3026 AD, northern New York State, on the edge of the Appalachian Mountains.
The midday sun scorched the gravel-strewn slum streets, where rusted tin shacks twisted in the heat, casting fragmented shadows. The air reeked of a noxious mix of diesel, garbage, and disinfectant—this was a microcosm of countless "quarantine zone peripheries" across the North American continent. Two decades after the Third Global Conflict, residual nuclear and magnetic pollution seeped into the soil, and the shadow of the Genetic Corrosion Virus (GCV) clung like a leech, leaving everyone here living on borrowed time.
At the end of the street, a black figure lay motionless on the blistering ground. Karen Walker was wrapped in a faded tactical jacket, the fabric soaked through with sweat and clinging to his lean yet muscular back. He had maintained this posture for a full day and night; his chapped lips were cracked and peeling, his pale cheeks streaked with dust and dried blood, but beneath his lowered lids, a smoldering flame lingered in his eyes.
"Another abandoned GCV infected, I suppose?"
"He's probably not going to make it. That woman last week lay here just like this—she was already cold when they found her."
Passersby's whispers cut like poisoned needles into Karen's muddled consciousness. He wasn't infected, yet he felt more desperate than any victim—his sister Ella lay in a makeshift tin hut, GCV having eroded her lungs and gene strands. Doctors said she wouldn't survive the month. His parents had been killed three years earlier while rescuing victims in a post-war disaster zone, leaving nothing but a note reading "Pfizer Genetic Anchoring Agent GX-07" and a legend about the game Divine Descent.
To find that vial—capable of anchoring the virus's genes and putting it into hibernation for a decade—he had sold all his possessions, even fought underground gaming battles, until members of the Morgan Consortium broke his ribs and dumped him in this slum. His citizenship had long been revoked for defying the Consortium's forced enlistment, leaving him with no legal way to access medical care or official relief.
"Mommy, look! He looks like he's dying..." A blonde little girl tugged at her mother's hand, her sapphire eyes filled with worry. She clutched half a bottle of iced cola, droplets of condensation dripping through her fingers.
"Stay away, Lily!" The woman roughly pulled the girl behind her, stepping back in alarm, her voice trembling. "Did you forget what Daddy said? GCV spreads through any bodily fluid—one touch and you're dead!"
The girl was dragged away, her clear cries scattered by the hot wind. Karen smiled bitterly. North America's post-war quarantine policies had long turned hearts colder than tin shacks; kindness was the most expensive luxury here.
Consciousness faded, and the burning pain in his lungs intensified. He seemed to see Ella's pale little face floating before him, her voice echoing: "Karen, I want to see a world without the virus."
Just as he was about to sink into darkness, soft footsteps stopped in front of him.
"Sir? Sir, wake up!"
The sweet voice was as refreshing as iced cola, chasing away some of the swelter. Karen struggled to lift his lids, and through blurred vision, he saw a girl in a pale yellow dress squatting before him. Her linen hair was tied in a ponytail, her forehead damp with sweat, clinging to her smooth skin. She held a military canteen, her eyes brimming with anxiety.
It was the same little girl, Lily. She had sneaked back while her mother wasn't looking.
"I don't have water, but here—take this." Lily brought the canteen to his lips, and cool water with a faint mint flavor slid down his parched throat. "My daddy's a doctor. He says as long as there's breath, you never give up."
Karen drank greedily, the cool liquid reviving his dying body. He looked up, and his gaze cleared enough to see her face—around her neck hung a small Divine Descent gaming device, a sleek silver bracelet design glinting faintly in the sun.
"You... have a Divine Descent device?" Karen's voice was hoarse, like sandpaper rubbing together.
Lily nodded, her big eyes filled with curiosity. "Daddy says the game launches in three days—everyone in the world can join! People from the Morgan Consortium even came here to hand out devices."
Morgan Consortium.
Karen's heart jolted. He remembered his parents' note, and rumors from the underground gaming circuit: the Morgan family held the last vial of Genetic Anchoring Agent GX-07. A gene-targeted drug developed by Pfizer over a decade, it could anchor GCV's core gene strands, stopping its relentless corrosion of human DNA and granting patients a ten-year window for treatment. And the Morgans were using it as leverage—for their heir Sophia's future.
"Thank you." Karen strained to prop himself up, his fingers digging into the gravel. "Can you tell me your daddy's name?"
"I'm Lily Cole, and my daddy is Dr. Marcus Cole!" The girl grinned, revealing two tiny tiger teeth, and pressed the canteen into his hand. "Mommy's calling me! You have to stay alive, okay?"
Lily's figure disappeared around the street corner. Karen gripped the canteen and staggered to his feet. His ribs throbbed, but the fire in his chest blazed brighter. Marcus Cole—the doctor who treated GCV patients for free in the quarantine zone—might hold a clue. And Divine Descent was his only hope.
He stumbled toward the tin hut, each step feeling like walking on a blade. Pushing open the creaking wooden door, he saw Ella lying weakly on the bed. When she spotted him, a faint smile touched her pale face. "Karen, you're back."
Karen hurried to her side, squatting down and taking her cold hand in his, his voice gentle yet fiery with resolve. "Ella, just hold on a little longer. They say fate has marked you for death—but I don't believe in fate. I'll find the Genetic Anchoring Agent, I'll beat this game, and I'll get us out of here. Your life, my fate—they're mine to command."
Sunlight streamed through the cracks in the tin walls, casting dappled shadows on the ground. Karen looked down at his sleeping sister, placing the canteen on the bedside table. His eyes sharpened like an eagle's. He knew the Divine Descent launch in three days would be his battlefield. No matter how powerful the Morgan Consortium was, no matter how dangerous the game's depths—he had to win. For Ella. For his parents' unfinished wish. And for that glimmer of light in this post-war wasteland.
Divine Descent launch countdown: 72 hours.