"Please!" Brux sobbed. "I'll be your slave! Just don't let them kill me!"

"I don't need a slave," I said, looking at the floor plates Silas had shown me. "I need a distraction."

"What do you mean?" Brux asked, eyes wide.

I looked at the heavy hatch as the locks began to turn. The red light of the corridor flared as the door started to swing open.

"I mean, goodbye," I said.

I slammed Brux into the other assassins, knocking them into a heap. Then, I dove for the floor plate.

"Arix! Don't leave us!" Brux screamed.

The heavy thud of a Correction Unit’s boots echoed from the hatch.

"Lethal force authorized," the machine boomed.

"Wait!" Brux yelled. "He's over there!"

But I wasn't there. I was already in the crawlspace, sliding into the darkness of the pipes. 

"Target not found," the machine said. "Eliminating secondary threats."

"No! Wait!" 

The sound of gunfire filled the cell, followed by screams that were cut short. I didn't look back. I kept crawling.

"You did it, Prince," Silas’s ghost whispered. "But the Steampunk Wing is even worse. Are you ready for the gears?"

"I'm ready for everything," I said.

I reached the end of the pipe and kicked out the grate. A blast of hot steam hit my face. I stepped out onto a brass walkway, looking down at a city of spinning cogs.

"Welcome to the Clockwork Grave," Silas said.

I looked at my hands. They were still glowing. 

"I'm not here to die," I said. "I'm here to take over."

Suddenly, a siren blared across the entire wing. A holographic screen flickered in the sky.

"Escaped Prisoner: Arix Beaumont," a voice announced. "Bounty: 1,000,000 Credits. Dead or Alive."

"Well," I said, cracking my knuckles. "At least they know my name now.”