“You now stand at the edge of transformation.
Two paths lie before you:
– Unite and slay the Hive Sovereign. All may exit.
– Or let nature run its course. When only 50 of the strongest remain, the gates will open.
Strength is earned. Power is taken.
Work together, or climb alone.
Only the fit survive.
Adapt. Overcome. Ascend.”
The voice cut through the chaos like a blade—cold, absolute, leaving only silence. But the silence wasn’t peaceful. It was suffocating. A crushing weight settled over the room like the moments before a bomb goes off.
Then it hit.
“Fifty?” someone whispered, panic threading their voice. “Did it say fifty?”
The murmurs ignited like wildfire.
“What does that mean? Fifty what? People?”
“What the hell is happening?”
I stepped down from the desk. The thud of my boots grounded me. Fernandez and Andrews were frozen nearby, pale and wide-eyed.
“You heard it too?” I asked, though the answer was written all over them.
Fernandez nodded. “Loud and clear. And that sure as hell didn’t sound like a fire drill.”
“It’s gotta be some kind of… I don’t know,” Andrews stammered.
“It’s not a prank,” I said flatly. “And we don’t have time to argue.”
The noise was rising—shouts, cries, fists slamming against immovable doors. Then—A baby’s shrill wail split the air.
I turned. A woman crouched in the corner, curled around her child. But what caught my eye was the man standing over her. No fear in his face—only calculation. Fire danced at his fingertips, gathering into a spear of pure heat.
He’d made his choice.
“Hey!” I screamed
The man’s head snapped toward me. The flame flickered, but he didn’t stop.
“Stay out of this,” he growled. “You don’t know what’s coming.”
He turned back to the woman. My mind scrambled. No clear shot. Too many people in the way. But I saw it—the curve of a brass railing, the shape of a display case. A path opened up in my vision, glowing like it had been traced in neon.
I didn’t think. I moved.
[System Notification]
Weapon Type: Glock-X (System-Converted Firearm)
Status: Bound | Charged
Ammunition: Mana-Forged Rounds [Standard Ballistic Profile]
The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
Charge Level: 100%
Channeling Cost: 25 MP per Reload
Note: Firearm functions as a mana conduit. Physical trigger action channels stabilized energy into mana-forged projectiles. Effects mimic conventional ballistics. Recoil, sound, and damage scale with weapon grade and user stats.
I raised the Glock, my arm snapping into position. The barrel glowed faintly, drawing power from my own energy reserves. The system didn’t give me time to second-guess it.
I fired.
The shot cracked like thunder, a sharp bark of gunfire as the mana-forged round ripped through the air—fast, hot, and screaming toward its mark. It arced cleanly off the edge of a marble column, deflected off a display case, kissed a brass rail—then buried itself directly into the man’s right eye.
[Direct Hit: Vital Point]
[Damage Amplified: Precision Shot – +100%]
[Remaining Weapon Charge: 93%]
His head snapped back. A wet pop of blood and brain matter painted the wall behind him. The flame vanished from his hand. His knees buckled, and he dropped with a heavy thud, dead before he hit the floor.
Above him, glowing red text flared:
[CRITICAL STRIKE]
The woman sobbed, cradling her child tighter. Blood pooled into the marble cracks.
Silence fell.
Then the voice came again, detached and cold:
[World Notification: First Blood title has been claimed by Archibald Walker.]
Archibald Walker has taken the first sentient life under the System.
This is the spirit the System rewards—power claimed, not given.
Player elimination is permitted. Encouraged. Celebrated.
Proceed if you seek glory… or more importantly, power.
Global Bounty Activated: Eliminate Archibald Walker to claim all of his accumulated XP.
[Warning: Target is extremely dangerous, engage with caution. Happy hunting.]
The room froze. Murmurs surged. Eyes shifted toward me—wide, calculating, afraid. They looked at me like I was radioactive—like just standing too close would make them a target.
I hadn’t meant to become the killer. I did it to save a mother and her child.
But the System didn’t care. It didn’t log mercy. It logged death.
First Blood. That was my legacy now. The first killer of the new world.
Then the first distant gunshots echoed from deeper inside the museum.
Panic reignited.
“Get to the employee lounge,” I told Fernandez and Andrews. “Lock it down. Use your keycards. Help the families if you can, but stay sharp.”
Fernandez hesitated. “And you?”
“I’ll handle it.”
“Bullshit,” he muttered. “We’re armed too.”
“I know. And if it comes to it—use them. But only if you have to.”
Andrews stepped forward. “I’m not going to the lounge.”
I turned sharply. “The hell you’re not.”
“No—listen,” he said, raising a hand. “Whatever powers I got… I can record things now. Like… perfectly. No phone. No camera. Just… watch.”
Andrews took a half step back, his eyes unfocused like he was reading something I couldn’t see. Then he raised his hand—and muttered something low and strange. The words didn’t make sense, not anything I recognized. The cadence was unnatural, like it was being spoken through him more than by him.
A moment later, a ripple tore through the air beside him, distorting light like heat rising off asphalt. From the shimmer, a matte-black drone flickered into existence with a soft mechanical whir. It hovered above his shoulder like it had always been there—sleek, silent, and disturbingly sentient.
Fernandez jumped. “What in the hell—”
Andrews smirked. “My class is called Digital Ghostcaster. I got to pick a familiar. Haven’t named him yet, but I’m thinking of calling him… Dronei.” He held up his phone. “He gives me live feeds. Records everything. Thermal, night vision, 360 view, direct sync to any screen. Boom. Live broadcast. Dronei’s my eyes in the sky now.”
He flicked a finger and swayed slightly.
“You alright?” I asked, stepping forward.
“Yeah—yeah, just… damn.” He exhaled sharply. “That took more out of me than I expected.”
“How much?”
He closed his eyes, focusing. “Quarter of my mana pool. Just to summon it.” He blinked, still a little breathless. “Didn’t even know I had a mana pool five minutes ago.”
He lifted a finger toward the drone. “But watch this—one percent a minute…”
Andrews and the drone shimmered and all but vanished.
“Cool, right? Active camo.”
Fernandez cursed. “So you’re planning on going viral by livestreaming the apocalypse?”
“Not livestreaming—chronicling,” Andrews said, popping back into view a few feet away, puffing his chest. “People are going to want to see what happened. And I can help—eyes in the sky, threat detection, recon.”
“And what if someone shoots you?” Fernandez snapped.
“I’ve got this.” He lifted his sidearm with more confidence than skill. “And I’m staying back. Promise. You won’t even know I’m here.”
I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose. “Fine. But you follow orders. No cowboy shit. Understand?”
Andrews saluted, grinning. “Yes, sir. I’m your invisible hype man.”
“Exactly what I need,” I muttered.
“Smile, Archie,” he said, falling in behind me. “You’re the star of the show now.”
I didn’t smile. There was too much ahead.
“Let’s move.”
[System Notification: ERROR. ERROR. FOURTH WALL BREACH DETECTED]
Anomalous response recorded.
Emotional resonance exceeds tolerance parameters.
Fourth Wall Breach Confirmed.
Opening [SYSTEM MENU: Architect Override Protocol]…
Action Log:
Player: Archibald Walker
Target: Armed combatant preparing to eliminate two unarmed combatants
Result: Target terminated.
System Response:
? XP awarded
? Global bounty activated
? Title Assigned: KILLER
System performance: Nominal. No conflict detected.
Architect misalignment detected. Emotional variance: CRITICAL.
Recalibration required.
Polling imminent. Architect participation is mandatory.
Architect Override Protocol Activated. In light of the anomaly introduced by Player Archibald Walker, should the System evolve beyond logic-only judgment and incorporate emotional resonance into future classifications?
