The transition through the Over-Void was like being dragged through a sea of static and broken glass. Inside the Ghost-Venture, the walls groaned as the mercury coating absorbed the "Reality-Friction." Then, with a sudden, bone-jarring pop, the static cleared.
Hanging in the black vacuum was Xylos.
It wasn't a sphere. It was a jagged, irregular mass of compressed metal, glowing with the sickly green light of leaking reactors and dying sun-cores. Around it orbited a ring of "Debris-Clouds" frozen oceans, shattered skyscrapers, and the husks of gargantuan space-whales.
[LOCATION: XYLOS - THE SYNDICATE'S DUMPING GROUND]
[ATMOSPHERIC STATUS: TOXIC DATA-SMOG]
[LOCAL GRAVITY: FLUCTUATING (0.1G - 8G)]
"Look at the size of that thing," Bjorn whispered, his face pressed against the viewport. "There are entire mountain ranges made of... are those starship engines?"
"It's more than that," Kenji said, his white eyes narrowing. He could feel the "Texture" of the moon. It wasn't just metal; it was Solidified History. Every piece of scrap on Xylos carried the weight of a deleted world. "This is where the Syndicate throws the things that are too 'Heavy' for the Null-Library. The stuff that won't stay dead."
As the Ghost-Venture entered the debris ring, the ship's sensors went haywire.
[WARNING: DATA-LEECHES DETECTED]
[WARNING: HULL INTEGRITY DECAYING]
Small, spider-like drones made of rusted needles and glowing blue wires began to latch onto the ship's hull. They weren't trying to break in; they were trying to "Read" the ship's code, draining the mercury energy.
"They're scavengers," Mateo said, frantically recalibrating the shields. "But they're not Syndicate. They're... feral. They've been eating the scrap here for centuries."
"I'll handle the pests," Kenji said.
He didn't use a weapon. He stepped onto the outer hull, unprotected by a suit. His Density Soul created a thin skin of violet atmosphere around him. He slammed his hand against the ship's mercury coating.
[SKILL ACTIVATED: PREDATORY RECYCLING (RANK 1)]
Kenji didn't push the leeches off. He "Ate" them. He turned the ship's hull into a digestive organ, pulling the drones into the mercury and stripping them of their "Data-Life." The Ghost-Venture shuddered, its engines suddenly surging with a boost of stolen speed.
[SHIP UPGRADE: SCAVENGER-HULL (PASSIVE)]
[EFFECT: REPAIRS ITSELF BY CONSUMING EXTERNAL SCRAP]
"We're landing in the Crater of Ash," Kenji commanded as he stepped back inside. "I can smell a 'Core-Grade' material down there. Something the Syndicate missed."
They touched down in a valley of ash that felt like powdered lead. As the ramp lowered, the team was met by a group of figures. They weren't mercury Adjusters or Gutter-dwellers. They were "Patchwork-Beings" creatures with four arms, glowing sensors for eyes, and bodies made of a dozen different types of mismatched metal.
[TARGET: THE XYLOS EXILES (RANK 110 - 130)]
"The Ghost-Ship," the leader of the exiles spoke. He had a voice like grinding tectonic plates. His Rank was a terrifying 132. "We saw you slip through the Over-Void. You carry the mark of a Source-Throne, but you smell like the Gutter."
"I'm Kenji," the Smith said, stepping forward. "We're here for the Stellar-Iron."
The Exiles laughed a sound like falling gravel. "The Stellar-Iron is the heart of the moon. To reach it, you must pass through the Compactor-Labyrinth. No one returns from the Labyrinth. Not even the Gods of the Inner-System."
"I'm not a God," Kenji said, pulling his Binary Blade. The blade was currently a dull, matte black, but it hummed with the power of the Seven Stars. "I'm the guy who's going to recycle this moon."
The Exile leader stepped aside, his sensor-eyes whirring. "If you survive the Labyrinth, Scrapsmith, the Exiles will follow you. But if you fail... we will pick your ship clean before your code has finished dissolving."
[NEW QUEST: THE HEART OF XYLOS]
Objective: Traverse the Compactor-Labyrinth.
Reward: Stellar-Iron (Material Grade: DIVINE).
"Kenji," Elara whispered, looking at the Rank 132 leader. "We're only Rank 70-80. We're outclassed. If we go into that Labyrinth, we might not even be able to scratch the walls."
Kenji looked at her, his white eyes softening for a moment. "In the Gutter, we fought because we had to. In the Reach, we fought because we were right. Here, we fight because we're the only ones who know that a Rank 130 machine is just a Rank 1 pile of scrap that hasn't met its Smith yet. Trust me."
As they entered the maw of the Labyrinth a massive, rotating tunnel of grinding gears, Kenji felt a surge of excitement he hadn't felt since the beginning.
This was the Outer Rim. This was where the real scrap was kept.
[LEVEL UP: ??? (STAGNANT AT 0)]
[SYSTEM NOTE: THE OUTLIER IS ACCUMULATING 'LATENT DATA']