[SYNCHRONIZATION: 10%]
The metric had stopped climbing. It sat there, motionless, a number branded into my retina. The absence of physical damage was disturbing. An absolute certainty invaded me: an invisible presence was mapping my anatomy from the other side of a dark threshold.
The blonde woman maintained her position in front of me. Her ice-cold eyes, pale skin, and wind-tousled hair contrasted with the practical lethality of her dark jacket and combat boots. Her posture radiated the discipline of a veteran. She completely ignored the aberrations kneeling on our perimeter, displaying the same absolute disdain toward Marcus’s authority—a detail that ignited my tactical alarms.
"I demand a precise time metric of less than ten minutes," I pressed.
The woman frowned, assessing me harshly.
"Optimize your time and suspend the useless interrogations."
"I require intelligence on this threat."
"You are facing a total invasion." She pointed at the crimson obelisk. "The synchronization is forging a parasitic link between your consciousness and that structure. The process is dormant now, but if it reaches 15%, you will not be able to reverse it."
The mention of the tower generated a discrepancy in my analysis. Marcus intervened, closing the distance between them.
"Explain the situation from the beginning."
She turned her face toward the mercenary leader, distilling coldness.
"My chain of command excludes your authority, Marcus."
"My tone seeks efficiency, not submission."
"Your attitude projects exactly the opposite."
Maya stepped between them, cutting off the hostility with a withering glare.
"We will postpone territorial disputes."
The blonde observed her for a few seconds before yielding.
"My name is Scarlett."
"Gabriel Bowman," I said, processing her identity.
"I know your file, Gabriel. I have been tracking the pulses of your thermal beacon for several hours."
I absorbed the information.
"That explains the swarm’s behavior. The tower has locked onto my position."
"Affirmative." Scarlett conceded the point without warmth. "My current operations seek to decipher the exact reason for that fixation."
I kept my reservations about her intentions, though she represented our only viable source of intelligence amid the apocalypse. Marcus deployed the holographic map on his tablet, pointing to an underground entrance.
"Define the method to abort the link."
Scarlett answered while keeping her eyes fixed on me.
"The subsoil houses a main distribution conduit for Rupture energy. If we sever it before the synchronization completes its first phase, the process will go dormant. Not cancelled—dormant. But it will buy you time."
Marcus enlarged the metro tunnel schematic.
"Location confirmed. Confirm the reliability of your intelligence."
Scarlett pointed to a specific coordinate on the map.
"I have field experience in that sector. I executed an infiltration after my own initial synchronization."
Maya raised her gaze, astonished by the revelation.
"Confirm your survival of that event."
Scarlett took a few seconds to answer, letting a shadow cross her steely gaze.
"I still question the integrity of my own survival."
That confession accompanied me during our descent.
The catacombs radiated suffocating heat. The concrete walls displayed a network of pulsing scarlet veins, pumping energetic fluid.
[Energy infrastructure detected.]
[Composition: Condensed Rupture + terrestrial materials.]
[Estimated function: Distribution.]
[Note: This network predates the current Rupture event. Origin unknown.]
The interface omitted the usual missions and rewards, limiting itself to deploying pure intelligence. The System had changed. It was no longer the mission interface; now it was dissecting me like a specimen.
"Your interface displays atypical functions," Scarlett observed, analyzing my reaction.
"Confirm the energy distribution infrastructure."
Scarlett nodded slowly.
"Our Systems operate under different architectures. Mine emerged after my first synchronization; it projects raw data whose decoding is a constant challenge."
"We share the same learning curve."
"I deeply disagree." She glanced at me sidelong. "Your algorithm possesses evolutionary capacity. The tower displays an adaptation pattern exclusive to you. That’s why it wants you. That’s why it’s hunting you. You’re not just a Bearer—you’re a Bearer with a System that can grow. The towers have never encountered that before."
The deep sound of heavy breathing cut off our conversation. Maya raised a closed fist.
"Imminent contact."
A colossal aberration emerged from the darkness. I identified the morphology of a Rupture Devourer, but this specimen multiplied the mass of the one we killed at the station. Plates of black chitin armored its anatomy, crossed by fissures oozing red light.
[Rupture Devourer.]
[Status: Altered.]
[Prolonged exposure to Rupture energy.]
[Warning: Unstable core.]
Scarlett drew her tactical knife and issued an immediate restriction.
"Preserve its life."
"Justify that suicidal order."
"Analyze its pectoral cavity."
I fixed my gaze. The beast’s breathing pulsed in perfect sync with the main conduit. Its biology functioned as a containment seal; exterminating it would detonate the accumulated charge, shooting my synchronization to one hundred percent in fractions of a second.
The creature let out a guttural shriek and charged.
I threw myself to the right flank, dodging the impact that crushed the wall behind me.
"Focus the assault on its left flank!" Maya ordered.
The scanner confirmed the vulnerability.
[Energy accumulation located.]
The anomaly represented my only tactical advantage.
"Scarlett, execute the maneuver!"
She intercepted the order on the fly. She slid through the beast’s blind spot, touched a massive pipe, and released her kinetic pulse. The steel shot out like a missile, striking the monster’s flank and forcing it to spin on its axis.
I seized the breach and charged at the main conduit. I raised the metal bar and unleashed all my strength.
CLANG!
The structure vibrated harmlessly. The beast regained its balance and turned to tear me apart.
"Resume the assault!" Maya bellowed.
I delivered a second brutal impact.
CLANG!
A microscopic fissure ran along the pedestal. The monster lunged at me. Scarlett intercepted its trajectory, activating her ability on the creature’s exoskeleton to ruin its center of gravity.
"Complete the extraction!"
I delivered a third devastating impact.
CRACK!
The support collapsed. A crimson shockwave swept the underground vault.
[SYNCHRONIZATION: 10%.]
[Warning: The conduit has been severed. The synchronization process is now dormant. It will not resume unless you approach another Tower.]
"Tactical deployment, fall back!" Scarlett shouted.
The creature roared in pain, striking the asphalt. The fractured conduit entered a critical overload phase.
"We need to sever the flow, avoid total destruction." I scanned the perimeter. "Maya, right flank!"
She ran to the indicated position, followed closely by Scarlett. I finished the cylinder’s base with two sharp blows. The concrete gave way, abruptly interrupting the plasma torrent. Silence reigned for an eternal instant.
[SYNCHRONIZATION: 10% — LOCKED.]
[Status: Dormant. No further progression.]
Scarlett lost all color from her face.
"The severing worked. The process is dormant. But the Tower knows you now. It will remember you. And it will find you again."
I stood frozen, processing the weight of her words.
The interface rebooted, projecting a completely alien format. The gamification windows disappeared, replaced by a clinical scheme designed by an entity trying to dissect my humanity.
SURVIVAL STATUS
User: Gabriel Bowman
Physical condition: Stable
Fatigue: High
Injuries: Multiple contusions
Dehydration: Mild
TACTICAL ATTRIBUTES
Strength: 9
Speed: 10
Endurance: 10
Reflexes: 9
Perception: 12
RUPTURE METRICS
Adaptation: 8%
Tolerance: 6%
Resonance: 4%
ABILITIES
Analysis — Level I
Adaptation — Active
Sensory Adaptation — Active
CONNECTIONS
Unknown Tower — 10%
Unknown Entity — Unidentified
[Note: Attribute scale — 5 is baseline human. 8-10 is peak human. 11-15 is enhanced Awakened. 16+ is beyond current measurement.]
The screen confirmed my harsh reality: I was barely above peak human. A single-digit difference separated me from a simple tactical error. But I was no longer the same person who had started that night. The System had changed me. And the numbers proved it.
"Report the visual projection," Maya demanded.
"The System displayed my vital statistics."
Scarlett stepped forward.
"Run an analysis on me."
I focused my scanner.
[Partial access.]
SCARLETT
Physical condition: Stable
Fatigue: Moderate
Injuries: Unidentified internal scar
Attributes: Strength 12 | Speed 14 | Endurance 11 | Reflexes 15 | Perception 13
Main Ability: Vector Redirection (Estimated Mastery: High)
Anomaly: Not compatible with current classification.
Scarlett read the holographic report and clenched her jaw.
"The anomaly label is unacceptable."
"I share your assessment."
The scan on Maya yielded a standard profile with Kinetic Perception and attributes: Strength 10, Speed 12, Endurance 9, Reflexes 14, Perception 11, confirming that the System’s capabilities possessed strict recognition limits. That algorithmic vulnerability represented my only hope.
The interface projected a final cascade of data.
[SYNCHRONIZATION COMPLETED.]
[Connection established.]
[Origin: Unknown.]
[Warning: The connection is not with the Tower. It is with something else. Something older.]
I analyzed the terminology.
"The algorithm omits the tower as the point of origin."
Scarlett raised her gaze, distilling contained panic.
"Because the emitter belongs to a completely different category. I confirmed that vocal signature during my own assimilation."
The voice invaded my skull, cold and absolute.
"You are not the pioneer in this link."
I fixed my gaze on Scarlett. She nodded slowly, validating the psychic intrusion.
"Who are you?"
"I am what was here before the towers. Before the Rupture. Before your kind learned to walk." The voice paused. "You are a Bearer. But you are not the first. And you will not be the last."
Before I could demand answers, the conduit lighting went out abruptly. A low-frequency hum shook the concrete walls.
[External connection detected.]
[The Entity has identified the user.]
[Threat level: Indeterminate.]
[Note: The Entity is not classified as hostile. It is not classified as friendly. Its motives are beyond current analysis.]
Scarlett sheathed her tactical blade with urgency.
"Evacuation is mandatory. Immediately."
"I demand your complete report right now."
She held my gaze with crushing gravity.
"The revelation of that intelligence in this perimeter guarantees our death."
A dull impact reverberated from the depths of the tunnel. Three rhythmic, slow, devastating knocks shook the asphalt beneath our boots.
Toc. Toc. Toc.
Maya cocked her rifle. Scarlett fixed her eyes on the oppressive darkness.
"The link operates bidirectionally." The blonde woman stepped back. "Now that the Entity possesses your coordinates, the hunt has just begun."