POV: Rhen
System Notification — Zone 1 Border Approaching
Rhen followed the woman, who insisted her name was Vera, though he did not believe her. Level Unknown — Movement Pattern: Expert. She walked with deliberate precision, a gait honed by repetition, and every step she took seemed premeditated, calculated, like a chess piece moving through danger without touching a single trap. The Zone 1 border came closer, a faint ripple in the world that tickled his senses, and the ambient System field pulsed gently, a low hum that reminded him he was not in Zone 0 anymore. Crossing the border would trigger alerts, but Vera moved as though it was inconsequential; he adjusted to her pace, muscles coiled, senses alert.
SYSTEM ALERT: Unregistered Entity Detected — Companion Level Unknown — Vera
Forty years of memory played in his mind like a repeated cutscene. Zone 0, birth as a Level 0 slave, siphon glitch during maintenance, six hours of unregistered EXP flowing back all at once. Level 1. He had walked out, left the walls behind, and never looked back. System Status: Survivor. Skills Acquired: Stealth 7, Combat 9, Tracking 8. Every action he had taken since then had been measured, rehearsed, perfected. Following Vera now, he calculated every step: distance to border, potential detection, the effect of his aura on Zone 1's weak sensors, the faintest traces of System awareness.
She spoke without hesitation. "The girl in Zone 1 is Mags' person."
He spat a laugh in disbelief. Mags? Dead, insane, or never existed.
SYSTEM NOTE: Conflicting Intelligence — Verification Needed
"All three," she said simply, keeping her eyes forward, stride unwavering. Professional curiosity, he told himself. He was observing, following, cataloging. And yet, instinctively, he mirrored her movements, tracking the faint trace of her System signature even as it remained partially obscured.
Trees began to thin, the Zone 1 border approaching. He adjusted his footing, calculating that the barrier would detect him as Level 44, an anomaly in any restricted area. System Notification: Zone Restriction Violation Potential — HIGH. But nothing stopped him. Every step was precise, muscles coiled, posture ready for either engagement or evasion.
Vera crossed first. No hesitation. No system alerts. Zone 1 accepted her like she belonged.
SYSTEM ALERT: Companion Zone-Level Mismatch — Vera Level Unknown — Crossing Confirmed
Rhen followed carefully. Level 44. Strength: 93, Agility: 87, Endurance: 90. Skills intact. Barrier applied normal checks, but he passed with no penalty. No backlash. Nothing.
SYSTEM ALERT: Zone Entry Successful — Zone 1 — Anomalous Companion Present
Vera turned. Expression neutral, calm, focused. "She's northeast. About two miles. You'll know when you find her."
She turned and walked away. He called after her. "How will I know?"
SYSTEM ALERT: Query Not Responded — Companion Movement Pattern: Continued
"You'll hear the dead walking," she said, her voice firm, leaving no room for argument, no hesitation.
Rhen processed the phrase immediately. Glitch-class necromancer. Undead minions likely present. Potential threat Level: Unknown. Behavioral pattern: Unknown. Engagement: Required.
INVENTORY CHECK: Weapons — Short Sword: 1; Throwing Knives: 12; Smoke Pellets: 5SKILLS ACTIVE: Tracking 8 — enabled; Stealth 7 — enabled; Combat 9 — readySTATUS: Alert; Focused; High Awareness
He adjusted course northeast. Every step deliberate. Dirt, stone, roots — all noted. The faintest sounds appeared: scraping, irregular rhythms, heavy movement over terrain that didn't match wildlife patterns. System could not classify it. Likely undead minions. Level unknown. Quantity unknown. Hostile unknown.
SYSTEM ALERT: Undead Activity Detected — Sound Only — Range 50m Increasing
Rhen slowed, muscles coiled, senses heightened. Calculated distance: 2 miles. Path through shallow valley, moderate risk, sparse cover. Probability of detection by target: Medium-High. Options: Observe, Engage, Avoid.
SKILL CHECK: Stealth Success Probability: 82%REACTION OPTIONS: Continue pursuit, maintain stealth, assess undead pattern
Movement continued. Low grinding shuffle, clicks in dirt, measured steps, unnatural aura — Glitch-class anomaly confirmed. The northeast path revealed subtle patterns: crushed foliage in repeated, measured intervals, faint glimmer in the edges of his vision, unnatural consistency in terrain deformation — something alive, yet not.
SYSTEM ALERT: Glitch-Class Entity Detected — Operator Unknown — Proceed With Caution
He crested a rise. Faint signs appeared — patterns too deliberate for wildlife. Subtle, unnatural aura — confirmed. Low rumble vibrations underfoot, irregular and yet deliberate. Undead? Glitch-class activity? Operator unknown. He read the terrain like a System panel. Each footprint, each crushed branch, each unnatural bend in a tree became data points. Calculations in real-time. Prediction of potential engagement points: three. Escape routes: two. Threat projection: high.
MISSION LOG UPDATE: Zone 1 — Northeast path engaged. Undead detected. Operator suspected Glitch-class Necromancer. Approach method: Stealth — active. Observation — active. Combat readiness — high.
The sound grew louder. Low, grinding, irregular — heavy weight moving over stone and dirt with intelligence. Not random. System could not register strength — likely beyond standard undead Level caps. Approach with extreme caution.
SKILL CHECK: Tracking Accuracy — 95%REACTION OPTIONS: Observe; Engage if threatened; Record data for future action
Rhen advanced. Every movement calculated, every breath controlled. He felt the familiar edge of Zone 0 tactics — anticipating, calculating, planning three steps ahead — and realized this was an entirely new puzzle. Glitch-class necromancer, Level unknown, undead minions in unknown numbers, terrain partially mapped, visual anomalies present, audio anomalies present, threat unknown. Probability of engagement success: 60%. Probability of survival: Medium-High if he does not make mistakes.
INVENTORY CHECK: Short Sword — 1; Throwing Knives — 12; Smoke Pellets — 5SKILLS ACTIVE: Stealth 7, Tracking 8, Combat 9 — enabledSTATUS: Alert; Focused; High Awareness
He continued. Dirt gave way to gravel, gravel to stone. Sounds sharpened — footsteps irregular but heavy, grinding in tempo, calculated. Every detail fed into the subconscious System interface in his brain. He read it like a panel. Every movement, every vibration, every faint glimmer was information. He tracked it. He mapped it. He calculated the unknown variables. He was ready.
CLARIFICATION: Target Confirmed. Engagement Imminent. Undead Sound Confirmed. Approach With Caution.
The valley narrowed. The path sloped upward. He counted subtle movements. Three. Possibly four. Undead minions — numbers unconfirmed, operator unknown. Tactical options: Observe. Record. Prepare for engagement. Minimal risk tolerance.
SYSTEM ALERT: Probability of surprise engagement: HIGH — Prepare accordingly
Rhen's boots adjusted to stone and gravel, movements precise, controlled. Every sense tuned. Data intake constant. System logs updating in real-time. Every crack of stone, every rustle of leaf, every shift in the wind became part of predictive calculations. Distance to target: 1.7 miles. Probability of detection by operator: Medium. Probability of operator noticing deviation in undead formation: Low.
MISSION LOG UPDATE: Engagement window approaching. Operator skill: high. Undead formation: unknown. Tactical adjustment: minimal deviation. Status: Prepared.
The sound of the dead walking grew nearer, a low, grinding rhythm that vibrated through the valley. Rhen adjusted his grip on the Short Sword. The next steps would determine engagement success, survival, and whether the Glitch-class necromancer he hunted would be traced, observed, or neutralized.
OBJECTIVE: Locate Target — Mags' PersonDISTANCE: 1.5 miles northeastNOTES: Undead present, Operator suspected Glitch-class Necromancer
He exhaled, slowed, observed, and moved deliberately, aware that every step brought him closer to the first real engagement in decades — the kind where reflexes, planning, system observation, and calculation mattered more than brute strength. This was not just survival. This was a puzzle layered on top of danger, and he intended to solve it.
SYSTEM ALERT: Engagement Approaching — All Variables Updating — Tactical Readiness: MAX