The Safe Zone dimmed early that evening. Power flickered. Terminal screens glitched.
*-----------------------------------*
[DAY 2: ENDING PHASE]
[Next Cycle In: 6 Hours, 12 Minutes]
*-----------------------------------*
Aron sat cross-legged in the back corner of the parking structure, going through his inventory. He had added two new items from today's mission: a tactical belt and a mini-map chip. The flashlight didn't work, but he could use it as a club if necessary.
His eyes kept drifting back to one object:
[Broken Gear Cog (Tier ???)]
He didn't know what it did. The system had given it to him after that first accidental kill. It felt like a bookmark—like the world was waiting for him to return to that part.
Nearby, Orochi worked on his blade using salvaged oil. Ben sat on a stack of crates, writing in a scavenged notebook with wide eyes. Sarah leaned against a pillar, flipping through her interface.
They hadn't talked much since returning. There was tension—not from distrust, but anticipation.
Something was coming.
And then—
*-------------------------------------------------------------*
[SYSTEM ALERT: EMERGENT CONTRACT DETECTED]
*-------------------------------------------------------------*
The notification slid across Aron's HUD like ice.
But it wasn't his.
The others paused too.
A deep chime echoed through the structure as a ripple of light surged from the terminal node. Three names blinked into the air above it:
[PLAYER: AISA – Contract Accepted]
[PLAYER: GREG – Contract Accepted]
[PLAYER: NELL – Contract Accepted]
"What the hell?" Orochi muttered.
"Contracts… with who?" Sarah asked.
The terminal replied:
*-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------*
[CONSTELLATION: The Severed Scale has granted Player AISA improved balance protocols.]
[CONSTELLATION: The Crimson Forge has given Player GREG a strength-searing burn bonus.]
[CONSTELLATION: The Thirsting Choir welcomes Player NELL. Voice modulation skill acquired.]
*-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------*
People gathered around, whispering. The air buzzed with curiosity and fear. Each player who accepted now had a mark glowing faintly above their left wrist—a unique symbol etched in starlight.
Aron backed away from the crowd.
He didn't get an offer.
But something else flickered in his corner of the interface:
*--------------------------------------------------------*
[The Masked Archivist is watching.]
[Constellation Comment: "You don't need bargains when you already carry echoes."]
A second later, his screen stuttered.
[Achievement Progress Updated: UNKNOWN]
[EXP GAINED: +5 – Observation Triggered]
[Current EXP: 220/500]
*--------------------------------------------------------*
He shut the screen quickly and pretended to stretch.
Later, as the structure settled again, Aron stood near the exit ramp, staring into the darkened ruins of the city. Neon signs still flickered, the letters unreadable—half eaten by vines or blood.
A low beeping came from his pocket.
It wasn't from the system.
It was his broken phone.
The screen lit up—flickered—then showed a single line of static text:
Do you remember the stairs?
He almost dropped it. But then the message vanished, and the device went dark again.
No signal. No battery. No explanation.
He pulled up the mini-map chip. The terminal synced with it automatically:
*-----------------------------------------------------*
[Map Sector Uploaded: Zones 4A–4E]
[Anomaly Signature Detected in 4D – Hidden Signal]
*-----------------------------------------------------*
A side mission pinged:
*-----------------------------------------------------*
[SIDE MISSION UNLOCKED: TRACE THE ECHO]
Objective: Investigate signal distortions in Zone 4D
Reward: +10 EXP, Data Fragment
Risk: Unstable Terrain, Glitched Entities
Accept? [Y/N]
*----------------------------------------------------*
He didn't hesitate.
[Y]
Minutes later, Aron slipped through the secondary exit. Sarah noticed and followed quietly.
"You're not going out alone," she said. "Orochi's asleep, and Ben's still shaking."
"I'm just checking something," he replied.
"Exactly why I'm coming."
They crept through the ruins of Zone 4D. The map pulsed faintly, guiding them toward a sub-basement beneath a collapsed metro stop.
Static buzzed louder the deeper they went.
Then, as they rounded the last stairwell—
It appeared.
A silhouette—hunched and twitching at the bottom landing.
Its spine bent in unnatural directions. Its arms dragged behind it like weighted cords. It had no face—only a cluster of blinking red symbols where eyes should have been.
[ENEMY DETECTED: SIGNAL-BOUND SHADE]
Class: Corrupted
Threat: High
Effect: Interference Field – Skills Disabled
It moved without warning.
Sarah swung her baton. Sparks flew. The creature shrieked—like someone screaming through broken radios.
Aron stumbled backward, nearly falling into the stairwell railing.
Sarah fought hard—relentless and trained.
He tried to stay out of the way, but the shade caught him with a wide sweep—its claw grazing his shoulder. He crashed into the wall, dazed.
Before it could finish him—
WHACK
A metal pole slammed into the monster's spine.
Ben stood at the stairs, shaking but upright, holding a rusted pipe.
The shade shrieked—then dissolved into smoke.
*--------------------------------------------------*
[ENEMY DEFEATED – Assisted Kill Registered]
+10 EXP Earned
[Current EXP: 230/500]
*---------------------------------------------------*
They all stood in the darkness, panting.
"Why are you here?" Aron asked.
Ben simply said, "You didn't come back."
Sarah nodded. "Next time? You don't sneak off."
Aron looked at the crumbled floor where the monster had died. In the dust was a shattered fragment:
*---------------------------------------------------*
[Data Fragment – Archive Tag 02 Acquired]
Tier: C – Encoded
Function: Memory Anchor (Locked)
He pocketed it. They returned in silence.
*----------------------------------------------------*
Back in the Safe Zone, the screen blinked:
*-----------------------------------------------------*
[Mission Complete – Trace the Echo]
+10 EXP
Item Gained: Archive Tag 02
[EXP: 240/500]
[Points Available: 1]
*------------------------------------------------------*
He sat by himself again.
Far above him, far beyond the city ruins, the Constellations stirred:
*----------------------------------------------------*
[The Masked Archivist records another deviation.]
[The Glass-Faced Librarian requests permission to view the variable.]
[The Forgotten Pulse observes in silence.]
*------------------------------------------------------*