The sky didn't crack; it bruised.
By the time Kaelen stepped out of the Voss-Tech tower, the horizon was no longer blue. It was a deep, nauseating violet, pulsing with a low-frequency hum that vibrated in the fillings of people's teeth. On the streets, the "Face-Slapping" of the board of directors was already forgotten as the first stage of the Great Collapse began.
Panic was a slow-moving virus. People stood on sidewalks, filming the sky with iPhones that were destined to become expensive paperweights in six hours.
Idiots, Kaelen thought, sliding into the back of his armored Maybach. They think it's an aurora. They don't realize the atmosphere is currently being saturated with raw, unrefined Mana.
"Warehouse 14, Elias," Kaelen said to his driver. "And don't stop for the lights. There won't be any traffic laws by dinner time."
Elias, a man of few words and even fewer emotions, nodded. But even he was sweating. "Sir, the radio... it's nothing but static. And the GPS is spinning."
"That's the EMP effect of the Mana-shards entering the upper atmosphere," Kaelen explained, looking at his own hands.
In his past life, his "Awakening" had been painful—a late-blooming Technomancy that only appeared after he'd lost everything. This time, he was ready. He closed his eyes and began the 'Neural-Circulation' technique he'd learned in the future. He didn't wait for the world to change him; he forced the Mana in the air to bend to his will.
Ping.
A blue translucent box flickered in his vision.
[SYSTEM INITIALIZING...]
[Host: Kaelen Voss]
[Core Class: Technomancy (Level 1 - Seed Stage)]
[Alert: Global Mana Density at 0.04%. Awakening in progress.]
Kaelen's lips curled. Most people would have to fight for years to see a System Interface. He had summoned his through sheer willpower and future knowledge before the first monster had even crawled out of a sewer.
The Maybach pulled into the industrial district, a place of rusted shipping containers and the smell of salt and grease. Warehouse 14 was a massive, windowless tomb of corrugated steel.
Standing outside were four men who didn't look like tech moguls. They wore leather jackets, carried heavy-duty submachine guns, and had the cold, dead eyes of people who killed for a living. The Iron Fang Syndicate. The Mafia.
As Kaelen stepped out, the lead guard—a mountain of a man named Boris—leveled his weapon at Kaelen's chest.
"Voss," Boris grunted. "The Boss didn't think you'd show. Especially since your company just went to zero on the news. You got the codes, or are we just here to bury a former billionaire?"
Kaelen didn't flinch. In his past life, Boris had been the one to break Kaelen's ribs during a supply raid.
"I have the codes," Kaelen said, walking forward until the barrel of the gun was pressed directly against his sternum. "But before we trade, I have a question for Viktor."
"And what's that?" a voice boomed from the shadows of the warehouse.
A man stepped forward. Viktor Volkov. He was shorter than his guards, but he radiated a predatory aura. In his hand, he held a glowing, jagged crystal the size of a grapefruit. A Mana-Core.
"Do you know why that rock is getting warmer, Viktor?" Kaelen asked, his eyes locked on the crystal.
Viktor looked down at the core. It was pulsing with a faint, angry red light. "It's been doing that for an hour. My men say it's radiation."
"It's not radiation," Kaelen said, his voice dropping to a whisper as his eyes flashed with a faint blue light. "It's hungry. And in ten seconds, it's going to explode, taking this warehouse and everyone in it with it. Unless, of course, you let me stabilize it."
Viktor's men laughed. "He's bluffing! He's just a suit!"
But Viktor wasn't laughing. He could feel the heat through his gloves. The air around the crystal was beginning to distort. "Stable it? You're a CEO, not a wizard."
"In this new world, Viktor," Kaelen said, holding out his hand, "there's no difference."
The crystal let out a high-pitched shriek. The guards scrambled back. Kaelen didn't move. He reached out and grabbed the red-hot Mana-Core with his bare hand.