The control room inside Damien's newly claimed base was quiet but charged with energy. Holographic screens floated in the air, displaying raw system data, glowing city maps, and blinking alerts. Much of it was corrupted or unfinished, but to Damien it was potential. It was the beginning of something massive.
Nova sat on the ground near a flickering terminal. Her eyes scanned the lines of shifting code while her hands manipulated thin strands of light, locking down security protocols. The air buzzed softly with every completed link. Her presence reminded Damien that although this world was alien, he was no longer alone.
At the center of the room, Damien stood before a circular table of suspended light. The map projected above it showed several broken districts. Most were gray, unclaimed and quiet. Two glowed blue, his and the one claimed by the figure known only as the Revenant. Several others blinked red, indicating volatile zones with rising system corruption.
He touched one of the gray districts. A small message appeared.
System Fog. Activity unknown. Entry discouraged without Tier Two authority.
He stared at the message for a long moment.
"Can we scan these fogged districts?" he asked without looking back.
Nova replied without hesitation. "Not yet. Until your system rank increases, they stay off the radar. You need more territory, more activity, or more allies."
He already knew what that meant. The system had told him earlier. Acquire two allies. He had one.
He turned to Nova. "Do you want to be official?"
Nova did not stop typing. "I already am."
A soft chime rang through the room.
New Ally Registered: Nova
Ally Trait Detected: Tactical Mind
Base Efficiency Increased by Twelve Percent
Damien allowed himself a slight smile. He liked when things moved quickly.
A second message followed.
Ally Slot One Filled
Remaining: One
A separate screen blinked red. It was a file, marked with a name he had not seen before.
Candidate: Myles
Class: Ghost
Current Status: Engaged in Combat
Damien opened the file and read the summary. Myles operated out of a collapsed tunnel in the eastern ruins. He was quiet, efficient, and known for slipping through corrupted zones that killed most others. His file had only one note on behavior.
Respects strength. Follows only those worth following.
"I want to meet him," Damien said.
Nova stood. "You will need to move quickly. That tunnel floods every twelve hours. We have two left before the next purge."
A glowing path extended from the floor, tile by tile, forming a bridge through the open wall of the base. Damien stepped onto it, and Nova followed behind. The city lights dimmed the further they traveled, and the buildings around them cracked with age and distortion. This was not part of the controlled zone. This was code long abandoned.
Nova spoke quietly. "This area is unstable. Stay close."
They moved quickly. Time ticked away.
After twenty minutes, the terrain shifted. Walls bent in unnatural shapes. Remnants of old security drones twitched in the dirt, long since broken. Static filled the air like a fog.
Then Damien heard it.
A metallic screech. A short thud. Something heavy falling.
They pushed forward until the path ended at a shallow crater of flickering light. At its center, a young man stood over the remains of a corrupted system beast. He held a shard of white energy in one hand, calm and controlled.
He turned when he heard them.
"Visitors," he said without surprise.
Damien stepped forward. "Are you Myles?"
The man nodded. "Who are you?"
"Someone building something that matters."
Myles studied him. No emotion, just focus.
"And what do you want with me?"
Damien met his gaze. "I want to offer you a place in something bigger than this broken system."
Myles waited.
"Then speak," he said. "And make it worth my time."