*Camp Jupiter – Docks*
Kenji stared out at the mist rolling off the bay. His system had been flickering all night.
> *SYSTEM WARNING: UNRECOGNIZED SIGNAL DETECTED*
> *Fragment Network Integrity – Compromised (3%)*
> *Foreign Code Signature: "CHAOS_PRIME_001"*
His breath misted in the air, though it wasn't cold.
A shadow passed behind him.
"You feel it too," Aurum said, stepping beside him. "It's not just the fragments anymore."
Kenji nodded. "Something *else* is pulling strings."
---
*Camp Half-Blood – Same Time*
Annabeth flipped through a scroll unearthed from Chiron's restricted vault. The symbols were older than Olympian script.
"They're not Greek," she murmured. "Not Roman. These are *pre-Titan.*"
Behind her, Chiron's hooves shifted.
"That language predates memory," he said. "Chaos tongue. Used only by those touched by… *the Void beyond Erebus*."
Annabeth paled.
Then a flare burst from her satchel—the *Solar Fragments* Kenji had entrusted her with briefly. They pulsed, rejecting something unseen.
> *ALERT: CHAOS PRESENCE DETECTED NEARBY*
> *Safe Zone: Breached*
---
*Unknown Location – Cult of the Fractured Star*
Robe-cloaked figures knelt in a ruin lit by violet flame.
"The fourth fragment is near," said their leader, face hidden beneath obsidian glass. "And so is *he*."
"Kenji," hissed the followers.
A symbol burned behind them—an eclipse wrapped in swirling tendrils.
"Soon, he'll either *join* us… or be broken."
---
*Train Ride Back – En Route to Camp Half-Blood*
Kenji stared at his HUD. The new message had arrived without a source.
> *PRIVATE SYSTEM MESSAGE: "You are not the only player."*
> – Would you like to initiate Chaos Trace?
> – Cost: 25 HP
> – Risk: Unknown
> – Reward: Hidden Data
He hesitated… then accepted.
---
*Kenji's Mindscape – System Trace Active*
He stood in a glass void, surrounded by glitched code and floating system symbols.
A figure emerged—tall, cloaked in corrupted energy. No face. Just a grin made of fractured light.
> *"Hello, Kenji. Welcome to the game behind the game."*
---
*End of Chapter 25*