Chapter 4: The Price of Power
The world dissolved into static.
One moment Kade was standing in the cavern, blood steaming off his blade as the Alpha's body collapsed into shards of light. The next, his vision blurred, the system's logout sequence pulling him from Elysium Online.
A sharp hiss filled his ears as the capsule's lid cracked open. Cold air rushed in. The smell of rust, sweat, and burnt circuits followed.
Kade's eyes snapped open. His chest rose and fell in harsh, ragged breaths. For a second, his mind clung to the cave—the growl of the Alpha, the weight of the blade, the warmth of victory. But the ceiling above him was cracked plaster, stained with water leaks. Reality was merciless.
He sat up slowly, every muscle screaming. His body wasn't supposed to register pain from the capsule, not truly. But his nerves told a different story. Bruises he hadn't earned, phantom bite marks that throbbed, lungs that burned as if fangs had punctured them again and again.
Death conversion didn't stay inside the game.
Kade clenched his teeth, suppressing a groan. "Figures… power never comes free."
---
His apartment was barely a box—one mattress, a flickering lamp, a pile of secondhand clothes in the corner, and stacks of unopened bills. The capsule took up half the room, humming weakly like an old beast clinging to life.
His stomach growled, sharp and accusing. He hadn't eaten in… what? A day? Two? He grabbed a packet of instant noodles from the shelf and stared at it. Empty. Just the wrapper he'd forgotten to throw away.
"Damn it."
He slumped back against the wall, pressing a hand to his face. Rent was three weeks overdue. His landlord had slipped another warning under the door that morning. He could hear the neighbor's TV blaring through the thin walls—some news anchor rambling about the Elysium Online championship prize pool climbing to record heights.
He wanted to laugh. Billions pouring into a game, while he couldn't even afford dinner.
---
His cracked phone buzzed.
A forum notification. He hesitated, then unlocked the screen.
[ElysiumNet Global Forum Thread #14473]
"LONE PLAYER SOLO-KILLS BLOODFANG ALPHA?!"
Kade's eyes narrowed. The thread was already exploding—thousands of comments, hundreds of thousands of views.
> "Impossible. That boss needs a full party at level 5 minimum."
"I was there. He died over and over… then just kept coming back. Stronger."
"Who is this Graveborn? Hidden class? Bugged system?"
"Corp guilds are already hunting for him. Whoever he is, he won't stay hidden for long."
Kade scrolled, his jaw tightening. Screenshots had already leaked—his figure standing before the Alpha, blade raised, pendant glowing at his neck. His name wasn't visible, but rumors ran wild.
His pulse quickened. Fame meant opportunity, but also danger. The big guilds didn't tolerate wild cards. If they couldn't recruit you, they'd crush you.
---
Another buzz. This time, a message.
He almost ignored it—spam, probably—but then he saw the sender.
DaxCorp Gaming Recruitment
His hand froze. He remembered them. One year ago, he'd sat in their sterile interview room, heart pounding, hoping for a shot at stability. He'd failed, dismissed as talentless trash.
Now their message read:
> "We've received word of a player using unconventional methods in Elysium. If this is you, contact us. There may be a contract available."
Kade's laugh was hollow, sharp. "Now you come crawling back?"
He deleted the message without replying.
---
His body still ached. Each death left shadows—echoes of claws raking across his skin, a throat closing under crushing fangs. He stood, legs trembling, and staggered toward the cracked mirror nailed above the sink.
His reflection stared back—pale skin, hollow cheeks, eyes sunken but burning with a light they hadn't held before. His muscles twitched, stronger, harder than they should've been. His system wasn't confined to the game. It was bleeding through.
He flexed a hand. For a second, he swore his shadow moved differently, stretching a heartbeat longer than it should.
"Defective, huh?" His lips curved into a grin. "We'll see about that."
---
Hunger gnawed at him again, but there was nothing he could do. The shops closed hours ago, and his wallet was emptier than his cupboards. He collapsed back onto the mattress, staring at the ceiling.
Sleep refused to come. Every time he closed his eyes, he was back in the den, teeth tearing into him, bones breaking, the rush of dying and returning. A cycle burned into his mind like fire.
Eventually, exhaustion won. His body drifted into a shallow, restless doze.
And then—
A voice whispered. Not from outside. From the air itself.
[System Notice: You have been observed.]
[Watcher Tag activated.]
[Quest generated: "The Eye in the Dark."]
His eyes snapped open. His phone screen flickered alive on its own, static crawling across it before the message burned into the glass.
"You do not belong. You should not exist.
Prove your right to continue."
His chest tightened. The letters vanished as quickly as they appeared, leaving the screen cracked, smoking faintly.
Kade sat frozen, staring into the dark. The sound of dripping water echoed in the silence. His reflection in the black glass looked wrong—eyes glowing faint silver, faint cracks of light webbing his skin.
Not just a game. Not anymore.
He stood, resolve hardening like steel. Hunger, poverty, rejection—none of it mattered. Whatever the Watchers were, whatever this broken system had cursed him with, he would master it.
"Fine," he whispered, voice low, steady. "If someone out there is watching… then watch closely."
His gaze slid to the capsule, humming weakly in the corner. His only path forward. His only weapon.
"Because I'm not stopping. Not in this life, not in the next."
He climbed back into the machine, heart pounding, and pressed Login.